Krakow

Some stops on the way to Krakow were spotty with graffiti, run down stations, and trash beside the railroad tracks, but once we got into Krakow it was extremely nice.

There was a beautiful moat around the town from centuries past that was turned into a park encircling the city and gorgeous old buildings from the 12th century on, many in the later neoclassical style from the 18th century. I found Hotel Saski, and it was just right--close to everything, centrally located, authentic neoclassical style with a really cool elevator, but a little loud due to the street noise like the book said.

Dinner at the adjoining Metropolitan Restaurant was excellent. They have great lemonade there with a bit of lime and sugared rim.

This morning, I woke up and went on the tours at Wawel Castle. The guide was very good, and she recommended God's Playground: A History of Poland for Foreigners by Norman Davies. At lunch I ate traditional Polish food at Chlopskie Jadlo--herring with sour cream, apples, and onions. It was unusual, but good. It was served with thick slices of bread and a choice of pork fat or a cream cheese and chive spread. Black tea is big here too according to Lonely Planet, but here they serve it with a slice of lemon.

The weather has been perfect--it cools down at night, and it's sunny and clear during the day without being too hot (high of 75 or 70 degrees). I had a frappe and wrote postcards to everyone. I've noticed there are more bookstores here than in other places I've visited.

The main square--Rynek Glowny--is 200m x 200m surrounded by buildings 5-6 stories high where each story about is about 20 feet high. The architecture has clean lines and gives off a feeling of royalty. It is most impressive. The doorways show the real age of the buildings, some of which date back to the Renaissance, and some as far back as the 11th century.

I rested after lunch because I was dead--three days by train from Istanbul without stopping had worn me out. My back was hurting and I was on the verge of getting sick again. The nap, water, and easy walk around the north part of old town helped a lot. I planned an Auschwitz-Birkenau trip for the next day, but before that I took a walk at the south part of old town where I checked out Smak Ukrainski and had some nice Ukrainian food--beetroot salad with dill and a large dumpling with rice and meat inside--very nice. After that, I felt better, so I checked out the architectural details of Kanonicza Street near the Copernicus Hotel, then walked home through the Main Square at night.

The evening was beautiful, and with the cool weather, everyone was milling around the square and enjoying the horse-drawn carriages, beautiful buildings, and other features of square like the St Mary's Cathedral, and town hall tower--great atmosphere here. Then it was time for bed.

I didn't sleep because I drank too much of the excellent coffee here at the free breakfast in the Metropolitan. It seems stronger than the coffee I had in Italy and even seems stronger than the coffee I had in Istanbul. The Turkish coffee didn't really have much of a kick that I could tell. Maybe boiling the coffee breaks down the caffeine. I'm not sure. Maybe it was also the amount of coffee I drank--in Turkey the cups are espresso cups, and here in Poland they were full cups of good black coffee.

The women here are really beautiful--tall, thin, pretty faces and they have full, hourglass figures with thin waists. I'm not sure if those are Eastern European characteristics, but their special beauty is worth noting.