Jeannie's Travel Addiction

May 9, 2015

Welcome to Krakow!  Beautiful, vibrant city with lots to do and things to see.  The Main Market Square,  established in the 13th century,  is  the biggest I have ever  seen.  Cloth Hall was built in 1555 and is  where cloth-sellers used to sell their goods but  is now full of souvenirs stalls.  It is clearly the focal  point of the square:

Cloth Hall

The Town Hall Tower, from the 14th century, is all that is left of the Town Hall.

Buggy Rides are abundant and picturesque.

This interesting sculpture sits in front of the Town Hall Tower.  Usually  crawling with people on top of and sticking body parts out of the eyes – I was very patient  to wait for a cleared  moment.

St. Mary’s Basilica  has stood at a corner of the Square for 800 years. There is a church tower and the other tower is the town’s watch tower. Even today there are 24 hour shifts ( fire men) and they open the window  and  play the bugle  every hour, on the hour.  It is even broadcast on the Polish radio at noon everyday. If interested you can climb the 271  steps to the top and see and hear the watchman play.  I declined the opportunity.

St. Mary’s alter has this craved Gothic alter piece  that took 12 years to complete in 1489.

The original Polish folk dress , and musicians, can always be found on the Square.  The outfit can also be purchased in some of the stores if you have the need.

Cute little carriage  adds to the flavor of the Square and sells post cards at the same time.

There is also a resident walking beer mug on the Square. One of the visitor’s guide refers to the vodka and beer in Poland as rocket fuel.

Church of St. Adelbert  pre-dates the Square and is the oldest church in Krakow.  From the 10th century, it is just a shell now but you can still go in and see the walls,  crude foundation and this guy:

Since the keeper of the church didn’t speak much English,  I could not understand who he was or why he is still in there.

The Square is also lined with gorgeous buildings like these and lots of cafes with outside  dining and people-watching.

How many McDonalds have a gothic cellar where you can dine on your Big Mac?   Not on the Square, but just a 1/2 block away, this McDonalds unearthed  a medieval cellar during renovation  and put it to use for more seating .

Stay tuned – much more of Krakow to come.

Thanks for reading!