Still in Kazimierz, the Jewish section of Krakow

Now at Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camps

There was, however, one room  no one could photograph.  Ironically it proved to be the one that remains with me above all others:

It contained the hair that was shaved from the inmates' heads, the shoes they wore, the suitcases they carried, the pots

One of my most prized possessions is my Father's shaving brush.  He had it from his first shave until it barely had any bristles left, decades later.  It symbolizes every part of his long and lucky life and sits on my dresser.

The Wawel Royal Castle and Cathedral is along the Vistula River.  It was also the view out our Hotel window...

...the same Hotel where our dear friend always stays

Here are other views from atop the Kossak Hotel

It was a short walk to the Grand Square and most everything else

Wawel Castle and Vistula River in the background

Of course, we had to explore The Castle

It was quite the complex.  Unfortunately no photos were allowed inside the actual buildings

Naturally, if there is a Tower, we had to climb it

Views from the top

And if there are local specialties on a menu, we have to choose them

THAT happens to be a pickle.........

Potato latkes

Our friend's favorite place for pastries

Eating her favorite pastry: Zapiekanka

Dining at Hawelka Restaurant, like Queen Elizabeth II, the King of Greece, and numerous Austro-Hungarian Archdukes before us.

The menu is an encyclopedic choice of traditional Polish game and fish dishes served without interruption or reinvention since 1876.

One last look outside our window...

...as the sun has set on our Polish experience...or so we thought...