Krakow. Strolling around Main Square

On a windy and gloomy day like this (here at least) there is nothing better than a virtual walk. Isn't it? So I am here today to invite you for a ...

... too early for the pub crawl but just okay for a light stroll around Krakow's main square or Rynek Główny as they call it. Krakow itself is one of the oldest cities in Poland with a thousand-year history. The heart of modern Kraków is the Old Town, from which, like concentric circles, go an ancient stone wall, a cozy green park, an inner ring road with tram tracks, an outer ring road in the form of a boulevard, and so on and on...

We will enter through St. Florian's Gate and go along Florianska Street. This street hasn't changed its name since... the old times.

Inside, the old city is built in the form of a grid so you never get lost. And if you look up on any of those streets you will most likely see the tops of either of Saint Mary's Basilica (or Kościół Mariacki) or City Hall. Heading on their direction you can easily get to the Main Square. Everything there is on a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Here, everything is about "the most". The oldest square of Krakow, and the largest medieval market square in Europe. 200m x * 200m = 4 hectares - WOW! But honestly, you feel it once you are here.

The square was built after the city received Magdeburg law. Initially, it was the property of the king, and later he gave up his property in favor of the city.

I cannot say what is the main attraction here, so let's look at the Cloth Hall first. Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) divides the square into 2 parts. It was built here so that merchants who come to the city have enough space for their goods. You can buy souvenirs here get a cup of coffee or visit the Museum of History which is located in a basement. Although souvenirs here were too expensive for me.

There were smaller markets in the adjacent quarters, like the Salt Market or The Coil Market.

This gorgeous brick gothic church is Saint Mary's Basilica. There are 2 famous legends about it. The first one tells the story of why the two towers of the church differ in height. It's because they were built by 2 stonemason brothers who competed to build the tallest tower. In the end, one brother killed the other because his tower was higher, but after realizing of what he had done, he could not live any longer and ended his life by sticking a knife in his stomach. Very detailed legend. They also say the knife is still sticking out of the wall of the Cloth Hall but I didn't find it.

The second legend is about a trumpeter who climbed to the highest of the towers (photo on the left) to sound the alarm and was killed by his enemies. This is all I remember. In his memory, a trumpeter plays the trumpet every half hour every day now. This is a fact and I can witness it. But initially, the trumpet was played twice - at dawn and sunset, and it was the signal of opening/closing of the city gates.

If you look closely you might see that the dome of the tower consists of many baby-towers. Awww 😍

Speaking about the other facts, the interior of the Saint Mary's Basilica is really impressive, as a mixture of Gothic, Baroque and modern, which was created by Polish, Italian and German artists at different times. The altar is a true masterpiece... they say... but you can come closer only if you came for a service, and no photos are allowed. Just take my word.

Here on the main square, rent a carriage with a coachman, drawn by a pair of horses, and drive down the royal road, imagining that you are the High King. All horses are well-groomed and luxuriously dressed. High class!

City Hall.

The tower is all that survived. Initially, it was expanded with a granary. Long ago, a bolt of lightning hit it and now its "angle" is 0,5 m. Actually, you may notice it if you look very carefully.... Or not. I am not sure.

In former days, I would definitely climb to the top of it (and other tops as well). But not this time. Usually, my husband is my motivator and amplifier, but he wasn't with me.

There is also a golden crown on every significant building along the Royal Road. Because of this, Krakow sometimes reminded me of Stockholm. On other days, it reminded me of my hometown which is in the west of Ukraine which was under the rule of the Kingdom of Poland for some time.

*(Today I am building sentences in the style of Zabuzhko - a modern Ukrainian writer, and author of "The Longest Trip", an essay on two plans of this war, 30-year and 300-year. It has already been published in Poland, Sweden, Italy, Germany, Norway, and Latvia. I ordered it a few days ago and hope to make my own opinion soon but I really recommend you to read it too.)*

And we move on. Behind the Basilica there is a lovely Small Market Square. It looks fascinating at any time of the day (I verified).

These are all my stories for today. Now you have free time to enjoy walking cozy streets and stopping in one of the local cafes which are hundreds here and taste pierogi or a piece of cake. Or both 😇 And a beer 🤣.