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Today would turn out to be one of the worst hiking days in my life. Packed up the backpack, stuck gas permeable contacts back in eyeballs, ate breakfast and prepared for a very long day. Peter described it as a "short" hike from around 1,500m/4,921' up the mountain, over the Krzyzne Pass at 2,100m/6,889' with great views of mountains and lakes, ending up somewhere at the end of the day where the mini-bus would pick us up and return to Zakopane for one more night. That didn't sound too terrible. Only a 700m/2,000' gain in elevation. Done that before.
Well...all I can say is it was a good thing fireperson wasn't with us today. Out into the heat, through scrubby bushes and on steep, rocky paths for hours on end, puffing hard, drinking tons of water and watching every footstep. There was no one else on this particular trail but us and Peter zoomed ahead looking back every now and then to make sure he didn't lose anyone.
 those drat stone steps
Continue reading "Another Killer Day in The Polish Tatras" »
Zakopane didn't become popular until 1873 when the Tatra Mountain Society was founded. This turned Zakopane into the center of mountain tourism. The oldest part of Zakopane stretches along Koscieliska Street with its old mountaineers cottages. Oblivious me, never gave any thought to what a mecca for hikers and climbers this town really was.
Packed just what was needed in our backpacks for today's hike up to Murowaniec Chalet/Hut where we'd overnight. Again, the mini-bus dropped us off at Kuznice, the stopping point yesterday and off we started on the trail through the woods.
 a little shade to begin with
Continue reading "Hiking In The Polish Tatras From Kuznice to Murowanisc Hut" »
We settled in at the Jurek Mountain Lodge in the center of Zakopane. Pope John Paul had recently visited Zakopane for three days and the excitement and furor of this trip hadn't died down yet. This papal visit was a very significant moment for the people of Zakopane and Poland and there were still banners and photos everywhere. Many hotels, pensions, vacation homes for rent in Zakopane and mega-restaurants, including McDonald's! Peter and his uncle work with the Zakopane rescue association during the winter skiing season and he certainly appeared to be competent.
Mountains and little signs pointing to trails were everywhere and we were eager to begin. Each tour participant received maps and an outline of each day's hike that would be dependent on Peter's thoughts. He immediately changed the first hike to a half circle beginning around Gronik and continuing under the base of Giewont to Przelecz (1,725m/5,659' ) with an option to continue to the top of Giewont (1,895m/6,217' ), then heading down to Kuznice where the min-bus would be waiting. Whatever...
 map portion with Koscieliska and Giewont
Continue reading "Hiking Around Zakopane - Up to Giewont in Poland" »
We had a very small group of people. A woman from Australia traveling the world and hiking in each country (in over-the-top aerobic shape and downright nasty), a young man from the U.K., a women fireman from Detroit, Michigan..(or to be correct, do I say fireperson?), and one other woman from Canada. Peter was our Polish guide from Wonderlands Tours, a Polish agency based in Katowice. Young but experienced and he instantly arranged a meet-and-greet dinner at one of the Jewish-style restaurants in Krakow that is known for klezmer music. Klezmer music developed from secular Jewish music originating in the villages and ghettos of Eastern Europe. Bulgaria, the Ukraine, Romania, Russia, Czech, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, to mention a few countries. The musicians known as "klezmorim" played at weddings and other joyful occasions.
A klezmer orchestra/band usually included violins, bass or cello, flute and clarinet with many other instruments added in time. From my standpoint, a little klezmer music goes a long way (been there, done it) and the group was not at all pleased to discover that this dinner was not included in the tour after the fact. Not happy.
Continue reading "Krakow's Castle and A Tour of The Wieliczka Salt Mine, Poland" »
A very sad, sobering day spent visiting the considerable Jewish Heritage sites in and around Krakow. It was important to us to spend the day honoring and remembering the many people who died here, not just Jews. Kazimierz, was the old Jewish quarter of Krakow, founded by King Kazimierz (Casimir) the Great in 1335 as a separate town. This became the center of two cultures, Christian and Jewish by the turn of the 15th century and they lived for centuries with tolerance and peace. Twenty-five percent of Krakow's Jewish population lived here before World War II.
The suggested route through Kazimierz began at the Center for Jewish Culture where we booked a Schindler's List walking tour for later today. From here, we walked into, and past, the many Synagogues. The Old Synagogue (Alte Schul) is Poland's most ancient Jewish structure and dates back to the 15th-century. There is an exhibition in the Old Synagogue devoted to the history and culture of Krakow Jews. Next to the Renaissance Remuh Synagogue (mid-16th century) is a cemetery dating back even earlier with the ancient headstones leaning in all directions. Most of the headstones date from 1553.
 Krakow cemetary
Continue reading "Krakow Pilgrimages: Auschwitz-Birkenau, Oskar Schindler and Kazimierz" »
A relatively easy trip, taxi to the 2** Hotel Pollera, perfectly located on ul. Szpitalna 30, only a few minutes walk from Market Square. Founded in 1834, Hotel Pollera was very Art Nouveau with spacious rooms, gorgeous stained glass windows on the staircase, high ceilings and...good food! Their three dining rooms were all decorated differently and we were very pleased and surprised how nice the hotel was.
Dropped the bags and went out to explore. Not only was historic Market Square very close to Hotel Pollera but a big outdoor flea market had begun today and would continue over the next three days. We spent a considerable amount of time in Krakow browsing the stalls, buying, going back and forth to the ATM machine conveniently located at the edge of the square, and buying more.
Continue reading "In Historic, Charming, Krakow, Poland" »
Air? The group tour planned to fly into Warsaw, Poland and immediately train to Krakow. Instead of meeting up with them there, we flew Chicago to Frankfurt to Krakow via Warsaw arriving two nights before the group. This would give us a little more time to explore Krakow.
Hotels? Some additional reservations were required. The tour was using Hotel Pollera in Krakow. Looked good to us and we booked two extra nights. On the opposite end, we decided to stay one extra day in Prague on our own. Hotel Pension City was a little out of the way in regards to the important sections of Prague but it was very inexpensive and we decided to stay the extra night there instead of changing hotels in a better-located area.
 center of Krakow map
Continue reading "Planning the Tatras Trip in Central Europe" »
I've read a tremendous amount of travel literature on Krakow, Poland and Prague, Czech Republic but where and what were the High Tatras? A little investigation and googling should the High Tatras are the highest mountain range in the Slovak Republic in the Carpathian chain. The border of Slovakia and Poland runs along the main mountain ridge.
A chance mailing of a tour called "The High Tatras" piqued my interest. It began in Krakow, Poland, drove to Zakopane, spent 4 nights in Zakopane while day hiking, moved on to hiking from hut-to-hut for 3 days, two nights based in Tatranska Lomnica, Slovakia with more day hikes, and ended in Prague, Czech Republic.
Continue reading "Krakow, Poland - The High Tatras and Prague" »
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