I really enjoyed my birthday trip in Vienna in 2019. So being able to travel to celebrate my birthday this year was amazing. Krakow is a very pretty city with lots of good places to eat. Spring also came to Krakow so the city is even more beautiful. We arrived wearing masks as Finnair was still requiring masks on the flight. Then we were very surprised when we realised that no one uses mask in Krakow anymore. It really felt strange yet liberating after 2 years of constantly wearing a mask. And no more social distancing whatsoever!

We stayed in the old Town. From our hotel, it was easy to explore the city by foot. We were able to visit many places of interest just on the first day, like the Wawel Royal Castle, St. Mary’s Basilica, The Cloth Hall, Rynek Główny, Krakow Barbican, Plenty, St. Florian’s Gate, Floriańska, Smok Wawelski and the Town Hall Tower.

On the second day we walked a bit further and happened in Cmentarz Żydowski on the way to the old Jewish quarter. Nature overtook this cemetery while the birds were singing sweetly.

Heading back, we found by chance the oldest cafe and restaurant of Krakow. Jama Michalika was established in 1895. The atmosphere of this cafe is quite hard to explain. I didn’t feel that I had gone back in time when I obviously did! 127 years and still going…

For the third day, we drove the bus for some 40 minutes ride to Wieliczka Salt Mine which was excavated in the 13th century. We went down to 64 metre level by a wooden staircase and explored a 3 kilometre mine including an underground lake of 135 metres deep and a chapel made entirely of salt.

Then the last day in Krakow was all about arts. We visited three museums and was able to see the most valuable painting in Poland – Leonardo da Vinci Lady with an Ermine. We also enjoyed a traditional Polish meal of Barszcz Zurek and Pierogi and bought 50 pieces of handmade chocolates for 15,65 EUR. Krakow is not as expensive as Helsinki for sure!

Our flight back from Krakow was delayed by more than an hour. But we had the privilege to witness the beautiful sunset throughout the flight. We were probably the last ones to wear a mask on a flight. As of 23rd of April, Finnair doesn’t require to wear a mask anymore.

All photos by Ari Vitikainen at https://www.arivitikainenphotography.com