One of the truly amazing things about Cathy was the way she would plan a trip to make sure we experienced not only the "hot spots" but the local culture as well. While many of us stationed in Germany would have been happy with a mad dash through Poland just to hit the pottery factories, Cathy took the time to research and find out of the ordinary places to visit. Cathy found this castle, Zamek Kliczkow, right outside one of the major Polish pottery towns of Boleslawiec. We were fortunate to be able to spend a couple of weekends at "our castle" while enjoying the shopping, but also visiting the concentration and work camps in the area. I can assure you no book or film narrative will ever compare to standing in one of these camps in person, seeing, hearing, and feeling the stories. While visiting one of the work camps, Cathy initiated a conversation with the Polish girl working at the information counter. She would walk or ride her bicycle six miles each way to work, whatever the weather...Her salary was around $300 a month, and her dream was to save enough money to be able to attend college in America...Cathy loved Poland and was always so excited when we got a chance to visit!
What a special place the castle was for our family, and who knows, maybe we'll get a chance to visit again in the future. Cathy always kidded me (well, she was actually pretty serious about it!) that I would be taking her back to "the castle" on our trip to Europe for our 25th wedding anniversary in December 2008...She did give me two options though...I could let the Air Force pay for our trip with an assignment back to Europe, or I would simply have to pay for the trip myself...
