Today, our first full day in Krakow, Katie and I visited the famous Wieliczka Salt Mine. We decided to take a tour from our hotel instead of just checking it out ourselves. It was a good idea to do it this way because transportation was easy, we didnt have to wait in the 2 hour individuals line, and we got an awesome Polish your guide who spoke perfect English and knew the place inside and out. Our tour was a total of 5 hours from hotel to mine to hotel, which means after we needed a nap, clearly.
The salt mine was really neat. It is unbelievable what man is capable of creating. In order to see the mine we had to climb down 57 flights of stairs to 300 feet below the surface. We saw some really beautiful carvings and chapels and were shown how the miners over the years have used different technology in their mining for salt. We then climbed down to two more levels of the mine where we ended up being approximately 500 feet below the surface and about 100 meters above sea level. Here we saw the most gorgeous chapel where miners have sculpted books of the Bible into the walls. Katie and I both thought that The Last Super was the most amazing of them all. Everything in the mine was made of salt, with the exception of some wood that is used to support the mine from collapsing. The walls, the floors (even when it looks like marble) the chandeliers and the sculptures are all made of salt. At the end of the tour, you take an elevator up to the surface level again. This elevator goes up 12 floors a second!!! They made it sound like it was going to be all super-dooper fast but it didnt seem like it at all- until we stepped out and both Katie and I were a little light-headed. We both really enjoyed the mine and would definitely recommend that people visit it if they come to Poland.
After the salt mine, Kate and I napped and then went upstairs to the main hostel where they were providing a FREE authentic Polish dinner. It was a bit of a let down. It was just some cabbage soup with some vegetable platers on the side. Since it was free we ate as much as we could stand to get down and then went out on the town to find dessert. We got some gelato (good, but not as good as in Italy). We made our way over to the main sqaure, which we love, where they had music playing and the crowd was dancing around enjoying themselves. It was the cutest thing. There were these old couples all lovey-dovey! It's amazing how many older couples, I'm using the term older very loosely, we have seen who look and act like they are totally in love still. It is not something that is usually seen at home.
It is nice to see people who are in love and not afraid to show it. It brings a smile to our faces. It also makes me wonder why the U.S. is so afraid of P.D.A.. I mean seriously, if a couple in love kiss each other and cuddles in public everyone around is like "ewww...gross....get a room" but then they are perfectly fine to hear, talk, see and watch on TV all the disgusting blood and death that we show. Lets get real, which is better? Love or death and violence? I think we should rethink what we define as gross or appalling. Maybe we would have a nicer society.
Okay, Im done with my rant. Sorry. Anyways, after dinner Katie and I check out a DVD, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, in honor of the birth of Viv and Know (hahaha), and watched it in the TV Lounge. Then we took some MyQuil at 11:00 and passed out!!! We needed/wanted some really great zzzzzz's and we got them!!
Well today we are just going to explore so we will update you on that later tonight.
P.S. The title of the blog says "Please may I fondle your buttocks?" in Polish
A picture we took in the mall, posting it just for laughs
The ground in the salt mine is one solid piece of salt which is just carved into this design
carving in salt
The Last Supper carving
Artistic picure taken under one of the salt crystal chandeliers
Mining shaft
The big chapel
One of the salt crystal chandeliers
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