Monday, July 16
Since we’ll only be in Krakow for one week we’ve been scurrying around like busy bees trying to make time for all the things we want to do. On Monday there were a number of museums that were free. Our first stop was Schindler’s Enamel Factory made famous by the Speilberg movie entitled, “Schindler’s List”. The factory was located near the Jewish ghetto but, unlike most cities, the ghetto was not in the Jewish District. The Germans wanted that part of the city for themselves so they created a ghetto on the other side of the Vistula River in a mainly industrial area and moved all of the Jews there. Only one of the original factory buildings is still standing but all traces of the manufacturing plant and the housing that Schindler created for his workers are gone. The building is now a museum with information on life in Krakow during World War II with emphasis on the plight of the Jews. It’s not at all what we expected. Room after room told of the many horrors that the Nazi’s inflicted on the Jews and the city of Krakow. At the end there was some information on how Krakow was liberated by the Soviets only to be subjugated once again. The whole thing was rather depressing.
After that we walked over to Ghetto Heroes Square. The square was an important part of ghetto life in WWII. Today there is a memorial of 64 bronze chairs representing the 64,000 Jews from Krakow who were killed.
(Ghetto Heroes Square)
At the top of the square is the “Pharmacy Under the Eagle”. Tadeusz Pankiewicz, the owner of the pharmacy, was the only non-Jew to live in the ghetto during the war. He did not wish to give up his business so he bribed the Nazi’s to let him stay. He and his staff of three women often gave medicine and medical care to ghetto residents – often for free. He even helped a number of Jews hide and escape from the ghetto. He and his staff survived the war and in 1983 he was awarded the “Righteous Among the Nations” award. His pharmacy is now a museum.
As if that wasn’t enough we headed back over the river to the Jewish District for a tour of the Old Synagogue. It is now a museum and it too was open for free. The original synagogue dates from the 1400s but was rebuilt in 1570 in the Gothic Style. The Nazis used the building in WWII as a munitions dump and the building was severely damaged when some of the munitions exploded. It was rebuilt in the 1950s to look the same as it did in the 16th century. The museum told the long history of famous Rabbis who lead the Jewish community in Krakow and had many artifacts of Jewish Life over the centuries.
Next we headed back to Old Town to see some other museums but it turned out that our information was wrong and they were free of charge on Tuesdays so we settled for a visit of the nearby Saint Mary’s Basilica. It’s a large 13th century Gothic style Roman Catholic cathedral in the main square containing a very famous hand carved alter piece from the 14th century by Veit Stoss. We were only permitted to see the church from the back. For a fee we could have seen the alter up close but we decided to pass on that. No photography was permitted.
There are a number of interesting stories associated with this church. The Nazis removed the altar piece and took it to Nuremberg where it was severely damaged. It was returned during the 1950s. Restoration took as long as it had taken Veit Stoss to create it: 14 years.
Every hour a trumpeter plays a short tune that seems to end abruptly from each of the four sides of the highest bell tower of the church. This tradition started in the 13th century. Many people have wondered why the tune is so short and have made up some interesting stories. The most common story says that invading Mongols killed the trumpeter who was trying to sound the alarm. An American writer named Eric P. Kelly spent some time in Krakow and later penned a fictional children’s book called the “Trumpeter of Krakow” which has become the accepted explanation for the brevity of the tune.
Distance Walked: 7.5 miles
Tuesday, July 17
We started the day at another free museum. It was the Rynek Underground. This museum was opened only three years ago and was, we were told, created at great expense. The museum exists entirely under the Cloth Market in the main square. Some years ago, during renovation work, portions of the ground around the market were excavated. The workers found evidence of previous versions of the building and many artifacts going back to the 10th century. Eventually they decided to excavate the entire area and turned it into a museum. It’s a very modern museum with digital screens in multiple languages and many interactive features. Most interesting to us were the sections of old building foundations and the old roads that were used many centuries ago. The best part, however, was a series of five rooms displaying short films about the history of Krakow. The films were narrated by a history professor, were well made and very informative. We spend over an hour just watching the films and, given the time, would have gone back and watched them all over again.
Here’s an interesting story about vampires that we learned in the museum. In the middle ages many people suffered from porphyria. These people were very sensitive to light and often ate raw/bloody meat which alleviated some of their symptoms. These people were often suspected of being vampires and, when they died, they were buried with their hands tied and put in a fetal position so that they would be unable to rise from the dead and terrorize the living. Many skeletons have been found in this position and several were in this museum.
Our next museum was the crypt underneath the church of Saint Adalbert, which is also in the main square. The crypt was very small. We saw a few old pieces of pottery and one skeleton. We were glad we didn’t pay for that one.
