Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary

Yesterday we went to Krakow on one day trip. The weather was perfect, most photos are of excellent quality.

A few observations

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  Because of its churches, Krakow was called Rome of the North
  
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  If you touch the fallen knight`s finger.....
  
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  ...you will come back to Krakow
  
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  Barbican is a famous object from 16 century
  

Krakowians pulled down their medieval defence walls in mid 19 century but they kept one short section till today to protect the city from strong northern winds.

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  Florian Gate
  
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  Florian Gate passage
  

Near the Florian Gate there is a display of paintings. I have always liked to have a look at it whenever we came to Krakow, but this year`s exhibition is a bit boring, there aren`t any nude acts, my favourite. Strange. What happened to them????? I protest!

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Going along Florian Street to the Market Square

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  We saw locals....
  
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  and historical architecture
  

And eventually, the Main Square! Shyt, it is climactic to see this gigantic place.

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  East half of the Square
  
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  It hosts St Mary`s Cathedral.......( Wow, it is so high!)
  
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  ....and these tenement houses
  
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  ..with St Adalbert`s church, one of oldest in Poland, from 11 century.
  

I immediately noticed sth peculiar. Many old houses in the Main Square are quite wide, unlike those in Poznań, Warsaw or Wrocław which are mostly narrow. I wonder why? I prefer narrow buildings, those wide ones look too oppressively bulky. That is why I always prefered other cities` Main Squeares, which are smaller but look light.

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Unluckily, we ran into the final stage of Tour de Pologne cycling race - bikes took control of the the Old Town. They were everywhere, with all those accompanying disgusting decorations. :(:(:(

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  That`s outrageous - those silly ballons cover history!
  
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I have found a few narrow ones, not in the Square, but in streets leading to it:

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The Clothes Hall in the middle of the Square has a pretty architectonic style.

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Inside, there are stalls with various stuff, among others:

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What else in the Old Town??

I liked those brass models of major monuments, with Braille writing on them. I had seen them in Wrocław and Gdańsk. Who copies from who????

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  This stuff isn`t a model of a historical monument. It is just a head.....
  
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  ... for kids to go inside and peek through the eyes.
  

Monument to Mickiewicz, the greatest Polish poet, is a bit controvercial:

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  But you forget about this controvercy when you ......
  
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  ...see another major object - Town Hall Tower
  

There are always some mimes in the Square performing in front of St Mary`s Cathedral. Strange but Satan/devil mime was told to leave some time ago. Less controvercial ones were allowed to stay and for a small fee you can take a photo with one.

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There are a lot of plaques on the Square. One of them is very important to me. Walenty Badylak burnt himself at this well in 1980 in protest against communist lies and deprivation. Today, people use it to get water, ignoring the plaque. Sad.

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A few houses of interesting architecture in the Square

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  even this one built before the war. Reminds me of Wroc³aw Square.
  
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Side streets near the Square can be very narrow, a bit claustrophobic.

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But their architecture is appealing, anyway:

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Krakow skyline:

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  St Adalbert`s Church in which I got married
  
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Of course, not all buildings in the Old Town are in good shape, but the renovations are going on and on...

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While in the Old Town, I found time to enjoy my fav activity - observing people, including women of all ages and my wife isn`t jealous because she knows I do it for the sake of forums.

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Wow, the photos are in one line instead of two.

Is it my comp or technical improvement???