Poland - Krakow - Ian Arthur

After leaving Romania, I passed through Hungary and Slovakia, heading for Poland. I stopped at Krakow, as besides the wonderful owl-town I wanted to see - I also had to get my motorbike serviced.

The architecture and the buildings in the Old Town is wonderful. They call it the mini Vienna, and you certainly get that feeling and it was buzzing with tourists. I spent most of the day wandering around and enjoying the old building, visited a few churches and also the Krakow museum.

I also visited the Oscar Schindler Enamel Works - which is also a museum. Schindler rented the building in 1936 and when Poland was invaded he employed Polish Jews, saving at least 1200 from the concentration camps. It's only a small museum but it was informative and very moving.

Outside of the old town, Krakow is a big modern city with a ring-road and lots of space. There's cycle routes everywhere, trams and you almost get the feeling of being in Holland or Sweden because everywhere there are people walking and cycling. It's very modern, easy on the eye and very utopian. In Krakow the pedestrian and the cyclist are king and queen, while vehicles are low in the pecking order. There's pedestrian crossings everywhere, which does slow down the traffic - meaning it's more efficient to get on your cycle or catch a tram or bus.