Wieliczka Salt Mines

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This was one of the sights that I wanted to see while here in Krakow. It was such a snap to get to that it didn't matter that my coffee this morning was instant coffee here in the room. I just didn't want to spend the time looking for real coffee, so chugged the instant stuff and promised to not do it again.

I had been met at the airport last night, so had an idea of where the bus stop would be. But let me say, having someone standing there holding a sign with my name is just the way to arrive somewhere. I have had that both times this trip and like it. I am thinking that when friends pick me up, I will ask them to make the sign and hold it for me. Pattie, Barbara???? Any takers? lol Kind of doubt it. I also remember when my nieces and nephews each had a sign but were in the wrong order, so it read Welcome Brendan Uncle Home. Was still cute.

Anyhow, back to the story. I found the bus stop, asked which bus to take and made it easily to the mine. The city bus goes right past, so it was a snap. Only had to wait about half an hour for the English tour. The guide was great. She had a good sense of humor and knew the mine very well. We walked down 308 steps, about 64 meters to start the tour and went for over 2 hours underground. The mine was started back in the Middle Ages and was mined until 1996. It was just huge. I won't go into all the detail, but let me say that this was worth the trip out here.

I missed my stop on the way back, so ended up walking through the Old Town and doing some sightseeing. My guesthouse is only 2 blocks from the Cloth Hall, so I will be back out there again before I leave. It was cold and rainy today, so I took the afternoon to rest in my room a bit. I have been on the go almost nonstop, so it was nice to just sit without waiting for a plane, train or something. For dinner I had the most wonderful chicken noodle soup again. Homemade noodles and a consomme with vegetables. It was perfect for such a damp evening. I was going to have the borscht, but this was only served on Sunday nights, so I ordered in instead. Had pork pierogis. At first I thought they were garnished with diced dried apricots, but it was crisp unsmoked pork instead.

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Photos

Copernicus Statue
Of course everything is carved out of salt.

Hey, it's not raining inside
Was cool, but dry. Great day for a tour like this.

Chicken Soup for the Brendan
Perfect on a cold wet night.

Pierogis
Filled with pork, and just what I wanted

My Guesthouse
A locked gate leads into this courtyard.

Where's the check?
Was bored while waiting for the check, so started playing with the camera again. No flash, so it didn't disturb anyone.

Comments

[Randy and Lynda]

Keep up your stories travelin' man!
Brendan, keep up the great stories. Lynda and I are in our hotel in Vancouver, BC. and looking for some worthy time-wasting things to do... then your blog came to mind. Great insight into parts of Europe that we were not yet able to visit ourselves, and we appreciate the humor-based monologue and yucks and grins that a traveler is prone to experience. What a great tool to use to log the journey! Thanks for writing about it!

[Allison]

Signs
I was totally thinking about the signs we made before I saw that you too thought about the same thing. That was so funny when we realized what we had done. lol. Well I hope you are having a wonderful vacation!!