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My experience in Poland (Poznan) as a student who recently moved from Syria


jon357  73 | 22779  
20 Sep 2013 /  #31
Remember that Poland has a much lower birthrate than your home country, so crowds in the street will seem older than you're used to. I notice the opposite when I'm in the Middle East - everyone looks young.
Manuonferrum  
20 Sep 2013 /  #32
Remember that Poland has a much lower birthrate than your home country, so crowds in the street will seem older than you're used to.

Also Polish governments are waging the war against Poles for much longer than one generation. It shows.
Paulina  16 | 4384  
21 Sep 2013 /  #34
I found it funny how pedestrians stop at traffic light even if there are no cars at sight

I do that too xD :P

syriacs are christians who still speak the language of jesus

Wow, cool.

No. Aramaic is still spoken by hundreds of thousands of people, albeit in a different form to the language that Jesus spoke.

True.

Some people in Poland look older than they are because of the high alcohol consumption, stress and cigarrete smoking, which ages a body faster.

That's some people, not many enough to make such an impression on dany. I think jon357 is correct, European societies in general are getting older. Plus many Poles emigrated abroad (older people are less likely to emigrate).

Anyway, welcome to Poland, dany! :D Keep us posted and good luck with everything :)
Wroclaw Boy  
21 Sep 2013 /  #35
I'm 3/8 syriac (original people of syria) 1/8 croatian,1/8 armenian, 1/4 polish and 1/8 greek ,and i'm coming to poland ,

Uhh ha 100% human - just as I suspected.

I've noticed that the number of old people is too high ,I also felt that people who are in their 30s -40s are rarely seen ,don't know why ... maybe they're working .

If you travel to some of the smaller towns with populations between around 1000 - 5000, its common to see hardly anybody of typical working age. They're all over here in the UK.

WB you have no idea :P I think europeans will have a heart attack once they see how syrians and arabs drive .

I lived in Kuwait for a couple of years when i was growing up and i went to Egypt for holiday a few years ago so i have some idea. Its simply a normality there isnt it, everybody drives like a lunatic so you too drive like a lunatic. Adjust to the environment and all that.... they use horns as a "get the fcuk out of my way" code, bit of an issue of they're over taking a deaf person...
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
21 Sep 2013 /  #36
Poznan is really a fantastic city ,I visited yesterday lots of interesting sights :
like Park Cytadela ,I really liked the old tanks and planes ,for some reason it's forbidden to go near the planes ,I think I spotted a german me 262 nazi plane (the first jet plane ) ,but I couldn't get close . Most tanks were russian tanks ,one tank didn't have a sign ,so i'm not sure what it is ,I hope it was a german tiger tank (i'm a fan of WW2 weapons )

also visited fara Poznańska really nice cathedral .

I also visited Archcathedral Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul ,also awesome ,but there was something weird ,I saw people putting roses near a statue (just outside the basilica ) when I approached ,I recognized the pope john paul the second ,it seems that people really like him here .

We also waited near the old town hall till 12 o'clock ,I was waiting something spectacular to happen ,but to be honest ,I was disappointed :P seeing all these tourists waiting for something to happen ,when the town hall's clock reached 12 o'clock 2 mechanical goats came out and they headbutted each other ,It was symbolic I guess ,but not that spectacular .

I saw a person driving maniacally (even for syrian standards ) ,he was passing vehicles by driving on the sidewalks and was drifting .

everybody drives like a lunatic so you too drive like a lunatic. Adjust to the environment and all that

exactly ,when I got my driver's license I was like " ok ,let me be an example and drive safely " but after driving for a while ,you just can't XD it's impossible

dany_moussalli: I'm 3/8 syriac (original people of syria) 1/8 croatian,1/8 armenian, 1/4 polish and 1/8 greek ,and i'm coming to poland ,
Uhh ha 100% human - just as I suspected.

uh yeah I posted this to **** off people who are afraid that foreigners are "invading " poland .
jon357  73 | 22779  
21 Sep 2013 /  #37
like Park Cytadela ,I really liked the old tanks and planes

Did you see the British and Russian War Cemeteries (by the steps up to the Cytadela from the city centre side)?. The difference between the two cemeteries really stands out.

I was waiting something spectacular to happen ,but to be honest ,I was disappointed :P seeing all these tourists waiting for something to happen

Remember it's hundreds of years old - it was probably a technological miracle when it was new.

I saw a person driving maniacally (even for syrian standards ) ,he was passing vehicles by driving on the sidewalks and was drifting .

