It has been quite an exciting couple of weeks. After returning from spring break, We all settled in to finish out the semester. On Sunday, I ran the half marathon here in Aix-en-Provence. It was my very first ever, and I finished just under my goal of two hours with a time of 1:59.38. Needless to say, I was pretty proud of myself. It was a great way to spend my last full weekend here in France. It has been a beautiful past couple of days. Sunny and in the high 70's each day. My last classes were on Monday, and we received today off in order to study for exams, which start tomorrow. I have only five, and one of them is a take home paper. They shouldn't be too difficult. I've started packing my things up to leave on Sunday. It's very sad, but exciting too. I am going to miss so much about this place. I can't wait to see all my friends and family. It's all bitter sweet.

For our last day in Warsaw, we walked to the Warsaw Citadel. It was built in 1834, to subdue the rebellious city of Warsaw. Unfortunately, the museum was closed. However, we were able to explore the grounds of the former fort. Afterwards, we walked back towards the city along the river. It was a very relaxing day. We  wandered around the Old Town. It was a great way to end our trip. We went out for one last dinner in Poland, and then returned to the hostel. When we left the next morning for our flight, everything was going well. We arrived at the airport with plenty of time. We waited in the line for me to check my luggage, and for Roecker to print off his ticket. It was a very long line, and there was no one working at the counter for quite a while. Finally, we made it to the counter. However, they told us that we were in the wrong line, and that we had to go to another one. When we made it to the desk, they informed us that because of the line at security, there was no way we would make it to the plane on time. We went to the other airlines, but the only two flights to Marseille cost both over 800 Euros. We sat down at a cafe and looked at our options. We realized that the only cost effective option that we had was by train. We went to the train station, bought our tickets, and started our journey. The first leg was six hours from Warsaw to Berlin. Once we arrived in Berlin, we went to the office to buy our next ticket. I bought my ticket, but when Roecker tried to buy his, she said that there were no tickets left. He was able, however, to buy some sort of reservation. We left Berlin for an overnight train to Mannheim. We didn't have beds or anything, so the sleeping accommodation was less than comfortable. From there, we next had a train to Paris. The only problem was that Roecker technically didn't have a seat on the train. We talked to the conductor, and thankfully he allowed Roecker to take the train. We arrived in Paris and from there took a train to Marseille, followed by a bus to Aix. Needless to say, it was quite an adventure. I have never been so happy to be back in Aix after that trip.

Man playing some sax on the street.

Turkish culture festival.

 Warsaw Castle.

 Crosses for those who were executed at the Warsaw Cathedral.

 Memorial to those executed.

 Looking out over the grounds.

 Old Russian Tsarists cannons.

 The main buildings.

 Entrance to the Citadel.

 Park along the river.

 Polish ducks.

 Looking up at the Old Town.

 Main courtyard of the Old Town.

 Mermaid statue. 

 Little parrot in a cage on the street.

 Polish Army memorial inside a church.

We were up early the next day to make the train to Krakow. It was a pretty short train ride. Once we arrives, we bought bus tickets to Auschwitz. Pulling up to the camp, it's not as obvious as you would expect. Admission was free after 3 pm and we decided to do a self guided tour of the camp. It didn't fully hit me until I saw the gate with the infamous words "Arbeit Macht Frei", German for "Work sets you free." Before the war, the camp was home to a Polish Army cavalry unit. Their former barracks were the living quarters for the victims sent there. The camp is still fully standing. Complete with layers of barbed wire, watch towers, and a place for public hangings to discourage escapes. They have turned many of the former living quarters into parts of the museum. Once you enter, a feeling of complete somber and sorrow overwhelms you. What really affected me the most was the hair. In a room, behind a glass divider is 7 tons of hair taken from victims. I am never going to forget seeing the braided pony tails of little girl's hair lying there. Everywhere you go, you see memorials and reminders of the barbaric acts done to those poor people. The buildings are filled with stories of heroism in the face of certain death. People willingly gave their lives to try and save others. One example is St. Maximilian Kolbe. When a stranger was selected to be executed by being sent to the "starvation cell", St. Kolbe volunteered to go in his place. He survived for two weeks before the impatient Nazis executed him by means of a lethal injection. Next we saw the courtyard where executions by firing squad were carried out after Nazi "trials." We finished our visit by visiting the remaining gas chamber and crematorium. Without a doubt, one of the most emotionally powerful and foreboding places I've ever visited. Afterwards, we took the bus back to Krakow. We had a few hours to kill before our train back to Warsaw, so we decided to see some of the city. It's a very alluring city. Unlike Warsaw, it was spared from a lot of destruction by the Germans. Soon though, we were on our way back to Warsaw. Needless to say, a very somber and powerful day. However, I am going to remember it for the rest of my life.

The Polish countryside

Opera house in Krakow. 

 Auschwitz-1 camp.

 75,000 pairs of shoes.

 Pictures of hundreds of victims.

 Baby victim of Dr. Mengele's human experiments.

Posts where prisoners' wrists were hung behind their back. 

 Backstop for executions by firing squad.

 Courtyard where roll call was taken.

 Post built to hang prisoners to discourage escape attempts. 

 Inside the gas chamber.

 The main gate to the camp.

 The main square of Krakow.

 Cathedral in center of Krakow.

 The Paalce of Arts and Science building lit up on our return.