This part of the city was once its own city, across the river from the rest of Krakow. Eventually the river dried up and was filled in, and Kazimierz became part of Krakow. It was the Jewish district of the city for hundreds of years, and still has almost as many synagogues as central Krakow has churches (meaning, a lot). The Nazis established the Jewish ghetto on the outskirts of Kazimierz, and after the Holocaust the communists didn't pay much attention to it. The neighborhood was mostly vacant, poor and crime-ridden. Many of the scenes from Schindler's List were filmed here in the mid-90s, since no effort or money had gone into updating the neighborhood since the 1940s.
Here are a couple of Kazimierz photos:
These days, Kazimierz is the place to be. If "shabby chic" were an urban planning term rather than a home design fad, this would be it. Edgy, hip, artsy, raw - this is the cool part of town for going out. There are a lot of bars with old photos and mismatched furniture and communist-era posters on the walls. There are shops and galleries and some touristy restaurants with live Klezmer music.
I didn't really know what Klezmer music was until I heard it and realized it's like a soundtrack from a movie scene you've watched but can't quite remember. There is a lot of violin and accordion and, in the case of one band we heard in concert, bongos (though it is highly likely that one band we heard was just a front for some kind of Polish gypsy mafia). Here's a good Klezmer music clip if you are interested.
Kazimierz is where we ended all of our evenings in Krakow. A couple of times they ended with the eating of Zapienkanka, Krakow's most popular street food. It's basically an open-faced sub sandwich, with whatever toppings you order and a bunch of ketchup or mayo or dressing on top.
Credit for information about the history of Kazimierz goes mostly to Kaska Tours, but credit for eating the Zapienkanka in the foreground goes to Brian.
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