The day started out a little damp and dreary, perfect weather to spend underground in the Wieliczka Salt Mines just 13km out of Krakow. This unique UNESCO tourist attraction is something a little different and one we have heard is not to be missed.
Rosie and The Operator tried to book a pick up and tour with Krakow Direct, the tour company we went to visit Auschwitz with yesterday, they were fully booked and only had late afternoon slots left. Note to self, be a little more organised Rosie and book tours at least a week in advance, earlier if you are travelling in summer at the height of tourist season.
We did have a rental parked up so decided to self drive to the mine. It only took about 20 mins to get there and we arrived as soon as the car park opened, there was no que at the ticket booth and we were in the first English speaking tour of the day at 0900, result!
A couple of small bus tour groups arrived and joined our group making the numbers up to about 40, then, each armed with an earpiece we were off to explore the mines with our tour leader Svetlana.
The Wieliczka Salt mine is one of the oldest mines in the world! It was first opened in the 13th Century and has continuously mined and produced table salt until its closure in 2007.
Down into the mine we went, the old fashioned way. 800 steps later, winding down a spiraling staircase built into a shaft.
The mine is 327 meters deep and there are over 300 kms of tunnels. Our tourist trail today is only 2.2 kms long – a mere 2% of the mines totality. Our first stop was 135 meters deep and Rosie was right behind Svetlana.
All of the bracing in the mine are made of wood, the material of the 13th century and the only material that salt wont weaken and rust. A mighty forest has been felled to shore up this underground city alright.
The tunnels are narrow and stretch for as far as the eye can see. Electric lighting dimly illuminates the way today…you can imagine what it would have been like back in the day with only a candle to see where you are going. The mine itself is a weird half light sensory experience…sound doesn’t seem to carry or resonate, it is quite flat and eerie. There is no moving air or smells, the atmosphere is cool yet not damp and as you descend lower into the mine the cooler the temperature becomes. Check out the wheel tracks in the salt floor on the pics below, from the ancient carts that hauled the salt out.
The salt logs themselves are a natural grey colour, like polished granite. The purer the salt the more it looks like black polished glass totally not what you think it would like.
This is more Rosies vision of a salt mine below….this salt has become wet from a leak, it has then re-dried to have the white crystalline look that we perceive to be salt. Yes, that is The Operator licking the walls, he can definitely vouch that it is salt!
Our tour is not all about the mining practices, Svetlana takes us into large caverns where the salt has been excavated and they have been turned into beautiful natural galleries that house salt sculptures, mostly done by the miners themselves through the ages, some by artists.
This sculpture is of King Casimir the Great who ruled in the 14th century. He is known for the laws he put in place regulating the management of the salt mines. Salt was a huge source of income for Poland during his reign – it made up for an estimated third of the state treasury income!
These statues depict the legend of St. Kinga, the Patron Saint of Salt. This Hungarian princess married a Polish King and is credited with bringing salt to Poland.
The story goes that she threw her engagement ring in Hungary’s Maramures Salt Mine (while other accounts say that she simply lost it). After the wedding, she ordered the digging of a well at Wieliczka. Low and behold, a miner uncovered her ring (the moment depicted above) which had been carried all the way to Poland by salt deposits.
Horses were lowered into the depths of the mines by rope to live their entire lives in the darkness working the giant winches to raise or lower the salt blocks and also haul salt logs on carts.
Stables were built in the mines to house the horses and according to Svetlana they were treated very well because they were such a necessary asset.
The highlight of the tour was visiting the huge cavern that is St Kingas Chapel. Standing at the top of the stairs and seeing the expanse of the cave and the amazing carvings for the first time was just breath taking. Then you remembered you were a couple of hundred meters below ground and this whole area was once solid salt rock that had been eked away and hand carved into the awesomeness in front of you.
Everything within this chapel is made from salt, even the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The floors themselves are salt and have a beautiful carved pattern on its surface to make it look like tiles. The light from the chandeliers reflects on the monochrome interior so beautifully and subtly, highlighting deep shadows and bright reliefs.
This is one of the many chapels that the miners have built inside the salt mines, a place for them to pray and remember that working here was a dangerous job and to give thanks for keeping them safe. This chapel today is still fully functioning and mass is held here on occasion. Pope John Paul II was a local Polish boy and has visited back in the day and said mass here.
A few of the caverns also have lakes in them, none of them are natural underground lakes they are just for our touristic pleasure. The salt content in the lakes sits at 36%….the Dead Sea is 27%.
Another beautiful chapel on the way through the mine with huge salt chandeliers hanging overhead in the gloom amidst the sturdy wooden shoring.
Our tour ends at the gift shop, of course, of which we can wander at our own leisure. These kids had totally had enough of the tour and were sitting so patiently and quietly waiting to go home.
Rosie too had had enough of the trek towards the end. Thank goodness she didnt have to climb those 800 steps back to the surface….instead, we were wedged like sardines into the 19th century lifts which slowly lumbered us up to the surface, with a lot of clanking of gears and graunching of chains.
The sensory deprivation of the mine made Rosie and The Operator very glad to be out in the fresh air and daylight, even though it was still a grey and dreary day. We were ejected from the mine just around the corner from where we entered, and, walking around the corner past the ticket booth, man, were we glad we came early! The line of people waiting to get tickets snaked as far as the eye could see and hordes of tour bus arrivals were waiting to enter the mines.
On the drive back to Krakow we stopped enroute at the Kosciuszko Mound just on the outskirts of Krakow. Built in 1823 this is a monument of beautiful symmetry to a Polish military leader from whom it was named after.
The mound was built to a height of 34 meters by volunteer local labour and modeled to resemble the Polish prehistoric burial mounds that lie further afield in Poland. A walking track winds around the mound to the top where you get a great view out over Krakow.
Rosie and The Operator certainly had a great time in Poland, some of the best times we had was eating and drinking…the locals were so helpful and proud to recommend their countries favorite tipples and bites….tune in tomorrow for the low down on the great time we had eating and drinking.
