Wszystkich Świętych

 All Saints Day. It's a national holiday here. The city was completely shut down. Restaurants, schools, offices, bakeries, grocery stores and even the mall were all closed. The city was completely deserted and most of the residents in my dorm went home for the long weekend. Buses function as shuttles and run back and forth to the cemeteries all day, and THAT is where everyone in Kraków was. The cemeteries were packed with people.

Flowers for Sale Outside the Cemetery

All Saints day is Poland's day of the dead. Everyone goes to mass and then heads to the cemeteries to clean the graves of their loved ones and cover them in flowers as well as light candles in their honor. People pray and sing and the church in the cemetery broadcasts an ongoing mass throughout the day. It was so crowded that people were standing out and around the the church, listening.

Big Lanterns for Sale Outside the Cemetery

One of my classmates has his great-grandparents and his great-great-grandparents buried in the cemetery in Kraków. I went with him and Shelley to go commemorate his family. 

Dusk. The Lights Are Just Starting to Twinkle

 We went to the Cemetery around 4pm, when the sun was just starting to set. It was perfect timing. We got to see the cemetery during daylight hours, caught a stunning sunset and then got to see the lights glowing when it got dark.

Candles Outside a Sainted Grave. They Grew Exponentially by the Time we Left

The scene was unbelievably beautiful. It was impossible to capture it realistically on camera. Everywhere you turned there were flowers, candles and families. It was a surprisingly festive scene. The ambience was light, and joyful, not somber or sad. People were laughing, smiling and very affectionate towards one another. 

Old Graves

It was a surprisingly spiritual experience, even though I didn't go to mass. It was like being surrounded by good energy and the candles created a physical heat as you walked by so there was a warmth that surrounded you even as the sun began to set.

Candles Outside the Main Church

After lighting candles at William's family grave, we walked around the cemetery and just looked at all the beautiful old graves. Some are so old, it was impossible to tell whose grave they marked. We then spent some time outside the main church with the crowd and watched as the grouping of candles grew and grew by the minute. 

The Candles After Dark

I wish there was a way to capture the how the cemetery looked after dark. It was like it was filled with little fairy lights. It was a lovely way to spend the evening.

The Cemetery Ablaze