The Real Capital

06/11/2012 08:45

There’s a joke that goes something like, “What time does anything cultural end in Warsaw?” The answer is, “10PM, when the last person visiting from Kraków gets on the final train out of town.” Kraków was always the capital--culturally, politically or otherwise--of everything in Poland until someone decided to move the government up the river about 400 years ago. Cracovians, however, are quick to point out that this is most likely temporary, and that the real capital never actually moved anyway. While the political seat may have transferred to Warsaw, they claim that anything having to do with true culture is still right there in town. As an outside observer, I do have to admit that many of the big boys and girls in the arts have forsaken the provincial capital for the glamour of Warsaw. Kraków is still, though, by far the seat of any Polish culture that I want to experience. Everything is in easy reach, and in wide variety; the symphony, the theatre, the opera, jazz clubs, rock clubs, a large number of museums and galleries, they're all in the Old Town, or within walking distance. And the beer and vodka is infinitely cheaper here than in the big city, too! 

You won't need a fancy dress or a suit to go to the symphony or the opera, but it never hurts to have one slightly more dressy thing in your baggage. A pair of khaki pants and a button-down shirt is sufficient, though the Poles will often get very dressed for a night out on the town.