day twelve . 12 may

krakow, poland

what a way to start the day! we were literally thrown out of the train!

its crazy how despite waking up early, i went back to sleep and in the end, we almost missed our stop. good thing the conductor came knocking on our cabin and started shouting in polish for us to get out of the train (lucky for us, we didn’t understand what he REALLY said) the very minute the last of our belongings was out of the train, it moved off. ok. I guess we screwed up their timetable and caused delays for the rest of the day.


we are in poland!


looking disheveled from the train episode

still, as if to compensate for that, we got a damn good deal for our hostel. free breakfast and wi-fi has become our gauge for the desirability of our accommodation. so when a place promises both, we are in heaven.

our 1st stop of the day is wawel castle. but before i move on further, i must say that everything about Krakow seems to be a direct opposite of how i imagined it to be. its not as cold (i imagined the place to be freezing cold) and its not as backward. in fact, when i got off the train (ok, when i got THROWN OFF the train), i saw galleria, zara, saturn and carrefour. so no. i was not in a very backward place.


on our way to wawel castle

back to the castle. it was like, a castle. wat made it memorable was tat we saw the polish president! he was apparently visiting the church so we just hung around abit to catch a glimpse of him.


eagerly awaiting the arrival of the president

that's him!

other den that, the castle is just like any other castle. but this is probably the least inspiring places in krakow. because everything from henceforth is very very nice (:

preztel. not a fan.

stopping for some polish pasteries

we visited the jewish quarters which is one of the biggest around since poland has one of the largest population of jews outside of israel. entering the synagogue, I didn’t know what to expect, since this is the 1st time i went into one – men had to cover their heads so yinghao had to wear a cap.

the cemetery was interesting though. as the bodies couldn’t be cremated, the cemetries usually get to cramped that the tombs are all very near to one another. i also noticed how there seemed to be small rocks placed on top of the tombstones. a check with the lady manning the place enlightened us. apparently, the rocks, just like flowers, are offerings to the deceased. rocks are used instead of flowers as they do not wither, hence symbolizing eternity.

entering the jewish quarters

check out the small stones on the tombs

it was however, the jewish museum across the street that captivated me. it showcased the lives of the jewish living in poland during the time of war, and the everyday men and women who became heroes in their own ways.

the photo exhibition was very powerful, and what’s interesting was that it depicted not the sufferings of victims or of the war, but instead, what is left of the jewish community now, some 50 over years after the war. im really glad to have spent the afternoon there.

jewish musuem

photo exhibition

strolling along the streets of the jewish neighbourhood, i chanced upon a dark corridor which seems to lead to some houses. actually, it caught my notice as i saw a man walking in there, and my curiosity told me that i had to go in.

the corridor was very dark and dirty, and there was a distinct smell. it wasn’t a stench tho. at the other side of the corridor, was a opening which turns out to be a courtyard to people’s houses. i cant quite describe the feeling of this sight, but i know it was a powerful one. i would never have expected to see houses like this is europe, but den again, i always knew that eastern europe is generally less well-off than their western counterparts. it was very surreal seeing what i was seeing but i know this is as real as anything will get.

the paint on the walls have all fallen off and the rubbish chute was overflowing. the clothesline in the courtyard was filled with clothes and the staircase leading up to the houses was filled with trash.

courtyard

and then the very same man who i was following opened his window from his room and peered down. i felt a sudden sense of guilt overwhelm me. it feels as tho i have just been caught doing something which i wasnt supposed to, and i sincerely hoped wat he saw in my eyes were not pity. i felt like a kid who was caught stealing from the candy jar and i would have given anything to not have been caught in the situation. i left immediately but my mind just kept going back to that place.

interesting road signs

hole in the wall

anyways, we walked abit more and we reached the stare mistro (old town) in no time. the old town square is beautiful. maybe i am destined to love this place. i really like the old town square, although to the rest, it seems like any other square we have been to. st mary’s cathedral was cool and as if it was planned, it began to chime when we were there.

old town

st mary's cathedral

we explored further and caught a glimpse of the university, one of the oldest in europe. we den walked over to the new town, which was pretty near to the old one.

streets of the new town

for dinner, we had polish food at a strange restaurant filled with dolls, highly recommended by the tourist information guy. we tried the dumpling, pork cutlet and polish beer, which were all nice and yummy (:

spooky restuarant filled with dolls