Poland: Disneyland for adults.

The Main Square in Krakow (the biggest in Europe)

   Before I just jump into this immense yet very entertaining update I would like to say that I am going to attack this from a new angle. Instead of listing everything in order of their occurence I've decided to make seperate entries about the trip based on content. 

   Secondly, I had the best time in Krakow. If you are into history, architecture, delicious food or the occasional liter glass of beer then I suggest you mosey on over to Krakow on your next vacation.

   October 22nd means the begining of Fall Break in France. So, a few weeks before, a few friends of mine and I decided that Poland would be the destination for our lovely little holiday. I know, I know, it doens't really scream tourist hot spot as much as the beaches in Greece or islands off of the coast of Portugal but we're more of 'off the beaten path' sort of girls anyway. I for one am glad that we chose parkas over bikinis!

   Ok, let's get started, shall we? (We shall) The focus of this post is going to be the Polish hospitality that I was fabulously amazed by. We were expecting to be treated like most foreigners in a new country. To be given directions, helped along in our horrible butchering of the native language while ordering food or some other item and left to our on devices. In Poland (at least for Jennifer, Kristi and I) this was not the case. 

   Our plane landed in Krakow around 11pm on a Monday night. Jennifer G. and the friend she was staying with were not going to be able to meet with us until Wednseday so Anna (Jenn's friend) sent two of her friends to pick us up. So, as we walk out of baggage claim we are happy to see two men walking towards us. Once we established that we were infact the American girls they were looking for we all introduced ourselves. Michael and Chris then showed us to the car and helped us with our backpacks even though we  assured them we could handle it. They then drove us to our hostel in the center of Krakow. 

   When we arrived at the hostle we were greated by a staff member who showed us our room and then proceded to tell us everything we could have ever wanted to know about visiting Krakow (including maps, bars, clubs, places to get the best authentic food, tours etc...). The boys (Chris and Michael) then asked if we would like to go out for a beer or something. We of course said yes, thinking this was a once in a lifetime chance. We walked the five minutes to the Main Square (see above) where there are propably 100 bars in the area. Showtime is the name of the bar we decided on. 'Live music every night' seemed enticing. We headed in and Chris bought us all beers (we deiced on trying a cherry polish beer). We then sat and talked. They tried to teach us some polish phrases and we scribbled them down as best we could using a type of phonetic short hand. Needless to say, we're no where close to being able to communicate in polish. After the beer (which is served in a .5 liter glass) we moved to another bar jus downstairs. The night continued until around 3am when we realized we were still out and one of our hosts, Chris had to work in the morning. Needless to say, it'd be hard to find a stranger who would be willing to pick up three random travelers and take them out for the night when they had to work in the morning. Thanks Chris and Michael for giving us a fantastic first tast of Polish night life/hospitality!

   We also met some very nice (read awesome) tour guides. Being tour guides their english was very great which made communicating easy and fun. We partook in the Free Walking Tours offered by http://freewalkingtour.com/. I'm seriously glad we decided to participate because it gave us the chance to meet some really cool people. Our first guide was named Martin (well, the Polish equivalent) and he showed us all around the Jewish neighborhood and ghetto during the Nazi occupation. 

Martin teacing us about the oldest Synagogue in Poland.

   After the official tour ended we (the group) were invited out for the unofficial part of the tour which included hitting local establishments in search of delicious food and drink. The first thing on the list was mulled wine which was welcomed with open arms (and mouths) considering how cold it had been during the tour. We all setteled in (about 20 of us) in a little pub and enjoyed the company of other travelers while sipping on our beverages. 

   After the mulled wine (and more beer of course) the remaining group moved on to a restaurant for food. After that we moved on to another bar famous for their immense vocabulary of vodka shots. They have 89 different shots to choose from. Luckily for us novices, we had trained professionals ordering. Little did we know that for five zloty each (about $1.50) we would be presented with a tray full of exotic choices. This happend once more without having to pay. Needless to say, the free walking tour turned out to be a fantastic night! My personal favorite quotes from the night: Jennifer, "Alcohol speaks too many languages. It has no vocabulary!" Also, Martin the guide, "Shit and stuff, it's important instructions!"

The Remaining crew at 4am in the Jewish quarter.

Our ever hospitable guide, Martin.

   Again, Anna and her friends Chris and Michael were very nice and took us to dinner after we had visited Auschwitz. Also, Anna invited us to her birthday party the following Friday. It was so nice to be included in events which were not tourist activities. We danced the night away at Anna's party which was a perfect end to a perfect trip to Krakow. There is much more to come so don't stray too far. 

Well, na zdrowie (cheers) to the people of Poland and good night!