Krakow Old Town - July 15, 2010

Painted Door Entrance to Shop - Old Town, Krakow

Planty Park - Krakow, Poland

Cafe located in stone building - Old Town Krakow

Pastries on display in cafe - Old Town, Krakow

Scene - Old Town, Krakow

Archway of stone in building - Old Town, Krakow

Google Office sign - Old Town, Krakow

Krakow's historic center, which includes the Old Town, Kazimierz and the Wawel Castle, was included as the first of its kind on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1978. The Old Town (Stare Miasto in Polish) is the most prominent example of an old town in the country. The architectural design has survived all wars of the past and has retained its original form coming from the medieval times. The Old Town is home to about 6,000 historic sites and more than two million works art. Every hour, trumpeters from the church steeple ring the bells in the middle of the Town Square. Housed in old buildings made of stone are modern, contemporary shops including an amazing deli (Delikatesy 13) which proudly displays its fresh fruit and veggies and delicious pastries. Walking through the winding streets of the Old Town I spotted a Google sign. Sure enough, Google has an office in Krakow!!
On my way back to the hotel after a pleasant afternoon, I strolled through the beautiful Planty Park which was established in the 1800's in place of the old city walls, forming a green belt around the Old Town. Skies were blue and temperatures were warm.....the seeming calm and beauty that I was experiencing would be changing drastically as I anticipated our trip tomorrow to Auschwitz-Birkenau.