For my fall break experience, I chose to go to the great country of Poland, a short two hour plane ride from Richmond University. What I found in Poland was much different than what I expected to find before I left Richmond. We landed in Warsaw in the early evening on saturday, and once we checked into our hostel, we ventured out into the city of Warsaw in search of a polish pub to dine at. We found a tradtional polish pub that had a mix of both italian and polish foods, and traditional polish beers brewed right on the spot. On sunday we recieved a tour of Krakow and while on our tour, we saw remnants of World War II memorobilia, ranging from monuments and statues, to bullet holes in the walls of buildings. That afternoon we did some shopping in some stores and also got some pictures of the picturesque scenery. The next day we went to the Warsaw Rising Museum, which showed us what Warsaw was like before, during, and after the German invasion on Warsaw in the 1940's. The next morning we departed for our second stop in Poland, Krakow. We stopped at an underground restaurant in Krakow for lunch, and we were told that eating underground in Krakow is something that is very traditional to do. After lunch, we went into the cloth market, which turned out to be an excellent source for purchasing souvenirs for friends and family back home. The next day we went on a walking tour of Krakow, going into various churches throughout the city, one of which was the church the late John Paul II was affiliated with. We also went into Wawel and saw some of the Polish royalty there. Later that day we did some more shopping in the cloth market and some of the side-street shops, where I got some polish pottery for a decent price. The next day we visited Auschwitz and Birkenau, two very notorious concentration camps during World War II. It was a very somber experience, but also a life experience none of us will ever forget. Friday, the last day we were in Krakow, we toured the Wielczka Salt Mines, which were absolutely amazing, given the underground chapel, water pools, and huge rock formations right over our heads. Poland was a country that was truely unparalleled when it comes to history, and was interesting to see everything it had to offer to say the least.