UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


Same in Poland, most pubs use Prymat ready made spices and "pomysl na". Even Magda Gessler promotes it.

You can argue until you are blue in the face that Polish food in the home is better than food in the UK. But, until restaurants in Poland embrace it, it won't compare. I can go to my Mum's or Grandma's house in Glasgow and get great food, but I can get as good a food in restaurants in Glasgow. The same can not be said about Poland.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


Not in the budget of someone living/working in Poland. They do have it on menus as a novelty, but Pork and Chicken rule in Poland...even in the city. If you don't see that, you either don't live here or you are earning far too much (if the latter, I accept donations).

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


As mentioned in my comment, I get the idea behind it and I like it. I was just having fun with the stampy stamp nature of Poland!

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

I completely get the idea behind it, but you can't lie...they love a good stamp in Poland. Every form you fill in and every office you go to...stamp stamp stamp. It's a wonder every government official doesn't have carpal tunnel!

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

HAHAHAHAHA, Polish beaurocracy at it's finest, nothing's real until it has a stamp!

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


I heard that, even on your own land, if you cut down a tree you need to plant a new on in it's place?


That's true, however we do have a beer garden culture during our brief summers, which is kind of similar. Sitting outside, reading the paper, albeit with a beer instead of a coffee. This is something that Poland and the UK share :)

Food / Where can I find good coffee and Cuban cigars in Stalowa Wola area? [10]


If they are flying back to the States is this not a pretty risky item to be bringing in the luggage?

Also, do you really get better coffee here than over the pond? In Italy I can imagine, but is it that much cheaper to buy it in Poland than it is in the USA? I always think coffee is really expensive here.

Travel / Collection of dress codes in Poland - what to wear? [95]

You will find most occaisions are pretty casual, and even in most workplaces the dress code is smart casual at the strictest. Wear whatever you are comfortable in because it will look much less forced and more natural.

UK, Ireland / Holding a British passport. Married a Polish woman. Applying for Polish passport? [21]

I have to ask the OP one question and that is, why? A UK passport is the most useable passport in the world while a Polish passport is around 21 in useability. Is the OP possibly confusing the passport with the ID card?

Food / Clotted cream - where I can buy it in Wroclaw? [9]

Smurf, you are right, UHT is terrible and so uncommon in the UK. But it's still pretty standard in most family homes in Poland and also commmercial places!

Life / Rydze - mushroom hunting in Poland - Help I need to find these suckers!!! [16]


Exactly, I would reccommend that anyone picking up wild mushrooms sticks with things that are very easily recognisible and, if venturing for more treats, take someone experienced with you. The people you see out in Poland picking mushrooms have the benefit of generations of advice on what to pick and what not to. You don't want to munch down to a delicious smelling dinner only to be making friends with the toilet bowl an hour later (or worse).

Life / Which sim card to buy in Poland? [30]

I have a play sim card and then I just go to play24 and you can get unlimited 3G for 30 days for 10zl. The package also includes free calls and texts to other play mobiles (you can get extra add ons to cover other networks). I put in 50zl which does me fine for 3 months, 30zl for 3 internet packages and 20 zl incase I need to text back to the UK (but I rarely do that now with iMessage and facebook messenger).

Unfortunately that only applies to 3G though.

Life / Children's pocket money rate in Poland. [10]

It's been a while, but I used to get £5 a week, but only on the condition that I did my share of housework around the house. Looking back on it, I probably spent about 5 hours a week doing dishes and other cleaning for £5...I should have started a union with my brother and gone on strike for more.

Work / English in Polish kindergarten - methods and games. [5]

Peppa Pig?

Love / Left Poland when young, did I leave half my heart? [7]


This is really good advice, depending the size of your house and the rent you could get from it you could have a great time in Poland without having to work too much, because rent in Candian Dollars would translate well to earnings in Poland.

Life / Men's Barber shop in Krakow ? [6]

I personally have never found a decent barber shop here in Kraków, I saw on the morning news that there is a proper barber opening in Wroclaw soon and already one in Warsaw. However most men I know either go to a salon or a regular Fryzier. Quite different from what you might be used to as it's a lot of old women just doing basic cuts, but a short back and sides is no problem and only ever run me about 17zl (20 with a tip).

There will no doubt be more soon because of the influx of hipsters who will need good barbers to keep their moustaches tip top!

Travel / Mobile Play Kiosk locations - Krakow [3]

Straight off the train from the airport, Galeria Krakówska, walk in from the train station, take your first left and it's on the right hand side. Most staff in the Galeria can speak English and you will have a micro sim in about 30 seconds (as long as there's no queue). As them for a leaflet about data charges and top up your phone, then text the code to number on the leaflet and boom...within 20 minutes you have unlimited data for 30 days for all of 10zl!

