Who has moved to Poland in the last year? Swap stories.

I always really liked the way in London people leave furniture outside with a note saying "take me" good old fashioned recycling.
By the way does anyone know the Polish word for recycling?

One way is to understand that the answer can be to live NOW. We cannot change the past and the future is not here yet. NOW is where it is at. I am old enough to have lost parents and a brother and can tell you that watching the future is too late. Live NOW.

But do so in a quality way, and be aware of the outcomes of your actions on everything. What I mean is we all can make or ignore decisions all the time. I believe one should conciously make the best decision you can for a quality outcome.

It is easier to do what is expected, but largely I have rejected that and make my own decisions on things that are important to me. Hence I changed my life completely, leaving Australia and a well paid corporate job to do something what is more useful to real people and satisfying to me. There was a price for this of course.

I am really enjoying my new life in Poland. For example, the fact that roads are poor, means cyclists are safer. In Australia we have great roads and cyclists are despised by car drivers. The fact that Poland is not generally tourist friendly (in terms of signage, use of English etc) is great for people like me who live here. It means the "great unwashed" tourists are only in places I try to avoid.

Life in Poland or anywhere else becomes better if you make these concious decisions. It isn't the easy, popular or quick option, but I would encourage you to stop at each majior decision, think and choose your path. It may or may not work out, but it is YOUR path. Decide not for ego, but for the right thing to do. It is harder than it sounds.

Let go of the outcome and enjoy (your chosen) journey. Anyway, enough of the philosophy. It takes time (and mistakes and experience) to be wise and as the years go by, I am learning how little I really know.

It's a great world.

Well I cant really complain. I am from the US and cant stand the place but after living in Asia for some time I find Poland a nice in between place to be. The work opportunities are abundant, the people I deal with in my work are polite and relaxed, after 6 months I was able to get my "green card". I was lucky to find an affordable flat across from a terrific park. The cost of living is easily half the US, there are nice bike paths to be had, the weather lately has been perfect, the girls are beautiful and nice if not a bit off in their dyed hair and fashion sense. They show the EU Cup live on national tv. Lots of nice parks and cafes and some very interesting history to be had as well. What I like is that since its only been 15 years since freedom from communism people with "new" money can still remember how it was. I fear for the next generation of American wannabes however. Anyhow its not where you are its who you are.

There's an old Chinese parable about a monk travelling on foot who encounters a fellow traveller coming from the village he is heading to. The traveller asks the monk about how the people in the last village he visited were towards him. The monk replied with a question asking the traveller the same question. The traveller said that the people were unfriendly, inhospitable and downright rude. The monk then told him to expect the same.

Happy trails........ Murdo.

That is also along the lines of a saying in the working world: Be careful of the A55 you kick today, it may be the A55 you kiss tomorrow.

Hi hu_man - I arrived in Poland to start a new job in Warsaw on 10th June

Hi, sorry for the late reply....

so how are you finding things??

you settled in ok, are you still here ;)

I had a Polish friend in the UK who was given council accomodation. When she was moving out she took everything, light fittings, bulbs, toilet roll holder, door stoppers, handles etc. The council found her and got everything back! I think that was an extreme case (as it was a property belonging to the town) but it is normal practice in Poland to leave a sold property "naked".

It's not a normal practice, but rather a question of agreement. That's why you hire lawyers when you buy properties, to make sure there is a clear understanding as to what stays and what goes. Such agreements do include mentions of light fixtures.

This practice is not unique to Poland. The same here in Canada and the US, where my lawyer told me about a guy who, before the closing date, took doors out of the house he sold.

Hi dcchris,
I have a few questions about your move to Poland if you don't mind. Are you in Warsaw or another city? You mentioned that you could get your work permit in 6 months. Did you just move there with some savings and then get a job? Are you teaching English? What other kinds of jobs are there for US citizens?

I have a lot of other questions if you or anyone might be able to answer:
If you move there, what is the process of becoming a citizen and is there any state retirement you can draw from as a senior citizen? Is there a national health care program and how are the services?

I am a US cit and I've been to Russia and loved it, and I visited Warsaw for a short visit for work and absolutely loved it, the art, the people the atmosphere ( a nice in-between as someone else on the forum said). My husband is an Iranian-American (US citizen for 30 years) and a bit older than me and his family is in the Netherlands. We don't want to move to the Netherlands, but I would love to be in Poland and I think my husband would really like it as well. The US is so expensive to live and retire in and with the medical care costs, I don't see how we can do it. We would like to find a better alternative, where my husband can actually retire and not have to do physical labor forever (he is a flooring contractor for 30 years with no retirement). We wouldn't mind dual citizenship. Mainly we'd need to make a plan for how to get over there and a job for me. I have a graduate degree in Int'l Policy Studies, but I know moving to a new country is like starting all over! How can I research jobs and what is open to US citizens? Can you really make it on wages as an English teacher to support a family? If you know Polish, can you really make it in to other sectors?

Thanks very much I appreciate your advice.

Hellol HU-MAN. This i my very first time on this site. Mostly just spending time raeding and watching. But you Hu-man did gret my attention as I C U popping up everywhere I click. Nice to b an active oy, but I have not yet registered ONE SINGLE POSITIVE phrase about anything or anybody delivered by you.

