I remember thinking before I left in April how long it was going to be before Justin and Tracy came to Europe in July yet here we are and it feels like no time has passed at all. I arrived in Berlin a few hours before them so I got our place settled and organized for the two little fresh travellers and picked them up at the airport a few hours later.

Our time in the city was filled with history which is to be expected in this iconic city! We started out with a walking tour that told us lots of great facts and even threw out a few pop quiz questions that I am very disappointed to say Mr. History teacher himself didn't answer (he claims he didn't want to be the 'know it all' of the group)! We visited some very important historical sights too including Hitler's bunker (well the car park now on top of it), the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, the Holocaust Memorial and many more. The rest of our days were filled with similar activities and we had a great time exploring this big city. The area we were staying was in the old east Berlin communist area which throughout modern times has been transformed into what could best be described as the 'hipster area'. This involved many small cafes, bars, and restaurants all around with great prices which was perfect for us!

One thing I had to be sure to do was teach these kiddos the ropes of travelling ! Only problem was, I could have been a little better at this since we (mostly they) may have fallen into a couple little traps along the way. The first of these is what you'd think would be common sense.. Don't talk to strangers/start filling out forms handed to you by a fake deaf person without reading it in its entirety (or don't even acknowledge the person at all) because you will end up having to give them money.. As justin found out the hard way! Another trap is useful for all around the world--bargaining! Never accept the first offer of someone at a flea market stand! In all likelihood with a little back and forth they will go lower and that cute little hat that you want will find its way onto your head for an even better price! (Do I need to add a name for this one?) And finally a situation we all should've known better (and admittedly I should've been paying better attention) ordering water! Always order TAP WATER in a restaurant because before you know it you will get your bill and realize that you are paying more for water than beer! In some cases they even charge for tap water and the oh so strenuous task of pouring it into a glass, in which case I recommend bringing your own bottle from home!

A few days later the time rolled around for me to take a break from third wheeling with these two love birds and venture out through Eastern Europe! First stop on this journey was Prague which I travelled to on a pretty impressive bus service that included tv screens loaded with movies, free hot drinks, and a stewardess wandering up and down the aisles ready to help! Being in the actual city of Prague was even more impressive! For the first time I wasn't quite sure what to expect when entering a city and was pleasantly surprised with its beauty and architecture that was all around! I did plenty of wandering during my time there and took a great city tour that gave lots of information about the city (including their joy of throwing enemies out windows) and the tough Czech language (in which I remember absolutely nothing)! Another great thing about this part of the world is the prices! For the first time I can actually afford to be eating our for my meals and not have to worry about busting my budget! Huge change since the beginning of my trip when I stuck to the two P's.. Peanut butter sandwiches and pot noodles!!

Kraków was next and another city that I knew very little about before travelling to. I ended up staying in a fantastic hostel where I met probably the greatest amount of people in one place throughout my entire trip so far. Once again I did a lot of city wandering and they even had a festival in the city square while I was there with a variety of different shows and events being held.. Including a clown college! Unfortunately I did not take the time to learn the art of juggling! One thing I didn't like about the city was the amount of people trying to hand you pamphlets and sell tours and such on the streets. As you are trying to have a leisurely walk through the city, every 5 feet there is a new person you have to wave away as they try to shove something in your face advertising whatever place it is that paid them to stand out there day after day.

Now, if anyone knows anything about the outskirts of Kraków they will know of one very important place from recent history .. The Auschwitz Concentration Camp, one of the largest used by Nazis and responsible for the deaths of over a million people. Located a short drive from the city, I took a tour there on one of my days. I cannot say that I "enjoyed" this tour but it was a huge eye opener and extremely informative about what went on there during the holocaust. There is too much there to mention it all but I will note a few.. There was one room we saw that was approximately 50 feet long and 10 feet wide and in this room stuffed full to about 6 feet high was human hair. This was the actual hair that got shaven off prisoners when they entered the camp and was then bagged up with the intention of taking it back to Germany to use in hair nets and clothing items. I honestly couldn't even look at the pile for more than a few seconds without getting chills.. The sheer amount of it was just staggering. Another room that I could hardly stand to be in was an actual gas chamber that they took us through on the tour. To say that part was eerie is a huge understatement. And people were actually taking pictures/selfies inside... I don't know what's wrong with society these days! One thing that our guide also mentioned to us was that when they first started having tours throughout the camp, the first guides were actual past prisoners! This fact blew me away. I can't even fathom what it must have been like to not just return here but have to relive the moments on a regular occasion. I'm lost for words.

And on that depressing note I will end this. Up next on the list is more of Eastern Europe.

Love,
Sara