Day Trip
Most people make it a point to visit the Auschwitz concentration camp when they arrive to Kraków, and so it makes sense that it's most famous day trip from Kraków, Poland. However, I've been to Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp when I was visiting Berlin last winter, and didn't want to have the same gripping experience (although I must say, if you've never been to any concentration camp tours, you should go for the Auschwitz tour when you're in Krakow! The reviews are GREAT!), so I decided against visiting the Auschwitz camp. Still, I was intending on going for another day trip as I had quite a fair bit of time in Kraków. The other great day-trip option recommended by the hostel I was staying at was the Salt Mine Tour, so I decided to give it a shot.
The Wielickzka Salt Mine Tour costed approximately 21-ish euros, inclusive of transport. Although one could go without a guide, I was really glad I went with one.
It was a blazing hot day in Kraków that day, as expected from the past few days I was there, but since the salt mine was located about several hundred metres below ground, it was a cool 15 degrees!
The tour started off with a long climb down a probably a hundred steps (maybe more - it was just never ending) and then straight into a few dark alleys. Since it was so dark down in the mines, it was quite annoying to take have to adjust the lighting and camera settings for pictures. BUT what you see is so unlike anything ever!
Our guide took us through the mine, and explained how people used to mine salt, the use of animals like horses. We found out that some horses were down in the mine for 20 years! Can you believe it?! Because it's difficult to transport them down and up, stables were built IN the mine for the horses to live 300 over metres below ground.
There were so many different structures and figurines made out of salts. Although they look opaque and stone-like, when the guide shined a light on the structures, you could tell that it is made of salt because it was clear.
I've never been to a salt mine, or any kind of mine, so I was really impressed. The floors in the mine was made out of salt, the walls were made of salt, the ceilings were also made of salt, almost everything was made of sodium chloride.
Literally. Salt. The salt you can eat.
Our guide also told us how the different types of salts were formed. There were the ones they call cauliflower which is a less valuable variety - something like common salt i'd assume, and other salt crystals which are stronger, and colourless, those are more precious ones.
Speaking of the salt mine being made out of salt you can eat, our guide told us, "You can taste the walls if you want, to see if its made of salt." Everyone just laughed thinking it was a joke, but then someone asked if it was dirty, and turns out, the salt surface is one of the cleanest surfaces because it has very few bacterial matter on it.
Anyway, all that explanation is to say that I TASTED THE WALL. I know some people would find it gross, but I'm pretty daredevil when it comes to tasting and trying weird stuff, so.... Yeah. The walls were salty. Very Salty.
In some parts of the mines, there were beautiful structures of dragons, dwarfs and other characters that children can relate to, those were apparently part of a kids education programme. However, most of the original sculptures were carved out and designed by the miners who worked in the mines during their free time.
The most impressive part was the underground church.
The chandeliers were made of salt crystals, the sculptures, the whole room practically, was designed and decorated by a few miners DURING THEIR FREE TIME.
I cannot comprehend how insanely talented and amazing these miners were. They did it not out of an order, but just out of the willingness of their heart, and they created something so beautiful.
The most well-known decorative piece was the carving above of the last supper. Although it looks like its super 3 dimensional and thick, it was only about 12mm in thickness. I'd never have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. The illusion created by the miners is so clever!
Apart from having daily tours of the place, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is also used as a place for functions and weddings. I think it's so interesting how people choose to have their wedding ceremonies and parties in spaces like these. According to our guide it costs about 200 000 euros to hold wedding reception in the Salt Mines!
To be honest, I've never heard about the Wieliczka Salt Mine near Kraków, if not for my hostel, i'd probably never get to experience a place like this.
Initially, I considered just staying in the main city centre of Kraków and not venturing out. But the hostel staff and other people I met whilst staying there convinced me that it was a place worth visiting, and I absolutely agree.
The Wielickzka Salt Mine Tour costed approximately 21-ish euros, inclusive of transport. Although one could go without a guide, I was really glad I went with one.
It was a blazing hot day in Kraków that day, as expected from the past few days I was there, but since the salt mine was located about several hundred metres below ground, it was a cool 15 degrees!
The tour started off with a long climb down a probably a hundred steps (maybe more - it was just never ending) and then straight into a few dark alleys. Since it was so dark down in the mines, it was quite annoying to take have to adjust the lighting and camera settings for pictures. BUT what you see is so unlike anything ever!
Our guide took us through the mine, and explained how people used to mine salt, the use of animals like horses. We found out that some horses were down in the mine for 20 years! Can you believe it?! Because it's difficult to transport them down and up, stables were built IN the mine for the horses to live 300 over metres below ground.
There were so many different structures and figurines made out of salts. Although they look opaque and stone-like, when the guide shined a light on the structures, you could tell that it is made of salt because it was clear.
