When in Krakow...

I got a text from my family on Saturday asking me which I country I was in for this weekend. Sometimes I forget that it isn't normal to be in a different country every week seeing all the tiny corners of this giant world that we live in. However, the corner that I was fortunate enough to get to see Krakow, Poland this weekend. Like every other city that I have been too, Krakow had a unique fervor about it that made everyone in our group light up. 

The first place that we visited was the Wieliczka Salt Mine just outside of Krakow. We embarked on a three hour tour (our fate was more pleasant than Gilligan's) and went down the 53 flights of stairs to actually get into the mine. We were approximately 800 feet underground when the journey began. I have never actually seen how salt was mined (or thought about it). I've been to silver and gold mines throughout Colorado, but the salt mine was a different experience. I thought it was fascinating that this was still an active mine and we only got to see 1% of  the excavation. I would have liked to actually walk through where they sill mined the salt to get the full experience of salt mining. But, instead we got to physically lick the walls. Evidently, when you are surrounded by salt all day, you just get to lick it off of the wall. We stopped and our tour guide told us that this was the most "popular" wall to taste, so we stopped and tasted what the mine was giving us. Moving on from the eating of the wall, we went down into a chapel made out of salt. There was a giant statue of Saint Kinga (patron saint of salt miners) and another statue of Pope John Paul II (former bishop of Krakow), as well as chandeliers made out of salt crystals. We finished our tour and got to take the elevator back up 800 feet to the surface and out into the bright sunny day that Poland was offering. 

Chapel in the salt mine

After a light night out in Poland, we got up the next morning and marched off to the armory, treasury, and staterooms in the castle. It was just average I suppose. I think that our group is tired of seeing the same thing over and over (yes, this is a priceless tapestry that is stunning but we've seen way too many). So the group was extremely sluggish throughout the entire tour. After we were let free for the the day, I went off with a few people in the group to grab some traditional Polish food in the vast street markets of Krakow. Since we were fortunate enough to have beautiful weather (again) we sat outside and operated on "island time" for the afternoon. One of the most memorable things about the square was the cathedral that loomed over it. St. Mary's Basilica was essentially the most beautiful church that I have ever seen (sorry St. Peter's). With vibrant colors, majestic altar piece, and a quiet adoration chapel, it was exactly what I wanted to see that afternoon. Once I drug myself out of the cathedral, we just wandered the city and tried to read the feeling and see a true Saturday afternoon in Krakow. Once it started sprinkling a little bit, we went back to the hostel to freshen up before dinner. We got to go to a beer garden in the Jewish Quarter of the city and enjoyed liters and pierogies (traditional Polish pasta stuffed with meat, potatoes, or cabbage). Fantastic meal with exquisite company. Then the night was really nothing to remember, so I won't allude any details about it.

Krakow's main square with a view of St. Mary's Basilica

 

Pierogies (traditional Polish food)

I got up, somehow, on Sunday morning and found a Polish mass to attend before we shipped off to Schindler's factory. This was an unexampled view of the Nazi regime throughout Poland. With all of our lessons and tours about the Holocaust, this was just a different way of looking at it. Our tour guide was fantastic and extremely passionate and knowledgeable about his work. He told us about the impeding Nazi party that took over Poland in just 20 short days and the "average life" from there on out. It will most definitely give me a new perspective when I watch Schindler's List again. Once our tour was over, we all boarded up the bus and set back off for Olomouc. Overall, it was a fantastic weekend. Not sure if it was the weather, the people, or simply the impeccable city that we were lucky enough to get to see, but I left Krakow with very good memories. 

~"Have nor fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that I am with you, therefor no harm can befall you; all is very, very well. Do this in complete faith and confidence" Pope John Paul II~