I was a regular contributor to Virtual Tourist.com when it was one of the top travel sites on the internet. Thousands of people checked in to post pages about their travels including hotels, restaurants and other recommendations or to find information to plan their own trips. A rating system from visitors brought members’ pages to the top of the list for most popular tips. After several years I was among the top 100 members who were loyal to the site and we became an on-line “family” of spirited travelers learning about each other and the world.
Because I was researching my family in Poland, traveling every few years, I developed pen pal relationships with several Polish members. We had screen names and one member, Matt Crazy published thousands of photos of his trips with his wife, Urszula. When I was destined for Poland again I would notify Matt of the dates and we’d schedule a meeting for dinner in Krakow.
Planning a return trip to follow the lead on Antoni Rzasa in the Tatra Mountains, Gosia and I were enthused to meet up with Matt and Urszula in the old square in Krakow before continuing with my research.
I flew into Krakow and had a hotel van bring me into town. I had stayed in the small privately owned hotel (a Virtual Tourist recommendation) on another trip with Gosia, so I was comfortable with my surroundings. Gosia would arrive by train a few hours later so I walked the narrow streets lined with shops into the large main square. I visited a favorite lunch room looking out at flowers and passersby on the busy square. They served a delicious salad with chicken, almonds and bib lettuce which I enjoyed during several visits. The atmosphere in the Redolfi Cafe was very special. Handsome woodwork, lace curtains, photos of glamorous women from another decade all contribute to the ambiance. The wait staff didn’t speak English but we managed and they were very kind. In those days there weren’t a lot of Americans visiting Poland and I was often greeted with curiosity and wide smiles, making me feel like a good will ambassador. I was also a novelty because of being a woman of a certain age traveling alone internationally. You must remember how much Poland changed after the Iron Curtain fell coupled with the advent of personal computers becoming available. Changes didn’t happen fast for them so the behavior of society often seemed about a decade behind us, especially in rural areas. I saw such a transformation between my first visit during Communism and the later trips when more prosperity was evident.
