"The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again" George Santayana.

GETTING UP; MIESCZYSLAW KOSCIELNIAK

A picture of the crowded bunks from an exhibition at Auschwitz.

A variation of a quote I'm sure you've all heard before, Santayana's reference to 'the one' implicates the viewer entering one of the exhibitions at Auschwitz in the harrowing history of the Holocaust. A reminder of the significance of Auschwitz, it speaks for the 1.5 million people murdered at Auschwitz between 1940-45.

90% of those killed at Auschwitz were Jews. Overflow from this concentration camp - an efficient extermination machine carrying out the Nazi's plan to destroy undesirabes - was so great that another camp, Birkenau (Auschwitz 2) was built up the road. These sites are a horrific reminder of the hellish Holocaust legacy.

Visiting Auschwitz was a smothering yet expanding experience. Caught in between times for the English tours, we wandered through the camp grounds and exhibitions. So daunting were the displays, the children's bunker, the death section, that I did not see everything. Nor did I go onto Birkenau or the museums. I didn't feel an overt emotional registration - I wasn't overwhelmed by tears. Looking at the walled passages filled with photos of camp victims was distressing and I felt anxiety for those close to me.

Overloaded by horror after horror I felt smothered. I entered one room with a display of 1950kg of human hair, which the Nazis profited from by selling onto the German textile industry during the War. It was sickening. I apologise if this post seems inadequate, but some things are hard to articulate.

From Krakow to Auschwitz, the bus ride is about two hours. Looking out the window from the plush comfort of the coach at the verdant growth and quaint buildings, it is painful to think that many who were deported to Auschwitz, crampled like cattle in trucks, did not see the same side of Poland.

Oki Doki

So we are in Warsaw, Poland. We've been staying at a wacky hostel called Oki Doki. Listed in the Lonely Planet, this sexy little hostel boasts free internet, colourfully kitsch rooms, a funky bar, cheap washing services and lots more for the weary backpacker. If you want a fun place to stay, it's a great hostel with heaps of perks. Finallly encountered some fellow foreigners too - lots of Americans and Aussies. The first night we shared our room with a lovely Polish lady. We spoke in smiles owing to the language barrier. When she left, she put a chocolate treat on my bed and also kindly returned my journal to the desk. Absent-minded Erin had left it a PC. A wonderful lady indeed.

Warsaw is amazing. Trekking from place to place I'm wonderfully excited but I truly wish I could have innumerable days to explore and absorb these wonderful cities. On our second day we wandered the old town of Warsaw. For a city so ravaged by war, the monuments and stunning facades of buildings which survived show its extensive beauty.

Many have been rebuilt again. Whilst eating our lunch in the old town square, we listened to local music and chuckled with amusement as a lively Polish lady approached all the young men around for a dance and dalliance. Here is her first approach, off to the left side. We plan to head back to the Old Town today to check out a castle.

Cute polish tyke - I have a feeling he was part of an old-style military display that was going on. Every 15 minutes or so, loud gun-shots would go off causing mum and and I to jump on our park benches.

Cute kids abound in Poland. When I was in primary school, year seven, my teacher Mr Martin read Ian Serailler's The Silver Sword to us. I totally adored it and begged him to read it again and again. Indeed, it caused that much consternation I decided I wanted to give my kids the Polish names of the characters - Ruth, Edek and Bronia. Still adore them, but other names are in the mix now. Being in Poland, it's not just Polish names that appeal - the children are deliciously cute. This gorgeous little boy was part of a mock military exhibition. We caught him gallivanting around with his mates and grabbed him for this shot. Reading more of Cloud Atlas I found an awesome quote about the sexualisation of kids - "A trio of teenettes, dressed like Prostitute Barbie approached, draft-netting the width of the pavement." Can I rave any more about Mitchell's wit?

Forgive me as I take a tangent into the world of bookstores. Wandering into the American Bookstore in Warsaw, I came out with Kirino's Out. Published cheaply by Vintage, I'd never purchased it but the quote on the inside has always intrigued me. Flannery O'Connor: 'The way to despair is to refuse to have any kind of experience.' Pardon, I must take a typing break as I contemplate and daydream. Anyway, I figure it shall be a good introduction into the fictional world of mystery.

We got to Warsaw on the Berlin - Warsaw express after making our way from Leipzig to Berlin. Illogical seating arrangements on the train made for constant kafuffle over whose seat was whose. A priest and nun on the train appeared ruffled as people were constantly shifting them. One cumudgeonly old man sat in the wrong seat the whole time. As each person boarded to claim their rightful seat he ignored their wrath with protestations of entitlement.

Onto beer and randomness - had an awesome Polish pint with some pizza - chicken, asparagus etc on Novy Swait/street our first day out on the town. It was our first more decadent meal. Forgot to mention it, but in Frankfurt, Germany, Pizza Hut offers a bier spider - icecream and beer together in a delectable (?) mix. Kebabs are of course everywhere - had an awesome chicken doner in Germany wrapped in flatbread.