into the forests we go

A is really learning how to navigate the city. we basically accomplished several days' worth of shuttling around in an afternoon and evening. first we stopped at bagel mama for a fast and good breakfast by way of the river promeanade and pedestrian bridge:

 next stop was the train station that was so confusing when we first arrived here in Krakow. it's still confusing and now it's a little more clear why that is so. they've traded in the old beautiful station for a few cashiers boxes in the basement of...the new mall! 

the old station that's unmistakable for what it is:

the old train station tower:

the new train station is way down there on the right under that new mallish structure:

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so after successfully buying 1st class
tickets to lublin for wednesday (they already had sold out of second class so i'll let you know how different these are from the beautiful train ride we took to get here last week) we had to walk through the mall to get to the street level (which reminds me of that museum ploy: "exit through the gift shop") and then went looking for a tram that would take us to a bus up to where the zoo is and beyond that is the forest. the second thing i did (after looking for a restroom) once we de-bussed was stop at this cafe for a drink and some snacks:

then for a little hike or rather an intense plant walk. there are so many plants just coming up right now: raspberries and bilberries, hawthorns and lindens. there were even at least one species of scullcaps. too many plants to list and every step revealed another amazing discovery. it was so quiet in the woods except for the birds and a handful of people strolling or riding through, no one else was in evidence. 

there was a warning sign about wild boars that A translated and when i aimed my phone at it, his translation was spot on:

we had been following the signs to "the forest hotel" and were expecting to be enchanted but when it finally came into view it was not only disappointing but strangely horrific:

down the path from it was a former castle now a fancy restaurant and inn:

it was almost impossible to find our way out of castle land because all the roads were blocked going down the mountain for pedestrians and the one path we found petered out at the parking lot. so we ignored a sign and crossed the service road and walked along an abandoned sidewalk where even more amazing plants were sprouting out of the cracks between enormous stone slabs:

eventually a bus stop was found along a bike and pedestrian path and here's a bike repair station that's miraculously unvandalized:

we passed this plaque dedicating the street name to these two artists:

and eventually a return to that vietnamese restaurant was made:

followed by a walk through the back streets:

where a plaque commentating a famous linguist was posted:

and of course a quick peek into that hillside park by twilight: