Our time in Poland is winding down, but in some ways, we’ve saved the best for the last, because today we headed to my favorite city, Kraków. But, it was not our first stop after leaving Zakopane about 9 AM.
Our first stop of the day was a Basilica, the Sanctuary of Mary the Mother of God, Queen of the Podhale, in Ludźmierz. My great-grandmother was born in Ludźmierz, and I’m sure I have many relatives there to this day.
The parish is very old and dates from the 1400’s, but the current church was built about 1869 and is magnificent.
We spent a bit of time visiting the church and the grounds. Pope St. John Paul II visited in 1997, too. After lots of pictures, we hit the road again.
My pictures from Ludźmierz and the Basilica of Our Lady of the Podhale are here: https://photos.leonkonieczny.com/Poland-2019-Vacation/09-06.Ludzmierz/index.html
The next hour or two took us through some very scenic areas, from the steep roads of the foothills of The Carpathians to the gently rolling hills south of Kraków. Our next goal was the salt mine at Wieliczka.
We got to Wieliczka about noon and got tickets for a 1 PM guided tour. We had a bit of time to relax, but at 1 our tour started. It’s a beautiful place, and our pictures cannot do it justice, but it was a great time. Absolutely stunning.
Photos from our visit and tour of the fabulous salt mine at Wieliczka are here: https://photos.leonkonieczny.com/Poland-2019-Vacation/09-06.Wieliczka/index.html
Afterward, we headed to our apartment/hotel in Kraków. Once settled in, we headed to the old city, mere blocks away. Our apartment is about 2-3 blocks from Wawel Castle, talk about location. After getting situated, we headed into the old city.
Wow! Yes, all I can say is wow! We walked the route of the Kings into the square, Grodzka Street, into the main square. We walked around and took many pictures, and we eventually decided on dinner at Wesele. It was a good choice, the food was excellent.
Afterward, we walked down Florinańska Street to the famous Florianańska Gate and the Barbican. We came back, walked through the Sukiennice, then stopped along the way to have a nightcap. What a marvelous end to the day.
It was a great day, a great start to our visit in Kraków, we are having a great tIme here.
Pictures on Facebook.. And more will be posted later, after we return.
