Today I booked a day tour to take me out to Wieliczka Salt Mine. I am sure I could have gotten out there myself but it’s one less thing I have to figure out.

My tour doesn’t start until ten o’clock so first it’s breakfast. I chose an interesting place a couple blocks away open early enough. I did not realize that I would end up getting the best breakfast I’d have in a long time (Gossip Cafe). I love the selection on my plate. To top it off they have coffee with plant based milk so my tummy will be less mad at me.

I meet up with my tour for a short 30 minute ride. The tour guide tells us that our tour of the mine won’t start for another 1.5 hours. It sounds like they were unable to get a start time right away. They made up for it by paying for entry to the nearby salt “spa” where we get to walk around and breathe therapeutic salt air.

When it is time for our tour of the mine we walk down 380 steps to get to the first level of which I believe there are 9 but we only tour 3 of them. We are 64 meters deep. We learn about the mine, gray salt, and how the salt is mined. We learn the requirements to be a miner.

They have many impressive salt sculptures as well as a pretty nice salt church. This isn’t my first salt church (first in the Colombia) but this probably has the most detailed sculptures in it.

Finally we make it to the salt church with its impressive carvings.

Finally we go into a cavern where Chopin is played using lights to light up a statue.

We go further down to finally about 135 meters at the end.

It is a very long walk back to the elevators which we do get to take on the way up. However they shove us in there like sardines though.

After my tour I finally give myself some downtime and a happy hour on the patio of my hotel.

Dinner plans were to watch Klezmer music. (Authentic Jewish folk music). Despite an online recommendation I did end up at a bit of a tourist trap. The food and music were just ok but the music sounded so much better at the place next door. I did really enjoy my Zurek soup though.

Back to the hotel to rest since I have a long day at Auschwitz tomorrow.