Triptych: We met Adriana and her family ... and saw much more of the wonderful area they live in

On Saturday, we finally got to meet our cousins on the Wydra side, the Kolmajer family. Adriana has been helping me plan the trip for months--this is the young woman who has been helping my Uncle Ron with our family tree. Adriana's great-grandfather and my great-grandfather were brothers. One part of the family left for America and most contact was severed--but Adriana decided to find her long lost relatives and she found us, at least!

Adriana along with her parents, Jurek and Danuta, invited us to their home in Trzebinia, where we had a wonderful feast, surrounded by friends and family. There were lots of questions, but since most of it had to go through the translation services of either Adriana or one of her friends, most of our communication was through smiles and laughter--and eating. Lots of eating! First there were some lovely desserts (Polish strawberries are yummy!), and then the meal proper started. About ten different salads, with fresh vegetables and eggs. Then sausages for most of us and some grilled vegetables for Emma--she is the first vegetarian any of them had met, so they got the recipes off the internet. And finally a wonder dish with potatoes and kielbasa. And did I mention the vodka? Ladies drink it mixed with fruit juice, which serves to hide the alcohol content, I think ...
(more pictures here)

Danuta, Patrick, Emma, Jurek, Denise, Adriana

The next day, Adriana and Arek took us around to some important local sites. First, we visited Auschwitz. After that, we drove to visit a very impressive palace, Pszczyna Castle, from the 19th-century.
(More pictures here)

They made us wear slippers ...

Adriana, Denise, Emma

And then, to see the other end of the castle spectrum ... We went to Ogrodzienieckiego, the ruins of a 13th-century castle built on a limestone outcropping, once the strongest stronghold in the region. Amazing. We got feelin' all medieval . . .
(more pictures here)