KRAKOW even a clock that is not moving is right two times a day.

I need to see this city again.  I really didn't like my hostel.  There were a group of intensely obnoxious americans there, visiting from their studies in Warsaw.  Maybe seeing groups like this makes me more self-aware... in a good way, as always it makes me realize why certain prejudices exist.  We walked around with the only guy from the group, who was keen to dispatch from the group.  I felt intensely bad for him, this was him primary company for the next four months, sounds like an amiable reason to become a self proclaimed loner.  Met more Australians and as usual am perplexed how they all seem to have enough money to travel so much, I cannot fathom.

I left the whole weekend disillusioned, feeling like I'd been sucked into a hellish microcosm against my will and spat back into the Krakow train station, where my companion and I were fucked out of tickets.  

We got the tickets at the station, ordered in Polish, the price seemed large, and of course we couldn't get the student price because of the documents, always with the goddamn documents.  the woman at the booth asked us to pay in exact change, which in this country is pretty common, and you cannot buy tickets with credit cards for whatever fucking reason.

We get on the train, which is delayed half an hour.  By the time we get our tickets checked we're about an hour into the 4 hour ride.  "this is reservation, not ticket!"

"what.. that's all she gave us."

"no, here we have two, one is ticket, one is reservation..."  

"she only gave us the reservation slip..."  fuckfuckfuck.  Well, you can buy a ticket now on train... ummm "I only have 20 zloty on me."  The conductor takes pity on us.  I NEED to learn this language.  :grrr:

The city though was beautiful regardless, it snowed almost nonstop though, which made me again, very grateful for my boots, other travelers don't seem to value their footwear which seems crazy.  I went to a few minutes of mass in rynek, St. Mary's, amazing church, but no pictures.  I liked the Jewish quarter, went to a nice bar there, had some really good vodka.  It was pretty touristy in general, lots of bad kebab and pizza places.  I wouldn't recommend polish pizza... at all.  I was glad to be back in Wroclaw.