[The text message you get back will say it will be active in 24 hours, it's never taken more than 20 mins for me]

Food / Cabbage and Noodles of Poland - Golabki? [30]


Very much so, such a simple dish, so easy to make, and so tasty. Infact, even when you buy it pre made, it's pretty good.

Life / Are there any prescriptions / medications for adult ADHD in Poland? [12]

I have a friend from Canada who tried to do that and the doctor said that it doesn't mean anything and she would have to be examined here and treated as they see fit. This was in both private healthcare facilities and NFZ.

Life / Are there any prescriptions / medications for adult ADHD in Poland? [12]

I think you will find it very very hard to find anyone to prescribe anything for ADHD in Poland. From what I have heard from North American friends is that they are much more likely to prescribe treatments instead. Getting something like adderall is like like getting a free pass to the cocaine clinic.

Language / kilka vs troche ? [12]

Think of it as much and many in English, Kilka relates to things you can count and troche more to things you can't. That has always been my interpritaion.

Language / Is ę and ń always pronounced the same? [11]

Would I be right in saying that the ę when at the end of a word is a carry over from olden days when it was fully pronounced, but nowadays it just has the sound of a regular e. Kinda like how in some dialects and in the past you can really hear a difference between ch and h in a word, but in day to day speak you would struggle to tell. I was originally told that ch had a sound as in the Scottish "Loch". However a number of people, including my teacher, have said that it sounds overpronounced to a native.

Life / Poland no Unemployment benefits after paying taxes for 20 years [41]


So, roughly 600,000PLN a year for 20 years. That's a total of 12,000,000PLN. You are saying that after earning that much, he really needed to go on the dole in Poland and there was no savings? To most Polish people that's more than even a lottery win and they would happily live their lives never working again. What the hell was this guy spending on?

ZUS doesn't work and doesn't support the people like it should, but it's the same in the UK. Would this guy have been happier going back to the UK and getting £76 a week?

Real Estate / What does a traditional apartment in Poland look like? [8]

While in certain cities the old fashioned flats are really nice, they come with a whole host of problems. They cost a fortune to heat due to poor insulation and those high ceilings you like. Also, unless they have been very well refurbished you could be in for a lot of trouble with leaks, damp and various other maintenance problems, you can make sure maintenance is covered by the owner in the contract, but it's a real pain. Also sound insulation is not always very good and so you can hear people going up and down stairs late at night and early in the morning.

I have stayed in old and new flats in Kraków and I would very much reccommend the new ones. Perhaps they may be "soulless" to the OP, but home is what you make it, and it's easier to do that when your house is warm and dry.

Another thing to note, a lot of the old buildings are close to the city centre, this brings up rental costs almost exponentially. Newer builds are often more out of the city and so costs are more competitive. Also much easier to give your flat some character if you have a few extra Zloty in your pocket.

UK, Ireland / Would life in the UK be very hard for a 17 yr old Polish girl? Advice needed please [33]

Perhaps you could try to find a job that includes accommodation? I know when I moved back to the UK and didn't have much cash I used Dee Cooper and found something within a couple of days. You need to be flexible, and often in rural locations, but it's a good way of getting a foothold in the UK and then you can save for a couple of months and get a flat in a town and a job somewhere more desirable. In the place I ended up, I stayed for 2 years because I got on so well with the people I worked with. I would probably still be there if I didn't have to go and get married!

Travel / Trips around Wrocław and in Lower Silesia region [11]


I am aware of that, however, being Scottish, the Highlands are North and the lowlands are South. I also got confused in New Zealand when the Highlands are in the far south of the country.

Travel / Trips around Wrocław and in Lower Silesia region [11]

*mildly off topic*

I found it interesting that Lower Silesia is further North than Silesia...

Classifieds / English cuisine week in Lidl shops in Poland [203]


This is very true for almost all cheeses you can buy in the supermarket, as they cater to a much larger audience and it would be stupid to alienate a growing group of consumers. However if you head to a cheese shop then a huge number of them will still contain animal rennet. I am not to fussed about the rennet issue, but I can't say I can tell a huge amount of difference between a really good cheese made with rennet and ones using vegitarian alternatives.

Life / Public Transport Woes in Poland [11]

From this morning's trip to work, why oh why do schools taking kids to the cinema demand to use standard public buses to transport an entire classfull of screaming brats during rush hour??