MIDNIGHT INKRAKOW
◼︎ Midnight In Kraków, welcome In Poland strangers! Tropea is a Calabrian town of ancient origins that hosts roughly 6300 souls of the province of Vibo Valentina, even if the population rate is slowly decreasing over the years. The oldest human evidence found in this territory date back to the Neolithic period. Thanks to the excavations of the early twentieth century, carried out following the restoration of the cathedral and then to the excavations of the archaeological superintendency of Calabria, we know of a stable human settlement in the area around the church and that there was a necropolis near the current railway station . This settlement can be placed between the Middle Bronze Age and the first half of the Iron Age
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
SOME GENERAL INFORMATIONS
◼︎ Kraków, located in the south of the country on the Vistula River, is the second-largest city in Poland. The city’s population is over 755,000 souls with an estimated 8 million more living within 100km of the city center. Kraków was also the official capital of Poland until 1596 and has always been one of the most important places for the Polish economy, politics and artistic life of the country.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
THEWORLD LARGEST MEDIEVAL PLAZA
◼︎ The main Market Square in Kraków is just incredibly interesting! It is the largest city plaza of the Medieval world, Europe biggest market square, the first Unesco heritage site in Poland and one of the most architecturally pleasing location in the city. The center stage is the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice in Polish) built in the 14th century and was practically one of the first shopping mall in the world.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
WAWEL ROYAL CASTLE
◼︎ When the capital was moved to Warsaw in 1596, right after a huge fire, the Wawel Royal Castle was abandoned and then looted by the Prussian army. The edifice was then occupied by the Austrians,which turned the old fortress into barracks, hospital and storehouses, also building city walls all around it and transforming its interior fortifying it. The castle was then given to Emperor Francis Joseph and therefore saved from destruction under a resolution adopted by the Galician Sejm in 1880. Then in 1905 Polish social activists launched a campaign to collect money to buy the old fortress back from the Austrian authorities, and over several years a huge sum was collected with also the help of several thousand Poles who made a contribution, so their names were engraved on the small bricks of the castle walls. During the Second World War the Palace was resided in by the Nazi general-governor Hans Frank, which turned the royal chambers into a beer cellar, adapted the Audience Hall to a movie theather and built a swimming pool on the garden terraces. By the end of the 20th century large-scale renovation work for the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of Cracow Bishopric reshaped the castle, and currently the castle is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kraków and Poland.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
A MIX OF STYLES:
◼︎ The Wawel Castle is one of the largest castle in Poland. Built at the behest of King Casimir III the Great the castle represents nearly all European architectural styles of medieval, renaissance and baroque periods. The Renaissance palace you see today dates from the 16th century but an original smaller residence was built in the early 11th century by King Bolesław I Chrobry, years later Kazimierz III Wielki (Casimir III the Great) turned it into a Gothic castle, but when it burned down in 1499 Zygmunt I Stary (Sigismund I the Old) commissioned a new residence with a more Italian-inspired design.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
REFLECTIONS &THOUGHTS:
◼︎ Street photography is not just regular photography applied in the streets, but more like the streets manifesting themselves into your photography. Night street photography session in Tropea. As always it turns out interesting stuff happens everywhere, you just need to dip yourself outside constantly to make it happen. ⠀
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
HORSEPOWER
◼︎ In 1882 Kraków trams line ran from the main railway station to Podgórski bridge thanks to the power of horses, but the network was electrified and a formal opening of the first line took place on 16 March 1902 after a new law which stated that a railroad or a tram line could be operated only by a local company, forcing the Belgian owners to build a new company more favourable to the city.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
BRICKS STRUCTURS
◼︎ The Kraków barbican is one of the best preserved elements of the complex network of fortifications and defensive barriers that once encircled the royal city of Kraków. It is a moated cylindrical brick structure with an inner courtyard of almost 25 meters in diameter, seven turret and its 3-meter-thick walls hold 130 embrasures. The barbican was built around 1498 and was originally linked to the city walls by a covered passageway that led through St. Florian's Gate and served as a checkpoint for all who entered the royal city.⠀
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
AN INTRESTING ATRACTION:
◼︎ Want to enjoy the best view of the city? Take a ride on the tethered helium balloon located on the edge of the river Wisła/Vistula. The ride ascends to a height of almost 200 meters, and the view from the platform will give you a unique prospective of the entire city and its surroundings.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
THE LOCAL STREET ART
◼︎ Poland has a long & strong tradition of graphic poster art for films and theatres, and sometimes that can still be seen in the stylish aesthetics of posters all over the country’s walls and signboards. Sadly poster art & Street art in nowadays Krakow is not as strong and common like i've been told, most of the pieces around the city are just instagram stops without a real message or purpose, but in between of here and there you can still find some interesting works. I guess its time to step up your game once again locals, such a rich culture should share a richer message, especially nowadays..
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
PEDESTRIAN ZONES
◼︎ There's little point in driving around the city with a regular car here, since public transportation is by far a better option, but if you have to just be aware of the local rules: The Main Square is a pedestrian zone only, most of the Old Town area is the same within the exception of taxis & local residence, and most street parking space here in Krakow is paid between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays. Also, unless indicated otherwise by an appropriate road sign, the speed limit in the city is 50km/h from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. and 60km/h between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
A BRIDGE BLUEPRINT
◼︎ Poland was a complete surprise for my senses, my ignorant ass didn’t know everything was so damn beautiful and organized here. During the next week we will explore and discover more about this fascinating country and their population, starting from the streets as usual. Ready to join me in this virtual adventure folks? (I also broke my phone and can’t type properly, any suggestions on how to post on instagram from a MacBook without loosing quality?)
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
TONIGHT BEDROOMVIEW
◼︎ Here you can rent a lovely room in the historic center of the city for an handful of euros, giving you the chance to experience the city vibe way cheaper than other big cities in Europe, but with way better standards. Most Europeans snob this country and often refers to Poland almost like a third world country, while in reality many of the things here are way better than the general European standards. Amazing food, tons of incredible architecture, great organization and amazingly clean streets, are some of the many qualities of this fascinating place, but the people here definitely takes the crown. What an amazing population you got!
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
HITTING THE STREETS
◼︎ Exploring the street of this lovely city looking for interesting souls & fascinating locations. Krakow is probably one of the safest metropolitan city i ever walked into (outside of japan obviously) and it's incredible how friendly everyone is here, every single iteration i had with the locals turned into an amazing dialogue and often i left the conversation with an unwanted but appreciate it gift in my hands. Thank you for your amazing hospitality Poland! .
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
MORE STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
◼︎ Street Photography morning in the streets of gorgeous Kraków, with a warm coffee, an Obwarzanek (Cracovian begel) and some local folk music echoing in the air. How is your day going so far strangers?
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
ONE OF MY FAVORITE CITY
◼︎ I definitely will be back here in this lovely city to explore more of this fascinating destination. Any of you strangers can suggest me something that i should experience or see while i'm here? I'm looking for all kinds of interesting suggestions, unusual places, weird things or unique stuff to try. Locals tips especially!
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018
THE LITLE STREET MEETING
◼︎ Thank you so much to all of you who stopped me here in Krakow trying to buy some of my works. I'm sorry i didn't bring any extra prints & zines, except for my Free Stuff project, but i definitely understood the lesson and i will probably never travel anywhere without a little popup store in my backpack. My back is not thrilled about the news but my brain is already fucking me up for not listening earlier, we went thru this already.
KRAKOW TEST ADRESS - OCTOBER 2018