Kraków, Poland 3
It was overcast and comfortable in the morning of Day 3. We started exploring the West side of the Old Town that we haven't been to yet. We walked in front of Collegium Maius, meaning"Great College" in Latin, which is the oldest building of the Jagiellonian University, founded in the 14th century.
We were interested in joining the guided tour in the Medieval university building, but unfortunately didn't have a chance to do so during this trip. We are saving this site for when we come back to Kraków.
We stopped by St. Anne's Church near Collegium Maius. The 17th/18th century Baroque church is the collegiate church belonged to Jagiellonian University and keeps their professors' tombs.
We walked up a couple blocks north and found Szczepanski Square, the second largest square in the Old Town, surrounded by Art Nouveau townhouses. It was once the site of the Church of Saint Szczepan and an adjoining cemetery.
Perhaps what I like most about Kraków was greenery called the Planty Park that encircles the Old Town in place of the Medieval city walls. We walked through the Park many times during the trip. It gave us a nice shade from the sun, plenty of benches to rest on, and a peaceful walk away from the tourists waves in the Old Town.
The Rectorate building of Jagiellonian University was located along the Planty Park. In the front of the left side of the building, there was the statue of Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish mathematician and astronomer who proposed that the Sun is the center of the solar system and that the planets circle the Sun in the 1500s. He studies here in the years 1491-1495.
We walked in the park a little more and headed to a cafe called NAPNAP Cafe for breakfast.
J's cappuccino looked very creamy. His breakfast was Shakshouka with sausages. The cafe's menu had various savory breakfast options. Good for J!
The menu had less sweet options than savory, but I found one that would be indulgent - French toasts with crème brûlée sauce and homemade raspberry and rose jam! Yum.
We came back to the Planty Park and headed south.
Oskar Schindler's former apartment was found on the street along with the park, near the Wawel Royal Castle, by the way. The apartment building was also a filming location of Schindler's list.
While we strolled on the foot of the castle, we ran into a dragon!
We walked along with the Vistula river a while. The 18th century Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel on the left; Balon widokowy, a tethered balloon offering panoramic views of the city on the opposite river bank.
The blue bridge that we crossed the day before was getting close.
We were in the Kazimierz district, or the Jewish quarter, again. The door to the church on Krakowska Street was open. We popped in to see the interior. The Church Of The Brothers Hospitallers is a 18th century Baroque church.
We visited another filming location of Schindler's List. The Passage is known as Schindler's Passage.
We also came to Plac Nowy, or the New Square, again. The flea market we found there on the day before was gone. Finally we were able to see the center piece of the square, the Okrąglak (Rotunda). Originally it was built as a market hall in 1900, and then became a ritual poultry slaughterhouse for the Jewish Community. After WWII, the building started to be used as a market hall again, and today you can buy a fast/street food through the little windows in the wall.
We visited Old Synagogue. Built in the 15th century, the building is one of the the oldest surviving example of Jewish religious architecture in Poland. Today it was transformed into a museum with a permanent exhibition on the history and culture of Kraków Jews. It was a free admission day. No wonder why the museum was so crowded.
The manhole on Jakuba street was supposed to be the one seen in Schindler's List, but I am not sure...
Near the manhole was the mid-16th century Remah Cemetery, one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries preserved in Europe. We peeked in it though the fenced hole in the wall. I saw only overgrowing grass.
We still had some time until our lunch reservation time and decided to walk up to a farmer's market, located north outside of the Jewish quarter. The Sun came back and it was getting hot again.
Well, the market was smaller than we expected, but it's always interesting to see what locals sell and buy.
Plums were in season!
I would have tried some sweet pastries if it wasn't time before lunch...
We didn't need much time to explore the market and we came back to the Jewish quarter.
We visited Corpus Christi Basilica, one of a few remaining Christian buildings in the Kazimierz district. We walked in front of the church on the day before but couldn't see the inside due to the Sunday services. Originally built in Gothic style in the 14th century, the church was destroyed during the Swedish invasion of Poland in 1655. The restoration in the following years resulted in the mix of Gothic and Baroque architecture.
The gold-white-black lavish decor was imposing.
Finally it was time for lunch! Ariel is a Jewish restaurant a stone's throw from the Old Synagogue. The 16th century building was once a Jewish tenement-house. Steven Spielberg and his crew regularly dined at the restaurant while they were filming Schindler's List.
We were seated in a charming dining room with a fireplace, a piano and many Jewish style paintings on the wall in light green.
A glass of Polish beer for J!
We both had matzo ball soup as a starter. Very nice.
My main dish was sautéed chicken breast with plum and mushroom sauce. The chicken was tender and the sauce was flavorful. I had Latkes, or Jewish potato pancakes for side according to our waiter's recommendation. They were beautifully toasted and tasted very nice.
J had Jewish roast beef with Lutenica sauce. The roast beef wasn't different from juicy pinky melt-in-mouth roast beef that I first thought of in terms of roast beef. I tasted a small piece. The beef was lean and the sauce was a little spicy for me. I have never heard Lutenica sauce and later I learned a bit. Made with roasted red peppers and tomatoes, Lutenica is widely found in the Balkans, originating from Bulgaria. J had Latkes, too.
For a dessert, we ordered Passover cheese - curd cheese with raisins and orange zest to share. The restaurant kindly made two small plates for us. The dessert looked like ice cream. It was creamy but light and refreshing. I would like to find a recipe and make my own version sometime.
By the way the restaurant was J's pick. Thank you J!!! After the lovely lunch experience, we slowly walked back to the Old Town and finally visited the Church of St. Peter and Paul, which we have already passed by three or four times.
We have seen several Baroque style churches in Kraków while the church is the oldest Baroque building in the city, built between 1597 and 1619. The interior was relatively less lavish.
Next we visited the Basilica of the Holy Trinity, originally built by the Dominican monks of Bologna in 1223. The 14th century façade is eye-catcher, which is built in the local style known as "Vistula Gothic", after the Vistula river running through Krakow. I didn't know the Vistula was the largest river in Poland.
The interior was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style after the fire destroyed most of the church in the mid-19th century.
There was a cloister, which was filled with funerary monuments and paintings.
Our last stop of the day was another church, the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, located near our hotel. I realized that I forgot to take a photo of the church's exterior. The 13th century church was the first brick building in Kraków.
Anyway, the highlight of the church is the interior - the main nave, the walls and the stained glasses designed in Art Nouveau style. They were creations at the late 19th century by Stanisław Wyspiański, a Kraków-born playwright, poet, painter as well as interior and furniture designer, who is known as a founder of Poland’s Art Nouveau movement.
The inside of the church was pretty dark. However, once my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I was able to appreciate the colorful and gorgeous artworks covered in the church. The interior was certainly distinct from that of the churches we visited in Kraków.
To be continued...
