Easter Monday in Krakow

We got up at the crack of dawn to get to Warsaw central station at 8.15 but then we rested in the comfortable train carriage. We crossed the long Polish plain and covered at 140 an hour the 300 km that separate the Polish capital, Warsaw, from the former seat of the Polish Kings, the elegant Krakow. At the tourist office, which is inside the station, they give us a map and tell us that taking a taxi or bus is not needed, the centre is 5 minutes away. In this case too they were right. In a few minutes we arrive at the walls of the old town and begin to savour the medieval charm of the city. There is certainly much more tourism than in Warsaw but the (weather) is turning for the worse and big clouds laden with rain hang over the city. We hope for the best even though our hopes will be dashed in the early afternoon.

We soon reach the Rynek Glowny, that is, the Market Square, which is the largest Medieval Square in Europe with its 200 metres per side. Inside the square many things but you will certainly be struck by the Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady and by the smaller but certainly very pretty Church of Santa Barbara. To enter the Basilica there are two entrances: the main one is dedicated to the faithful while the side one to tourists and you pay 6 PLN plus another 5 PLN if you want to take photos. In any case if you enter the part dedicated to the faithful, obviously when there is no Mass, you will see exactly the same things from a little further away. Had I known I wouldn't have paid…On the square there is a nice Easter market with many stalls selling painted wooden eggs, things to eat…there is also a blacksmith.

We head towards Wawel Hill, that is, the hill where the Wawel Castle and the Cathedral are located. Very beautiful, they certainly deserve a visit also because you can admire a beautiful panorama of the Vistula (Wisla) and of the city from above. To enter the common parts of the Cathedral you don't pay while you do pay to see the Castle (which however was partially closed for the Easter holidays). While we wander around the Castle it starts to rain..a light rain that will never leave us again and that in reality as the hours pass becomes ever more intense and helped by the 9°C the situation becomes practically wintry…what a pain! So under our faithful umbrella we return to the centre and around 3 in the afternoon we settle into a Georgian restaurant to eat a sort of beef kebab and basmati rice seasoned with local cheeses.

Very good and very cheap (we eat, drink a beer each and finish with a coffee paying about 9€). Time is short, the return train is at 17.15 and so we start heading to the station remembering to look at some little shops for a souvenir…shops that we had seen in the morning but that at 4 in the afternoon, along the central street of Krakow, perhaps because of the weather, perhaps because of Easter Monday…have closed!! Damn! Oh well, we are very disappointed, there's nothing we can do. We are also left with a bitter taste because we didn't manage to see many things: from the Jewish quarter of Krakow (Kazimierz), to the workers' district of the steelworks (Nowa Huta) not to mention Auschwitz and ending with the salt mines…in short, many trips but that with the time available to us really couldn't be done.

We arrive in Warsaw after 8 pm and head under an incessant rain towards the centre but, thanks to the weather and perhaps the last day of holiday, the restaurants are almost all closed even in the historic centre. The few open at 21.15 refuse to let us in despite the sign highlighting closing at 23.00. So, desperate, we go to the Irish pub which serves us some garbage, not very Polish but at least edible. We also drink a couple of beers and then leave (also because the air was unbreathable given that you can smoke in public places).