Night location: Krakow

This morning we took a short flight from Copenhagen to Krakow. Upon arrival at Krakow international airport, we were greeted by what can only be described as organised chaos. The baggage carousel was in a glorified shed and with only one ATM David had to wait in a substantial line before we were hurried to a taxi.

We have been very fortunate with the weather as our taxi driver informed us that two days ago it was snowing here in Krakow! Only a light jacket was required for our sightseeing this afternoon.

After checking into a luxurious room, at least double the size of a normal hotel room with high raked ceilings and a shower with a glass screen, we walked to the Market Square. This square is Europe's largest medieval square measuring 200m by 200m. It was bustling with people; cafés and restaurants were full and tourists were being lured into carriage rides with two highly decorated horses drawing them through the town. In the centre of the square is the Cloth Hall, believed to be Europe's first shopping mall, built in the 14th century, and today filled with stalls mainly selling Amber jewellery. After wandering through the hall we chose a cafe and ate a leisured lunch in the sun.

From the square we made our way towards Wawel Castle via the Royal Route, the historical coronation path of the Polish kings. It was here that we saw our second glimpse of organised chaos as the ticket system for the castle was unnecessarily complex. A different ticket was required for every section of the castle and each ticket had a specific time allocated for the visit. After seeing people in front of us struggling to communicate with what appeared to be a grumpy woman at the end of her shift, we decided to only purchase tickets to the State Rooms. After lining up again and proceeding through a seemingly pointless security check, we ascended two massive flights of stairs and began to wander through the grand State Rooms. Of particular note were the ornate timber ceilings, the large tapestries and the painted and textured leather lined walls. The Castle Cathedral was equally impressive with fantastic gold altarpieces and many small chapels with intricate carvings inside. We concluded our visit with a stop for coffee and cake and a stroll around the viewing platforms that looked out over the river and the old town.

For dinner we tried some local Polish cuisine and continued our good luck of being seated without a booking as many who followed us were turned away. The food was rich and tasty, with three courses costing only about $60 for two people! A welcome change from Denmark.