I've never been to a salt mine, or any kind of mine, so I was really impressed. The floors in the mine was made out of salt, the walls were made of salt, the ceilings were also made of salt, almost everything was made of sodium chloride.
Literally. Salt. The salt you can eat.
Our guide also told us how the different types of salts were formed. There were the ones they call cauliflower which is a less valuable variety - something like common salt i'd assume, and other salt crystals which are stronger, and colourless, those are more precious ones.
Speaking of the salt mine being made out of salt you can eat, our guide told us, "You can taste the walls if you want, to see if its made of salt." Everyone just laughed thinking it was a joke, but then someone asked if it was dirty, and turns out, the salt surface is one of the cleanest surfaces because it has very few bacterial matter on it.
Anyway, all that explanation is to say that I TASTED THE WALL. I know some people would find it gross, but I'm pretty daredevil when it comes to tasting and trying weird stuff, so.... Yeah. The walls were salty. Very Salty.
In some parts of the mines, there were beautiful structures of dragons, dwarfs and other characters that children can relate to, those were apparently part of a kids education programme. However, most of the original sculptures were carved out and designed by the miners who worked in the mines during their free time.
The most impressive part was the underground church.
The chandeliers were made of salt crystals, the sculptures, the whole room practically, was designed and decorated by a few miners DURING THEIR FREE TIME.
I cannot comprehend how insanely talented and amazing these miners were. They did it not out of an order, but just out of the willingness of their heart, and they created something so beautiful.
The most well-known decorative piece was the carving above of the last supper. Although it looks like its super 3 dimensional and thick, it was only about 12mm in thickness. I'd never have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. The illusion created by the miners is so clever!
Apart from having daily tours of the place, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is also used as a place for functions and weddings. I think it's so interesting how people choose to have their wedding ceremonies and parties in spaces like these. According to our guide it costs about 200 000 euros to hold wedding reception in the Salt Mines!
To be honest, I've never heard about the Wieliczka Salt Mine near Kraków, if not for my hostel, i'd probably never get to experience a place like this.
Initially, I considered just staying in the main city centre of Kraków and not venturing out. But the hostel staff and other people I met whilst staying there convinced me that it was a place worth visiting, and I absolutely agree.
Most people have never heard of the salt mines near Kraków, so they don't plan enough time to visit it whilst they're there. Remember to do so if you ever do visit Kraków!
P.S. You usually get a cheaper deal if you book to visit both Auschwitz and the Salt Mines!
P.S. You usually get a cheaper deal if you book to visit both Auschwitz and the Salt Mines!
Visiting a Salt Mine in Kraków Poland
6 July 2015 Wieliczka Salt Mine, Daniłowicza 10, 32-020 Wieliczka, Poland
Even though I have been living in London the past year, from my blog posts it doesn't seem like I spend a lot of time in London, or in the UK. That's a little true; because I travel around Europe every single holiday/break I get. But I have been around London, and the UK. Ok, not as much as I would have loved to, but there is only that much time one person has, and to be fair, living and eating out in the UK is expensive. Well, more so than several other parts of Europe.
Nevertheless, I did get around to visiting some of the more popular cities in UK. For the longest time, York has been one of the cities in England that I have wanted to visit. Seeing pictures of its medieval architecture online, and hearing about other people's trips, I was always so envious. The main reason I didn't visit York before was because it costs 60 whopping pounds just to get there. And that's with the railcard! Then one fine day, my friends and I scored an 18pounds return ticket, and off to York we were.
Most people stay for a weekend or a couple of days in York and explore more of the area, but we weren't keen on paying for accommodation, so we opted for a day trip instead.
We arrived early in the morning, walked around a few parks, across the River Ouse, and found ourselves at the National Railway Museum.
The museum was a lot bigger than I expected. It was like a flashback to the past where trains were colourful, run on steam, and had so much more character than the modern ones we have today.
In the different trains, you get to look in and see the set up of the interiors, from regular coach seats to actual rooms with beds, tables and chairs (what I assume parallels be a first class night train. Not that I've ever been on one).
My favourite part was the different exhibitions of suitcases people carried in the past and what they had in them. It was mind boggling that they carried and entire suitcase with SO LITTLE in it when these days, we just try to stuff as much as we can into one hand-carry.After spending sometime at the exhibits, we left the museum and headed for The Shambles, passing through some markets and stopping at a café for lunch.
After traveling alone for the past couple of trips, it's nice to have companions and friends to have a nice meal and a beer with talk about the food and all sorts of other things.
Walking around York doesn't get too boring because you have all these medieval architecture, brown brick walled buildings, and interesting shops and market stalls that add a touch of something-something to the english city.
