Adventures for Anyone: They call it Wieliczka

Thursday, July 5, 2012

They call it Wieliczka

Wieliczka is a centuries old salt mine just south of Krakow, Poland. That's the short story. The longer story is amazing. If you ever wanted to see something truly different while on vacation, Wieliczka is the place.
Now, I can tell you for sure that Krakow is a great place to visit. They have Wawel Castle, which is a great medieval walled village style castle. It's beautiful with it's many buildings and it's brick wall. There is also the Rynek or the Market Square, which has many wonderful booths and buildings to investigate, as well as museums and even an underground piano bar. Krakow is a beautiful city with river cruises, parks, shopping and plenty of entertainment.
And then, there's Wieliczka Salt Mines. They're one of a kind.

This is a chandelier almost entirely made of salt. It's in the grand hall, where they still hold concerts once in a while.

I wish my pictures could do it justice like this one does.
Wieliczka is one of the most amazing places I've ever visited. There are several levels of amazing artwork and areas where people used to stay and visit and gather and whatever else they did down there. Reportedly there was and may still be a spa to help arthritis and asthma patients with their afflictions. Wieliczka was the first place to market the salt lamps that are supposed to help relieve arthritis. They also provided a haven for people who were suffering the effects of terrible pollution a few decades ago.
Just the idea that 60 some odd meters below the surface you will find this.