For centuries Krakow had been the capital of Poland, but no longer. Luckily, the city hadn’t been destroyed by the Nazis as Warsaw had been, so many of the beautiful old buildings were still more-or-less in their original form. The people here in Krakow seem friendlier & not as unhappy as they do in Warsaw. Still, walking through the streets along broken pavements & past old dilapidated houses, you are keenly aware how much work needs to go into this country to improve conditions. But then again, that’s where a lot of its character lies.
I did one of those ‘free’ history walks, after remembering how great the one in Berlin had been. But this was a different company, newly started it seemed, run by a couple of students whose history & humour was largely targeted at young people out to have fun. It went to just over 4 hours, & I didn’t give a good tip. I did meet a woman from New York called Yana & we had a nice chat along the way. She was in Krakow with her parents travelling over the US summer season.
The tour ended in the Jewish Ghetto. The movie, ‘Schindler’s List’, was based & filmed here. Many of the streets were recognisable from the movie. This is the happening place to be in Krakow - most of the pubs & clubs are here & so attract a young crowd each day. Not many Jews live here now - only 200. I find it interesting that, even though Jews have lived in Poland since the 15th century, they are still not seen as Polish, but as a minority group. Why is this? No wonder the Jewish people felt they needed a home of their own - no one would ever let them completely assimilate.
I did one of those ‘free’ history walks, after remembering how great the one in Berlin had been. But this was a different company, newly started it seemed, run by a couple of students whose history & humour was largely targeted at young people out to have fun. It went to just over 4 hours, & I didn’t give a good tip. I did meet a woman from New York called Yana & we had a nice chat along the way. She was in Krakow with her parents travelling over the US summer season.
The tour ended in the Jewish Ghetto. The movie, ‘Schindler’s List’, was based & filmed here. Many of the streets were recognisable from the movie. This is the happening place to be in Krakow - most of the pubs & clubs are here & so attract a young crowd each day. Not many Jews live here now - only 200. I find it interesting that, even though Jews have lived in Poland since the 15th century, they are still not seen as Polish, but as a minority group. Why is this? No wonder the Jewish people felt they needed a home of their own - no one would ever let them completely assimilate.
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