Visiting Krakow in Poland
Krakow
is in southern Poland. It was first mentioned by a Jewish merchant, Jakob
ben Abraham, in 966, and by 1038 had become the medieval capital of
Poland. The city was built on the Vistula river, beneath the Royal Castle
on Wawel Hill. Legend has it that the castle was built on the lair of a
ravenous dragon, which demanded a virgin every two weeks but was finally
slain by Prince Krak, the founder of Krakow. Tourists can visit the
dragon's cave beneath the castle.
Krakow is the
only large city in Poland that remained intact during World War II and
today it is a well-preserved, charming, medieval city, with picturesque
cobbled streets, numerous churches, museums, cafes, restaurants and bars,
some of which still serve mead - the medieval drink made of fermented
honey and herbs. It boasts an impressive central square with the
fourteenth-century St Mary's church, and a sixteenth-century Renaissance
cloth hall. The square is filled with countless stalls, selling numerous
products from local artisans.
The
painstakingly restored Jewish quarter Kazimierz feels eerie and haunted -
here is a Jewish neighborhood without Jewish residents. At the start of
World War II 65,000 Jews lived here, but they were exterminated in the
nearby Plaszow Concentration Camp, made famous in Steven Speilberg's firm
Schindler's List.
South of the
Old Town the splendid royal castle and cathedral crown Wawel Hill. The
tenth-century castle was extended and restored in the sixteenth century
and contains the royal apartments and magnificent contemporary
tapestries. The cathedral saw the coronation and burial of Polish royalty
for 400 years, and its golden domed chapel is considered to be the finest
Renaissance example in the country.
