Krakow, Poland

In the few days before Christmas, we were invited to visit our friends Marcin, Anna, and their children in Krakow, Poland.  We became friends with them after they moved to the United States, and they were in Poland over the holidays to visit family in their hometown, which is a few hours from Krakow.   

We had a bit of a problem getting to Krakow, though.  It should have been an easy flight between Munich and Krakow, but our plane was diverted to another city in Poland due to dense fog.  We ended up having to take an additional 1-1/2 hour ride on a double decker bus from the other airport to get to the Krakow airport.  We were relieved to finally make it to the hotel, and even more relieved when we saw how nice the hotel was!  We stayed at the Radisson Blu, which was right within walking distance of all the sights of the old city center. 

 

After four months of living in Germany, we were really excited to see some familiar faces!  Visiting another country with natives is so much easier than  going it on your own, and  Marcin and Anna were great hosts.  They showed us everywhere in Krakow, and ensured that we ate some really great Polish food! 

Interesting Facts about Krakow

The city of Krakow has multiple UNESCO designations, and can trace its history to the Stone Age.   The local legend is that Krakow was founded when the mythical ruler Krakus defeated a terrible dragon, and then built the city above the dragon's cave.  The dragon is the mascot of the city, and is seen all over on souvenirs.  The kids loved the dragon statue by the castle that shot real flames from its mouth!

Krakow has a significant history associated with WW II.  Oskar Schindler's factory was in Krakow, where he employed a thousand Jews, thereby saving them from concentrations camps.  Auschwitz is very close to Krakow, where over one million Jews and Poles were tortured, starved, and exterminated by the Third Reich.  We did not visit these places on this trip, but will plan to if we get to visit the area again. 

Pope John Paul II was from Poland, and was the Archbishop of Krakow before being elected Pope in 1978.  He was the first non-Italian Pope in 455 years.  You can see that the city is very proud of this, and his image can be found on souvenirs everywhere. 

Christmas Market
The Christmas Market was really nice.  The items being sold were similar to German Christmas markets (toys, ornaments, etc), but some of the foods were different.  There were pierogis, grilled chunks of cheese with jam, and sausages, just to name a few.  We also always made sure to grab a cup of mulled wine as we passed by the market square.  The flavor of the Polish mulled wine was slightly different than of the wine served at the Christmas Markets in Germany, and does wonders to warm you up on a chilly evening!



Yummmmmmm

In the photo below, the kids are wearing a sort of 'bread necklace,' which was made of a bunch of small, hard, sweet rolls.  I also really liked the bread that was sold at little kiosks on the street corners, which was shaped like a large ring, and tasted like a cross between a pretzel and a bagel. 

We took a horse-drawn carriage ride through the old city.  The kids had fun trying to say 'Merry Christmas' in Polish to the people we passed by. 

 

We happened upon a small Christmas parade where the people were wearing traditional Polish clothing, and playing music. 

The kids were entertained by the various street performers, especially the knight you could sword fight with for a few coins. 

Wieliczka Salt Mine

The next day we visited the Wieliczka Salt Mine, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It was started in the 13th century, is 327 meters deep, and 178 miles long!

M wanted to make sure it was really salt...

There are dozens of statues and carving made from salt, three chapels, an entire cathedral, and a lake within the mine!  We really enjoyed the tour, but we had to keep a constant eye on Meredith, since she LOVES salt and we made the mistake of telling her that she could do a taste test. 

Salt crystal chandaleirs and tiles

Silly boys

Me, Anna, and little Julia

Clearly we really enjoyed visiting our friends in Krakow!  On our last day, Anna and I visited the spa at the hotel, where I got a massage, and Anna had a manicure.  We gave lots of hugs through teary eyes before heading back to the airport, and luckily there was no fog to impede our travel back to Germany.  We are so happy to have had this opportunity and I hope that we have the opportunity to see our friends again soon.