Wadowice - Boyhood Home of a Pope

Fot: Basilica in Wadowice, Aneta

My Tuesday surprise begins at 8 AM as we pull away from the flat with the GPS turned so that I can't see it. Destination unknown. Travel time about 2 hours. We arrived in Wadowice late morning in a heavy, cold fog. Not a great day for taking photos but a terrific day to visit the home of the Polish Pope, John Paul,II.

This is one of the more charming cities I have visited in Poland. The shops are eclectic and line the cobbled streets in abundance. The array of goods displayed in store windows and on mannequins sitting out front on the sidewalks is enticing to say the least. As we make our way from the parking lot up in to the town proper I spot a sidewalk flea market down one of the side streets and make a hard right down the hill. Aneta gamely trudges along beside me. I need a pair of gloves and I know I will find something from the sidewalk vendors. I purchase a beautiful pair of cashmere lined red leather gloves for 30 zl ($10 - well slightly less than $10 actually, put them on and continue our journey to the pilgrimage site. However, walking past a store window, with some spectacular items on display, I am inexplicably drawn inside as if an unseen hand reached out and pulled me in to the shop. I spend the next half-hour trying on red felt hats in every manner and style imaginable. I did not find a single hat that really pulled by chain though and left empty handed. Well, not entirely empty handed, I did find a nice Christmas gift for someone else on my list (not a red hat either!)

Onward and upward toward the magnificent church dominating the town square, which is undergoing a major renovation in preparation for the onslaught of new visitors who will descend on this charming small city once Pope John Paul, II attains Sainthood. We enter the church around 11:35 AM and just sit and take in the beautiful view. This is the church in which the future Polish Pope was baptized as an infant. It has clearly undergone a major renovation as the ceiling fresco's are dated 1998. The art works in this ornate church are indeed spectacular. The church has multiple domes and each dome features a lovely fresco with a biblical theme, of course. We weren't able to stay but 10 minutes in the sanctuary as a mass was scheduled for noon.

Across the street from the church is the boyhood home of Karol Wotyla, who became Pope John Paul, II, the most popular Pope in modern history. The boyhood home is filled with mementoes from the life of this remarkable man who was an outstanding student and athlete as well as a serious student of literature and drama. He appeared in many theatrical productions and seriously considered a career in the theater. No matter what one's religious convictions, or lack thereof, may be, this is a life retrospective of a remarkable human being. I thoroughly enjoyed this pilgrimage.

Aneta says, "It is on UNESCO site. We are going there."

Fot: Do not wash your shoes in a sink

And go there we did, climbing up the cobblestone courtyard and bearing left around a long low structure lining the perimeter of the square that I later discoverd was a long row of confesssionals lining two sides of the large square. We walked up a gentle slope in search of the WC, then took a right into a courtyard behind the cathedral where I discovered that this is a Franciscan and Domenican Monestary. Black robed monks were everywhere and a few nuns in the traditional headdress of yesteryear, but with shorter garments. We found the WC where Aneta whipped out her camera in delight to take photos of signs that said not to wash your boots in the sink! Who'd a thought? Moving back across the courtyard toward the back of the huge church we saw a small group of priests and a nun in animated conversation and greeting each other as wonderful old friends do, without the hugs of course just hand shakes with a second hand over the top of the held hand. Very close and very happy to see each other.

We entered the church through the back door. Apparently it is the Cathedral of St. Francis as there are indications of this name everywhere but Aneta is still researching the exact name for this site. The grounds run up a fairly steep hill behind the cathedral and are beautifully landscaped with a pilgrimage through the 12 stations of the cross that is quite arduous to undertake and complete. Apparently at Easter they do a reenactment here of the entire 12 stations of the cross and the crucifixion, attended by thousands of people. The church was not as large on the inside as it appeared from the outside, or maybe we just didn't find the whole thing. In any case there were Monks and Nuns everywhere praying arranging flowers working behind alters, chatting in the halls. It is obviously a very active site of great religious significance to the Polish people.

Fot: Outside the small caffeteria in Wadowice, Aneta

Our next stop is a special place Aneta has discovered on an earlier visit to Wadowice. A charming little cellar serving the Papal Creme Cake often mentioned by the Pope when he reminisced about his boyhood in Wadowice. We are the only customers and take our time looking through the gift shop before wandering through the brick archway into the cafe itself. The young woman staffing the counter helps us select tea from the many large canisters of loose teas available and prepares a pot for each of us with our selection. The teapots each had a little wire mesh umbrella stuck into the spout to prevent tea leaves escaping into our cup. Quite clever and not something I had ever seen before.

Fot: Kremowka, Aneta

Our Papal Creme Cake (Kremowki) slices arrive at our table and I am eager to get my first taste of this famous delicacy. There is a thin layer of Phylo type dough on the bottom, a delicious vanilla creme filling followed by a layered phylo type dough on the top with a heavy dusting of powdered sugar on top for good measure. The Creme Cake is every bit as delicious as the Pope remembers it being and Aneta assures me it was much better when he was a child. (Although I always tease her about being a Luddite since she thinks everything was better 100 years ago! She counters with "I was just born 100 years too late." To which I respond, "It wouldn't have made any difference. You'd just think things were better 100 years before you were born whenever it happens to be!") So we laugh, sip our tea and enjoy our Kremowki.

