Zakopane

We got off the bus in Zakopane at about 5pm and decided that we could walk to the hostel that we had picked out. So we set off down the road for what we thought would be a long, but fairly straight forward walk to the hostel. The directions that we had gotten seemed to be working fairly well and after about 30 minutes of walking we turned down what we thought was the road that the hostel was on. After walking down the road for about 5 minutes we decided that the hostel wasn't there so seeing a couple of locals out for a walk we approached them to ask for directions. After a bit of trying to figure it all out they got their neighbor who spoke great English to explain that it was back out on the main road and one block further down. So we set off again and about 10 minutes later we found the hostel hidden down a small road and tucked into the middle of nowhere, almost impossible to find. By the time we finally settled down and got a room it was pretty late so we decided to go to the only nearby restaurant for a spot of dinner since everything else was either closed or miles away. The dinner was pretty good although we definitely felt like we were interrupting the locals by being there so after having a quick bite we returned to the hostel where we just relaxed for a bit before heading to bed.

The next morning we got up and got prepared to go out for a hike. Only it was pouring outside so we took a little while with the last bit of preparation since we were hoping it would dry up. Thankfully it did seemed to stop raining so we set off for the 30 minute walk to the start of the hike that was recommended. The hike started at the base of a ski lift and by the time that we got there the rain had started again so instead of heading up the mountain we decided to enjoy a nice cup of hot chocolate and wait out the rain again. Of course as soon as we got our hot chocolate the rain stopped so after our short break enjoying our delicious beverages we started off. Our chosen hike started off up the mountain and after an hour of walking we came out to an open ridge where we were rewarded with some nice views of the landscape below us and over the town of Zakopane. Continuing on we climber over a small pass and continued up a valley until we came to a hut where we enjoyed our lunch and watching the hoards of people hiking by us. After lunch we continued for another 30 minutes until we came to a nice lake surrounded on three sides by mountain walls. We spent a few minutes relaxing by the lake and taking pictures but we decided that we should start heading back as it still looked like it could rain so we didn't want to be caught in that. The hike back to the base of the ski lift was fairly uneventful and after finishing it we made our way back to the hostel stopping at a small grocery store on the way. That evening we relaxed at the hostel watching a movie and cooking dinner as the hostel was too far from anything to go out. So once the movie ended we just had a fairly early night.

The following morning we got up early and after a quick breakfast we made our way out. Today to get to our starting point for our hike we had to take a short bus ride from the bus station in Zakopane so after squishing onto a bus with the rest of Zakopane we got to the bus station from our hostel where we jumped on another bus that took us to the valley Dolina Chocholowska. Arriving at the start of our hike we proceeded to start walking up a nice wide and flat valley getting passed every once in a while by a horse drawn carriage taking other tourists further up the valley. After about an hour of walking through the valley we came to a cave that passed through the mountain to a point further down the trail. After a short climb up to the cave entrance we got to enter almost right away and spent the next 15 minutes squeezing through some narrow passages to the other side. The interior of the cave wasn't anything spectacular but it was quite long and fun to have to squeeze through. At the far end of the cave we descended back down to the main trail where we continued on to a small hut located at the end of the valley. After a short break at the hut we started to climb up to the top of a small pass where we took a break to enjoy our lunch while sitting on the grass. After lunch we continued down the other side of the pass until we came to the valley Dolina Koscielika which we walked down until we came out back at the road. Once at the end of the hike we hopped on a bus and got back into Zakopane. Back in Zakopane we picked up some food for dinner and made our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed another evening of movies and home cooked dinner before going to bed.

The next morning Lianne and I had to get up extremely early as we were leaving Celine and Adam since they were heading to Slovakia and us to the Czech Republic. So after saying goodbye to them we made our way out the door and to the bus station where we got on an early bus back to Poprad in Slovakia. Once in Poprad we bought some food for lunch and then got on a train for a very long ride to Prague in Czech Republic. Once we reached Prague though our day of traveling still wasn't done so after waiting in the train station for a couple of hours we boarded a train bound for Ceske Budejovice our destination for that day.






Celine, Lianne and Adam standing on the ridge with a nice view in the background on our first day hike.











Celine and me standing in front of the lake on our first day hike.















Lianne walking through the cave that we passed through on our second day of hiking.

















Adam, Lianne, and Celine enjoying lunch on top of the small pass on the second day hike.









Standing in front of the beautiful green forest and a small waterfall on the last part of our second day hike.

Krakow

After spending a few hours on buses we eventually arrived in Krakow around noon and from the bus station we made the short walk to the hostel. Once we arrived at the hostel we quickly dumped our bags in our room and were greeted by Celine, my cousin from France. We spent the next couple of hours catching up and grabbing a quick bite to eat while we waited for Adam, Celine's boyfriend, to arrive. When Adam got to the hostel we decided to set off and explore a bit of Krakow before the day ended so we made our way to Rynek Glowny (Main Market Square) which is Europe's largest medieval town square. At Rynek Glowny we wandered around and admired the cloth hall (which used to be an old market but is just a souvenir market now), the exterior of St Mary's Church, and the town hall tower complete with a statue of a large head at its base. After seeing Rynek Glowny we just wandered around the old town for a bit seeing the side of Wawel castle, lots more churches and the Florian Gate. By this time it was getting fairly late so we just made our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed cooking our dinner (and eating it) before heading out to a nearby bar for a quick drink.

