WALK 4: Kazimierz

ul.Miodowa ,Kraków http://www.krakow.pl/english/instcbi/10257,inst,12284,1201,instcbi.html

About

For many years, all maps of the centre of Krakow, apart from the area encircled by the Planty, also featured Kazimierz. In the past it was a separate town, but today it is a neighbourhood of the city, which can be reached by walking down from the Wawel Hill. After the tragedy of WWII and the extermination of Jews by the Nazi occupation, Kazimierz became de­serted and fell into ruin for many decades. The current explosive development of this part of the city was caused by changes in the political system at the end of the 1980s and 1990s. Kazimierz made its way to the big screen thanks to Steven Spielberg's Oscar-winning film Schindler's List, which was shot here. Through workshops, lectures and exhibitions, the world­-famous Festival of Jewish Culture, organized ever since the beginning of the 1990s, in principle focuses on the history and traditions of the people that used to live here. Today, we can speak of a revival of the district and its new face. The key to understanding today's popularity of Kazimierz is its uni­que, perennial tolerance. In this place, two nations and two great religions coexisted in harmony for centuries. Near the synagogues, the two churches of St. Catherine and Corpus Christi rise up, whilst the destination of the procession held on the day of St. Stanislaus is the Paulite Church "On the Rock". Cafés, clubs and galleries bring to­gether all those who feel the Main Market Square and its vicinity have become too „touristy". Every visitor can discover for themselves the extraordinary nature of Kazimierz, where exclusive hotels and restau­rants sit alongside handicraft work­shops for purse and bag-making, boot leather stitching and engra­ving. In order to experience this, it is worth taking a stroll around Plac Nowy, or along Miodowa and Józefa Streets, as well as seeing Szeroka Street, where the final concert of the Festival of Jewish Culture is held every year. Kazimierz is also a place particularly valued by lovers of antiques. Here, at Plac Nowy (and also at the nearby Hala Tar­gowa at Grzegórzki), flea markets are organized. Krakow's history, and the history of Polish Jews, speaks to us from every corner of Kazimi­erz. It can be f elt in the layout of narrow streets and trade squares, in the small townhouses, synagogues and Jewish cemeteries.
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