Early today, Monday, we headed off to the train station to catch our train into Krakow, Poland. We knew it was going to be crazy as the tracks were under construction and Todd and Dee had to fix the train situation prior to our arrival. The first part of the journey was a bus to Frankfurt and then trains into Poland. The Ubers arrived, because with 10 people we needed more than one, and off we went! Unfortunately UberXL is more like a medium here, and we were squished!
On the way to the station we received a frantic text from Todd: WRONG STATION. TURN AROUND! Yep. Panic time. Unfortunately our driver was done with us, so he dumped us out in front of the Ostenbainhaup station. We needed to get to the central station and fast! I found some police officers on a break and they gave us some information. Off to the cabs we went! Of course the guy would only take four people, so two cabs we took and fast!
We made it to the central station in record time but missed our buses. Next obstacle: find the Hursts and Gerkes. Jake was on the phone with me and while he was reading off track numbers, I had letters. This place was huge! Eventually we were able to find each other, and back up to fix our tickets we went! Sweat pouring, hearts racing, we had a plan. It would take 4 different trains and 12 hours, but we would make our way to Krakow! Now we had three hours to wait!
First thought: food. We grabbed a quick bite and some coffee and then several of us went for walk to Brandenburg Gate. It was a beautiful morning in Berlin and the kids did a great job leading our tour through town. They shared lots of information including how their government building has a glass dome at the top so the people can look down on the government working. We traversed a park where there was a Holocaust Memorial. We saw the Embassy and chatted with a guard who was super nice! Next to the Embassy is the hotel where Michael Jackson dangled Blanket over the balcony. Meanwhile, across the way the German government was experiencing a protest of the new tank supplier being Israeli. They were glued to the building. No joke.
Now it was time to board train number one into Dresden, Germany. Now every time we had to show our tickets, the ticket collector would inevitably say, “TEN? Oh my.” Now with this being train number one, we were novices. Checking the boards. Asking conductors. But we made it on and settled in for a bit.
At the Dresden station we had about 60 minutes to switch trains. We grabbed some snacks and paid to use the bathroom. It was 1.50 euro to use the bathroom. We made it back up to the platform and jumped on the train.
Next train switch was at the Polish border. Each stop became a bit more rural. It was a quick transfer and we found our way without a problem. We were feeling pretty good about our train game at this point. We should have known better!
When we arrived at the last station before Krakow we had about an hour and change. Food was on the agenda and the Hursts headed over to KFC, which is super popular here in Poland, while the Kennedys went to McDonalds. Food was procured and I checked out the station a bit.
Now as we’re getting close to the time to head back up we get a frantic message from Todd that the train was there and to get there now. With lightning speed we jumped up, dumped our trash and sprinted out the door. As we were all separated we jumped on the train as soon as we got to the platform. The Hursts were waiting for us but didn’t get on until they knew we were there. Joe, Todd, and Jake were frantically searching for the mystery cars 269 and 268, enlisting the help of several people: an Englishman who searched the whole train and a man now known as “Front Butt” who was more hindrance than help. Mi scusi was quickly becoming the phrase of the trip at this point!!!
As it was almost time to go, we said screw it and just sat down in open seats, with no air conditioning. No one would help us. This was a three hour train ride with no air. It was hot. The windows were down, but it didn’t help much. Jake and Diana wandered up to the front car and brought beers back. The train police came around and asked if it was alcohol. Jake replied “ I don’t know, you tell me. I can’t read this!” The guy moved on and we cracked up. About this time we realized the train car in front of us had Harry Potter compartments that we probably were supposed to be in. Jake decided if anyone came and told us to move he was going to abracadabra their butts🤣. By the end of the trip the conductor wanted to get home because he was flying down those tracks into Krakow!
Finally we made it to Krakow Glowny, the main station. It was only a ten minute walk to our hotel so we took off with ten suitcases navigating across the cobbled streets. No one fell! Our hotel was called the Campanile Prime in Olde Town and was the perfect place to rest up for tomorrow’s big adventure!
Now we hadn’t had dinner yet and it was late so we ventured out looking for anything open. Of course, we found the Irish Pub, Bulls. We had drinks and pretzels and chips for dinner that night. The entertainment was top notch and we laughed until we could no longer keep our eyes open and it was time for bed!
Now it was time for some sleep!! Tomorrow we would be heading to Auschwitz to tour. Poland, you’ve been warned!
Kennedy Family Travels 