After our tours of the Auschwitz camps we only had a few hours to tour Krakow before we had to catch our train back to Warsaw. We also had to find dinner during this time so all we did was walk around the main square and through the Christmas market. We managed to eat dinner at a little restaurant just off the main square and then we went to an Italian wine bar for some wine and a meat and cheese platter afterwards. We had priorities!
As our tour guide had promised us earlier in the day (not our Auschwitz tour guide but the tour guide that drove us from the Krakow train station to Auschwitz and then back to Krakow), Krakow is completely different from Warsaw. Krakow was not destroyed during WWII and so has retained much of its old world charm and character. It was not destroyed during WWII because the Germans intended to make it a German city and keep it for themselves. Also, it was an important stopping point on the way to Auschwitz and so the Germans needed it.
I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but we barely scratched the surface of things to see and do in Krakow. There is a castle there, Wawel Castle, where the kings of Poland lived for many centuries. There are also tons of churches in Krakow - our tour guide said Krakow is known as "altera Roma" (the other Rome). There are museums, some salt mines you can visit, and mountains just to the south that are apparently very beautiful.
Fun facts:
1. Pope John Paul II was originally the archbishop of Krakow, until he became Pope in 1978. There is a shrine to him in the church on the main square.
2. Krakow old town is a UNESCO heritage site.
3. The main square is the largest medieval market square in Europe, at about 200 meters wide.
4. Krakow is very often foggy because it is situated in a valley. The airport frequently closes because the fog is so thick. Just an FYI, watch the weather if you plan to fly in or out of Krakow and be prepared to have some extra time there if fog rolls in.
Here are some pictures of the streets and the main square.
The inside of this church was beautiful, and very similar to the church we visited in Budapest with a dark blue ceiling with golden stars. There were no pictures allowed so you'll have to go and see it for yourself.
Pierogi at the Christmas market. We didn't have any because we didn't want to spoil our dinner.
Our dinner was, of course, Pierogi. :) We split one plate of the classic potato-cheese-onion pierogi and one plate of duck-filled pierogi in a "classic Polish sauce". Both were delicious.
A few more interesting buildings...
Finally, a cute reindeer made out of pine branches at the little Christmas market just outside the Krakow train station.
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