Salt Murals carved fro the Solid Salt Walls
The Catherdral of Salt, All underground" How much to the Salt Mines ? " I had approached an unmarked Taxi sitting at the rank waiting for customers "50 zloty" he said ." Can you do it for 40 ? " I asked . "Get in" , was the reply.
He charged through the back streets like a man possessed . Approaching a busy intersection 10 cars were banked up in front of us . The taxi driver / Polish madman, pulled out onto the oncoming traffic and charged to the head of the Que. He paused only briefly to indicate the cross flowing traffic that he was going across and with a sound of a multitude of car horns we entered the main road to the Salt Mines.
The hair raising ride continued at for a further 25 minutes . He nonchalantly pointed to sights of interest to the left and right . His English was "Very Little "My fixed gaze was forward watching out for road hazards and potential rapid decelerations.
He pulled up outside the Ticket Office at the salt mine . Officials in full police uniforms were soon at his door speaking incomprehensibly in animated volume in the native tongue . I waited my chance to asked " How much " he raised two fingers. I added on a further fifty percent for the tip and passed over 30 zloty extracted myself smartly and disappeared into the crowd to recuperate.
Salt was like gold before the days of freezers . All food was preserved with the mineral for the winter months. 10 km East of Krakow are the historic underground chambers, shafts and caverns decorated with sculptures and carvings. It's the only site in the world where mining has continued since the Middle Ages. In the old times mining and resultant excavations could be shown only to members of the upper classes. The magnificent chapel made out of salt, captivating underground lakes traces of mining works were impressive . The ambient temperature was around 14 degree c. They now mine tourist, Tours are well organised and our English speaking guide was very informative.
Down the pit were examples of horse drawn wagons and winching gear along with extensive mining equipment which helped to understand the back braking work of the salt miners. The story of snow White and the Seven Dwarfs originated inspired by the exploits of the Salt Miners. The underground mine was thronged with tourists and delays occurred waiting for the antiquated lift system to raise us back to fresh air.
Krakow is Poland's third largest City and the countries most popular tourist attraction . The old town is squeezed into the parameter walls. 800 meters wide 1200 long The main market square is in the middle and the main buildings are easy to locate from here . Horse drawn carriages line the market square touting to take tourist for a trot around the sights . The clip clop of horse shoes on cobbles added to the ambient noise of street musicians , acrobats , flower vendors and market traders.
The city emerged unscathed for WW2 . Stunning Medieval and renaissance architecture abounds . Massive Gothic churches and a hotch potch Royal castle. We only had three days and picked the eyes out of the Museums. Art galleries and Churches . Too much to see in too little time.
The history of Krakow dates back to the 7th century. Established on a bend in the river on a small up thrust of land, it was the seat of power for royalty and church through the centuries.
We visited the university where Copernicus had his observatory and realised the earth and planets revolved round the sun. Map making always fascinates me and I have a better understanding of the process following a visit to the university museum which houses the oldest existing globe.
Bev booked a Studio unit close to the train station . This was a great choice as we could wander back rest and recover a couple of times each day. Fellow travellers were quick with tips and 'Must See's' . They spoke in detail about the concentration / death camps nearby.
My taxi driver had flashed me through Krakow's Jewish ghetto on my way to the salt mines . I was holding on for dear life not able to glace out to look for fragments of the old wall that still survive as a chilling reminder of a past that is really not that long ago at all. ( 60 years ) Whilst a few Jews managed to escape from the ghetto (Roman Polanski is a well known example) most were transported from here to the death camps nearby at Auschwitz. I had visited Dachau Death camp, in Germany, a few years ago and was definitely not in need of a dose of depression.
The flight from Stanstead, via Ryanair only takes 90 Minutes to Krakow . Security at either end is a problem, up to three hours . They took my toothpaste and deodorant this time . I wished them a merry Xmas.
We are off to New Zealand and Aussie for December and January
I wonder what will happen next
Alvin
