Spidermen Scale The Planty
They may not have been wearing electric blue space costumes with twirling red capes, but the gallant citizens who took to the trees of Old Cracow over the last few days could rival any stuntmen for dare-devil antics.
For those who were surprized to look out their window and see grown men scaling the heights of mature chestnuts and beeches, the explanation is, however, quite mundane. Keeping the Planty gardens (the gracious belt of parkland that encircles the Old Town) in ship-shape condition requires constant care and attention. Each year the branches of the trees have to be cut back to maintain a sense of harmony. Naturally, it's much easier to trim the branches once all the leaves have fallen, but this also engenders a high likelihood of snow and ice. It was this tricky prospect that the climbers faced last week, although the snow cleared up after the first few days.
Cracow Life thinks that super-hero costumes would in fact be worthy of consideration for Cracow's tree-climbing buccaneers, as a job that entails such hair-raising shenanigans merits an exciting costume. We'll be sure to raise the matter with the Mayor at the first possible occasion, alongside the pressing matter of warm Father Christmas costumes for Cracow's pigeons. And let's settle this once and for all, they're not 'rats with wings', they're enchanted knights, just as any respectable Cracovian grandma will tell you.