gŏđŏ Chronicles of an adventure around the world
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Anne Donovan writes this third column about her family’s worldwide tour. The moment we headed East of France, I felt I needed to stand on guard, to be alert to my surroundings. Like a soldier, I had to fight to understand and to be understood in order to obtain what my family needed. My new duties were issued the moment we stepped onto the train to Berlin. All in- formation, direction and advice were given in German only, with a word or two in Eng- lish. Had it been a smooth ride, we could have probably made it unscathed, but be- cause of delays and engine failure, we were ushered out at a different station by a stern sergeant type of a woman who preferred to tell me that in Germany they speak German (this, in English of course), than to be kind to tourists who clearly did not understand the instructions given on the intercom. But as she outranked me, I swallowed my frus- tration and made my way to the capital city. From metro tickets to museum passes to finding a pair of shoes for my son, we had to be prepared and willing to negotiate the terrain. It was certainly worth our effort as the history surrounding this town is mo- mentous and walking along The Wall, care- lessly moving about from the East side to the West was humbling. For Berliners, how- ever, the Holocaust still seems to be a taboo
subject, yet their Jewish Museum is the best memorial rendition I have ever encoun- tered. The whole building is architecturally designed in such as a way as to reflect upon the fear and the desolation of the Jews as well as the void left by their departure. And from the Jewish tribute in Berlin, we went to Oswiecim to visit the Auschwitz concentration camps, the culminating point of our World War II history lesson. It is a daunting place to say the least, but it is a place where everyone silently reflects and bears witness to how inhuman humans can become. It is also a place that will be re- membered in the heart of every visitor from near or far for a very long time. Living in Krakow was much more than a side trip to Oswiecim for us; the old town of- fered a vibrant culture with an unparalleled simplicity. We have found Poles to be happy and vivacious, always willing to communi- cate with us even if English was not part of their vocabulary. We saw many local fami- lies roaming around the old town on Sun- day afternoon, buying bread, pretzels and oscypek (a traditional smoked cheese made of salted sheep milk) on the streets for a few zlotys. Of course, military vigilance required us to keep our wits about us, which we did, in our usual peaceful Canadian way. Keeping up with the East spirit, we trav-
The End of the Line, Auschwitz, Poland
elled to the unified town of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary and home of the Danube River. Budapest for us was the ground zero of our sabbatical year. This city and more precisely, the bed and breakfast at which we stayed, was the place where the idea for this year was first born. Realiz- ing this dream with our children made our visit to Budapest most endearing. Although construction was everywhere, making even pedestrians detour major boulevards as well as creating a backdrop to every picture, we made the most of it. Going from the Great Market Hall with its many varieties of spicy paprika, its won- derful goulash and finger-licking langos to
Heroes’ Square down Andrassy Ut and to the ever relaxing Széchenyi Thermal Baths, where worries and cares are washed away in a warm 38 degree pool under arches and beams dating from another era, we expe- rienced it all. An evening stroll on Chain Bridge overlooking the lights of the Buda Castle Hill was the perfect way to say fare- well to the city. Armed with our newly acquired skills, we left on a sunny Saturday morning towards the West of Europe once more, where vigi- lance may not be as required but where simplicity is often turned into opulence. Our agenda for the next month: Italia. For more: www.FromOttawa.com
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