Krakow

After we settled in, we headed out to explore Krakow and have dinner.

Dinner tonight was at Pod Aniolami, featuring traditional Polish food and great atmosphere in the cellar of a 13th century building on the Royal Route.

And a pleasant walk back to the Sheraton.

Even though we had just finished dinner, we were lured in by the wonderful smell of barbequed kielbasa and chicken.

Oh yeah.

How can I resist?

I guess this calls for another Zywiec.

You win some, you lose some. Today was a miserable, windy and rainy +14 day, even colder with the wind chill. Nevertheless, we had great local guide Eva, who showed us many of the highlights of old Krakow. Starting with the nearby Wawel Royal Castle and Cathedral, which sits on a hill overlooking the river and Krakow.

Krakow's favorite son.

Still raining, pretty hard at times, we headed back to the Market Square

And what is billed as the largest underground museum in the world. Uncovered by in archaeological dig in the mid-2000s, the museum presents sights and sounds of the cityâs rich medieval heritage with the help of three-dimensional recreations and holographic displays.

Cool pics of the excavation of medieval Krakow.

It was still raining when we surfaced from the museum.

And headed for St. Mary's Basilica.

Sausage shopping at Kredens

And lunch (and a Tyskie) next door at Marmolada.

And back across the square for dessert at one of the oldest chocolatiers in the city.

Still raining as we headed back to the hotel for a nap.

On Tuesday morning, we headed out for the 30 minute drive to Wieliczka and the Wieliczka Salt Mine. Built in the 13th century, it produced table salt continuously until 2007, as one of the world's oldest salt mines still in operation. The mine's attractions include dozens of statues, three chapels and an entire cathedral that has been carved out of the rock salt by the miners.

The 3.5 km touring route (less than 2% of the length of the mine's passages) includes historic statues and mythical figures carved out of rock salt in distant past. The crystals of the chandeliers are made from rock salt that has been dissolved and reconstituted to achieve a clear, glass-like appearance.

After a never ending walk from the visitors reception area, we finally arrived at our elevator to take us to the top.

From -138 meters (452 feet) below the surface.

Across the street from the visitor entrance is a country style restaurant where we stopped for a delicious lunch and some more Polish beer. This time it was Okocim which immediately jumped up to my favorite of the trip.

The country soup was very tasty

The cabbage roll was out of this world.

The sweet pierogi looked better than it tasted.

But the poppy seed cake that our friends had purchased while we were touring was wonderful and reminded me of grandma's recipe.

Then back to the Sheraton for a rest and then a drink at the lovely rooftop lounge/bar.

With beautiful views of the river.

It was a glorious late afternoon and we decided to head for Kazimierz, Krakow’s Jewish district since the late 1300s. Nearly wiped out in WW2, it has been rediscovered, and Jewish culture gradually reintroduced. It was the backdrop for Steve Speilberg's Schindler's List. Today, there are lots of cafes and shops but the area has a feeling that you have turned back the clock..

Before leaving Kazamierz, I decided I had to try some zapiekanki. But deciding which one was difficult.

Mrs. SFO trying out my zapiekanki. No need to blur that pic as it pretty much blocks her face.

It was pretty good but didn't look as good as some of the others we saw people eating. We headed back to the hotel but had our tour cart driver drop us off near the Sheraton, for a final Kielbasa and Zywiec.