Passage to Poland

We left Wrocław in the morning for Łódź (pronounced WOODZH, to the best of my knowledge) which was about 220 km (137 mi) away.  We punched "avoid tolls" in the GPS, hoping that we'd see more smaller towns along the way, but it didn't work out that way.  We saw some of the suburbs, but were soon on the freeway. So for those who are wondering what driving in Poland is like, I have to say it's not much different from the US.  You drive on the right side of the road, traffic lights operate the same with some variation, road signs are pretty intuitive, although they're in metric (which if you've noticed, I'm trying to acclimate my readers to).  To be honest, in many ways it's easier.  No one hangs in the left lane, trucks are kept at a slower speed and stay in the right (by law, I believe)--with none on the road on Sundays that I saw.  Gas is expensive however, at about 6.20 PLN/liter (about $5.50/gal) and I was worried about parking space thanks to the...

Another disclosure--this is being done on November 1.  There's a lot to cover but like the earlier catch-up, I will make each day a separate post instead of a very long one. Our first full day in Wrocław we walked across the street to the monastery we could see form our hotel room--the Church and Monastery of St. Adalbert .  It's a huge medieval church and I was eager to see inside since we didn't get to it the evening before.   The entrance and tower.  The link above has better photos. The Altar The alabaster casket of St. Ceslaus , the patron saint of Wrocław. Next was a tram ride to Cathedral Island .  It's the oldest part of town and since the Oder River has shifted over time, part of it is no longer an island. Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Closeup of the altar and stained glass window in the Church of St. Mary on the Sand .  It's called that because it's on Sand Island. Riverside View The bridge in the picture above is the Trumski Bridge , whi...

Today was our drive to Wrocław, but not before we saw one of the most famous sites in the city, Wawel Castle .  I forgot to mention that while Warsaw has been Poland's capital since 1596, it had been Kraków until then and the Polish kings resided in this castle. Full disclosure--we stayed in the free parts and did not buy tickets to any tours.  We really didn't have time as our checkout from the hotel was at noon, and Wrocław is just over three hours away.  So if you come to town, try to get this in first.  The pictures I've seen of the inside of the cathedral are beautiful.   Approaching the Castle along the Vistula River Entrance Gate to the castle View of the old Romanesque church foundation Castle Courtyard Statue of Pope John Paul II.  He celebrated his first Holy Mass here (as a newly-ordained priest) on November 2, 1946. Side View of the Cathedral After walking back to the hotel and checking out, it was time to drive to Wrocław.  Just over ...