Krakow of Dawn
The Polish city, carrying the
scars of Nazi occupation, now crackles with a hip, bohemian spirit
Polish weather is
unpredictable,“ said Emilia Kubik, my host in Poland, as I peered through the
train window to bask in the warmth of the summer. It was a three-hour journey
from Warsaw to Kra kow, but I was in no hurry as Emilia kept me engaged with
her childhood stories from the communist era.
Poland in Central Europe
has had a tur bulent history and been a victim of changing borders due to
several inva sions from Russia, Prussia and the Otto man Empire. The final
alteration was the aftereffect of World War II: modern-day Poland is an outcome
of the Potsdam Conference of 1945.
In 1939, when World War II
erupted, Krakow was home to 70,000 affluent Jews living in Kazimierz district
located in the outskirts of the city. This suburb on the Vistula River was
named after its founder, Casimir III, in 1335. In 1495, due to rising
opposition against the Jews from the locals, King Jan Olbracht expelled them
from the Old Town of Krakow to Ka zimierz. But the steadfast Jews soon con
verted Kazimierz into a prosperous, via ble destination with synagogues and
markets. Wealthy Jewish immigrants from Germany, Italy, Spain and Portugal made
a beeline to this commercial haven.
The Dark Past
During World War II, Jews
were relocated by the Nazis to the Podgorze ghetto on the other side of Vistula
River. From here the Jews were deported to the Plaszow concentration camp and
the gas chambers of Belzec. I could witness some of these dark chapters from
history as I walked through the streets of Podgorze. Grey, weather-beaten
buildings strewn around the area, fragments of the ghetto wall and the Ghetto
Heroes Square with large metal chairs, denoting the thousands of Jews who were
deported, spoke volumes of what the Jews underwent during the Nazi regime.
As I took one of the
tourist-friendly, con verted club cars, Andrei, the driver, says that he isn't
sure if he has Jewish roots as some assimilated Jews over the years had become
practising Catholics after the war.Until the 1930s, Poland was a centre of
multiethnic society, with the Germans, Ukrainians, Belarusians and Jews living
together. After the war, the country became a homogeneous Catholic country
governed by the communist system of the Soviet Union.
Andrei adds that the
infamous SS (Schutzstaffel, Nazi's Special Forces) commander Amon Goeth's house
at Plaszow was recently on sale and would soon be converted into an apartment.
The pharmacy of Tadeusz Pankiewicz, the non-Jew who refused to relocate to the
Gentile side of the city and operated from within the ghetto even during Nazi
occupation, still stands tall beside the Historical Museum of Krakow. Parts of
Podgorze, Kazimierz and the pharmacy were showcased in Steven Spielberg's
Academy Award-winning film Schindler's List.
The Jews who weren't
deported to the camps were forced into manual labour in the factories that
mushroomed around the ghetto. Oskar Schindler's Deutsche Emailwarenfabrik -a
factory producing enamelled goods -was one such where Jews worked during the
Nazi rule. But this was a different kind of factory as the workers were given
refuge and escaped the horrors of Plaszow concentration camp, thanks to
Schindler. This noble act of the German who risked his life to save 1,200 Jews
was chronicled by Thomas Keneally in his book Schindler's Ark. As I walked
through Schindler's museum, the mood was sombre and brooding, with sordid short
videos, Nazi posters, pictures of the Jews in the ghetto and poignant quotes
from Jewish survivors and victims on display.
The Old and the New
While Schindler's museum
narrates stories of Krakow's bloodied history, Kazimierz today is strikingly
different. Hip, bohemian and vibrant, its scars of Nazi persecution aren't
evident unless you scratch the surface.
As I walked through its
cobbled streets, the excitement was infectious. Cafes and restaurants with
signage in Hebrew script were bursting with youngsters as local bands play
Jewish klezmer music. The place wears a cool badge which has become synonymous
of Jewishness. Surprisingly, this area was neglected during the communist era
and not frequented even by the locals. The district gained popularity with the
release of movies like Schindler's List and the annual Jewish cultural festival
that has revived Jewish culture from the shadows of Holocaust.
