February 2018
In winter I went to a Depeche Mode concert in Kraków and it was my first visit to Poland.
From Prague to Krakow you can get by night train. Very convenient and cheap, the overnight trip lets you save on a hotel. The trains are excellent, I recommend.
Kraków greets you with the fact that at 7 am there's almost nobody on the streets. Squares are unusually large compared to Prague.
In the city itself there's not that much of interest, however Poles consider the city one of the most attractive in Poland.
The city suffered heavily during the war, but Poles have learned very well to restore cities. On the other hand, I didn't really feel a strong atmosphere of antiquity like in Prague, shame.
They take restoration seriously.
Cute Kraków trash cans
The language, by the way, is quite understandable to Russian speakers, and with knowledge of Czech you won't get lost at all.
Kraków (or Polish?) feature - in the morning they sell bagels, stalls stand all over the city.
Krakow street signs.
By the way, pay attention to the lanterns with the street number written on them. Extraordinary beauty. And in the evening - just mind-blowing.
Back to the city. In the morning the center is empty, during the day there will be lots of tourists here.
The castle is visible.
Kraków trams - blue, models are all different.
Pay attention to the beauty - the route is indicated on a circle on the roof.
By the way, crossing streets in Krakow is unusual - sometimes either the traffic light isn't on, or there's simply no traffic light where you expect it. But they let you cross more actively than in Prague. With this, it seemed, everything was good.
Speaking of traffic lights - Kraków pedestrian
Krakow typography on the cathedral - beautiful. Poles are one of the most religious peoples in today's Europe.
Signs, wires and Kraków in the background
The Vistula river flows through Kraków. Nothing special.
Don't touch!
Jewish quarter. In my opinion, this photo conveys the mood of Kraków's center well.
Post office. Works normally, verified.
Graffiti. At this moment a dude came out of some booth and started saying something like "Ehhh, what are you doing here". My mood immediately improved, I felt at home. Seriously, in Czechia there's almost none of this - this desire to fuck with you that's so close to us.
In general, Kraków is a nice city.
And most importantly - in the evening it started snowing here. This was the first snow I saw in 2018. And, basically, the last.
Under snow Kraków became even better, well and we had to go to the concert and home :)
August 2026
A mini-ethnographic expedition through Poland. Not a single zapiekanka was harmed; weight gain: 2 kg
Kraków > Łódź > Poznań > Wrocław
The train from Prague takes 6 hours now, not 7. The Leo Express train is quite comfortable and inexpensive. It could easily get here faster, but it stops too many times at unnecessary stations. Upon arrival, two things await tourists: huge crowds and a lot of cars. Neither was noticeable last time
Lots of pigeons
We’re approaching the city center
It’s absolutely packed there
Poland’s 2026 trend—everything is going “craft.” Especially craft kebabs—the meat isn’t made from frozen blocks, but from fresh cuts
In short, the city center is already completely European and trendy
Things aren’t so simple at the museum
Many people come just to see this painting
The city center (like all of Poland, really) has been turned into a parking lot
At the central market, there are city coats of arms, similar to those in Sevilla
They don’t skimp on water to cool off tourists, especially this summer
There are seriously a lot of people; the vibe is typical of a tourist spot, like Prague 10 years ago
I couldn’t read this, but it’s still beautiful
The funny thing about Poland these days: food prices aren’t as cheap as they used to be. That said, breakfasts and brunches are everywhere, and they’re still cheap. There’s even a line here
But it was worth it—my first shakshuka
Walking out near the local opera house, it becomes clear that this isn’t quite Europe yet
That’s the opera house, for those who didn’t get it—at noon
On the other hand, the parks and green spaces are quite nice
And, surprisingly, people hang out exclusively where there are no cars
The university
The city’s main attraction
Where we visited a church
Although the main thing is that it became clear here that metal and plastic are thrown into the same trash can
Views. The waterfront used to be dreary
Water misting system. There’s water, but no free toilets. To put it in perspective, tickets aren’t cheap, and restrooms aren’t included in the price. We’re not letting Kraków into Europe just yet
A bell
Which is unremarkable, except that the path to it leads through narrow passages on the staircase
Where there are no cars, Kraków is really nice
The only problem is that there are cars everywhere (but to be fair: there are a shitload of cars, but where they encounter pedestrians, they stop and let them cross where they’re supposed to. In Prague, as we all know, every driver loses about 30 ICQ points when they get behind the wheel, and as of 2026, it’s total chaos there)
Pierogis are good
The Jewish Quarter has clearly improved
Or, as they say these days, it’s been gentrified. By the way, real estate prices aren’t particularly attractive anymore—investors missed the boat (which doesn’t mean, of course, that they won’t go up)
Electric sightseeing tours for Americans and Arabs have appeared
A symbol of Poland
Another symbol of Poland
Kraków still looks like this
The local license plates say “kaka”
Sometimes there are places without crowds of people
And I finally tried the local pretzel, “obwarzanek”. Well, it wasn’t exactly cool, unless it's very fresh
