August 19, 2015
Sightseeing in Krakow
I took care of laundry this morning. I can't say that I did it. I handed it off to the hotel staff and they put it in the washer, so they did it for me. They said to come back in 2 hours. When I did, it was already out of the washer, and they had a young guy carry it to my room along with a drying rack. I laid everything out on the rack, and went off for a day of errands and sightseeing.
First up was to try to get some maps to plan my route south from here. I was able to get a map of Slovakia at a bookstore. I visited a couple of tourist information places to try to get advice about safe routes for cycling out of the city. Mostly I was told "I don't know, I've never done that". One guy did suggest taking the train to Wieliczka where I can pick up some smaller roads.
Wieliczka is about 20 km from Krakow, and is where the salt mines are located. That could work well, as I can catch a morning train, take a tour, and then bike for a bit. One note on information centers: The "i" that is a universal sign has been appropriated in Krakow by the companies selling tours. The city sponsored tourist information is designated "it". One of the it places did give me a good map of the region of Poland from Krakow to the southern border, something I hadn't found at the book store, so I'm in good shape with maps until I get through Slovakia.
With chores done, I wandered through the Old Town area for a bit, and planned for an afternoon walking tour. Since the walking tour was Old Town, I ventured out to see the Jewish quarter. I went into the new Synagogue, which dates to the 19th century. Then I found the older part of the quarter, with the old synagogue and a market and more obvious Jewish influence. I found a restaurant with a menu that reminded me of my grandmother's cooking, but unfortunately I had already eaten lunch.
Then I went back to the Old Town for the walking tour. The guide for the tour was Eugene. He is Ukrainian, from somewhere in east Ukraine, and left home because of the war with Russia. He had been a practicing lawyer for 5 years. Now he has been a tour guide in Krakow for 9 months. When I asked, he said he would have to go back to school for maybe 5 years to be able to practice law in Poland, and he can't afford that as he needs to send money back to his parents who are still in the Ukraine. After the tour, I gave him a good tip.
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Eugene walked us around the Old Town, explaining the history from the 13th century to today, basically from the Mongol invaders through to today's democracy. Krakow survived Ww2 pretty much intact. The lack of bombs had been attributed to the large German population. Interestingly, the same thing was said about Gdansk, and Gdansk was largely destroyed by the Soviets, a fate that Krakow avoided. We saw lots of churches
and lots of statues,
and finished the tour at Wawel Castle. The castle is on a hill. In addition to being beautiful and impressive in its own right, it provides a view over the Vistula river that was gorgeous at sunset.
After the tour, I walked back to the railway station, near my hotel, had some dinner and then retired to the hotel to get ready for tomorrow. I've booked a tour to Auschwitz, leaving at 6:15 a.m., so will need to get going early and prepare for what I hear will be an emotional experience.
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