Long and boring start to the trip

Monday, June 01, 2015
Krakow, Southern Poland, Poland
I really need to learn how to sleep on a plane as that would make long-haul travel so much easier! My first flight of the trip left O'Hare, on-time, at 2:45 PM on May 31st. The amount of wind we were having was a good thing as it made the trip to Zurich only 7-1/2 hours! There were several bumpy patches, which I hate, and otherwise it was pretty smooth except for the kid across the aisle from me who alternated between randomly crying and watching something with really loud Middle Eastern music on his mom's phone with no headphones. We had dinner and breakfast on the flight. The cheese was from Oregon, not Switzerland, which I was mad about. However, the brownie with dinner was delicious with a caramel swirl. And they came around with a basket of mini chocolate bars after dinner! Breakfast was just yogurt and a croissant.

We landed in Zurich slightly before 6 AM local time . I guess that's when the airport opens as it was pretty empty and the shops were not open yet. My next flight did not leave until 12:45 so I had a long wait. The airport has a Transit Hotel and I actually took advantage of the shower service they offer. I had plenty of time and I figured it would help wake me up. It was not overly expensive at 15 Francs so why not. I did have to go through security to get to the terminal part the hotel was located in, but when I came out and headed back to my terminal area, there was no one in the passport line in that portion of the airport so easy-peasy. I did a lot of walking and looking out the windows while I waited for my flight. I had glimpses of the Alps, but not crystal clear with the clouds. And I failed to see any from the plane as we took off for Krakow so they must have been in the other direction.

The flight to Krakow was only an hour and 10 minutes, but had a ton of screaming kids that made it seem longer. I normally don't complain about kids, but this one just shrieked really really loud and the other one kept saying "No Mama No" over and over and over in a whiny voice . Luckily it wasn't any longer of a flight! They did serve a drink and a wrap of either chicken or cheese. Much more than you get on a longer flight within the US! The Krakow Airport is pretty small and we got to walk off the plane outside. They are doing some pretty big renovations and the terminal was a mess, but I got my bag and found the shuttle to the other terminal to catch the bus into the city. I figured out the bus ticket machine (they had an English option!) and had to get off at the last stop so no guessing on my part. I enjoyed looking at the countryside and city. The large block apartments, remnants of the Communist era, were very noticeable on the drive in, but there were many nice homes as well. We past one of the branches of the National Museum and finally arrived at the busy train/bus station. This is also home to a giant mall that was pretty busy as I was trying to find my way to the correct exit. The street I needed was clearly marked and I only got a little lost trying to find the right side street for my hotel.

The Red Brick Apartments is located in a nice brick building and has 16 rooms. My room has a large bathroom, a kitchen/sitting area and a separate bedroom. This would probably be a perfect place to stay if you were in the city for any length of time as you have the kitchen to be able to make breakfast or dinner if you wanted. I am only here for 3 nights but I can tell I will like it. I can hear the busy street noise from the window in the bedroom, but after the long day I think I'll go right to sleep without too much trouble.
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Comments

maryandmarty
2015-06-02

I can really relate to the desire to sleep on the plane! I can't do that either. But congratulations on the short flight. Your apartment/hotel sounds great. Looking forward to hearing all abut your adventures.

Auntie M

MOM
2015-06-03

Glad you got there safe and sound. FYI...The King and Queen of the Netherlands are here in Chicago today. Maybe they will be back in time to have you over for dinner when you are in their country.

2025-02-17

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