KRAKOW, POLAND, Eastern Europe - Oct. 2006

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Krakow was a highlight and stole our hearts. It is a beautiful city, especially during its golden autumn, full of history, college students, and culture. The tourist infrastructure is in place, but it is still very Old World. Yes, cell phones, internet, even designer stores at the train station….they are all there, but things don’t quite work in the way that places used to tourists work. Most people who deal with the public don’t speak any English (or even French!) and direction signs are absent or unclear. We loved it!

The Old World feeling is really evident in people over 35. There is a tentativeness, a feeling one gets that they are not quite sure that the Communists are gone for good. As one man expressed to us, "We are just learning to smile again." They contrast with the buoyant college students who fill the market square at night and who are very stylish, contemporary, and multi-lingual.

Our apartment was a block off the main square, so once again we could easily walk to most places of interest. We had an all day walking tour of Krakow which included the main market square sites, the Planty—a beautiful park surrounding the square which was once a moat, many churches, Wawel Castle, the Kazimierz (Jewish Quarter), and many neighborhoods. Andr￩, our guide, was a poet with spoken words, so to see though his eyes was a wonderful peek into a rich and complicated history.

Typical food included pierogi (ravioli-like) dumplings, soups such as borscht (red, clear, and white), cabbage leaves stuffed with rice and meat, pork in many forms including sausages, and potatoes. You can see the pierogi, cabbage leaves, and sausage in the thin rectangle picture above. One favorite treat was a fresh, chewy bread ring (obwarzanki) found on literally every corner, costing about 33 cents. There is a picture of one of these carts near the end of the set above.

We also visited Auschwitz-Birkenau for a sobering but very meaningful day and the interesting Wieliczka Salt Mines which has produced salt since the 11th century.

The colorful horse-drawn cabbies line the market square and can be hired for sightseeing rides. It is this scene I tried to send in postcards. After paying top price for airmail at the new post office, cards either took two months or never arrived. As I said, the infrastructure is in place, and the rest is trying to catch up.

This is all the more reason to go to Krakow now, while it still is working as it has in the past and very much has its own voice.

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