I ambled with my
effervescent guide Marta Weigel through modern Kazimierz peppered with
synagogues, kosher restaurants, Jewish bakeries and cultural centres. At Plac
Nowy, a lively market in the heart of Kazimierz, I dug into the Polish street
food zapiekanka to satiate my hunger pangs. A crispy, cheesy smorrebrod (open
sandwich) made with long bread like a baguette with various toppings, primarily
cheese and mushroom, it is quite popular. We then walked into the 16th century
Remuh Synagogue at Szeroka Street -the smallest and busiest synagogue of
Kazimierz -where religious services are still conducted. It houses the Aron
Kodesh -the Holy Ark or the Torah Ark -from the Renaissance period.The tomb of
the venerated Rabbi Moshe Isserles in the Old Jewish Cemetery behind the
synagogue attracts Jews from across the globe and is regarded as an important
pilgrimage site for the community. After the war, some of the fragments of the
recovered tombstones were used to construct the monument called Wailing Wall
within its premises in remembrance of the Jews who lost their lives.
Gothic to Baroque
While Kazimierz has shown
exemplary resilience to resurrect from the dead, I was keen to explore the old
town which is the identity of the imperial capital. I headed to Wawel Hill with
an arresting complex of castles, chapels and churches. With turrets, spires and
gilded domes of various shapes, sizes and colours, there wasn't any harmony
between the structures. Marta saw my bemused look and responded, “Each
structure was built in a different era hence the hotchpotch of architecture.“
The seat of the Polish
monarchy, the castle has witnessed many coronations and funerals when the
nobles ruled. Marta took me on a tour as I revelled in the beauty of the crypt
of St Leonard from the Romanesque period, the Gothic sarcophagus of King
Vladislav II Jagiello, the centrepiece Sigismund's Chapel from the Renaissance
to the baroque shrine of St Stanislaus. Priceless paintings, tapestries and
porcelain objects were on display in every alcove. During World War II, the
castle functioned as the headquarters of the Nazi governor general Hans Frank,
and hence escaped the perils of war.
All the talking had got
Marta parched and we decided to visit one of the cafes at the Krakow Main
Square aka the Rynek Glowny.Declared as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1978,
this plaza from the 13th century is the hub of Krakow's life.
Christmas and Easter
markets, festivals and concerts are held in the square every year. The market
is lined with bookshops, cafes and restaurants, Town Hall Tower, Cloth Hall and
the magnificent St Mary's Basilica. Many restaurants and nightclubs dot the cellars
of the square, entertaining its patrons with jazz. When we arrived, the square
was bustling as families had stepped out to enjoy the summer. Horse-drawn
carriages clattered on its cobbled streets, street performers, musicians and
flocks of pigeons ensured the market was abuzz. At Cafe Noworolski that was
opened in the ground floor of Cloth Hall in 1910, I finished the creamy
Kremowka in quick bites and washed it down with coffee. I am told the Polish
pie made of puff pastry and cream was a decadence that the Polish Pope, John
Paul II, loved to indulge in.
The Resurrection
We sauntered to the Cloth
Hall where tourists and locals crowded the numerous shops selling curios,
souvenirs, jewellery made of Polish amber, embroidered dresses and wood
carvings. In the medieval period it was here that vendors sold their wares. It
was a major hub in the Black Sea trade. I was fascinated by ambers and stopped
by a shop when I heard the cry of a bugle. Marta says, “Legend has it that in
the 13th century the city was attacked by Tartars. A trumpet signal from the
tower of St Mary's Basilica warned the inhabitants of the invasion, but an
arrow pierced the bugle player's neck, ending the tune abruptly.“ It is played
every hour of the day and has continued over the years. As I strolled towards
the church, I noticed a vivid juxtaposition; beside the 14th century
Gothicstyled St Mary's Basilica stood Hard Rock Cafe belonging to the modern
era.
While the country has
weathered and suffered the onslaught of invasions and political drama, the
indomitable Poles have risen like the phoenix never to be crushed. Krakow has
come back to life.
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Rathina
Sankari
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ETM8JAN17
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