What to do for a free afternoon in Krakow?
June 25, 2015 9:49 AM Subscribe
Thanks to MetaFilter, I am going on a Holocaust trip, sans my beloved husband, to Poland and Israel. We leave soon. It's a group trip, but we'll have two independent evenings (Saturday and Sunday) and a free afternoon (Monday) in Krakow, where the group is staying at the Sheraton. Suggestions, hive mind? I'm fine with eating etc. on my own, just need some suggestions on where.
Response by poster: I like walking, history, art, food, etc. So any of that would be great. The castle sounds like a fine suggestion. The itinerary on Monday AM is touring the Kazimierz District and the Galicia Jewish Museum there, including lunch and a lecture from an museum expert. The rest of the day is free though there is supposed to be a farewell dinner (which I may skip due to the fact that it features eating at a Jewish restaurant in Kazimierz featuring Klezmer music, something for which I have zero tolerance.)
posted by bearwife at 10:32 AM on June 25, 2015
posted by bearwife at 10:32 AM on June 25, 2015
Best answer: I enjoyed strolling the Planty. Wawel Castle is the southernmost part of the ring.
posted by soleiluna at 10:40 AM on June 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by soleiluna at 10:40 AM on June 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Take along the free PDF In Your Pocket guide to Krakow at the bottom of the page here, or pick up a paper copy for cheap at a kiosk or bookshop. It's the best guide to the city in English.
Some favourite Krakow memories of mine: Visit the politically interesting Arka Pana church in Nowa Huta. Pick up some culinary souvenirs at Krakowski Kredens at ul. Grodzka 7, just along the road leading out the southeast corner of the rynek toward Każimierz. Have a brilliant traditional Polish meal at Wesele and pop into Poland's best English-language bookshop, Massolit, and stop by Austeria Press' shop/gallery in Każimierz for a more Judaica-focused book selection.
posted by mdonley at 10:54 AM on June 25, 2015
Some favourite Krakow memories of mine: Visit the politically interesting Arka Pana church in Nowa Huta. Pick up some culinary souvenirs at Krakowski Kredens at ul. Grodzka 7, just along the road leading out the southeast corner of the rynek toward Każimierz. Have a brilliant traditional Polish meal at Wesele and pop into Poland's best English-language bookshop, Massolit, and stop by Austeria Press' shop/gallery in Każimierz for a more Judaica-focused book selection.
posted by mdonley at 10:54 AM on June 25, 2015
Best answer: We had lunch at Szara and it was delicious. There is a park and memorial right across the street from it (I believe it backs up to a cemetery). You might be passing it when you go on the tour of the Kazimierz district.
If you go to the Wawel castle, stop by the Smok Wawelski, too. It is a fire-breathing dragon statue!
Our tour took us to the Wawel castle and the Katedra Wawelska, which was really neat. There is a statue of Pope John Paul II outside of it (which was a nice counterpoint from seeing the salty version down in the Wieliczka Salt Mine, which is nearby and AMAZING). But the different chapels built along the south side of it was fascinating from an architectural standpoint as it showed which royal family members had more money when they died. There is also the "dragon" bone hanging outside the door, which ties to that fire-breathing dragon statue's history. I thought that area was just fascinating - especially with the brick lines in the ground where the wall used to be and the footprints of old churches in the grass.
posted by jillithd at 11:34 AM on June 25, 2015
If you go to the Wawel castle, stop by the Smok Wawelski, too. It is a fire-breathing dragon statue!
Our tour took us to the Wawel castle and the Katedra Wawelska, which was really neat. There is a statue of Pope John Paul II outside of it (which was a nice counterpoint from seeing the salty version down in the Wieliczka Salt Mine, which is nearby and AMAZING). But the different chapels built along the south side of it was fascinating from an architectural standpoint as it showed which royal family members had more money when they died. There is also the "dragon" bone hanging outside the door, which ties to that fire-breathing dragon statue's history. I thought that area was just fascinating - especially with the brick lines in the ground where the wall used to be and the footprints of old churches in the grass.
posted by jillithd at 11:34 AM on June 25, 2015
Best answer: Let's see, we also spend a good couple of hours in the main market square by Sukiennice. (I always buy nice sweatshirts where I go and bought my favorite in that market arcade. When I was there, there was a flower stall outside that reminded me of my husband (who I had left home, too). There is a trumpet player at the church in the market square, too.
I only visited Krakow on one day (we were staying in Warsaw, so we took a train there and back for a day visit) and I really loved it there. Warsaw is beautiful, but it is rebuilt beauty. Krakow is the original beauty and the original Polish capital.
Oh, now I'm missing it and want to go back!
posted by jillithd at 11:45 AM on June 25, 2015
I only visited Krakow on one day (we were staying in Warsaw, so we took a train there and back for a day visit) and I really loved it there. Warsaw is beautiful, but it is rebuilt beauty. Krakow is the original beauty and the original Polish capital.
Oh, now I'm missing it and want to go back!
posted by jillithd at 11:45 AM on June 25, 2015
Best answer: When you are in the old city, please go to Balaton restaurant. It is Hungarian, but it has been there forever, it is a part of the city history. It is so excellent. Please order Placki Ziemnacannie po Wegiersku (potato pancakes Hungarian style). If I am ever privileged to return to Krakow, this is the first thing I will do. Then go and have a beer on the Rynek.
posted by Meatbomb at 4:00 PM on June 25, 2015
posted by Meatbomb at 4:00 PM on June 25, 2015
Best answer: It's been years since I was in Krakow, and it was for a research trip (so I was spending much of my time at the Jagellionian Library), but I enjoyed hanging out in Sukiennice, visiting Wawel castle, going to the Czartoryski Museum (link to Wikipedia, because the official site seems to be only in Polish, unless I am missing something).
Restaurants that I enjoyed back in 1999 included Pod Aniołami and Chłopskie Jadło (which apparently has been bought out recently). But 16 years is an eternity in restauration, so take dining advice from people who have been more recently than me!
posted by brianogilvie at 4:21 PM on June 25, 2015
Restaurants that I enjoyed back in 1999 included Pod Aniołami and Chłopskie Jadło (which apparently has been bought out recently). But 16 years is an eternity in restauration, so take dining advice from people who have been more recently than me!
posted by brianogilvie at 4:21 PM on June 25, 2015
Response by poster: You get a best answer, and you get a best answer, and you get a best answer. Seriously, all very helpful. Thanks!!
posted by bearwife at 2:23 PM on June 26, 2015
posted by bearwife at 2:23 PM on June 26, 2015
Seconding the Massolit recommendation. It is everything a bookstore should be.
Wawel castle is damned impressive, but if I were going to visit only one museum in Krakow again, it'd be The Museum of Pharmacy. You may not think you care enough about the history of medication to justify a trip, but trust me: the place is a jewel.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 2:10 AM on June 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
Wawel castle is damned impressive, but if I were going to visit only one museum in Krakow again, it'd be The Museum of Pharmacy. You may not think you care enough about the history of medication to justify a trip, but trust me: the place is a jewel.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 2:10 AM on June 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
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Consider that you may need time to decompress/do nothing after visiting such heavy sights.
posted by purpleclover at 9:59 AM on June 25, 2015 [1 favorite]