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Could it get any prettier? This is Wawel Cathedral,
situated on Wawel Hill, which overlooks Krakow. I have devoted a whole folder to
Wawel. |
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The interior of the Jesuit Chapel in the Old Town
Square. |
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| In the center of Old Town Krakow is a huge square, the Rynek, which is one of the
largest in central Europe and dates back to 1257. The church on the
left is Saint Mary's, a typical gothic structure with an interior that is a
whole education in gothic, renaissance, baroque, and rococo. |
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Running right down the middle of the
Rynek is the Cloth Hall or
Sukiennice. This was the mercantile
center. Traders would come from around the world to do their business
here. Now, it is filled mostly with tourist shops. How sad! |
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| Another view of the
Rynek. |
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And of the
Sukiennice. You can see the towers of
Saint Mary's behind it. The original structure dates back to around 1300 but has
been through various incarnations since, including, after a fire in 1555, the
ornate Renaissance structure that exists today. The neo-gothic arches were
added in the 19th century. |
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| The walkway in front of
the
Sukiennice. |
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One of the two towers
of Saint Mary's. Note the open window with something in it. That something is a
man playing a bugle. This happens every hour. The tune is quite stirring, but it
stops in mid-bar. This is to memorialize a watchman who was shot with an arrow
while playing his bugle to warn of an attack. |
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| Statue of
Adam
Mickiewicz right in front of the Sukiennice. Here's a great quote from
Cracow-Life.com: "The phrase ‘Pod Adamem’ meaning ‘under Adam’ (this being the
statue of Adam Mickiewicz - Poland’s greatest bard and a serial philanderer) is
regularly used to mean ‘meet up under the statue.’" |
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Saint Mary's. There are
so many pigeons that I am surprised I didn't catch more of them in my shots. |
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| The ceiling of Saint
Mary's. |
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Panels above the pews
in Saint Mary's. |
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| One feature of the Old
Town is Jagellonian University, the second oldest in central Europe, after
Charles University in Prague. The great astronomer Capernicus studied and taught
here. |
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This building on the
Jagellonian University campus is typical Polish neo-gothic, dating to the 19th
century. |
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| Here's a statue of
Copernicus on the campus. |
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Another interesting
statue I ran across in a little square to the right of Saint Mary's, though I
have no idea its significance. |
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| A pretty shot of some
green space (more or less a part of the Planty) in front of the campus. |
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There was a display of
these cartoons written on sheets in the Planty in front of Jagellonian
University. This says, "Daddy, are you going to enter the EU?" "Yes, but
naked." |
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| Another great example
of Polish-style gothic, the Dominican Church. |
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A Jesuit chapel, which
dates from the Romanesque period, but was transformed into a Baroque structure. |
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The famous stained glass window by Stanislaw
Wyspianski at the Franciscan Church, another Krakow landmark. |
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A detail of the Franciscan Church, showing a
Franciscan monk on the roof. |
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| The 19th century
Slowacki Theatre. |
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The dome of the
Slowacki Theatre. Built in the Renaissance style, it, like the
Sukiennice, has these neo-gothic grotesque
heads lining the roof. |
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| A delightfully eerie
shot of Saint Andrew's Church, a Romanesque structure from the 11th century. |
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Gothic flying
buttresses along the side of Saint Mary's. |
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Saints Peter and Paul (with the 12 apostles in front),
which dates from the 18th century. |
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The Wawel Cathedral along the entrance to Wawel
Castle (which has its own photo gallery page). |
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They don't decorate buildings like this in
Morgantown! |
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The architectural details are stunning. |
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| One of many heads
atop the
Sukiennice. |
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Keep in mind that
these are hundreds of years old. What were the people like who built such
fanciful things like? |
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| You meet some
colorful folk in the Rynek. |
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He is playing a very
interesting instrument -- looks like a cross between a harp and a guitar. |
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| Just trying to earn a
living. |
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A dance competition I
encountered in the Rynek. |
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| A colorful
architectural detail (from the Florian Gate). |
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And another (I can't
remember where this is from). |
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| Lots of restaurants
line the Rynek (and elsewhere). And, yes, the food's terrific. |
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Cold borscht. A
classic. |
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| This has got to be a
great place to eat. The Polish says Holy Cow. |
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Another colorful
Krakow establishment. By the way, that's my wife Dianne (the blond) and daughter
Jac being shown to a table. |
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| The Florian Gate, the
historic entrance to the city. It opens onto
Florianska Street, which leads to the Rynek. From the Rynek, Grodska Street leads to Wawel Castle. This route from the Florian Gate
on the north side to Wawel Castle on the south side is known as the Royal Way,
the path of many processions that date back hundreds of years. |
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The Barbican, part of
the Old Town fortifications. |
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| Decorative work on
the
Sukiennice with Saint Mary's in the
background. |
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I like this abstract
effect from underexposing a picture of a rainspout in a building on
the campus of Jagellonian University. |
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| Cafes in Kazimierz,
the historical Jewish section. |
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A hostel in Kazimierz, the name taken
from the movie. |
