2,922 kilometres from home...
I haven't written anything for a while now. I'm a bit disconnected from everything in general, life in Krakow is non-stop. And that has a positive side, you live everything more intensely, but there is also the other side that you don't want this to end (I've been here for a month and a half already).
My Erasmus philosophy is: During the week: "Sleep, eat, class, party, eat, repeat" and on weekends go out to see other places. Mostly because Krakow is full of people at weekends and because there are so many places I want to go, that if I don't go from weekend to weekend, I won't even have time for half of them. So first I'm starting with Poland and then I'll get out of the nest.
Two weekends ago we planned an express trip to Zakopane. I went with two french girls, a German and a Spaniard.
Zakopane is a town in southern Poland with a special location. On one side is the Gubałówka mountain and on the other the impressive Tatra Mountains bordering Slovakia.
Its wooden houses, its inhabitants selling typical products of the region often dressed in traditional clothes and, of course, the nature that surrounds it, make Zakopane a place to recommend.
How to get there:
Since Zakopane is quite a touristy town, it is quite well connected. In my case I left from Krakow and the best option is by bus, especially Polskibus. For us the ticket cost €4 one way, €4 return. About 35 Zlotys in total.
Accommodation:
When it comes to accommodation there are quite a few possibilities. You can find everything from hostels or hotels to flats or wooden houses. In our case, we were looking for a cheap hostel for one night.
"Target Hostel (ul. Henryka Sienkiewicza 3B)
Room for 6 persons (about 8 EUR per night including breakfast).
It has a kitchen, bathroom, etc. and is close to the bus station and the tourist information point.
Upon arrival, we went for breakfast, left everything at the hostel and started an improvised route by taking a minibus on the main street of the town.
Our idea was to go up to the top of Gubalowka on a kind of funicular, but they wouldn't let us buy tickets because it was too windy and they told us it could be dangerous, so we decided to make our own route.
We spent about 6 hours crossing a mountain and enjoying the scenery, the fresh air (which we don't have in Krakow) and the little tourism there.
Walking without really knowing where, we crossed a hill and arrived at the top of a mountain where we stopped to have something to eat and warm up.
On the way back, we walked around the centre of Zakopane and of course, we wanted to try the typical meal there. Disgussssssting with all my love and respect to the locals. It's called Oscypek and it's a smoked cheese roll, salty, cold and hard, usually eaten with jam. For me it was bad bad, but hey, I encourage you to try it and if you don't like it give it to someone else or record the face of the person who tries it 🙂
We wandered around the main street in search of normal food and ended up at Carrefour Express buying pizza and food for the next day's route.
Later, we stopped by the hostel to change and decided to make a different plan. A girl had told us about a thermal baths 20 kilometres away and why not? It's called Bania Terma and it's 20 kilometres from Zakopane. We took a taxi to go there and back for 20 zlotys one way and 20 zlotys return. About 9 euros each way. Not bad...
The entrance to the thermal baths is about 12 € and you have access to all parts. We spent 2 and a half hours there and if you are going on a trip like this, I highly recommend it. The hot springs were huge and there is an indoor part and an outdoor part where you can see the Zakopane mountains in the background.
On the way back, hunger was calling and we decided to stop at a restaurant on the main street where we dined like gentlemen. Of course, the Tyskie was not to be missed.
Bus from Zakopane to the starting point of the route
Once we reached the lake we went to eat at a hut (Schronisko PTTK Morskie Oko) which was full of people when we arrived. There is a path around the lake leading to the ascent to the next lake, Czarny Staw. Very wildy, we decided to cross the lake, which at the moment was frozen.
Mum, when you read this don't kill me. It wasn't dangerous (I love you) 🙂 🙂
The lake was about a kilometre long, 862 metres to be exact (thanks Wikipedia).
Seeing the people crossing it, we did the same on our way to the second lake, about 500 metres further up. It took us about 15 minutes to cross it until we reached the ascent to Czarny Staw.
It took us about 40 minutes to climb and it wasn't easy as we weren't well equipped for climbing, because that's basically what we did. Climbing up a slope being careful not to slip and roll off. However, as soon as we arrived and saw everything I thought, yes, it was clearly worth it. There was no one there and the scenery was breathtaking.
Lago Black Pond helado
Views of Morskie Oko from Lake Czarny Staw
I won't tell you about the way back... Well, it was funny. Some men who went up to the lake when we were there, told us that we had to go down quickly as there was a storm coming. We couldn't go down very quickly as the slope was almost vertical. With great care and in sledge mode, after eating snow, getting soaked and rolling downhill, we managed to get down to the first level and just as we had been told, it started to pour. We crossed the lake in a hurry and the way back was windy, rainy and cold but enjoying the place and not seeing any more tourists on the way.
We picked up our bags from the hostel, had some dinner and took our beloved Polskibus back to our beloved Krakowwww.
I know I'll be back, maybe in May, because as I've seen, the landscape changes completely from one season to another. So when my parents come I'll take advantage of it and... Zakopancake again. 🙂 🙂
Next week I will try to write two entries that I have pending: Warsaw, which I visited last weekend, and Auschwitz, which I visited yesterday with my sister and my friend Patri, who I've got here with the pesaditas. So much to tell and so little time to write it. I won't be long, I promise 🙂 🙂
See you soon family!
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