The next morning we set off to explore more of the Krakow city and started with Wawel castle. On top of Wawel Hill (the hill with the castle on it) we got to wander around the small but nice gardens and to admire the exterior of the buildings. We then decided that we should see the interior of some of the buildings so after reading about all of them (and seeing what was open) we decided that the only part that really interested us was the Wawel Cathedral which was absolutely magnificent inside. Other than being just a place of worship and the coronation place of the Polish royalty there were the royal tombs and a magnificent bell tower containing several huge bells. After touring the Cathedral we decided that we had seen enough of Wawel Hill and returned down to a nearby park where we got to enjoy our small picnic lunch. After lunch we walked along the river front for a bit towards Kazimierz which was the Jewish quarter during WWII. In Kazimierz we wandered around the area looking into a few of the synagogues which had been turned into small museums or galleries and at the slightly different architecture. The last place that we visited in Kazimierz was the Old Synagogue which is now the Jewish Museum and has a great exhibition on Jewish customs and traditions. After visiting the Jewish Quarter we made our way across the river, after a short break, to find Schindler's Factory, the factory that was owned by the person portrayed in Steven Spielberg's movie Schindler's List. The building was fairly plain and at this point there wasn't any reason to really visit it as they were in the process of turning it into a museum but it wouldn't be completed until 2010. After Schindler's Factory we wandered around another Jewish camp from WWII before making our way to a nice park nearby where we spent the last bit of the afternoon before returning to the hostel. Once at the hostel we enjoyed another home cooked meal and spent the rest of the evening just relaxing at the hostel and watching some TV and movies.

The following morning we got up and made our way to the bus station where we quickly hopped on a bus bound for Auschwitz to see the Nazi concentration camps. We arrived at the Auschwitz camp just in time to catch one of the mandatory tours and so after only a short delay we were off. The tour took us through several of the remaining buildings, as the Nazis weren't able to destroy all of them when they fled, and had very moving displays about what happened to prisoners at the camps and how they were treated. There were lots of displays showing from how far away Jews were shipped to Auschwitz to be part of the camps and lots of piles showing all the stuff that had been confiscated from them such as shoes, suitcases, eyeglasses, and even their hair after it was shaved off. One interesting fact was that the highest concentration of survivors had worked in one area of the camp called the Canadian Factory which was the place where all the new arrivals luggage was sorted. It was called the Canadian Factory because it was the best job available to them and to them Canada was the promise land. After touring around Auschwitz we caught the shuttle bus over to Birkenau, a second and even larger concentration camp in the area. When we arrived at Birkenau we were pleased to find that we were the only 4 from our tour group to arrive so we got a private tour through the camp. Most of the buildings at Birkenau had been destroyed as they were mostly made from wood, but of the few remaining we got to see the buildings where prisoners lived and how they were absolutely crammed into the buildings. We also got to see an exact replica of the gas chambers where hundreds of thousands of people were killed. After getting a tour around Birkenau we caught the bus back to Krakow where we returned to our hostel and spent the evening relaxing in the common room watching movies and eating dinner.

Our last morning in Krakow we got up and packed our bags before heading off to check out the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine. Arriving at the salt mine we quickly made our way to the entrance and signed up for a tour of the Unesco World Heritage Listed mine. The mine was quite fascinating and was mined right up until the mid 20th century. Inside the mine is a labyrinth of pits, chambers and tunnels with everything inside these being hewn right from the rock salt. There were tons of statues in different rooms depicting scenes of miners and other statues of famous people who had visited the mine with each statue being carved by old miners during their breaks. The highlight of the mine though would have to be the huge Chapel of the Blessed Knight, one of several chapels carved into the mine, where everything was again carved out of salt including the chandeliers and all of the alters over a 30 year period. After our tour of the salt mine we got back on a bus and made our way back to our hostel where we grabbed our bags and made our way to the bus station. Arriving at the bus station we quickly got on a bus bound for Zakopane where we planned to spend the next few days doing some hiking in the Polish side of the Tatra Mountains.








A picture of the Wawel Cathedral from the castle grounds on Wawel Hill.














At the base of Wawel Hill there was a cool statue of a dragon that if you sent a text message to him he would breath fire.




















Looking down between two barbed wire fences where guards would patrol to keep the Jews under control.

















Looking down the train tracks where prisoners would have to depart the train in Birkenau. In the distance is the main gateway to the site where everyone had to enter through.











Looking down one of the roadways in the Birkenau camp surrounded with huge barbwire fences.












Standing in a guard tower overlooking the Birkenau camp so that you can see the enormous size of it.