Poland
Poland · 11 November 2020
We arrived at the Salt Mine (https://www.wieliczka-saltmine.com/) by coach from the centre of Krakow. From the car park at the mine we had a brief walk to the entrance at the Daniłowicz Shaft, where we walked down approx. 380 wooden steps to Level I (64 m below ground) of the Mine. We eventually returned to the surface by a miners’ lift from Level III (135 m deep underground) after about two hours, having seemingly walked miles and climbed about 800 steps. Tourists have been visiting these...
Poland · 05 April 2019
To the East of the old market square lies the beautiful baroque church of St Anne and the Collegium Maius, a fifteenth century part of the Jagellionian University where Copernicus studied. It is one of the oldest in Europe. Built round a cool courtyard, its rooms are beautifully lined with wooden panelling and it holds a wealth of art and science treasures, including a copy of Galileo's treatise on the heliocentric universe, which was revolutionary in its day and banned by the Roman Catholic...
Poland · 05 April 2019
A spacious, well-lit and beautiful high-ceilinged room of old brick in an old brick built apartment block with a small sink, fridge and cooking unit, a sofa, table and two chairs and a built in shower room with toilet. The bed was comfortable if only of a standard double-bed width. The air-con was very efficient fortunately as outside temperatures were in the top 20s at least. On the ground floor was a cafe that served breakfasts until well into the morning. Portions were generous whether...
Poland · 04 April 2019
The square in the middle of Krakow old town is vast, with many restaurants on every side of it and in the middle by the cloth workers hall, which also hides three interesting sites, a covered market at street level, an art gallery up stairs, and hidden in the basement an amazing museum, the Rynek Underground Museum showing the layers oh history underneath the present square. Some of the restaurants in the square have jazz playing, at least at night, one offered concerts of Chopin’s music....
Poland · 04 April 2019
How the clarinet laughed! We heard an excellent late afternoon concert of Klezmer music - from the villages and ghettos of Eastern Europe where Jewish troubadours mixed Jewish, East European and Asia Minor melodies and harmonies, both secular and religious - in the Chopin Gallery in Krakow as part of regular series of concerts. It was played on clarinet, accordion and double bass by a very accomplished Trio, Di Galitzyaner Klezmorim. A shame that the audience was small and the gallery difficult...
Poland · 04 April 2019
An oasis of cool and green with ice cream parlours, spa rooms and curious red squirrels down the hill from the centre of Inowroclaw. On some of its main approaches from the town centre it had some cafes and restaurants. It contained a most extraordinary structure for spraying out salt water which was said to be healthful for people. It stood 5m high and enclosed with brush wood that was continuously soaked with salt water an area for sitting and strolling. We only saw one other similar but...