‘72 hours in Kraków’ is written by eve michell. eve is a copywriter and poet, as well as an editor of EXIT Press. eve takes us through her recent trip to Kraków.
In the early hours of Wednesday, 15th December, my partner and I drove through icy, slushy, barren motorways with an icier, slushier destination to reach: Kraków.
Being there for just 3 nights, we wanted to make sure we packed in as much as we could without feeling too rushed. We aren’t early birds, so we took the mornings slowly and headed out for brunch each day, then explored well into the evenings.
Here are some personal highlights from the trip.
We saw:
The Orchestra of Saint Maurice perform the music Vivaldi, Chopin, Mozart and Bach in the breathtakingly beautiful space that is St Peter and St Paul’s Church, Grodzka Street.
The musicians were outstanding: not a note missed, which, considering the speed at which they were playing, was almost unbelievable.
At 60 zloty (roughly £11.23) each for an hour of orchestral delight, this takes the top spot for entertainment, in my book.
We shopped:
The Christmas markets are, of course, a huge attraction for tourists in Krakow. Nestled in the 13th-century square in the middle of the old town, the markets offer a wide selection of crafts, jewellery, food and drink.
With just hand luggage, we couldn’t make any significant purchases, but I did buy these handmade Christmas tree ornaments for a grand total of 8 zloty (£1.50) each.
We ate:
For a rustic, traditional street food bite, non-vegetarians can give Smalec a try: essentially, pork lard and caramelised onions on crusty bread. Don’t knock it til you try it. Stefan picked this up at the market for 20 zloty (£3.74).
We also went to a Syrian restaurant, Suwayda Streetfood, where we enjoyed Arabic coffee (in which I accidentally put pepper instead of sugar — surprisingly nice), hummus and flatbread, calamari, lentil soup, a soujuk and pickled cucumber sandwich and deepfried smelt (tiny fish, like whitebait.)
The interior was beautiful, the service was good, and the food was nourishing, wholesome and something a bit different — certainly not the Polish cuisine we expected to be sticking to.
Lastly, we went to a self-service (order at the bar, bring your plates back to be washed up type vibe) diner called Milk Bar, where we had what we estimate is the authentic Polish food experience. I had cabbage rolls stuffed with rice, Stefan had Bigos, and with two drinks we paid less than £14 for the both of us. Not bad, if you ask me.
Our time in Krakow was full of inexpensive food and drink, churches, music and snow. All you want for a short pre-Christmas break. Here are some photos I took which felt rather LOST FUTURES (the title of our first zine publications):