There were two other kinds of creme cake - one chocolate and one strawberry - on the counter and Aneta ordered one of each, split in two, so we could sample all the cafe had to offer! I was so full and had such a sugar high when we left the cellar I could have flown under my own power to our next stop. So that was lunch in Wadowice, three kinds of cake and real loose leaf tea.

We went back to the car and pointed ourselves in the direction of our next stop but it wasn't that easy. Every road the GPS told us to take was blocked, one way going the wrong way, or closed for construction. It took us about a half hour to find a way out of Wadowice.

Once on the road again we drove up into the mountains. Aneta had in mind a small village famous for its old wood houses. The name of this village is Lanckorona and it is a favorite of artists in the summer season. I can understand why as it is high in the mountains and has some pretty spectacular views off the side of the mountain in several directions. We took a few photos and then moved on as Aneta thought we were close to another place she wanted to show me but it turned out to be 150 kilometers distance so we turned around and returned to Lancaorona to find a place to eat dinner. I know, it sounds like all we do is eat! Pretty much.

Fot: Old cottage in Lanckorona, Aneta

Aneta spotted a sign for a Restauracja Atlier on our exit the first time so she wanted to try it. We found the sign again and made our way up then down a winding narrow lane that eventually led to a hotel/restaurant sitting alone in the woods. It was quite lovely and we decided to give it a try. What a surprise! The place looked old but was actually brand new. It has only been open two months (terrible time of the year to open a new hotel/restaurant in a summer tourist area, but whose counting?)and we are the only customers. The lady behind the reception desk leaves her post to give us a guided visit to the restaurant, which is up three flights of stairs situated in a glass enclosed bridge between two halves of the hotel. The waitstaff were a pair of charming young boys, unsure of themselves and anxious to do a good job. They discerned that we were speaking English and brought one Polish menu and one English menu. Good observation and good call. Aneta was horrified at the prices but I said I'd buy dinner and she should have whatever she wanted. She read the menu, looked up at me with an incredulous look on her face and said, "no Pierogi!"

Fot: Linda in action, Aneta

"No," I said, "but the menu looks wonderful. Is there anything here you think you might like? I'm going to have the Beef Tenderloin in Truffle Butter with Fresh Steamed Vegetables."

"What does Truffle Butter taste like? Mushrooms?"

"Well, Truffles are a fungus so probably something like mushrooms but I don't think I've ever tasted Truffles so I can't say for sure."

"I'll have the first one."

"So Roast Pork in Orange Sauce with Chocolate?"

"I guess so."

The waiter came to take our order and Aneta had a brief conversation with him in Polish and changed her mind and ordered the Roast Duck. Something about vinegar. I ordered a potato/leek soup for a starter.

The soup came and was absolutely wonderful. It looked like squash soup - golden in color and very creamy. Perhaps sweet potatoes were used to get this rich color but whatever kind of potatoes were used they made a delicious soup. I ate half the soup and then passed it to Aneta who ate the remaining portion and pronounced it "very good." I felt the soup was a precursor of things to come and I was correct. Soon our main course arrived on large, very warm, white porcelain plates. The presentation was on a par with any 5 star restaurant in NYC. My steak was perched atop the fresh steamed vegetables that consisted of Zuchini, Sweet Red Peppers, Mushrooms and Onions, all topped with Truffle Butter. I sliced off a slim bite of the steak and placed it in my mouth where I was treated to an explosion of delectable flavors. The meat was as tender as a sweet pea and juicy beyond compare. I chewed slowly, letting the flavors sink into my taste buds and and brain. I think I had an out of body experience. This was one of the best meals I have ever eaten, anywhere, anytime, any place.

When I emerged from my gastronomic revery I looked over at Aneta to see how things were looking on her side of the table. She was staring at her plate with a puzzled look on her face. "My plate has chocolate on it," she announced. Indeed there was a chocolate sauce drizzled around the plate as part of the presentation.

"Lucky you!" I enthused as she cut off a piece of the Roast Duck and slipped it between her lips. The next time I came up for air her plate was clean. So we paid the bill - a whole 108 zl ($36) for two of the best truly gourmet dinners I have ever experienced. Aneta agreed with me that this restaurant was very special indeed. Her wheels started turning and we stopped at the front desk on our way out and asked to see a room and collected information about room rates and group discounts with our next trip in mind. This location - just 25 kilometers from Krakow would make a good base of operations for day trips to both Krakow and Wadowice and the surrounding villages of interest. Always thinking, this girl.

Wel, home again, home again, jiggidy jig. I read to Aneta as she drove the car until I suddenly fell asleep. When I woke up I continued on but first I had to go floor diving for my iPad which had slipped off my lap and disappeared into the dark at some point. I don't know why I was so tired all of a sudden but the short nap refreshed me. Aneta left me at the flat and went to collect the little one from her grandparents.

As far as the blog goes, this day will be out of order as I forgot to blog about Monday and it was actually kind of an interesting day.

Linda