Have U ever heard the saying: ' If I have nothing good to say, I rather stay silent'. ?
Just think about it.
Regards,

If I have nothing good to say, I rather stay silent'.

and yet you don't follow it yourself. Curious.

Hi Prince Sobieski! My first time here and just reading, watching and keeping my distance, But really liked what U said. ... Always too much bickering between Poles.

All the best 2 U! regards > perfidia

funny that, i havent posted much latley???

and only a couple of my posts were rude, id like to know what ur reading...

Hi Hu_Man. I am reading you and others. As said before > it was my first time here, so read just about every entry 4 months back. And U pop up all the time.

Never meant to insult/upset anybody; just was a bit taken back by some of your comments.
But, everybody has right to their opinions, maybe I am a bit out of touch as living on the other side of the globe. All the best!

Dear Hueg > I actually do follow the principle of being polite.
I have been silently reading and watching whatever is happening here. Finally,responded to 2 persons who did get my attention - with the most respect.

It was more question than an argument > certainty not a 'judgment'.
So, relax Hueg, U r doing exactly what I meant; U people get too fired up about nothing.
That's how the wars get started. And we do not want it, no? LOL
Regards

Well, I've been here a year. Gone through all the stress of arranging a wedding here - for the benefit of my husbands' grandmother, who never bothered to show up, claiming she was too ill (but my rellies, who are genuinely sick managed to travel from the UK). Being left broke by unscrupulous companies who forget to pay their staff for months on end. Being stranded in places because the buses are so awful they can't even make it out of the garage behind the bus station without breaking down (or it taking 7 hours to do a 65km journey). Not being able to get a bank account because I can't get my karta pobytu (a little tip for people:- while mBank may only need a passport as ID to open an account, so far I have waited 3 months for them to sort out the paperwork and still no joy... however Pekao need passport and your karta pobytu, PESEL only required if you have one). I also can't get my NIP because I can't get the karta pobytu. I can't get my katra pobytu because there are about 15 people registered as owning the property I live in and they all need to confirm I live there with their permission - not an easy task as several of them live abroad and are not in contact with the family, 1 is dead and another isn't speaking to the rest of the family.

However, after spending all my life living in London, it is such a refreshing change and I wouldn't want to go back - at least to live.

Now if I could just get to grips with the language.

Everybody, who is legally working have NFZ health insurence, which isn't great but not terrible either...

I arrived about two months ago. Seems fine so far. Sure there is the every day pain in the ass things, but no more than anywhere else and less than where I'm from. I work from home and get paid in USD so I haven't had the stress of finding a job. Learning the language (Ten pies jest biały), dealing with the horrible voice-over guy on TV. Working on my greencard. Eating pierogies, drinking "turkish" coffee. Going on walks much to the amusement of my neighbors. Realizing that "c" is pronounced "ts" and still have no idea what the "a" with the little dangle is all about. Spending time in my girl's village. Homesick as ****. It's as good as I make it I suppose.

All in all I like it so far, other that the ********* hollering outside right now. Apparently Zagłębie Lubin is the best...from what I can tell.

Im still here things have changed though
i never thought they would so much

but still its all good

anyone else just moved here??

Not sure i belong on this thread...but here goes...I am a Brit who moved to Poland and bought an old run down farm here...i have been here five years now....and the farm is still run down...but its home...and i love it....

To cheer all you folks who moved to Poland up

That's a nice poster, Bart. Denied entry to heaven for bureaucratic ineptitude.

Hi,

I'm German and living in Poland now over four years.

Like all around the world, there are things I like very much, and things I don't like.

But when I'm coming home I feel at home!

Just one god thing for me, I can work most time in my home office, sometimes I have to travel to customers but the money I earn is coming from Germany, Switzerland, Austria...

My wife is studying in Wrocław, we live in Zgrozelec nearby the German boarder. For me it also was a nice experience to learn a complete different language from zero.

Didn't he say? He bribes them


:)

Just check out the whole Andrzej Mleczko's gallery. His drawings are hilarious.

The milkman (Mleczko) did good. B4 anybody jumps on me, this is used by Scots. The boy done good, for example.

I moved here about 2 months ago to come work for an international company and so far I must say I like it, it's a change to my country of origin (Belgium) but I really feel at home here, nice food, cool clubs, only thing that bothers me from time to time is getting things done by official institutions like city hall, car registration, etc...

I Just arrived last week in Bukovina ...Still in the haze of Phase One, but liking it so far and just found this forum. Strugling with the language and finding a job any advice would be most gratefully recieved !

After tolerating rude people for a year. I have now changed tack. I have begun hitting people who are rude. This works fantastically as I immediately feel better and the rude person immediately becomes much more polite and apologetic.

I am adjusting quite well and the most exciting thing is I am beginning to speak half decent polish and understand the majority of things spoken around me.

cool .. serious.. i am really starting to get the language it took me a long time.. i work in a company where we all speak english so its easy but i really am starting to get it :)

i hope you are enjoying yourself as much as i am..