Next we went to Jagiellonian University, the oldest university in Poland and one of the oldest in Europe. It was founded 1364 by King Casimir III the Great. The king died shortly afterwards without having funded the new school. Initial funding was received when the king’s widow, Hedwig, left all her worldly possessions to the school in her will.
Before the tour we had time to see two of the permanent exhibits that are open to the public. The first was an exhibit on the school of art. There we saw examples of masters and students works covering many centuries. The second was a display of more recent photos of the university grounds.
Our tour started just after the hour so that we could enjoy seeing the famous clock. Every hour music plays, two doors open, and seven figures travel from one side of the clock face to the other. The original clock dated from 1465 but the current computer controlled version was installed in 2000.
For many years the university was limited to classes in law, medicine and philosophy and all classes were taught in Latin. Over the years many new courses have been added. Today the University boasts over 40,000 students in Krakow alone and most of the classes are taught in English. The original building complex is now a museum.
The first room we saw was one of the large lecture halls. Portraits of many of the old faculty, royal patrons and famous students were hung on the walls. They had a portrait of Copernicus, Pope John Paul II and Queen Hedwig, the only woman in the gallery.
Next we visited a room displaying scientific instruments that Copernicus used to study the heavens and a book of his handwritten notes. They also had a globe from the early 1400s with the earliest mention of North America on it. (It was in the wrong place.)
(Copernicus’ Notes)
An adjacent room held cases full of precious objects. They had such things as documents signed by the king authorizing the university, a lock of Kościuszko’s hair and a Lifetime Achievement Oscar that was donated by Andrzej Wajda, a Polish director. There was also a treasury room with many golden objects that had been donated by Queen Hedwig in the 1300s. Lastly we saw the sleeping quarters of a professor and the dining room where professors ate together twice a day. The dining hall had a beautifully carved wooden staircase that let up to the floor above.
For lunch we went to the oldest restaurant in Krakow. It’s called Restaurant Wierzynek and there’s a good story here. In 1364 a wealthy merchant named Mikolaj Wierzynek hosted a feast lasting 20 days for several of Europe’s kings on behalf of Poland’s King Casimir III the Great. Mikolaj took great care and overwhelmed his guests with lavish meals. As parting gifts Mikolaj gave each guest pieces of gold and silver tableware. The king was very pleased and the restaurant has been in operation ever since.
(Wild Boar Steak)
Deborah order the fillet of beef with asparagus. I had the wild boar steak with chanterelle mushrooms. Both came with a puree of parsnips and new potatoes. Before the meal arrived we received a complimentary amuse bouche consisting of a tureen of salmon. The restaurant is beautifully decorated with fresco’ed walls, suits of armor and coffered ceilings. The service was excellent and we enjoyed the food very much. I even liked the mushrooms and I hate mushrooms! 😉
Fully refreshed we headed off to the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. At only 400 years old this is one of the younger churches in Town but it’s definitely a must see. It’s a nice example of Baroque decor although not nearly as opulent as the churches we saw in Rome. They provided us with a complementary headset that gave us information about the church and the crypt below. In return they received a nice donation.
Right next door is the oldest church in Krakow. Saint Andrew’s was built just before 1100 making it over 900 years old. It’s fairly small on the inside and is the only church in Krakow to have survived the Mongol invasion of 1241. The grounds also hold the convent of The Poor Clares to whom the church was entrusted in 1320.
After that we headed towards the Jewish Quarter to take the 5:00 pm free tour. Along the way we encountered another interesting church near the base of Wawel Hill. Corpus Christi Basilica is a Gothic style church founded by Casimir III The Great in 1335. In 1750 the church was re-decorated in Baroque style. There are four side altars and one main altar all drenched in gold. It is quite a sight.
(Corpus Christi Basilica)
Finally we made our way to the Jewish Quarter and met with our guide. In spite of the off again on again rain the group had about 20 people. We started in the main square and she spoke about the history of the Old Synagogue. We visited inside the Issac Synagogue which is run by the Lubovitch sect. One of the more interesting stops was at a courtyard where several scenes from Schindler’s List were filmed (we’re going to have to watch that film again now).
Nearby was a small square where she said they made the best zapiekanka in all of Poland. These are like open faced french bread pizzas made with a long baguette covered with white mushrooms and cheese. That’s the original version – today you can get them covered with all sorts of vegetables, meats, sauces and cheese. We intended to come back later and try some for ourselves.
Our guide told us that before WWII Krakow had around 65,000 Jews. Almost all of them were killed. Today Krakow’s Jewish population numbers around 100 and is growing.
The tour eventually crossed the river to see Ghetto Heroes Square, the Pharmacy Under the Eagle and concluded at Schindler’s factory. Afterwards we headed back over the river to the Jewish Quarter for some hot, freshly made falafel at a kosher restaurant before finally reaching our home. It had been a long and eventful day.
Distance Walked: 8.6 miles