The fourth day of our Poland Masa was spent in Krakow. Many of our days in Poland, we started off learning about the Jewish Community before the Shoah, and in the afternoons we discussed how it was affected or destroyed by the Shoah. The Jewish community in Krakow first started in 1335 when the Jews were invited by the neighborhood of Kazimierz in Krakow. Kazimierz became the Jewish part of Krakow and over hundreds of years the Jewish community grew very large. While in Kazimierz we went "shul hopping". The first Synagogue we visited was The Altschul, it was built in 1407, and was the center of Jewish life and served as one of the first Synagogues of Kazimierz.
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| The fence on the outside of the Altschul |
While visiting all six of the Synagogues I was very proud, I was proud because there was such a lively community, for so long, with so many Synagogues in such a small area and this just showed how important the Jewish community was before the Shoah. I have only known life after the Shoah and it was greatly devastated. All the Synagogues were so different and unique in there own ways and I can only imagine how lively they all were before the Shoah.
Two of the temples we visited
Later in the afternoon we returned to Kazimierz to visit the JCC of Krakow. In my opinion, the JCC of Krakow is a very awesome place, their goal is to bring back Jewish life in Krakow. The JCC is like our JCCs here but more special, they offer more services to all types of people. One thing they do is try to connect people to their Judaism since many Jews converted or lost their roots during the Shoah. After we learned about the JCC, we all walked to the ghetto where the Jews of Krakow were forced to move to. During this walk we walked out of the Jewish part Kazimierz, over the bridge and to another area where the Jews lived. This walk was very surreal, we were following our fellow Jews footsteps to where they were forced to uproot their lives and their homes and move to overcrowded apartments with horrible conditions and very little food. After we spent some time learning about the Krakow Ghetto, we walked over to Schindler's Factory, during one of the bus rides we watched Schindler's List and learned about his story, and how he saved the lives of so many Jews. While at the factory, DSol shared more stories with us about other Righteous Among the Nations members. The stories DSol shared with us about the Righteous Among the Nations members was so uplifting, I was really amazed how these non Jews risked their lives and the lives of their families to save so many Jews. During the Shoah there were so many bystanders who did nothing to help the Jews, but also there were many people who helped the Jews. Its important that we recognize these people so their stories are remembered and shared and we learn that not everyone was a bystander to the Shoah.
My question to y'all is, which place in Krakow that we visited had the most meaning to you and why was this place meaningful?
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| Oskar Schindler's Factory |
My question to y'all is, which place in Krakow that we visited had the most meaning to you and why was this place meaningful?
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| @ZoeDress and I in Krakow town square |
Although everything was meaningful to me, the JCC left the biggest impact. This is because it is in the heart of the "Jewish Quarter" in Krakow and represents the survival of Judaism. After everything that happened in Poland, a surviving Jewish community is the best thing that we could have ever wished for. In the modern day, Jews, specifically those of the Reform movement, put a huge stress on making sure that Judaism stays alive. This JCC is an example of just that after one of the most tragic events in our history.
ReplyDeleteI think the most meaningful part of Krakow was Schindler's factory. After getting a good idea of the work Schindler did during the shoa in the movie, it was really touching to see where the actions took place. While the number of people who were saved is tiny in comparison to those who died, Schindler recognized the importance of sustaining those lives, which is admirable and touched me.
ReplyDeleteThe most meaningful part for me was the JCC, because it showed me not just that we've lost a lot, but that despite the horrors that were the Shoah, that Jews still find the importance and pride in being Jewish and that in the place that was once so dark, that there is a modern light shining on the Jewish population of Poland. I think it was amazing and inspiring, especially the awesome things that they do in the community.
ReplyDeleteThe town of Krakow was the most meaningful to me was because it emphasized how life used to be. It brought some happiness and shined light on the dreary and depressing places that we had been seeing. It was a nice break from everything, which allowed us to evaluate our emotions and discuss with our friends. It showed how life was before the Shoah ruined the livelihood. We were able to see how people lived, where they spent their time and walked around with friends before instead of all the saddening things we see. I think it was important to see that, there other things about Poland and it wasn't always post-Shoah vibes there. It was good to see the other places too, which were also very meaningful, but I think this was very impactful for me.
ReplyDeleteThe most meaningful place for me was Schindler's factory. We got to learn about all of the great people who helped out Jews as well as see the factory where Schindler used his fortune to save all of his workers. He sacrificed everything to save those lives and because of him, there are a lot more survivors.
ReplyDeleteProbably the most meaningful part of the day was going to see the JCC, it showed how the community was trying to build up the community that it had lost about 70 years ago
ReplyDeleteI think the reform temple we visited was most important to me. It was first of all, very beautiful, but it also had a lot of meaning. It seems crazy to me that even after the destruction of the second temple, there's so much sinat hinam. You'd think people would learn. It was very meaningful to learn and pray there.
ReplyDeleteVisiting Krakow was especially meaningful because we were able to see the different kinds of Jewish life that as there before when we went to the different synagogues around the same area. Also, going to the factory and hearing the stories from D-Sol really hit home about the impact of non-jews on the holocaust.
ReplyDeleteSchindler's Factory hands down. His factory was a site of refuge for so many Jews, and because of him, we a have a new set of generations. It was righteous people like Schindler, who very many Jews owe their lives to today, and we must not forget their stories.
ReplyDeleteI liked when we visited Schindler's factory and we heard stories of the Rightious Among the Nations. When I learned about the Holocaust at my school, it was all about death and the horrible things that people did to each other. I think that the stories that we heard at Schindler's factory were very powerful and they were a reminder of the goodness in people even when times were hard. People had to make impossible decisions during the Holocaust. For some, these were not impossible decisions, their decision to save someone was not the right thing to do, it was the only thing to do.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed our free time here. It gave us the chance to explore the city and see the life now in Poland and not just the sad dark events that happened here. I also thought that the stories of the Righteous Among the Nations that we heard at Schindler's factory were very interesting. It was really nice to hear that people of that time who did not have to help felt that it was their duty to help the Jewish people.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed our free time here. It gave us the chance to explore the city and see the life now in Poland and not just the sad dark events that happened here. I also thought that the stories of the Righteous Among the Nations that we heard at Schindler's factory were very interesting. It was really nice to hear that people of that time who did not have to help felt that it was their duty to help the Jewish people.
ReplyDeleteI think that the walk across the bridge was the most powerful moment of our time in Krakow. Something about following in the footsteps of someone just makes everything seem more tangible, more real.
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