A trip to Krakow

Not able to help there Mike but I would be interested to hear what sort of anti smoking legislation they have over there and if the tobacco prices are as crippling as ours are.
Have a great trip ::
Regards,
Jay.

Sounds like an awesome trip. Its on my bucket list being a WWII nut.

I don't know Poland, but it is worth the research. Supposedly Poland has some pipe workshops that do contract work for known brands not associated with Poland. I'm thinking maybe Nording has some work done there.

Mr Didache yet Mr Jay, I do know Poland(Polska) first off, if any pipe tobaccos they mostly sell S&G blends alongside with Both Amphoras and some most popular Mc Barens Blends such as Scottish Mixtures, Golden Blend and other danish type mixtures(stanwell tobacco for instance)then there is this Stanislaw Brand, all imported PipeTobaccos are a bit cheaper in comparition to German prices,and definitely Much cheaper than in England,but assumably the assortiment you would find is pretty narrow,additionally I've been told that Polish Government just banned all tobaccoproducts online sellings, at least bordercrossing transactions are strictly prohibited.Hope this helped somewhat

I, having been raised largely by my Polish grandmother, have been very interested in trying some of the Polish tobacco. I've been told it is mostly OTC quality or lower, but it is less about that and more sentimental. I'd be curious as to what you discover whilst you are there in terms of their tobacco.

Neptun & Stanislaw pipetobaccos

The first time I went to UK, we stayed in London in Earl's Court at a b&b run by Mrs. Skiba, who was Polish. There is a considerable Polish population in London and in England, I think. I grew up in the Chicago area which is said to have more Polish than Warsaw. I always thought that the accent of the original Mayor Richard J. Daley was a Polish accent picked up on the streets of Chicago, more than an Irish accent, despite his Irish ancestry. There was none of the lyrical lilt nor story tellers gift, but much chewing of consonants. He knew how to run a big city on its own terms but with a stern hand and keep his own hands legally clean. His son was effective in the same way, and bulldozed the lakefront airfield (Meigs) one night at his own command. The Polish and other ethnic groups built some beautiful cathedral-looking churches across the city and in some neighborhoods non-English languages were spoken for generations. Lots of non-melting-pot neighborhoods and still some great Eastern European food.

Thank you, didache. I look forward to your report. Above all else, have fun.

Hi Didache,
I was in Krakow a few months ago and really enjoyed my time there. I did do a little tobacco hunting and came across two shops that I can recommend. The first is a shop near the Barbakan Krakowski. Heading north as you make your way to the gate entrance turn right along a narrow street. The city walls will be on your left and half a block down you come to a small tobacco shop on your right. Here's a photo I took when I was there:

And here is an image from Google Maps to help you along:

https://www.google.ch/maps/@50.0647931,19.9415984,3a,75y,84.38h,85.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sN8nr-pQkLDXZ_GP_mcquzw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
They had a fairly good selection of tobaccos and I picked up a few:

I'd never heard of any of these, and truth be told, I have yet to open them, but the tins were relatively affordable at around $13.00 per tin. The 10 g pouches were $2.00 or so. Definitely need to open these soon and give them a try!
Another place to find some good deals on pipes and tobacco is, and I hate to say it....the mall! There is a Smoke Shop on the bottom floor of the Galeria Krakowska; here's the link: http://smoke.pl/# The prices for the Stanwell and Peterson pipes I saw were comparable to online prices--the benefit here is that you can handle and inspect them before you buy. They had a smaller collection of pipe tobacco but did have in stock G&H tins of Ultimum, American Delight, Broken Scotch Cake, and Louisiana Flake.
And while you've been to Krakow before I'd be remiss if I didn't recommend our favorite restaurant there called Kuchnia u Doroty. Absolutely fantastic Polish food--we especially liked the zurek, bigos, sole in lemon sauce, and of course the goulash with potato pancakes. They also had local bottled craft beer on offer when I was there which was very good as well. Do give them a try if you have the chance! https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g274772-d1993331-Reviews-Kuchnia_u_Doroty-Krakow_Lesser_Poland_Province_Southern_Poland.html
Enjoy your trip, and let us know what you find!

Correction--on the Google Map link, simply copy and paste the entire link and paste it into your browser; not sure why only part of the link was actually hyperlinked.

Didache...you're absolutely welcome. Yes, I've wondered about the S&G tins as well. Unfortunately I'm not a seasoned S&G smoker so even if I did pop the tins I'm not sure if I could tell you whether its original or rebranded.
Funny that you mention Wroclaw; since we've visited Krakow everyone we know has recommended Wroclaw as well. As much as we would like to go back to Krakow we may have to go to Wroclaw instead!
Kuchnia u Doroty is not a big place, but there is a downstairs seating area as well which probably could seat 13 of you--it may be a little tight, though. For a bigger crowd, I would recommend Pod Wawelem: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g274772-d1009022-Reviews-Pod_Wawelem-Krakow_Lesser_Poland_Province_Southern_Poland.html
The place is very big and the portion sizes are HUGE and at very reasonable prices. One person on trip advisor said it is slightly touristy. I agree with this assessment (check out the photos) but it's not Hard Rock touristy if you know what I mean. Overall, really good food and a very fun atmosphere--beer, or course, is excellent, and when we were there they gave us a free shot of cherry vodka after our meal.

Krakow is lovely.
There is a tobacconist at the trainstation and also around the main sqaure, I can't remember where but it is on a street off the main sqaure, I bought a pipe back from krakow, a lovely billiard from pear wood which smokes beautifully.
The tobaccos I came across were the alsbo variety, Mac baren and amphora.
I didn't manage to get to the tobacconist at the main train station but from the looks of it, it is quite big and you should find what you are looking for.

Some context on Chicago, @mso4889:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2006/09/why_is_chicago_so_corrupt.html