Kraków is one of the oldest cities in Poland with evidence of settlement since 20,000 BC. Legend has it that it was built on the cave of a dragon that the mythical King Krak had slain. Many tourists start their Poland trip at or only visit Krakow. For us it is the last stop on our tour.

In 1241, Tatars almost destroyed the city. It was rebuilt to a design that remains largely unchanged to the present day. After successful attacks by the Mongols in the late 13th century, King Kazimierz the Great set about defending the city. Walls, fortifications, the original Wawel Castle and A chain of defensive castles and watchtowers, now called the Trail of the Eagles’ Nests, were built.

 Wawel Royal Castle (Zamek Krolewski) serves as a royal residence, and the site where the country’s rulers governed Poland for five centuries (1038-1596). This castle is a symbol of the independent Polish state.

After the invasion of Poland at the start of World War II, Kraków became the capital of Germany’s General Government. This helped Krakow escape the massive destruction World War II brought to most of Poland’s cities like Warsaw, Lublin, and Sandomierz.

We stayed in Krakow’s Historic Center, the 13th century merchants’ town, and home to Europe’s largest market square. It rained a lot while we were in Krakow, as it did for majority of the second half of this adventure, and I personally was worn-out. So I did not get to see and enjoy this old city as much as I would have liked to.

We did get out to see some of the major sites however with our private guide Marta Chmielowska. Marta came highly recommended, and she did a great job of organizing our time, showing us around, and teaching us about Krakow’s history and sites. Somehow, through her professional experience she managed to elude being photographed with the exception of the above photo taken by my sister Victoria (Marta is on the left).

Our first morning, we toured the Kazimierz Jewish District, and Oscar Schindler’s factory. Both offered a wealth of information that seemed to focus a lot on Shindler’s List, a 1993 American film directed and co-produced on location here by Steven Spielberg .

I particularly enjoyed looking at this wall built from Nazi destroyed tombstones in the mid-16th century Renaissance Remuh Synagogue.

The next day we toured the Wieliczka Salt Mine. The mine, built in the 13th century, produced table salt continuously until 2007. In the days before refrigeration salt was extremely important for food preservation, and as a result was very valuable. The mine reaches a depth of 327 meters (1,073 ft.) and is over 287 kilometers (178 miles) long. The floors, ceiling walls and almost everything else you see is carved from the rock salt which is naturally various shades of gray resembling unpolished granite.

The mine’s attractions include dozens of statues, three chapels and an entire cathedral that has been carved out of the rock salt by the miners.  The chapels and sculptures originally served as places of worship for the miners who spent the majority of their lives underground working a dangerous job. Now they are one of the areas biggest tourist attractions.

Salt sculpture of Pope John Paul II

As we walked through the shafts and chapels, it was hard to remember that you are so deep underground. Notice the tile floor above, it is salt carved to look like tiles.

The Black Madonna of Częstochowa (Polish: Czarna Madonna or Matka Boska Częstochowska), is a revered icon of the Virgin Mary housed at the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa, Poland.

Częstochowa which houses the Black Madonna, is regarded as the most popular shrine in Poland. Many Polish Catholics make a pilgrimage there every year. It was one of the few things about Poland that my grandfather had talked about having seen in Poland. So we added it to our our pilgrimage.

This statue of Pope John Paul II stands at Częstochowa. Almost everywhere we have been in Poland, there is something commemorating Pope John Paul II. Being Polish, and Poland being very Catholic, he is an extremely important figure and source of national pride. With the recent announcement that Pope John Paul II will be made a saint, the people of Poland are very excited.

One thing that has struck me about touring Poland, is how little we have seen or learned about Poland’s most recent historical chapter. The history of Poland from 1945 to 1989 spans the period of Soviet Communist dominance imposed after the end of World War II over the People’s Republic of Poland. These years, while featuring many improvements in the standards of living in Poland, were marred by social unrest and economic depression. No one seems to talk about it however. It was not part of our guide Marta’s tour, and but for a few instances like this soviet era car on the street in Krakow which is iconic of the era, little was seen by us.