Exploring Poland with Jennie

Jennie and her new husband recently travelled to Poland for a long awaited short haul break.  Here’s what they got up to:

My trip to Krakow was, like for so many, my first overseas trip since January. Oh how I’ve missed travel – even the airport was exciting!

To be honest, I didn’t really know what to expect.  Many people were apprehensive when I told them I was travelling to Poland and there was an obvious concern that everything was going to go smoothly and that we would be safe.

We had an absolutely amazing weekend. The Ukraine flag was flying everywhere and blue and yellow flowers decorated the city however other than that, no one would have known of the current conflict and Poland’s humanitarian involvement.   It was no different to being in any other city and the Polish people are lovely and were so welcoming.

We packed as much into our 3 days in Krakow as we could, starting with lunch in the main market square. It was such good value – a few cocktails, beers and food for both of us came to about £30!

We stayed in a lovely, small hotel call the M29.  It is located in the Jewish Old Town (Kazimierz) and is quiet and welcoming.  We were there to sightsee so we started by visiting Oskar Schindler’s Factory, Ghetto Heroes Square and the Ghetto Walls.  The exhibition at Oskar Schindler’s factory was fascinating.  It was really interesting to learn so much more about the persecution of the Jewish people and gain more in depth understanding of the history and atrocities.

We made the decision to take a tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau during our stay.  Our private driver picked us up from our hotel and drive us an hour and a half to the historical camp.  It was an early start as we opted for the morning tour but the best way to do it as we could take some time during the afternoon to reflect on our visit. Our guide took us around both camps and was really knowledgeable and informative.  It is obviously a shocking experience but incredibly interesting and humbling and in my view, so important to keep the memory of those that suffered alive

Other sights not to miss in Krakow are Cloth Hall in the main square (great for souvenirs and Christmas decoration shopping!) as well as Town Hall Tower, St Mary’s Basilicia.  The latter is famous for its daily trumpet call from the taller tower, which had been used as the city watchtower for centuries.  The trumpet call is played every hour, four times in succession in each of the four cardinal directions, it always breaks as though unfinished to commemorate the trumpeter who tried to alarm the city of approaching invaders but was hit by an arrow mid call.

We also visited Wawel Royal Castle and saw the statue of the mythical dragon that breaths real fire, Wawel Cathedral, the Church of Saint’s Peter and Paul and a Saturday local flea market.  We explored the Jewish Old Town and stumbled across a historic alleyway and stair case both of which were used for scenes in the film Schindler’s list.  The alleyway is now known as Schindler’s List Passage.  We found a fabulous coffee bar called the ‘Leaky Cauldron’ which is hidden down an alleyway in a basement.  It’s a Harry Potter themed coffee bar decorated from top to bottom in all things Harry Potter; Hogwarts House flags, broomsticks, character paintings and sketches.  Try the butter beer; warm toffee flavoured milk with winter spices and lots of cream.  The café also makes the most amazing carrot cake.

We were so lucky with the weather.  The temperatures were around -5 degrees when we set out each morning, rising to around 8 degrees during the day.  Brilliant blue skies and sunshine every day added to the enjoyment.  Krakow is a fabulous city to explore and I would love to chat to you about it so do get in touch to find out more.