One other attraction we wanted to visit whilst in York was the York Castle. We made our way there mid-afternoon and climbed up the stairs only to realize we had to pay and entrance fee. We thought about it for a bit, and decided to spend our money on food instead of the attraction. That's the thing about paid attractions, I'm always reluctant to spend on them. After all, a castle is a castle is a castle... Right?
Anyway, after contemplating, walking around the castle and taking a couple of pictures, (sone of huge... Ducks?Swans? I have no idea. I didn't dare go too close for the fear of them biting me - I have this odd fear of birds pecking me) we concluded that our money should go to a nice english afternoon tea, and so we headed off to do just that.
Going on day-trips is such an excuse to eat out and have fun. Normally, i'd choose to cook instead of eat out when I'm back in London, because its just so much cheaper. But when you're on a day trip, or any sort of trip, it just becomes totally understandable to have afternoon tea and spend over 10pounds on it!
Day Trippin' to York, England!
27 June 2015 York, York, York, UK
Small Towns, Fishing Villages, these words evoke a certain image in your mind. My idea of a small town is one that is quiet, peaceful, and where everyone knows each other.
Even though i've travelled to several places, I've never been to a small town. The places I've visited in Europe were mostly cities; big ones, medium ones, whatever the size, they never quite embodied the feeling of a small town.
Before leaving for scandinavia, I texted my friend, who did a semester abroad in sweden, and said "I'm going to Sweden! Stockholm actually. What should I do?" To which she replied "YOU HAVE TO VISIT THE SWEDISH ARCHIPELAGO!" And so I did!
Vaxholm, on of the more popular destinations in the Swedish Archipelago was EXACTLY like a small town, so much so that visiting it made me feel someone like an intruder. Ok, more of a reporter, taking pictures and people watching. It was a beautiful town, but it felt as if I was Zoey from Hart of Dixie (minus the drama), stepping into Bluebell for the first time, and everyone knew I was different, new, and not from there.
Most people would visit the archipelago during the summer and boat hop around several archipelago islands, unfortunately, I was there a tad bit earlier than the regular tourist influx season, so there weren't any boats. Additionally, I did not have that many days to spare. So, in order to see and experience what the swedish archipelagos are like, a day trip to Vaxholm was my best bet.
Vaxholm was a short 1 hour bus ride from Stockholm, and when I arrived, I got off and was immediately mesmerised by the place. There was something about the quiet streets, old wooden houses and the little bit of spring snow that made the place seem very... movie-like.
From one side of the harbour, you could see little houses in the middle of the waters where people probably got to by boats (I saw several small boats sailing across). Just like how you'd imagine a small town to be like, Vaxholm didn't have massive shopping centres, or even modern shops. There was probably 1 hotel by the harbour, and several convenience stores. But other than that, the few shops and cafés that I passed by appeared to be sort of family run businesses.
Also, as I was walking along the streets, I noticed these sticks with colourful feathers being attached to random lampposts. I think it could have been for their Easter Celebrations, but I'm not too sure. These would make good decorative items though!
Even though Vaxholm appeared to be COMPLETELY different from Stockholm, I stumbled upon a nice home deco shop that had the same scandinavian flair the big stores in Stockholm would have, but scaled down.
It was like a mini Ikea with different parts of the stall being organised with its own theme.
The same shop sold a really pretty rain jacket that instantly caught my eye when I walked in, but when I saw the price, oh I had a shock of my life.
My favourite thing about Vaxholm were the nice garden porches each house had, and their hand painted wooden fence and signs. How cute is that café sign, it rustic, casual, original and just adds to the whole small town vibe.
Also, lets just pause and admire the hand painted mailbox.
CAN I PLEASE HAVE MY OWN WOODEN HAND PAINTED MAILBOX?
I didn't see too many children around in Vaxholm, but judging from the number of bicycles around, I'm pretty sure there are children. I did however see quite a number of older people taking a nice leisure walk, some walking their dogs, and greeting neighbours as they walked by, occasionally stopping for a short chat.
I wished I grew up in a small town, or a place where there is a tightly knit community and neighbours are all friends who have afternoon tea at each other's houses.
I love living in the city (I mean born and raised in a cosmopolitan one, so naturally, I'd be comfortable in huge cities) but there is something charming about a place like Vaxholm, that I can only imagine what it would be like growing up here.
I'd have a huge backyard to run around in, i'd play with my dogs, and jump into the shallow waters right outside my house and for a swim during the summer.
Seems very fairytale movie-esque to me, but obviously, its someone's reality.
Maybe I should make plans to retire in a small country side or a fishing village... Just maybe :)
Vaxholm: A Quaint Swedish Archipelago Experience
21 May 2015 Vaxholm, Sweden
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