Krakow paid tribute to Pope John Paul II with a 'White Walk' on 7 April 2005

It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good. While the residents of Krakow continue to mourn the passing of Pope John Paul II, who was born in nearby Wadovice and spent four decades of his life in the city, the cynical among the city's tourist merchants are presumably rubbing their hands in glee at the opportunities for cashing in on the pontiff's memory.

True converts to the new capitalistic creed, certain Krakow traders have shown in the past that they're not averse to making a fast buck out of the pontiff. During his 1999 visit to the city, the pope happened to mention the cream cakes he had loved when he lived there. The chance remark led to a flood of signs advertising 'Kremowki papieskie' (papal cream cakes) for sale.

Apart from the ubiquitous cream cakes, John Paul II's presence can be felt all over the city he regarded as his spiritual birthplace, and his life story is closely tied in with many of the city's sights.

Wawel Hill, with its cathedral and Renaissance Royal Palace, is the (literal) high point of any visit to Krakow and also where the young Karol Wojtyla began his religious career. The future pope said his first mass after ordination in the crypt of Wawel Cathedral on 2 November 1946, little knowing that he would later preside over the cathedral as archbishop of Krakow.

In many ways the spiritual centre of Poland, the brooding cathedral holds the remains of many of the country's national heroes, including kings with such splendid names as King Vladislav I the Short. After John Paul II's death, there were calls for the pontiff's heart to be buried here alongside the ranks of Poland's greats. (The Poles appear to be a nation who don't mind their national heroes being buried elsewhere provided they get the internal organs, Chopin - whose body lies in Paris while his heart rests in a Warsaw church - being a case in point.)

One of the stranger anecdotes relating to the future pontiff involves King Kazimierz Jagiellonczyk, who was buried in the cathedral in 1492. In 1973, the then archbishop agreed to a team of researchers opening the dead king's tomb. In a spooky turn of events reminiscent of Boy's Own 'mummy's curse' stories, 16 of those present at the exhumation died within weeks.

The cathedral is also home to the 18-ton Sigismund bell, which was rung for the first time since 1979 to mark the Pope's death on 2 April 2005. A vertiginous climb up rickety stairs leads you to the bell's chamber, where you will find that it is indeed a very large bell. Tradition says that visitors should touch the clapper and make a wish (not that Catholics are superstitious or anything).

However it is not only Catholics who hold Wawel Hill sacred. Somewhat surreally, the hill is said to be home to one of the earth's seven chakras or energy centres, much to the annoyance of church leaders, who tetchily deny the chakra's existence. Those of an esoteric persuasion may enjoy a visit to the north-west corner of the Royal Palace's courtyard, where the wall has been rubbed smooth by the attentions of those hoping to benefit from the earth's healing energy.

Poland's heroes are interred in the country's spiritual centre, Wawel Cathedral

Another construction which presumably made more sense at the time is the planned socialist town of Nowa Huta on the outskirts of Krakow, a must-see for those with a fetish for socialist architecture. Built for the workers at the infamous steel plant which polluted Krakow for decades, this communist Milton Keynes was the scene of one of Karol Wojtyla's more unlikely triumphs - the then archbishop of Krakow succeeded in having a church built there after a prolonged battle with the communist authorities. The Orwellian enclave would later become one of the strongholds of the Solidarity protest movement that, largely inspired by the Pope's example, would transform Poland and help end the Cold War.

John Paul II was renowned for his efforts to build bridges between the Catholic Church and other faiths, particularly Judaism. One early gesture was his 1969 visit to a synagogue in Kazimierz, Krakow's Jewish district. Today, despite efforts to revive Jewish culture in Kazimierz, a feeling of absence haunts the area, constantly reminding you of the district's tragic history. Much of Spielberg's Holocaust drama 'Schindler's List' was filmed in Kazimierz's atmospheric alleys and courtyards, little changed for centuries.

It goes without saying that nowhere brings home the reality of the Holocaust more powerfully than Auschwitz itself, which makes a harrowing day trip from Krakow. In 1979, Pope John Paul II became the first pope to visit a death camp when he went to Auschwitz, which he called "a place built on cruelty".

A bizarre memorial to the dedication of the faithful is provided by the Wieliczka salt mine, probably the only mine listed as a UNESCO monument and well worth the trip from Krakow. Devout miners showed their faith by carving chapels and religious statues out of the salt (the lazy presumably opting to depict Lot's wife). In a poignant reminder that salt too eventually goes the way of all flesh, the contours of much of the carving have become blurred over the years, with many forms now resembling melted ice cream.

The Royal Palace's courtyard is home to one of the earth's seven chakras

The breakneck ride back to the surface crammed into a miners' cage elevator is not for the claustrophobic. Emerging into the visitor's centre, you may find yourself thankfully throwing yourself to the floor in an imitation of the pope's famous ground-kissing gesture.

Whatever your religious persuasion - Catholic, New Age mystic, Marxist - Krakow's historic monuments are sure to leave you feeling spiritually refreshed. And if that doesn't work, the holy cream cakes will. 

How to get there

Budget airline EasyJet, whose routing decisions are tantamount to papal decrees on Europeans' leisure habits, has recently bestowed its blessing on Krakow by introducing new flights to the city. Pilgrims from Berlin, Dortmund and that most religious of cities, Luton, can now kiss Krakow airport tarmac at cut-rate prices.

The Polish airline LOT has direct flights to Krakow from Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Munich.

Romantics may prefer to travel to Krakow by overnight train from Berlin (around 10 hours).

Where to stay

The Dom Polonii (Rynek Glówny 14, www.softland.com.pl/dompolkrak) on Krakow's beautiful Old Town Square offers huge suites full of antique wood furniture and wacky Japanese ceiling murals (painted at a time when there were no Japanese in Krakow, the characters look curiously Polish).

Steven Spielberg stayed at the antique-filled Alef (ul. Szeroka 17, www.alef.pl) in Kazimierz when he was filming 'Schindler's List'.

Where to eat

Pierogarnia (ul. Slawkowska 32) serves up eight different kinds of Polish pierogi dumplings; a window into the kitchen reveals the secrets of dumpling making, including the use of a beerglass to cut circles of dough.

Ariel (ul. Szeroka 18) is reputably the best of Kazimierz's several Jewish restaurants.

Where to drink

Krakow's nightlife centres around the Kazimierz district, which is full of lively cellar bars. Don't miss the unbeatable Singer Café (ul. Estery 22), named after its Singer sewing machines and a candidate for one of the ten best pubs in Europe. Relax in the decadent candle-lit interior and strike up a conversation with the unreformed communists and shaven-headed punks at the next table.

Where to shop

Bibliophiles will want to make their own pilgrimage to probably Poland's best English language bookshop, Massolit Books (ul. Felicjanek 4). On a wet afternoon in Krakow nothing beats curling up in one of their armchairs with a homebake from their charming café and a good book (or even the Good Book).

Cukiernia Beskidzla (ul. Jagiellonska 23) sells the original cream cakes loved by the Pope.

April 2005

[Copyright Expatica 2005]

Subject: Weekend breaks, Krakow, Pope John Paul II