Krakow, Poland Makes Me Happy!

When I was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia in 2011, 23 and Me contacted me asking if I would be willing to “donate” my DNA, as they were studying something to do with CML. My membership, with additional reports, etc. would be no charge to me.

Of course, I agreed. For the sake of science and curiosity. My biggest surprise was that my ancestry is 98.4% Polish, and I am in the top 1% of the Neanderthal population tested. Maybe that explains why I love Poland and Polish food?

We slept until 10 am, and after a few hours of lounging around, we were finally ready for lunch. After a short stroll through the park, we found ourselves in the Old Town Square. I was in awe of the buildings, the cobbled streets, and the atmosphere. With so many amazing cafes and restaurants, it was difficult to choose a place to eat. Eventually, we settled on “Sioux”, an adorable restaurant with outdoor seating. 

I ordered the fried Camembert cheese with a grilled pear and cranberry sauce; it was divine. We also shared a chicken with pesto dish, on a fancy salad that was also amazing.Joe also tried the chicken soup.

After lunch, we walked over the Father Bernatek Footbridge. This bridge links the districts of Kazimierz and Podgórze. Andrzej Getter designed this bridge to accommodate both pedestrians and cyclists.

Since 2016, the bridge has been the home to ten acrobatic, gravity-defying sculptures by contemporary Polish sculptor Jerzy Kedziora. It was the perfect way to walk through the Jewish Quarter, on our way to the Schindlers Museum. 

Oskar Schindler’s Factory of Enameled Vessels played an important role in Krakow’s history during the Nazi occupation. Schindler saved over 1,200 Jews by hiring them to work in his plant.

He transformed his enamelware plant to make shells for the Nazi, some of which he ordered to be faulty.

The factory now houses a permanent exhibition, “Krakow under Nazi Occupation 1939-1945”. The Factory’s exhibits, reconstruction of events images, and recordings from the time will transport you to one of Poland’s hardest years, where Jews suffered enormously. 

I still find this time in our history so difficult to comprehend.

After visiting the museum, we stumbled upon The Church of Joseph. Of course, we went inside. Churches in Europe are like museums, housing various sculptures, paintings, mosaics, and stained glass. The buildings themselves are a work of art.

The church was built between 1905-1909; Jan Sas Zubryzcki designed it in the Gothic Revival style.

As usual, this church did not disappoint.

Walking back to the “Old Town Square,” we ran across another church, this one more ornate than the previous one. The Basilica of the Holy Trinity is a Catholic basilica built in a Gothic style and dates from 1223. It also houses a monastery of the Order of Preachers.

At this point, we were hungry and tired so we took the easy way out and decided to have ribs at Ribs on Fire, which was close to our home. They looked good when we walked by earlier, and we were just too tired to search for other options. The fig croissant saved the day!

It turned out that it was the worst meal of our trip. N0t horrible, just not amazing. The service was extremely slow, and the food was mediocre. The fascinating aspect of the experience was that while Joe was in the bathroom, he ran into American servicemen who were stationed at the same base as his son, Josh. It is a small world!

After dinner and 18,194 steps, we went home and collapsed! It was a great day in Krakow.

Night, Y’all!

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