Perusing Through Poland

May 29^th-June 1^st, 2019 

Age: 14 Months

Our Eastern European adventure continued to Kraków, Poland next. As we cruised in the big van (~3 HR drive), I put my new voice to work – I think everyone in the family has gotten a kick out of my new sounds, words, and expressions. I’m having fun interacting more and more each day!  I’ve also learned to enjoy the milk here, and have been a big helper moving suitcases around 🙂 Along the way we stopped to stretch our feet at a McDonalds which was fun to see what their local menu included – macrons and a few other unique options compared to our American menu. I’m also finding the extra long Pack-N-Plays to be very comfy – unlike the U.S., each of my beds have had a mini pillow perfect for my size and comforter to snuggle with!

As we got settled into the city, we had a small snack roamed through a HUGE castle (the Wawel Castle – one of the largest castles in Poland) and it’s beautiful grounds. Immediately following, we strolled down the oldest street (Grodzka Street) in the city to see two beautiful churches – one dating back nearly 1,000 years (St. Adalbert). I had a blast pushing my stroller around and seeing so many people. I particularly loved stopping to listen to the accordion player and whenever I’d look up from pushing my stroller I’d find a friendly face of another person peeking over to greet! As we narrowed into our dinner location we stopped in a local bakery to pick out a treat before having a delicious dinner with the family. Mom and Aunt Jacqueline tried this bright pink soup, and  Dad tried pork knuckle – and he shared a few bites with me. Pretty tasty! Following dinner, we went back to the lower level of the castle and waterfront to spot the fire breathing dragon! A young boy told us all about how the dragon breaths fire each night until 10PM and then starts the next morning after a good sleep…I think I may want a pet dragon. I was captivated the flames dancing in the night’s sky. On the walk back to our Airbnb, we spotted an outdoor theatre set up for Kraków’s Film Festival and the adults were excited to find their favorite vodkas (discovered during the vodka tour) at a local shop.  I picked out a local snack – tiger tales (think giant corn puff, no cheese).

The next day was extra special for our family – we took a day trip to the city of Tarnów, the hometown of my great grandfather (Kirk). We got to travel there by train (my first train ride!) and learned it’s the warmest city of Poland. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day – but, we didn’t let that stop us. We wondered through the city from the train stop toward the main square, and immediately popped in to a huge church just across from the train station. Further along the way we stopped for a snack at a cute, modern café where I particularly enjoyed a bowl of blueberries and their yummy breakfast bread. Mom was pretty thrilled at this stop too – one of the first formal changing areas for me! From here, we made our way to another big cathedral before making our way into the Town Hall. We decided to stop into the Museum located at the city center to learn more about our family roots – and the history didn’t disappoint. We met a really nice tour guide who walked us through many artifacts – she even let the adults try on a helmet and play with some serious swords (certainly dedicated to artillery and horsemanship), and gifted me a cool activity book! To conclude the tour, we walked to the top of the bell tower which provided a pretty view of the city and I liked seeing the BIG bell up close (just be sure to cover your ears when it rings up there). Before heading back to the train, we stumbled upon the perfect spot for a meal. We felt like we walked into a family member’s kitchen as the employees stood behind the counter hand rolling dough and pinching together the most delicious pierogis. I had fun playing peek-a-boo with the elderly lady behind the counter as our food was prepared. We all devoured soup (I LOVED the homemade noodles), a variety of pierogis (cabbage, meat, Russian, blueberry), and pork. With full bellies, we made our way back to the city to sit on Kraków’s main market square before calling it a night after a long day.

(I had fun trying on Gramma’s glasses back at our rental property!)

After another tasty breakfast (Mo-ja Café & Bistro), our final day in Poland was spent relaxing around the heart of Kraków. I love getting to see all the vendors and their colorful displays! I also could sit for hours watching the horses pull carriages around this city’s main square. Each horse was huge and they were all dressed in fun pompoms/tassels, etc. After walking through the Cloth Hall, we came across a festival on the main square that was dedicated to people with special needs – almost like a Special Olympics event. The volunteers were very friendly and even invited me to play on the blind fútbol field. I had so much fun learning to kick the ball around – and every time I kicked it, the ball jingled (bell inside to help those who are blind guide their way toward the ball). The field was all textured to help signal what area of the field you were standing on. What a cool first soccer experience! From here, we toured the beautiful St. Mary’s Basilica – I loved hearing/spotting the trumpeter at the top of the tower throughout our time in Kraków. We enjoyed a fresh scoop of gelato (I could get use to these ice cream treats) before also touring the Underground Museum which consisted of the original city streets – very interesting to see so much uncovered and the difference in elevation from over the centuries. We headed toward the Jewish Quarter (Kazimierz) at the end of the evening and had a wonderful meal on a lovely patio (at Szara) along the street where watched several tour groups pass (exploring the Kazimierz neighborhood, cemetery, and Schindler’s Factory, etc.). In addition to the fresh bread and my chicken, I scarfed down asparagus (it felt good to put my new molars to work) and salmon from Mom’s plate. We toasted to a nice trip with the entire family (time to head our separate ways tomorrow) and shared an amazing chocolate dessert that got covered in warm toffee…Dad also decided to pick up a famous pączki on the walk home to enjoy for our early AM and let me sample a bite! 

Most helpful products for this trip:

• Mom ditched my diaper bag and my parents simply used their standard travel bags (Mom’s small Lululemon backpack (first version of this from several years ago) & Dad’s camera backpack) to store my stuff on the go. This made our day to day running around a lot easier than also toggling my diaper bag.

• The souvenir always wins…In addition to some fun items Mom & Dad brought along to keep me entertained (especially my new Buckle Board – thanks for the recommendation, Laura & Kate!); sometimes the local tchotchke just goes a long way. Gramma gifted me a little clip on dragon from a vendor stand in Kraków.  I have a tendency to chew on the tag of every stuffed animal I own; so, having a new tag while I worked on my new teeth and tiny little dragon to snuggle was the perfect addition to avoid adding too much to our luggage!

• Aveeno Baby Sunscreen – Mom likes to put this on me, as it’s one of the more heavily zinc oxide based sunscreens recommended by pediatricians. I don’t love it; but, it apparently helps me from getting sunburnt.

Miles Logged To Date:

By Car: 3,379

By Plane: 14,320

By Train: 104 <– check out this new line!