Normal for Poland.

You have to (really have to) get the bus out to Swarzędz to see the Outdoor Beekeeping Museum.

This is the place: muzeum-szreniawa.pl/?q=pl/node/80
Paulina  16 | 4384  
21 Sep 2013 /  #38
Yeah, I saw it on Youtube and to be honest I didn't get it why it's supposed to be such a "tourist attraction" lol

Remember it's hundreds of years old - it was probably a technological miracle when it was new.

Ah, OK.

Normal for Poland.

Um... o_O No, it isn't.
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
21 Sep 2013 /  #39
Did you see the British and Russian War Cemeteries (by the steps up to the Cytadela from the city centre side)?. The difference between the two cemeteries really stands out.

yeah I did ,but didn't know this info ,thanks :)

Remember it's hundreds of years old

really ? I thought it was new (because most of the old town of poznan is renovated )
Monitor  13 | 1810  
21 Sep 2013 /  #40
because most of the old town of poznan is renovated

Renovated doesn't mean new.
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
21 Sep 2013 /  #41
yep here it is ,the reputation of drunk people that i've heard of .. saw a drunk woman today with a dog ,she was crossing the road and was nearly hit by a car ,I entered biedronka and after I bought my stuff ,I saw her outside ,she was kicking her dog ,it was a disturbing sight ...

I was charged 0.5 zloty for buying a plastic bag at carrefour ,I'm actually happy because I read somewhere before on this forum that it's for the environment ,so i'll probably start bringing my bag :) .

Renovated doesn't mean new.

well yeah ,but it's doesn't mean old either ,it's between the two . It depends on the renovation type actually .
Paulina  16 | 4384  
21 Sep 2013 /  #42
From what I've read now on the net both the goats and the mechanism were exchanged (interchanged?) for new ones over the years, so obviously they aren't the original ones from 1551. So only the idea is hundreds of years old :)

it was a disturbing sight ...

And it's going to be worse, dany... Brace yourself, here's the whole truth about Polish seasons:
kwejk.pl/obrazek/1913048
xD

Drink some vodka, maybe then you'll survive (but not too much! lol) ;)
Wroclaw Boy  
21 Sep 2013 /  #43
I entered biedronka

Ahh the old Biedronka, takes a bashing that shop but i used to shop there quite a bit.

,I saw her outside ,she was kicking her dog ,it was a disturbing sight

I saw something similar to that in Poland, my wife was crying for ages afterwards.
Paulina  16 | 4384  
21 Sep 2013 /  #44
I saw something similar to that in Poland, my wife was crying for ages afterwards.

Did you and your wife reprimand the person hurting the dog?
BBman  - | 343  
22 Sep 2013 /  #45
Danny, just curious. What city are you from in Syria? And how badly damaged is it? What does daily life look like there now?

minimal resistance ? am I supposed to fight in a war that I don't belong to ?

Playing devil's advocate, it is your country. Do you not feel any need to help your side win the war?
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
22 Sep 2013 /  #46
Drink some vodka

oh I will :P it's my favorite alcohol drink :)

Danny, just curious. What city are you from in Syria? And how badly damaged is it? What does daily life look like there now?

Damascus (the capital ) ,the outskirts are damaged (not all of them ,depends on the area of fighting ) but thankfully ,nothing ancient was damaged in damascus ,couldn't say the same about aleppo :(

Daily life is normal in damascus ,people keep living like there's nothing (even after a suicide bomb attack or random mortars hitting damascus ) ,streets used to be more crowded in the night (1-2 am ) ,now it's crowded until 8-9 pm lol in poland this is normal :P in syria it's not

Do you not feel any need to help your side win the war?

What if both sides are wrong ? of course I see one side as a bigger threat to syria ,but they're both wrong ,I support diplomatic solutions .

And it's going to be worse, dany... Brace yourself, here's the whole truth about Polish seasons

oh trust me ,i've noticed -_- ,september is still hot back in syria ,and here it's cold ,well it's not irritating cold ,it's nice ,but it will get worse :/ we're still in september ..
Polsyr  6 | 758  
22 Sep 2013 /  #47
I must go to the syrian embassy in warsaw to register myself

Why?

