| | My
story begins on Thursday 14 December 2006, when Taily and Eddie I met up in Cracow
for a little pre-TTT evening to get into the swing of this southern Polish city.
A successful rendez vous was completed, a very pleasant dinner was consumed, and
then a small beer or two enjoyed in a couple of the excellent bars around the
Rynek Glówny, or Market Square. The pair parted company reasonably early,
(they think) and returned to their respective hotels for a good kip prior to the
arrival of the team the following day. Alas, Eddie I became a little disorientated
at some point during the evening, and what should have been a leisurely 10 minute
stroll back to his hotel transformed into a rather elaborate expedition, twisting
and turning through the maze of streets from the Rynek Glówny back to his
hotel. | |
Tonsley Time Team 2006 |
Eddie I and Taily were not the only ones to decide that
a swift half was a good way to start the weekend. Indeed, when Anton and Floody
turned up at Rupert's house at 3am for the journey to Stansted, Rupert was still
at his office Christmas party! A story of its own unfolded involving phone calls,
taxis, house keys, ticking clocks, some brisk driving and a lot of coffee. The
following morning saw the arrival of the rest of the Time Team into Cracow, slightly
delayed, but mostly fresh and eager to begin, Rupert aside. Our guide for the
day, Barbara was waiting to get started, so a swift check in to the apartments
and allocation of bed-spaces was conducted with characteristic Floody efficiency,
and then we were off to catch the famous, if a little over egged, exposure of
the altar in St Mary's Cathedral. Barbara was adamant that we should witness this
event, and most of us were probably still a little disorientated, or hung-over,
to grasp the significance of the ceremony. We
were also treated to an explanation of the 'Sounding of the Trumpet' at the Cathedral.
Every hour, on the hour, a fireman plays the Heyna?, a short tune from the tallest
tower of the Cathedral. This tradition originates from the time when a watchman
occupied the tower and observed the Tartars preparing to scale the city walls
at dawn in 1241. The watchman - a fireman - blew his trumpet to raise the alarm
and thus warn the city of the impending invasion. The Tartars fired a salvo of
arrows and the watchman was hit in the throat, ending his warning. To this day,
the trumpeters end their hourly rendition at the same point in honour of the original
watchman. An attempt to take lunch followed, which
was scuppered by a power cut. Undeterred, Barbara steered us to a number of food
stalls in the outdoor Christmas Market which was in full swing around the Cloth
Hall at the centre of Rynek Glówny. It must be pointed out that by the
time the Time Team arrived at the food stalls, Corin had already established himself
as a regular, and was being greeted by the stallholders by name. After this brief
pause for lunch Barbara led us to Kazimierz, the old Jewish quarter of Krakow.
She set a relentless pace, which was impressive, (or concerning) to all, depending
upon just how many swift halves they had enjoyed the previous night! Those familiar
with unofficial Taily Tours in Rome could be forgiven for thinking that they had
only ever indulged in a gentle stroll before now. Indeed, Taily started to have
flashbacks to his 30-miler, as the group was thrashed remorselessly through the
city streets by Barbara. Clearly extremely sprightly, Barbara was also very knowledgeable
- well, she is a tour guide after all - and she continued to explain the historical
implications of Kazimierz, highlighting the Synagogues, cultural centres and the
fact that this part of the city was originally a town in its own right, outside
the walls of Cracow, dating back to 1494. Only in 1800, when this part of Poland
was annexed by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was Kazimierz incorporated into the
city of Cracow. It was here however, in Kazimierz,
that perhaps our Time Team Tour really started to hit the nub of why we had travelled
to this part of Poland, for it was from Kazimierz that we could follow the steps
and the story of Poland's (and the wider European) Jewish population. Today, the
Jewish population of this district is about 100, which is important to remember
and places what follows in some context. When Germany
invaded Poland in September 1939, about 70,000 Jews lived in Kazimierz. About
50,000 people were 're-settled' in other parts of the country, and in 1941, the
Nazis established a Jewish ghetto for Kazimierz's remaining 20,000 Jews in Podgórze,
an impossibly small district of the city, just over the Wis?a River to the south
of the centre. The area was enclosed by a wall, parts of which remain as a stark
reminder. Between 1,000 and 2,000 of the pre-war Jewish population of Kazimierz
survived the Nazis, among them was Roman Polanski, who escaped from the ghetto.
