Book's Crumbs

 I needed a break from university and I needed it on a really small budget. So I looked up some fly's offers, and found a round-trip ticket to Krakow for just 25 euro! Let's say that until that moment, Poland was not really in my top choices for a weekend break, but after looking up some images on google I was easily convinced.

My friend and I booked the tickets and the hostel for the beginning of December, just in time for the Christmas' market, planning to fully take part in the Winter's spirit. We booked a hostel 10 minutes walk away from the central square, for just 23 euro.  And there you have it, my four days trip to Krakow for under 50 euro!

Well, the first day didn't go exactly as planned. Our fly couldn't land in Krakow airport at 7.00 pm because of weather condition, so instead, we ended up in Katowice with one-hour delay and still two hours away from Krakow. When we finally got to the hostel it was past 12.00 pm, and we decided to call it a night. 

My first impression of Poland: It was effing cold!

We woke up pretty early and saw that it was snowing, which in any other normal day would have kept me from stepping out of bed, but hey it was our first actual day in Poland and we had plans. Not even a snowstorm could have stopped me from visiting Wieliczka salt mine....After going through a storm and almost missing the train, we finally got to the Mines in pretty wet but good conditions. We got our tickets directly there, and after a short queue, we entered the Mines. The entrance for the touristic tour is around 16 euro, but they are totally worth it! 

The Mines were declared in 2010 UNESCO world heritage site, and with their majestic wooden supports, salt's sculpture, underground lakes, I can easily see why. The tour did take around 3 h, we could have had lunch in the mines - there is an actual restaurant underground - but we decided to head to the central square of Krakow and eat something at the markets. Once there, I went straight for the Pierogi's (polish dumplings) stall; the best ones, in my opinion, were the fried ones with mushrooms and cabbage stuffing, really yummy!(2.5 euro)

After drinking some mulled wine to warm up, we wandered around the market stall, where they were selling lots of traditional polish objects and food.

We walked through the Cloth Hall, which dates back to the 1300s, and it's probably Europe's oldest shopping mall. Once a place for merchants to barter and do business, now it houses souvenir stalls selling trinkets, amber jewelry and traditional handicrafts. There is also a legend about the knife that's hanging at the entrance wall, which is worth reading about (HERE). If you are planning on visiting Krakow you will soon discover that it's a city full of legends. They literally have a legend for everything, even pigeons.

For dinner, we went to a small cozy restaurant called Kuchnia u Doroty, that serves typical polish cuisine, where we had a wonderful meal. To drink we ordered a beer with raspberry syrup, for starter a delicious beetroot soup, and as the main dish, I ordered a pork-steak with mushrooms and fries on the sides, believe me when I say that it was the best pork-steak I had in my entire life. We finished everything off with a cheesecake, spending in total no more than 8 euro each. Crazy right?! Are you thinking that it can't get any cheaper? Well, think again, cause the next day we found an even cheaper place.

To fully explore the city, we decided on joying a free walking tour. I highly suggest you join one, they are really well done, you get to know a little more about the city and you also have the chance to talk to people from all over the world. I don't know if we got lucky, but our guide Chris was the best! He took us around Krakow's old town exploring its history, legends, and traditions, spicing up things with lots of funny jokes! The tour ends at the top of Wawel Royal Castle, with an amazing view of the city.
After the old town tour,  we went for lunch at Gospoda Koko,  a really nice pub/restaurant popular with the student's community and the locals. We got chicken-soup to warm up, some pierogi, chips, chicken smothered in cheese and a large beer. Everything was really good and we ended up paying just 5 euro each.
With our belly full we headed back to the central square for some shopping and visited St. Mary's Basilica.