Auschwitz + Krakow

Today, one of my dreams became a reality....we went to Auschwitz. After years of researching/teaching about this specific camp, it was so surreal for me to go. I was simply beside myself. I walked into the camp teary--barely believing I was here. Since many of the tours were in foreign languages, Carson and I bought a booklet and went around the camp at our pace, reading and learning together. We were one of the last ones to leave tonight and as we looked up, there was a rainbow stretched across the sky. The levels of evil and suffering of the Holocaust are unimaginable, but I remained inspired by the stories of the good people and the resiliency of the human spirit. I feel extra grateful for the religious freedoms I experience today and the opportunity I have to share them with the people I love most! 

I also am so grateful for my Polish man, who, having been here twice before, made this experience so wonderful for me today. He knew how much it meant to me to go and it was one of the first things we did upon arriving in Poland. 

Krakow

We made it to Poland! We rented this cute little car and drove through the gorgeous countryside (on our way to Auschwitz). We stopped by a local store to grab Polish snacks...I couldn't stop laughing at how excited Carson was to show me everything. I snapped this picture (below) to always remind me about this experience...Carson quickly grabbed one of those wheeled carts and excitedly ran through the store reminiscing on the foods he has missed. I can't get over how fun it was to watch Carson in his element. Polish is one of the hardest languages to learn in the world and there he was communicating with everyone like he hadn't skipped a beat. (He saved us SO many times!) He was darling and printed off vocab words for me to learn...all of the countries we went to, this is the one I felt the most foreign. Without Carson, we wouldn't have been able to do and see all that we did. 

After a long day at Auschwitz, we came back to Krakow to sleep. We ate a late dinner here in this courtyard.... with talented musicians, lively chatter, and gorgeous architecture. I was convinced I was in a dream...this was not real life. Here, Carson and I were, across the world enjoying dinner together. It felt so good. 

We came back in the morning, of course, before our train ride to Gdansk to enjoy another lemonade :)

Did I mention that we bought these Polish booties for the baby?! We about died when we saw them...we couldn't resist. I mean, they were only $6! Ah! The cutest souvenir. 

We jumped on a train and headed to Warsaw! -->