Hopefully you've already read installed #1 of this trip recap. If you haven't, you shoud do that now. Our time in Warsaw can be found here.
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Monday, May 23
We were up early on Monday morning to catch a train from Warsaw down to Krakow. It was scheduled to leave at 7:50am out of Warsaw Central. Mark and Jeanne drove us over and saw us off. You should have seen the train...wow. I wasn't sure if this bucket of bolts could actually make the 3.5hr trip!
We did stop a few times on the way down...for no apparent reason that I could figure out, but we still arrived pretty much on time at 11:30am. It was a nice way to see some of the Polish countryside...
As we got off the train we needed a snack so we got a pretzel/bagel type thing that they sell on the street and everyone loves. Hit the spot!
Once in town we took a cab over to the hotel but it was a bit too early to check-in, so we dropped our bags and figured we'd start exploring and rustle up some lunch. We walked up through the main town square, the rynek, and went to a "milk-bar" just north of it that Mark and Jeanne recommended called Polskie Smaki.
With everything being dirt cheap we ordered way more food than we needed...but we just wanted to try everything. You're looking at some zurek soup, spinach, gawumpkies, and some bigos [hunters stew]. The bigos was okay, not my favorite, but we had to try it, and the gawumps were a bit heavy on the rice. We make them with more meat than rice...but I guess in Poland the rice is more prevalent because its much cheaper than meat. So that makes sense.
We literally had to roll out of this place we were so stuffed. We made our way back to the rynek and walked through the Cloth Hall. This place is now a tourist trap with all sorts of trinkets and souvenirs, but it got its start as a covered market back in the 1500s. We walked through and walked right back out...beautiful building though.
We still had a little time before we could get into our room so we decided to sit at one of the 300+ bars, restaurants and cafes that line the perimeter of the rynek and have a beer. The rynek really is the center of life here in Krakow. It's just where you go for restaurants and shops, plus all of the main sights are nearby too.
By now our room was ready so we walked back to the hotel, Hotel Ester, to check-in, unpack, take a quick shower and tie on a little nap before heading back out to explore some more. The hotel was on Szeroka Street in the heart of the Kazimierz Quarter. [the old Jewish district]. A bit off the beaten path, this was a great location to really feel like we were in the heart of the city, with the locals. Szeroka means "wide street" and it's true, the street is lined with restaurants and cafes...all with a Jewish feel to them.
Waking up refeshed we set back out. We hopped on the tram and rode just north of the Planty. The planty is a huge park that rings the center of the city. It's where the old medieval wall once stood....now is a great park to stroll through. Here are a few photos of what it's like...
Back to the tram...
We got off the tram and walked down to the last remnants of that old city wall, St. Florian Gate.
From here we walked around a bit and stumbled up on a great little church called the Church of Reformed Franciscans dating back to 1672.
Supposedly the crypt in the basement has ideal conditions for mummification of all the old priest!
From here we walked back into the rynek and checked out more of the sights. The Town Hall Tower, Cloth Hall, St. Adalbert's Church, the Adam Mickeiewicz statue, and St. Mary's Church. We'll tour St. Mary's later in our visit, but an interesting story about the bugle player who plays every hour, on the hour, from the spire of St. Mary's. He opens a window on the hour and pokes his bugle out to play, but about halfway through the song he abruptly stops. This is to commemorate one of the buglers who was shot through his throat in 1241 by a Mongolian archer as they attacked the city.
Once again it was time to stop for a beer....this time an Okocim. Let me pause here to explain how beer works in this part of the world. When you approach a bar/restaurant/cafe, have a quick look at the awning or umbrellas outside. Whatever beer brand you see advertised on them is the only beer that they're going to serve at that particular bar/restaurant/cafe. Simple as that. We were in the mood for an Okocim, so we had to find an Okocim cafe.
Let me also mention that just by coincidence there happened to be a huge outdoor fair taking place all week long in the rynek. People set up boths to peddle their wares as well as cook up some amazing traditinal Polish food. This is where we'd be having dinner tonight!
Before we grabbed an Okocim we stopped and tried a piece of grilled sheeps cheese with rasberry topping. Oh man!