Since you are a Polish citizen (regardless of your other citizenship) in Poland you are considered a Polish citizen and nothing other than a Polish citizen in the eyes of the government and the law.
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
22 Sep 2013 /  #48
Why?

because I need the syrian government to know that i'm living abroad (If I live abroad for 5 years ,I can pay a fee to not go to the military ) ,also I need to take a paper from the university (that i'm attending the university ) to the syrian embassy so that I can postpone my military service .
Paulina  16 | 4384  
22 Sep 2013 /  #49
oh I will :P it's my favorite alcohol drink :)

OK, then you'll do just fine in Poland lol ;)

oh trust me ,i've noticed -_- ,september is still hot back in syria ,and here it's cold ,well it's not irritating cold ,it's nice ,but it will get worse :/ we're still in september ..

Yeah, and they're not heating in my neighbourhood yet :/ Btw, dany, if they're not heating in your dormitory yet (and I don't know if you have any need for radiators in Syria :P, so a piece of advice, just in case), turn the radiators to the maximum heating power because when the heating period will start they will be filled with water and they have to be turned to the max.
f stop  24 | 2493  
22 Sep 2013 /  #50
Good thread, Dany.
Don't get bogged down by posters with their own agenda.
You have more readers here because of your fresh perspective on Poland.
Keep it going!
jon357  73 | 22779  
22 Sep 2013 /  #51
Agreed 100%

a piece of advice, just in case), turn the radiators to the maximum heating power because when the heating period will start they will be filled with water and they have to be turned to the max.

Let's hope they're well maintained in his building - I've lived in places where the system hasn't been flushed out for decades and the heat never reaches above the second floor!
rybnik  18 | 1444  
22 Sep 2013 /  #52
Love this thread Dany!
I was once in your position and remember vividly to this day my experiences.
It's fun for me to re-live vicariously through you those moments
Please continue with your chronicle
Paulina  16 | 4384  
22 Sep 2013 /  #53
Let's hope they're well maintained in his building - I've lived in places where the system hasn't been flushed out for decades and the heat never reaches above the second floor!

Oh, yes, jon357, let's hope he won't be so unlucky as you were! We wouldn't like dany to freeze to death, would we :)
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
22 Sep 2013 /  #54
if they're not heating in your dormitory yet

they're heating it pretty good . I get hot actually and open the windows a little bit .

and I don't know if you have any need for radiators in Syria

lol we have cold winters and hot summers and warm springs ,you on the other hand :P *check the picture you posted here * :P

Good thread, Dany.
Don't get bogged down by posters with their own agenda.
You have more readers here because of your fresh perspective on Poland.
Keep it going!

thank you :)

Let's hope they're well maintained in his building - I've lived in places where the system hasn't been flushed out for decades and the heat never reaches above the second floor!

My dorms are modern and very well equipped ,and I live on the first floor anyway :P

Love this thread Dany!
I was once in your position and remember vividly to this day my experiences.
It's fun for me to re-live vicariously through you those moments
Please continue with your chronicle

ok ,thank you :)
Paulina  16 | 4384  
22 Sep 2013 /  #55
they're heating it pretty good . I get hot actually and open the windows a little bit .

So they started heating already, lucky you :) Then turn the heating down when it's too hot ;)

lol we have cold winters and hot summers and warm springs ,you on the other hand :P *check the picture you posted here * :P

Well, I've been only to Europe so I don't know how it's like a bit more to the South :P So you have radiators in Syria? :P

My dorms are modern and very well equipped ,and I live on the first floor anyway :P

;)
OP dany_moussalli  13 | 259  
22 Sep 2013 /  #56
So you have radiators in Syria?

of course we do ,it rains a lot in the winter ,but we only have 1 week of snow per year (in damascus ) ,but yes it's cold ...
milky  13 | 1656  
22 Sep 2013 /  #57
I found it funny how pedestrians stop at traffic light even if there are no cars at sight

Yea I find this very strange. compared to drivers who obey to rules.
Paulina  16 | 4384  
22 Sep 2013 /  #58
of course we do ,it rains a lot in the winter ,but we only have 1 week of snow per year (in damascus ) ,but yes it's cold ...

Ah, OK. One learns something new everyday ;)
Monitor  13 | 1810  
22 Sep 2013 /  #59
Well, I've been only to Europe so I don't know how it's like a bit more to the South :P So you have radiators in Syria? :P

Yeah for example in Guangdong, China it's normal to have just above 10C during winter and no central heating. Just people stay in jackets in school or offices.
Paulina  16 | 4384  
22 Sep 2013 /  #60
Yeah, 10°C is survivable (we get around 8°C at night here in my city nowadays) but it's definitely not a comfortable temperature for my taste, since I'm such a zmarzluch :P I want my central heating... lol ;/

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