Day Five - Jun 2, 2017

There are things you are supposed to do in Krakow. Old Town, Aushwitz, Schindler's Factory, the Jewish Ghetto. We decided today that this list was missing visiting the image of Elvis On A Rock. The short story is that the president of the Elvis fan club was from Krakow and when Elvis passed he decided there should be a memorial. Theresa found this nugget on Atlas Obscura. About a 45 minute walk from our apartment, it also struck us as a great opportunity to see a little bit of Krakow where tourists don't always tread. The walk also skirted Kazimierz (the Jewish Ghetto), so we could do some traditional touristing on the way. We started out a little late heat-wise. It was already sunny and in the low eighties when we headed out, so we stocked up on water and sunscreen and headed west. We walked through the Jewish Ghetto, but again eschewed the golf cart tours, walking tours, and paid entrances. It was a really interesting walk, even if it lacked in detail. We ended up on the edge of the river Vistula and followed Google maps over a large bridge on Monte Cassino road. We continued to follow Google Maps for a half mile or so before it angled us off on an increasingly narrow trail into the woods of Krakow. It was an amusing display of trust. It was also a really nice juxtaposition to the crowds of old town. As we closed in on the Google red arrow of Elvis On A Rock, we weren't seeing what we expected to. Nor did we see it down the trail a half mile beyond the arrow or (for that matter) a quarter mile down a trail towards another entrance to the park. After contemplating some bushwhacking, we decided to call it a nice walk in the woods and take the other trail out for a different route home. As we exited the park we found our objective, a fading epoxy image of Elvis on a large rock. We were excited in a way that doesn't really make any sense. After the obligatory photo op, we decided to begin the hour walk back to our pad. We stopped for some refreshments at the awesomely named Smil'y pub and then cut back around Old Town. Getting home in the late afternoon it was Brian's turn to take a midday nap. His nap extended far enough into the evening that we called it an early day with a little TV streaming from back home.