Report from Krakow

Hi all
I have just returned from a brief 4-night stay in Krakow. Some members of the forum were kind enough to give me their thoughts on the Krakow tobacco scene and I am now in a position to report back.
Krakow has loads of small kiosks which sell cigarettes, newspapers, etc. As far as smoking cigs and common types of cigar are concerned smokers in Krakow seem well catered for. There are certainly lots more outlets than, say, France or Italy. Many if not most cafes and restaurants have outdoor seating, especially in the warmer months. There does not seem to be any restriction at all on smoking in these areas and ashtrays were provided.
In other words, Krakow is probably as smoke-friendly as you get in Europe these days.
There are quite a lot of tobacco shops. They sell cigs and RYO tobacco - in fact, the range of RYO tobacco is very impressive: obviously rolling cigs is very popular. These shops all sold a small range of tobacco for pipes. Not many - perhaps 8 or 10 blends, and all made by MacBaren, including the whole Amphora range. If you like these tobaccos, you would be well served too.
There was one particular bright spot. The Smoking-God is a small tobacco shop in the old Jewish quarter. It is a tiny place with the main shop measuring no more than 12 x 10 feet. What makes it interesting is a small room at the back, about the same size, which is a sort of smoking lounge. Don't think leather chairs - think wooden stools. The owner (?) was a youngish guy called Matthew. He smoked a pipe and when I asked if I could have a bowl in the lounge he came and joined me. I don't think he was very experienced (he puffed too fast) but he was keen and friendly.
I will report a little more in a day or two. In the meantime, a photo of Smoke God:

Mike

Thanks Paulie.
Krakow is a lovely city. It has the largest medieval town square in Europe, at around 200m square. There are any number of lovely buildings and churches to explore, not to mention countless restaurants and cafes. It is a very pleasant city to spend a few days.
It does have a darker side, however. It had one of the worst of the Jewish ghettos during the war, made famous by the film 'Schindler's List'. The Schindler factory is still there, although it now houses a very fine museum which documents the Jewish wartime experience in Krakow.

Around an hour's drive away is Auschwitz. These days you can visit two of the camps bearing that name. The first, Auschwitz I, is mostly red-brick and was initially used to imprison dissidents, Soviet POWs, intellectuals and priests, and just about anyone who could have organised resistance. It is here that you can see the famous gate 'Arbeit macht frei'.


A short drive away is Auschwitz II: Birkenau which was build specifically as a death camp. It is here that over a million Jews perished, plus many Soviet POWs, gypsies, homosexuals, and Poles. It is very sobering to walk by the railway line which once saw tens of thousands of people being disgorged from cattle trucks and then led to the gas chambers that now exist only as piles of rubble. I do not believe in ghosts, but some places are haunted.

The ride back to Krakow tends to be pretty silent, as you might imagine, each person coming to terms with what they have seen.
On arrival back at the city, I went to a small park near the hotel and smoked a thoughtful bowl. It was medicine for the soul.
Mike

dottiewarden - not really. All the small tobacco shops had a small selection of cheaper pipes. The only shop with a really decent selection was in the Galeria Krakowska (a large mall) - they had a pretty large selection of Petersons.
Mike