August 21, 1998

August 21, 1998, Friday

The bus picked me up in the morning for the Kraków city tour. We visited the Jewish Temple and cemetery and the Catholic cathedral that was the church of Pope John when he was a bishop. The cathedral was in the same complex as the Royal Palace which was spacious and ornate but was nothing in comparison to the Russian palaces of Catherine in the Summer Palace in St. Petersburg.

The cathedrals were it a different matter. They were spectacular, with their gold and gold leaf, their statuary and paintings and their arch ceilings 100 feet from the floor. I discovered a crick in my neck staring in the artwork high on the ceiling.

One couple on our tour lived in Texas and had been in Seattle to check the retirement possibilities but were turned away by the rain. One man who had lived in Poland a long time brought his daughter and two grandchildren to experience his hometown. One man wore a navy cap. I asked him if he was a Navy man. He said, “No. He just wore the cap.” He and his wife were from New York.

In the afternoon I went into old town on a bus. An inspector boarded the bus checking passes and tickets. I showed him my ticket, but I was supposed to have put it in when I boarded the bus and hadn't. He demanded I pay a fine the equivalent of $12.70. He didn't get any argument from me. I paid him.

Next, after shopping, I started to the bus stop but by mistake walked in the opposite direction By the time I at last found the bus stop I was hopelessly turned around. I've never been lost in my life but at times I've sure been turned around.

There was a green-belt around the old town where the town wall used to be. It was now a pleasant park area with many large trees. I was walking along when I heard a cracking noise. The next thing I knew I was surrounded by branches and tree leaves. A branch about 6 inches through had broken off in missed me by inches. It certainly wasn't the best day I've ever had.

We were told by our city guide that often in past days a marriage was arranged for political reasons. They planned to marry Helen Rubinstein to an old man when she was a young girl. She escaped out a second story window, emigrated to Australia, and then to America. She started the cosmetic company that bears her name.