Last Day in Krakow

[caption id="attachment_69" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Wawel Cathedral[/caption]

Wawel Cathedral, located on the grounds of Wawel Castle (the castle of the Kings of Poland since 14th century, and the cite of their rule since the 10th century) was the cite of one of our many experiences today.  In front of the cathedral, pictured above, you can see the ruins of a Roman settlement dating many centuries before the kings established their reign in Krakow.  This was definitely a learning day: learning about Polish civil and religious history: highlighting the castle of the kings, the main cathedral, the Jewis quarter (and their forced relocation under one of Polands kings and the extermination of the vast majority of its Jewish inhabitance during WW-II).  It was sobering to realize that - of 68,000 Jewish residents, only a few thousand survived the war, and only 500 remain in the city today.  As we toured the outside of several closed synagogues, we couldn't help but think of the tragedies that happened here.  In a somewhat surreal climax, we paused to listen to the singing of Jewish children emmanating from a Shabbat service, and then ended the day with a wonderful meal in a Jewish restaurant which included listening to a three piece band (string bass, clarinet, and accordian) performing lively Jewish music.