CITY EDIT: KRAKOW & MORE

EASTERN EUROPE

I don't think Poland (Polska) was ever on my hit-list, if I'm being honest. However, when you meet someone who is so passionate and patriotic about their country, its culture, natural beauty, food (especially meat) and vodka you can't resist the temptation to see the place through their eyes. And I'm glad I didn't.  

My friend and I talked for four hours straight, from Stansted Express to the flight, to Krakow Airport, pissing off almost every unfortunate soul that had to be around us. We were picked up by a (very beautiful) young man in a fine Mercedes E-Class, which was a nice intro to the country. Although I wouldn't call a local experience, it almost felt necessary after Ryan Air. Apart from a pit-stop for a hotdog in a quiet petrol station, we got to Zakopane within an hour and a half, a small city right at the bottom of Poland.  

We checked into a wooden cottage style house, although a little tricky to find in the middle of the night. The inside of the house was decorated with pretty crochet pieces used as curtains and lots of paper decorations placed strategically around the walls, with a nice warm and cosy feel to it. It felt a bit like a prelude to Christmas.

touching slovakia: tatra mountains

A lady taxi driver became our personal chauffeur in Zakopane, which helped us explore the mountains and the local areas with ease. She and her brothers took turns in running their taxi business and I can confirm that she could win a competition in reversing into side roads no matter how rocky, hilly or dark it is. I can barely reverse.

We walked for 9 hours on our first day of trekking the Tatra Mountains, shared amicably by the Polish and Slovakians and a UNESCO site. We didn't climb the 2500m or so to one of the peaks, but we did get to around 1800m, and with rain and snow it was a bit slippy and slidy. We enjoyed a warm fruity and ginger beer at one of the pitstops. The best thing we did, a lesson learnt from Kilimanjaro, was to carry snacks and a hot water flask with our favourite tea, as well as layers and rainproof covers for our backpacks and ourselves. 

We saw a few waterfalls, streams and lakes (or tarns, created from glacial water)... the big lake, medium lake and small lake (apparently that's the meaning of the names in English). The views were beautiful and the lakes appeared to be slate-coloured, due to the time of the year and weather. Another hiker showed us photos from a day ago where the lakes were aquamarine coloured. I couldn't help but recognise their resemblance between the lakes in Snowdon in Wales. We spent the evening in the town centre, had some delicious vodka (Soplica) infused cocktails with hot comfort food including dumplings, soup and more dumplings! 

The following day, we went to Koscielisko Valley in the Western side of Tarta National Park. This was an 'easier' trek near streams, through forests and some waterfalls and a lovely secluded lake, until we decided to check out the caves. We thought this would involve strolling into a cave, taking a few photos and walking out. Instead, it involved close-to-vertical climbs and descents on soap-textured rocks, using nothing but a metal chain and a lot of arm strength.

This was real-life bouldering and I was close to tears. I still can't say if I enjoyed it or hated it (probably both). On one side, was the sense of achievement and on the other side putting myself through that freight that: "if my hands or feet slip I may fall and will die". A slight change from indoor bouldering in Harrow (you fall onto a mattress), or abseiling in Thailand or canyoneering (or canyoning) in Costa Rica where you have a harness and are clipped onto all sorts of things to make sure you will at least hang in the middle of nowhere, but you won't fall into the valley. It was certainly one of the highlights, though. ​

did you know...

1. Rzeczpospolita Polskdka is the official name of Poland (meaning: The Commonwealth of Poland) 
2.  World War II started with the invasion of Poland by Germany, followed by Soviet Union. The concentration camp in Auschwitz is a two hour drive from Warsaw, the capital of Poland. 
3. 6 countries share borders with Poland (Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania). 
4. Poland is the 9th largest country in Europe. 
5. It is possible to have 14 shots of Polish vodka and not have a hangover the next day (this one is from me!) 

​top 5
​polish must haves

1. Vodka: Soplica
2. Dumplings 
​3. Oscypek: smoked sheep’s milk cheese
4. Chocolate: Wawel
5. Sausages 

krakow: the oldest city in poland

Our journey into Krakow from Zakopane was on a nice public coach for just under three hours. I fell asleep as always, so probably missed the best views of the mountains, which is a shame. 

As soon as we walked through the town centre towards our weekend flat, passing gorgeous and huge horse-driven chariots, cobble-stone streets, market stalls covered in yellow Amber, I knew I liked Krakow. I could almost smell the cinnamon in the hot mulled wine in the weekend market, the sun was shining and I had done enough trekking to deserve a lot of beer, wine and vodka (picture a Cheshire Cat smile). 

We dropped our bags and rushed back out to see the 14th century Wawel Cathedral, mostly so I can touch the giant bell (Royal Sigismund Bell) at the top of the cathedral and make a wish. We got some nice views of the city, then headed down to the cafe outside the castle for... mulled wine and chocolates. The cathedral itself has a mixture of vibes: from Baroque, to Classicist to Gothic. It's confusing and interesting, especially for those who are into photography. The tombs had a number of kings and political individuals of significance, each made in beautiful marble. 

FOOD & shopping

There are more than plenty of souvenir shops around the Old Town and they're not actually made in China, you will be pleased to know. Some of the magnets are carved out of wood in Poland, with amber. Everything is very reasonably priced or cheap in Poland, so your holiday money goes a long way here. 

The ceramic crockeries, fabrics, crochet work are found at reasonable prices through out the city for those who are into home decorating. I bought a stuffed bear (obviously) that is a convertible cushion/teddy bear. It was meant for my two year old nephew, but I have a feeling I may end up keeping it. 

final thoughts

Overall, my impression of Poland has been eye-opening and is certainly under rated or less spoken about as a tourist destination compared to many other European counterparts. The history, the religious influence, the art and architecture, natural landscapes and the vodka... I will be back for more.  

The only thing that I wish I could change about this trip was Ryan Air and Stansted Airport. Neither should be on anyone's bucket list, unless you have a desire to torture yourself, confuse each other and generally not want to travel again (for a while). I will spare the details this time. ​​

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