Cosmopolitan Krakow Day 1
Krakow is the kind of city where you don’t want to return to your hotel, distracted by all the cafes and restaurants along the streets, and the people sitting or standing outside, enjoying the warm evening and long hours of daylight.
Though I enjoyed the beauty of the Old Town and some of Kazimierz, the old Jewish quarter where I am staying, the best part was the conversations that I had – with my Ukrainian waiter at Chopin on Market Square who hopes to go to Canada; with a British ex-pat dog-owner who has lived there for 14 years and my young waitress at a restaurant on a small square by the Jewish Memorial, who speaks perfect English and Italian.
On the way back to the hotel, I stopped in at Starka restaurant where I had spinach pierogies that made me love pierogies as much as everyone else, of course unlike any that I had eaten before in North America. With them, I drank my first Polish wine, a white from Srebrna Gora near Krakow. It was so good that I look forward to another glass when I return on Friday evening for the live music.
Even though I am curious about the Ukrainian war, asking questions is awkward and insensitive. But it did come up and it was interesting to hear from a neighbouring country. It is also heartbreaking because it directly affects the families of the many Ukrainians who live here. And even though people seem to feel safer as Poland is part of NATO, there is more fear. Many people here still remember living under communism.
Over my next 3 weeks of conversations in the English immersion program, I am sure I will learn more.
In the meantime, I will enjoy my first visit to Krakow and to Poland. After just 1 day, I would highly recommend visiting here!