There were two ancient settlements situated on the island between two branches of the Vistula (Wisła) river: Skałka – which used to be the pagan centre – and Bawół. In 1335 king Casimir the Great founded on the island a city and named it after himself. Kazimierz (as the Polish name for the place stands) had its own defensive walls, market square and town hall. It was home to Poles, Jews, Germans, Czechs and inhabitants of other nationalities. In 1494, due to law set by Jan I Olbracht, numerous Jews moved from Krakow to Kazimierz and soon after the wall separating them from Christians was put up. At the end of XIX century Kazimierz became the district of Krakow and the walls of Jewish ghetto were pulled down. The Jews were allowed to settle all around Krakow – however many of them stayed in Kazimierz, making the district a place were two religions coexisted together.

Izaac’s synagogue. Late Baroque building used to boast of rich interior design.

When coming to the quarter with Krakowska street you will first enter the Christian part of Kazimierz. On one side of the street there are situated two churches. The first one – St Catherine’s Church in Augustiańska street – is a great example of gothic. Especially worth seeing are the corridors covered with 15th-century frescoes. St Michael’s Church and the Pauline Fathers’ Monastery called “on the Rock” represents Baroque style. It used to be the pagan religious centre where in 11th century Romanesque rotunda was build, replaced later on by Gothic church and then by Baroque edifice that one can adore now. The venue is the place of martyrdom of Cracovian Bishop – St Stanislaw from Szczepanowo – who was (according to the legend) killed there in 1079 by king Boleslaw the Bold for supporting a revolt. In the church one can find relics connected with St Stanislaus but his body is resting now in the Cathedral on the Wawel Hill. The church of St Michael houses also the crypt where many Polish artists are buried.

High synagogue. Its room of prayer is situated on the upper floor.

The main market of the former city of Kazimierz is situated by Krakowska street – called nowadays Plac Wolnica. On the square there is the former town hall that houses Ethnographic Museum. Its collection includes Polish folk art: regional costumes, Easter eggs and musical instruments among them. In the corner of Kazimierz’s square there was Corpus Christi Church set up. This magnificent gothic building houses ornate Baroque interior design – such as altars and flamboyant pulpit in a shape of a boat.
From there – when taking Meiselsa street – there is only a short walk to Plac Nowy. There used to be located the kosher butchery and nowadays the round building in the middle of the square is a place of sale for snacks. Apart from the Jewish Cultural Centre that you can enter from Plac Nowy, there are numerous pubs and cosy cafes to visit on the spot. They all can boast of exceptional ambience – very characteristic for this district. In Kazimierz one can find also lots of traces of Jewish community, which used to inhabit this part of the quarter, for instance synagogues. The closest to Plac Nowy are: (Wysoka) High Synagogue that houses the room of prayer on the upper floor (situated in Jozefa street), Kupa Synagogue – at Miodowa and Izaac’s – representing Baroque style. All of them do not serve regularly as a place where services are held but mostly show displays of photos or videos from which one might get to know how the life in Kazimierz looked like before the WW II. For sure one of the most beautiful once and worth visiting synagogues is Tempel situated in Miodowa street. It is the newest synagogue of Krakow and boasts of astonishing interior design which was inspired by the Sefardi (Iberian Jewish) tradition and is a fusion of pseudo-Moorish with neo-Renaissance art.

Old Synagogue. Stara (as it is called by the Poles) is one of the oldest synagogues preserved in Poland.

The very centre of Jewish quarter used to be Szeroka street. From there you may enter three other synagogues: Popper – which has been turned into the youth culture centre, the Old Synagogue which is believed to be the oldest and grandest of all (and serves as a museum of Jewish history, culture and tradition) and Remuh which is a venue for religious services. The latter one although being very small (as it used to be the private synagogue), is acknowledged by numerous tourists (especially Orthodox Jews). Through its courtyard there is the entrance to Remuh cemetry where the tomb of rabbi Moses Isserles (religious writer and philosopher of international fame) is placed. His tomb is the aim of pilgrimages.
Szeroka street – as it is now – attracts the visitors with cosy restaurants (usually serving Jewish style cuisine and organising concerts of Klezmer music) that you can find there. Kazimierz becomes more and more popular not only among tourists, but also locals. The artists appreciate its atmosphere and rich cultural offer. In Summer (usually at the end of June and beginning of July) the whole district becomes the main venue for Jewish Culture Festival.