Poland For The Win

I often get asked by people back in America, “Do you actually go to class or are you just on a three-month vacation?” Surprisingly as it might seem, yes I do indeed attend class! Class here is quite different than it is in the states, I’m still trying to decide which I prefer more. In Olomouc we have to take a tram to get to our classroom. Technically, even though we don’t have class until 3 in the afternoon we still have to leave the dorms around 2:30 at the latest to make it to class on time without having to run (because let’s be honest who likes to run when they don’t have to). Our classes consist of our two main professors, Martin and Jan and then we have one or two guest speakers almost every week. Being a Psychology major sometimes its hard to sit through one history class after another but there is no class more dreadful than our Czech language. Our Czech instructor even said to us one day, “Czech is the most pointless language to learn… but I think it’s fun.” I know, I know, I shouldn’t be complaining about the classes here since I actually only have to attend class 30 out of the 90 days I’m here. On the bright side we get to adventure out on field trips as a class. This past weekend we were lucky enough to experience the wonderful city of Krakow, Poland.

The Square At Night

After our arrival early Friday afternoon, we got off the bus and headed to the Wieliczka Salt Mine. We headed down a little over 50 flights of stairs so that we could get into the mine. I wasn’t really sure what to expect since I wasn’t very educated about it beforehand but ended up having a great time there! We ended up descending 130 meters underground and I even got to lick the salt on the walls! I get a little grossed out when thinking about how many other people’s tongues have also touched that… oh well, it’s the memory that counts right? I was surprised by how big the salt mine was, however within the three hours we were down there we only managed to venture through 1% of it. Crazy! There was even a chapel that was made out of salt, which was absolutely stunning. There were extravagant chandeliers that were made out of salt crystals that lit up the darkened room. After being down there for the time being we made our way to the elevator (much appreciated), and were free for the rest of the night.

"Cauliflower Salt"

Wieliczka Salt Mine

Salt Mine Chandelier

One of my favorite things from this past field trip is that we were all really able to bond as a group. The majority of us decided to head out to do a pub crawl called ‘Krawl Through Krakow’. This was probably one of my favorite pub crawls so far in Europe, but the details are for later.

We all managed to get up the next morning and went to visit the castle. The tour only lasted about and hour and a half and we were all pretty ready to get some lunch after in the town square. Let me tell you, I had the best sausage EVER, and my lanta the mustard is splendid. I have really loved seeing all the different town squares and all the festivities taking place within the square. There were a ton of little shops that were set up that had perfect little gifts. I’m probably going to have to buy another bag just to fill souvenirs with when I go back to America. 

The last day we attended the Schindlers Factory which really topped off an overall great weekend in Poland! The Factory was set up nicely in a way of how things happened chronologically. We had such a big group that the factory was a bit crowded which made it hard to actually look in depth at every plaque like I prefer to do. Overall we kept getting told by our tour guide to make sure we continue to teach younger generations about the Holocaust so that history does not repeat itself.

The weekend went by way to fast I wouldn’t have minded spending a couple more days in Krakow it was truly an amazing city! I really didn’t have any high hopes for Poland, and it turned out being one of the most fun weekends in Europe. I would strongly encourage anyone to go visit Krakow, because it sure is one for the books!