Although his film, The Pianist was set in the Warsaw ghetto, much was based on
his personal experience of life in the Podgórze ghetto of Cracow. In reality,
little of the ghetto remains obvious, save for sections of the wall, but an extremely
poignant memorial has been established at the northern edge, where people arrived
from Kazimierz, crossing the bridge over the Wis?a River. It was at this point
that they were then processed before entering the ghetto, and significantly, on
leaving the ghetto for Auschwitz or P?aszow (another labour / concentration camp
established in 1944). The open square which was used for processing individuals
now contains oversized chairs, representing the administration of so many thousands
of people, most of whom entered and then left this part of the city to their deaths
via this square. Many of the inhabitants of the ghetto
were saved from almost certain death by Oskar Schindler, who owned a nearby factory
and employed the ghetto residents as slave labour, and it was to the factory that
we were led by Barbara. It was strange and a little unreal to see the factory
made famous by Thomas Keneally's book and Steven Spielberg's film. At the time
of our visit, work was ongoing to make the factory more of a tourist attraction,
but a short walk into a semi-industrial area of Cracow to be confronted by Schindler's
factory, much the same as it was in the 1940s was a little surreal. The
team then sprinted behind an irrepressible Barbara back to the centre of the city,
and bade farewell. I think she was probably quite happy to make a break for it,
as many were now starting to feel a little thirsty after the rigours of the day.
Dinner that night was back in Kazimierz, at the traditional Jewish restaurant,
Ariel which is rather famous in these parts. Our evening was enhanced by the Jascha
Lieberman Trio, whose music you can hear to enhance your enjoyment of this short
summary. The other diners at the restaurant took the music very seriously, and
it was necessary for the Time Team to be rather restrained during the performance.
This, of course, did not apply when Jascha and his colleagues finished, and a
second, slightly more impromptu concert took place, with the Time Team winning
the unofficial Eurovision Song Contest with some excellent renditions; along with
some less tuneful but nonetheless very enthusiastic numbers. It was also at this
point that The Shareholders decided to award the first Tonsley Colours to Taily,
and he was visibly moved - or was that just the Hungarian wine he had been drinking
all evening!?! And so it was with full stomachs, hoarse voices and weary heads
that the team repaired to the apartments, ready for an early start on Saturday. An
early start was indeed observed by all, with some taking the opportunity to breakfast
in the Hotel Stary, one of the city's newest and more exclusive boutique hotels.
Woolfy managed to find a bakery and returned to the meeting point laden with pastries
and fresh rolls - thanks for the croissant Woolfy, it was delicious! Our guide
for the day, Marcelina, arrived with our transport and we set off for Auschwitz.
Much has been written about this place, and many
have tried to explain its existence and to provide an insight into what happened
here in our relatively recent past. Don't expect a detailed synopsis here - read
the books, there are plenty of them! What I will say is that the Auschwitz concentration
camp is a symbol of horror, of utter inhumanity, of organized slaughter on a scale
never conceived before (which is frankly staggering), the planned and systematic
destruction of a race of people. The number of people murdered here between 1940
and 1945 is estimated to be between 1,100,000 and 1,500,000. Most were gassed
and their bodies burned. At the end of 1944, towards the final stages of the war,
the Nazis began to destroy evidence of the camp. Documents were burned and buildings
destroyed in an attempt to cover up what was taking place. To give you an idea
of the scale of activity here, over 4 days between 17 and 21 January 1944 around
56,000 prisoners were forced to leave the camp in an attempt to keep them from
being discovered in situ by the advancing Russians. Most died on what became known
as the 'marsz mierci' or death march. Those who remained, either too weak or sick
to have begun the march, were liberated by the Russians on 27 January 1945. It
is not so easy to summarise the day in a few short lines of text. All of us probably
remember slightly different aspects of what we saw. Marcelina was excellent; she
was direct, straightforward and almost dispassionate, but this only enhanced and
emphasized the whole experience. I think the Time Team photographic contingent
captured the essence of what we witnessed much more effectively than my words. As
the sun set we returned to Cracow. After what was quite a somber and harrowing
day, a collective decision was made to take a couple of stiff drinks before supper,
and Roosters bar came to the rescue. Dinner on the Saturday night was taken in
the city's oldest restaurant, Wierzynek, which dates back to the late 14th century
as an eating establishment. The Time Team found themselves in a private room,
which allowed us to enjoy the evening all the more. Excellent food and wine disappeared
all too quickly, and a number of informal speeches were made. In all the meal
was very special indeed, and for some the tour was nearing its conclusion. Six
Time Teamers were taking an early flight home, so a couple of swift halves on
the way back to the apartments served as a nightcap. Others were on a later flight,
so took advantage of the myriad cellar bars around the old city centre. In fact
some of the early shift managed to greet the late shift as they arrived and departed
the apartments. I'm not sure if Giles can remember greeting Rupert as the latter
left for the airport! A quiet day of mooching around
the Christmas Market and grabbing a few last minute gifts was the order of the
day for those still around, before an evening departure back home. If
you would like to try a weekend in Cracow then get in touch, and I will be happy
to recommend places to stay and things to do. If you fancy visiting the city and
taking a trip to Auschwitz, do it as a planned event. It is certainly not the
sort of place to decide to go to as an ad hoc excursion. Taily A
big thank you to Taily for his outstanding organisation and meticulous attention
to detail in hosting this trip. A deserving recipient of the Tonsley Colours! Rob,
Floody, Joe & Woolfy |