My first few days here were made even more enjoyable by the fact that two of my long standing friends from Plymouth, Steve Rigby and Dave George, came to Krakow for the weekend.
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| Dave, me and Steve |
Here we are on the parapets of Wawel Castle, the former seat of the Polish monarchy, enjoying the unusually warm, late October weather. This next excerpt comes from The Lonely Planet guide describing 'Smok', the Magic Dragon....'
' Wawel Castle is home to the city's oldest legends, including at least one involving a fire breathing dragon. Long ago, the story goes, during Prince Krak's reign, a nasty dragon lived in the cave below Wawel Hill, terrorising Krakow town. A fire-breathing menace, the scaly Smok ravaged residents and livestock, leaving death and destruction in his wake. His favourite food was beautiful young virgins. Prince Krak feared for the life of his own daughter Wanda, and he offered her hand in marriage to any suitor who could slay the dragon. Many died trying. Finally a poor young cobbler, came up with a scheme to trick the dragon. He stuffed a sheep with sulphur and left the tasty morsel outside the dragon's lair. The dragon fell for it.
The dragon devoured the sheep, then retreated to the Vistula River to quench his unbearable thirst. He drained the river, causing his stomach to swell and inciting a massive explosion. The dragon was defeated!. The cobbler was a hero! The virgins were safe! Wanda and the cobbler lived happily ever after '.
Our weekend was far less dramatic I can assure you. Below is the imposing building of Wawel castle. After Krakow was incorporated into the re-established Poland after World War One, Wawel became a residence of the Polish president. Restoration work was undertaken until the outbreak of World war Two. During the war, Wawel again assumed its historic role as a seat of power, but this time far more reluctantly. Krakow became the capital of German-occupied Poland, with Wawel serving as the residence for Nazi Governor General Hans Frank. After the war, further restoration work began and the complex was transformed into its current function as a museum and repository of national memory.
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| Wawel Castle |
