Yesterday was pretty much a rest day in our great apartment due to Catherine’s sickness, so today was the first day we got out and about in Krakow. It’s a very nice city, much like Prague but smaller and much less crowded with tourists. Quite a nice atmosphere actually. We took our time and saw most of the main sites in the old town, and Catherine’s appetite started to come back so we ate at a “Milk Bar” which is a cheap no-frills eatery that serves hearty Polish fare at low prices. They are a hold-over from the Communist days. The one we went to however wasn’t the complete real deal as it had an English menu and some service, but it worked for us.
Tomorrow we’re going to take the bus and visit the Auschwitz Concentration Camp Museum. Since yesterday was the 70th anniversary of the start of the WWII (which of course began in Poland) there are expected to be large crowds. The whole month of September there are various events being held to mark the anniversary; today we spent some time checking out a photo montage of various Polish WWII images. It was quite interesting to read the captions and see get the Polish-side of some events that I’ve studies mostly from the British perspective.
When we get back we’ll probably have dinner at one of the many cafes before catching the night train to Budapest.
Here are a few of the images we captured today.
I’m jealous! I loved Krakow. I think I had the best cup of coffee I’ve ever had in my life when I was there. We also stumbled into this awesome jazz bar by mistake one night, it was kind of in a basement off the main square, so if I were you I’d just start poking around in weird alleys until you find it. They’ll love you!
So glad you’re able to get out and enjoy the city together. Brown in Krakow is a crack up! What you said, about the Polish perspective on events you learned about from a British perspective, is I think one of the best reasons to travel. I’m eager to hear more about what you find there.