Eastward Bound - To Krakow, Poland!

This weekend the Orloski family took a train (Daddy's first!) to Krakow - about a 7-hour ride not including a short layover. We had our own compartment for much of the ride, until we stopped in Kadowice to board the commuter train into Krakow. Kate and I (always on the lookout for my next good meal) made a few visits to the dining car - very civilized, indeed. Kate's favorite was the "pee-rogies" but I really loved the zurek, a Polish sour soup with sausage and boiled eggs.

We spent our first evening walking around the Old Town (Stare Miasto) and making notes for the following day. On Saturday, we explored the grounds of Wawel Castle and Cathedral, and toured the cathedral, crypt, and museum. On our way to the Old Town, we passed the houses Pope John Paul lived in. We took a horse and carriage ride then walked through the Planty Gardens, which form a ring where the medieval city walls once were. On Sunday we took a five-hour driving/walking tour of sites related to the life of Pope John Paul.

Kate enjoys the view on the train

The boys relax in the hotel room before we head out

Ahhh, Ba-Ba!!!


WAWEL CASTLE and CATHEDRAL


Legend has it that Krakow was founded by a Prince Krak around the 8th century, after he slayed a dragon living in a large cave on the side Wawel Hill. Wawel Castle was built on the hill by King Zygmunt the Old in the 16th c. (though my guide says that the rulers of Poland took up residence on Wawel Hill around the turn of the last millennium). The Cathedral has a 1000-year history and was the coronation site for Polish monarchs and the burial ground for Polish royalty and national heroes.

-Kate listens intently to the audio guide of Wawel Cathedral

The Zygmunt Bell (1520) in Wawel Cathedral- we climbed at about 70 steps to get to the bell tower and were treated to a beautiful view of Krakow, below.



AROUND OLD TOWN SQUARE


St. Mary's Basilica

Cloth Hall, in Old Town Square, outside and in. Built around 1300, it has been called one of the world's oldest shopping malls and is now lined with souvenir stalls.

A family vacation without a horse and buggy ride is just not a family vacation...



POPE JOHN PAUL II Tour

He was baptized in this church in Wadowice, outside Krakow - below is the baptismal font






The pictures above show our walk through part of the Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, a religious complex in the Carpathian foothills consisting of its 42 churches and chapels of all shapes and sizes in addition to a central basilica and Franciscan monastery.

Stopping to enjoy the fountain at....McDonald's (the cheapest ice cream sundae - and one of the best - in Europe, hands down)

How to Speak Polish:

Add an "I" or a "Y" to any English word and you've pretty much got it.


And some Sounds from Around Krakow!

I can't get this image to turn 90 degrees, but listen for the trumpet - a trumpeter plays from the highest tower of St. Mary's church every hour, on the hour. His song is called the Hejnal Mariacki - it was played by a guard in 1241 to warn townspeople of a Mongol invasion (or so the legend goes). The trumpeter was shot by a Tater's arrow while sounding the alarm and did not complete the tune (although the invasion was thwarted) ; today, the tune still stops abruptly before it is completed in memory of this event.



Kate dances "her guys" to the music in the train station



The bells toll at Wawel Cathedral