Emma Joan

Afternoon Dolls,

So I finally have found the time to write up the next segment in my travel diary. For those of you who do not know Krakow is a city at the bottom of Poland. We decided to go here for one main reason and that was because it is only 45 minutes away from Auschwitz concentration camp. I am obsessed with this particular part of history, my thesis for Uni was based around the topic “coming to terms with Nazi past”, so I have a good amount of knowledge on the subject. Going there was something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time, so it was my mission to get to it during our travels.

I loved Krakow, it is such a pretty city, really nice to just walk around. It has got a real medieval feel to the town. In my opinion I found the city exactly like Galway city in Ireland. The reason being there both University towns, there not that big and they have the same night life vibe to them. One thing about the city is it has nice parks and a cobbled streets, which just adds to the old vibe the town gives off. Not to mention a really cool castle up on a hill that you can walk up to and walk around. You do have to pay to go inside which we did not bother with but the outside was really nice to stroll through.

There is a lot to do in Krakow, if you are looking for a little break. Not to mention it is dirt cheap, I almost died at the prices over there, for the whole five days including accommodation and eating & drinking out I spent 150 euro. For people on a budget it’s the dream place.              

For going to Auschwitz, we went with Cracow Tours, we priced around and they done the best deal. It was 15 euro for students which included a bus to the camp and a guided tour around both camp one and Birkenau. If that was anywhere in like the western areas of Europe it would properly be like up on 50 euro so you can see how cheap Poland is. On the way to the Auschwitz they showed a documentary on the camps liberation. It actually made me feel ill watching it, some of the images are very disturbing. Auschwitz camp one was where the main part of the tour was. It was very surreal actually being there and was hard to imagine what it had been was like. In camp one you get to go into the first gas chamber that was made, however, once they built Birkenau they built all the crematoriums in that camp instead. The first trial of gassing actually took 48 hours to kill everyone within. I do not how to describe what it was like walking through it as it really is just horrid to think of the happenings there. Also the room with all the belongings and hair in glass cases are in Camp one.  Side Note: One thing I will say about the tour that drove me mad was people taking pictures. I did not mind people taking pictures of the famous gate or the outsides of the camps, but talking pictures of things like the death wall or inside the gas chamber I just felt was unnecessary and disrespectful.  After the tour in camp one you move on to the larger of the camps, Birkenau. Which was huge! I never thought that it was that big, it looked as though it stretched for a good mile. Most of the buildings in Birkenau like the crematorium’s were destroyed as the Nazis abandoned the camps at the end of the war so all you can see is the rubble of buildings. Overall I would definitely recommend going there, it was something I have always wanted to do and after studying all about it for the past few months before I finished college I was definitely excited to go and see it. I am happy I went to it. I am not going to lie it is a bit of a depressing experience but one that’s totally worth it. There is a quote written up in Auschwitz camp one and that is “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat It.” which I think is a fitting quote to have up. People must go and see the destruction that mankind is capable of and grow from them experiences. The guides that work there are also very good and very informative to the history of the camps. So it is definitely worth going to see.

On to a lighter topic, for eating out there’s no shortage of really good restaurants. However, if you are looking for eating out on the cheap side but still getting really good food I would recommend staying away for the restaurants around the square as the can be more expensive than other places. Even though it is really pretty to sit and look out on the square all lit up. I would recommend MooMoo restaurant, they have the nicest burgers and are not too expensive.  Also there is the most adorable cupcake shop on your way from the square to the castle which has the nicest cupcakes (I can’t remember the exact name, but it’s called something cupcakes anyway). There are also no shortage of really cool clubs and pubs around the town. Everything is so close that your within walking distance from all the clubs so no spending money on transport, winning!

Hey Dolls,

 I know it has been almost a month since I last posted (Shameful I know). I have no excuses as to why I haven’t been keeping up with writing except for the fact that I just haven’t been in the mood for it. Pure laziness. However I am back with the next instalment of my travel segment. So picking up from where I left off, we were in Amsterdam and from there we moved on to Berlin. I was beyond excited to go to Berlin because of all its history, and the city really didn’t disappoint with that.

The first day in Berlin we went on the free walking tour around the city. I definitely would recommend doing this if you’re in Berlin and want to see most of the sights in one day. Our tour guide was really informative about the history of the city and was just good fun. You get to see the likes of the Brandenburg gate, memorial for the murdered Jews of Europe (which is the area with all the different sized grey blocks in case you’re wondering) and Hitler’s Bunker well where the bunker was its now just a car park and loads of other cool areas around the city.

