Jonathan Hebditch discovers Krakow is a city of
contradictions
When I first pictured visiting Poland, I had the stereotyped view that I’d be greeted by a land of freezing tundra, brutal Soviet architecture and a hotel akin to some Eastern bloc Fawlty Towers.
How ignorant I was.
Krakow is perhaps the most beautiful city I’ve ever seen, and one that doesn’t shy away from its often tragic past.
From first arrival from Edinburgh, and stepping out of the plane to baking 35 degree heat, I knew the country was going to be a different place to what I’d imagined.
Brutal, graffitied Stalinist tower blocks sit next to green spaces. The centre of the old town has market stalls selling Nazi memorabilia next to the usual western coffee chains.
A visit to the museum of modern art, MOCAK, gave a fascinating glimpse of two very different issues with exhibitions concentrating on gender and the Holocaust. From the start of the gender exhibit, we knew this was a city struggling against opposite forces. The Virgin Mary sits atop buildings while the museum exhibits display graphic sexual images.
We had to quickly shift gears at the exhibition as we moved from the wall-to-wall pictures of genitalia to a poignant exhibit about Auschwitz – located less than 100 miles from the museum, which itself is located yards from the walls of Oscar Schindler’s Holocaust-era factory.
The pieces were moving to the point of tears. Our guide showed us a video of an octogenarian man dancing outside the gates years after his liberation from the infamous death camps.
Another piece was so controversial that it had to be shown behind its own partition.
It depicted naked men and women playing a game of “tag” inside one of Auschwitz genuine gas chambers. The idea was to show the panic of the people who went in expecting a shower and never left.
We had to recover our wits and a visit to the market square, the largest in Europe, was the perfect place.
The stalls on the day were varied and carried genuine historical artefacts. Some, like Star of David armbands, were of questionable ethics.
Another highlight was a visit to the award-winning Pod Aniolami for a wonderful traditional meal of salty pork priced extremely reasonably.
The restaurant itself is located near to the market square and is in the beautiful setting of a genuine 13th-century building and well worth a visit.
We retired to the comfortable, clean and affordable Hampton by Hilton Krakow hotel for a well-deserved sleep.
The next morning, a tour of the UNESCO heritage site of the old
town was arranged and we were lucky to get the dedicated and knowledgeable Krakovian Tomasz Klimek as a guide.
We were shown the stunning Wawel area, the seat of Polish government when Krakow was the capital.
The 14th-century castle, built originally by Casimir the Great, and
the 900-year-old-plus Wawel Cathedral are awesome in the original sense of the word. They take the breath away.
The cathedral still had a gold-tipped roof which had survived the looting of the Nazis because they wished to make beautiful Krakow the capital of their occupied territories in the east.
The site was the centre of Polish religious life for centuries and the place of the coronation of their kings.
It was also where the archbishop of Krakow, a young Karol Józef
Wojtyla, first celebrated mass after being ordained to the priesthood. He went on the become Pope John
Paul II.
John Paul’s legacy is still evident throughout the city with the seminary he studied to secretly become a priest during the Nazi occupation a major attraction for pilgrims.
Also on the tour was the stunningly beautiful St Mary’s Basilica on the main market square.
The famous Gothic altar piece depicts her death and assumption into heaven in glittering gold.
Perhaps the most poignant part of the trip was a walking tour of Kazimierz, the former Jewish district.
Built by Casimir the Great in the 14th century, it was a model of integration for the mediaeval world. A place where Jews and Christians mixed freely.
But the Holocaust reduced the city’s Jewish population from 65,000 to around 120 today.
Our guide told us that in his youth, Kazimierz was a no-go area of abandoned buildings and criminals until the Spielberg film Schindler’s List was released. Growing up under communism, he had never heard the word “Jew”.
Now it is the trendiest part of town with a thriving night life. It is a place not many tourists spend the night and gives you a real taste of the authentic Poland. Many of the buildings still lie abandoned in case a relative of the original owner turns up and claims them.
We dined in traditional Jewish restaurant Klezmer Hois and enjoyed the concert and wonderful meal of tender kosher lamb on offer.
That night, while drinking a beer in Kazmierz, a man overheard me speaking about Aberdeen. He proceeded to tell me he lived in Aberdeen and was over to visit his brother.
Here lies a great problem for Poland, and one the Poles recognise. Young people are flocking out of the country for the high wages on offer in the west.
The next day, we toured the UNESCO heritage site of the Wieliczka salt mines just a short bus ride from our central Krakow hotel.
To imagine mediaeval miners, under torch light, carving the scores of detailed religious statues, simply strains the imagination.
We enjoyed a heavy lunch at the Zakladka Food and Wine restaurant with a steak so large it was brought out in its own frying pan.
Returning to the elegant Hilton Garden Inn Krakow Airport, we reminisced over our wonderful trip.
I left the city sad that I couldn’t have stayed longer, but glad to have seen and experienced so much. One thing is for sure: my perceptions of the east have changed forever.
A stay at Hampton by Hilton Krakow starts from £49 (converted from 290PLN) per double room per night, room-only, including taxes, daily hot breakfast and complementary WiFi. To book a room, visit www.hamptonbyhilton.com
A stay at Hilton Garden Inn Krakow starts from £66 (converted from 390PLN) per double room per night, room-only, including taxes and complementary WiFi. To book a room, visit www.hiltongardeninn.com
A stay at Hilton Garden Inn Krakow Airport starts from £42 (converted from 249PLN) per double room per night, room-only, including taxes and complementary WiFi. To book a room, visit www.hiltongardeninn.com