We added Krakow to our travel 'to do list' when cheap flights (Ryanair) caught our eye back in June. Our knowledge of Krakow's cultural history was fairly limited, so we expanded on this by reading the UNESCO World Heritage site listing and our usual travel forums. On one hand Krakow is known for its pretty architecture that survived the bombings of World War II, however it is also scarred by the horrors that occurred at the nearby Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp - a visit that left us with feelings of sadness and anger.
Auschwitz
We took a day trip to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp for the purpose of understanding more about the events that occurred there. Seeing it first-hand (as opposed to reading about it in a text book or watching a documentary) etched images into our minds that we will never forget for the rest of our lives. Some of the strongest emotions were felt when we saw the ruins of a gas chamber first hand; or walked through the torture chambers that were used by the Nazis to force prisoners to stand all night.
The site exists as a preserved museum containing many photos and original items in their original state as when the Soviet troops liberated the camp in 1945.
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| The infamous sign outside the main gate |
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| The entire site is bordered by thick rows of barbed wire |
Our tour guide was a descendant of an Auschwitz survivor who had been incarcerated as a political prisoner at the beginning of the war. Due to his personal connection, he conveyed the story of what happened very effectively. The tours took us through a number of the original buildings that were used for accommodation, into a gas chamber and out into the yards where prisoners were executed.
Seeing the train line with a dead-end inside the concentration camp was a haunting site. As was scanning over the memorial that captures the memory of all that perished in over 20 different languages - we felt moved by the day's experience.
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| Main entrance to Auschwitz II by railroad |
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| The cattle carts used to transport victims to the site |
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| The memorial - in 20 different languages |
Oskar Schindler Factory
The day before we had taken a walk outside of the Krakow Old Town and into the Old Jewish Quarter where we walked up to the factory owned by Oskar Schindler - that inspired the movie Schindler's List. Seeing the memorial outside the factory was sad and we reflected on the cruelty that humans can show to each other versus the stories of self-sacrifice and kindness during times of war and conflict.
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| Oskar Schindler factory |
Chocolate Shop
For the remainder of our trip, we did experience other cultural highlights, such as the chocolate shop that we discovered whilst walking around the Old Town. The shop sold a variety pack of 24 chocolates for about £4.We also noted that hot-chocolate in Krakow is a cup of melted chocolate, and you are encouraged to drink it 'hot' rather than let it solidify as it cools.
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| Chocolate heaven |
Walking Tour
In an effort to learn more about the city of Krakow, we joined a walking tour around the Old Town for 3 hours, taking in the top 3 things Krakow is famous for: 1) Students (a university has existed here since medieval times), 2) Tourists and 3) Churches.
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| Outside the market hall |
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| A park exists where the old City Walls used to be |
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| Inside the University |
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| The beautiful stained glass windows |
As part of the tour we learnt about the traditional rivalry with Warsaw (like Melbourne versus Sydney), the winter temperatures that fall as low as -25 degrees Celsius, the cult of pope John Paul II, Wawel fortress. and the immense city-wide disappointment that none of the Euro 2012 (to be hosted by Poland) matches would be played in their city.
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| Statue of Pope John Paul II |
After spending the day walking around, we tucked into some Polish-French cuisine at restaurant located based on Trip Advisor reviews. The food was amazing, the service was top-notch and the price was cheap as compared to London- equivalent to £50 pounds for 3 courses and a bottle of wine. Overall we found food in Krakow to be very tasty. We sampled a wide variety of traditional Polish dishes that the hotel served at breakfast; in addition to the Adriatic fish soup, beef tartare and stewed pork at Baroque vodka bar that we stumbled on after the original restaurant we intended to visit looked suspiciously empty.
Krakow at Night
With the wine warming us up, we ventured into the main market square to see how beautiful Krakow looked all lit up at night.
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| Posing for the camera |
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| Church inside the main square |
Flower Market
Inside the main square, a small flower stall was selling pretty sunflowers that Mei decided would make an excellent prop for photos. We then had a merry time posing with a sunflower at various sites on the way back to the hotel; later finding inspiration in a Swarovski crystal statue of a bear.
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| The inspiration |
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| Main square |
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| Olie's bag acting as a flowerpot |
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| Adding to the shop's window display |
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We added Krakow to our travel 'to do list' when cheap flights (Ryanair) caught our eye back in June. Our knowledge of Krakow's cultural history was fairly limited, so we expanded on this by reading the UNESCO World Heritage site listing and our usual travel forums. On one hand Krakow is known for its pretty architecture that survived the bombings of World War II, however it is also scarred by the horrors that occurred at the nearby Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp - a visit that left us with feelings of sadness and anger.
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