Museum Island was another place we visited, it used to be where the royal family used to live but now it is just filled with a bunch of different museums, hence the name. I must say they really out did themselves with the museum buildings. Each building was made to resemble the type of museum it was, which was really cool. We decided to go to the Dutchland museum which as you can probably tell is all about German history. It was only 4 euro entry for students and if you had the patience for it you could literally spend all day in there the place was huge! Following on from then went to see the Berlin wall, now we didn’t get over to the east side gallery unfortunately, we went to a different part that was beside another museum/exhibition centre that was all about the Nazi regime (can’t remember the name of the place)

Berlin Nightlife on the other hand was an interesting experience. The first night we went out to probably the most Hipster area I’ve ever been in. If my memory serves me correctly we were in the Prenzlauer Berg area. This place had the coolest bars ever, it had such a chilled vibe. However, be warned if you are going out to nightclubs and all that jazz in Berlin, try and do so in an orderly manner as they have a serious issue with people being too loud.  We experienced this first hand. Also my recommendation would be to try have a few words in German. What happened to us was we were with a group of German speakers and apparently we were being too loud but those in the group who spoke German weren’t and they were let in and we weren’t. So you can imagine how that looked to us. This may not be the case with all nightclubs but that was just our experience so just be on the ball and try not to be too drunk and disorderly around the streets of Berlin.

Overall though Berlin was one of my favourite places I have been and I defiantly want to take a trip back there soon. 

Emma x.

Hey Dolls,

Since January is drawing to a close I thought I had better do my currently post for this month! If you guys do these type of post drop me a comment with the link to your blog, I love reading these types of posts, get new ideas for shows, books and the like.

Watching: Gossip Girl here, your one and only source into the scandalous lives of manhattans elite... Yes I am watching Gossip Girl from the beginning again. I did not want the emotional trauma of starting a new show since all the ones I watch are on mid season breaks. However invented theses so called breaks should be shot! Anyways yes, I decided to re-watch gossip girl and I am loving it!

Addicted To: Instagram! At the moment can’t get enough at scrolling through pictures! Follow me @emma_j_tiernan 

Listening To: Lorde. Obsessed. Everybody wants to rule the world, all time fav.

Amazed by: Night by Elie Wiesl, this book is amazing! It is basically his account of his experience in the concentration camps. It is amazing to see how inhuman the whole book is and how he losses faith. I would highly recommend reading it, and it is not that long!

Reading: Ulysses by James Joyce, My lecturer said that reading Ulysses will change you if you if are willing to let it. As much as I want to believe that and truly grasp the idea of the book it’s proving very difficult. When he mentioned change, I am thinking a change in mental stability as the book is all types of challenging. That being said it is a masterpiece and if there is one book, you should try to read it would be Ulysses.  

Lusting After: The Walking Dead to return, can you lust after that? I do not know! Perhaps I will just lust after a pair of Red souls, if you know what I mean ;) A girl can dream...

You know you love me

XOXO

Gossip Girl

(I’m addicted. Send help!)

Hey dolls,

I wanted to talk about a T.V show I’ve been watching. However not really about the T.V show itself but the costumes worn in the show.  The show is CWs new programme Reign. Reign is based on the younger years of Queen Mary of Scots, focusing on her years in France. I love period dramas (it comes with the History student territory) so this show is right up my street. When I first started to watch it, the one thing that came to my attention is the incredible costumes worn in it, especially the ones that Mary wears. Trust me there to die.

However, strangely enough I see many people criticizing the costumes saying that they do not conform to the correct time period. Ok so yeah you are right they would not be the typical 16^th century run of the mill clothing, that a high-born lady would prance around in, but that is not a good reason to diss the show.  I mean do you really think that the show is a true account of what happened between Mary and Francis! Ehh no sorry to burst your bubble but that is not what happened. In addition, before you say anything about that aspect no period drama shows a true account of what happens in history. I mean BBCs the White Queen for example Elizabeth was not a witch and the Tudors well... I do not think Henry and Ann had this incredible romantic love affair, so let us just leave it at that!  Regardless of all that, it is an incredible show with a gripping plot.

Anyways my mini rant aside I want to get back to the costumes. Rather than the strictures of 16^th century court wear, with stiff frills and angular silhouettes, the costumes are an artistic blend of modern and period. There like something a modern day princess would wear with an old style twist. That is exactly the idea that they are going for, reign is not geared towards the typical person who would normally watch period dramas. However, they aim for the mass of the younger generation, and they manage that extremely well. Think Game of Thrones meets Gossip Girl/90210.  I for one do not think that the costumes are too far-fetched from medieval time though. I do believe that the costume designers put in a great amount of effort to make the outfits have that ‘medieval’ type look while still making it look fresh and modern.

On another note, the men’s costumes are incredibly well done. I like the fact that they wear trousers instead of tights, because quite frankly I do not fancy watching men run round in a pair of tights. That being said all the guys in the show are easy on the eyes so you could dress them in anything and you’d still watch it! Just have them naked even sure why not, a lot would prefer it that way I am sure!

I thought I would share some of my favourite looks from the show and a couple of portraits from the 16^th century so you can see the differences and similarities :