Travel / Traveling within Poland into my destination city - Lublin (from Warsaw airport) [43]

Farop,

It will not be as bad as you think. Bus 175 is good, or you can go to the taxi queue outside (don't accept offers inside the airport). There are many reliable companies that can get you to the main train station. If you are really uncomfortable with the whole thing, I can meet you at the ariport, take you to the train station, and get you on your way. How you get back, will be your problem. But I think you will see that it is not very difficult.

Or, just look for young people (under 30) and ask them for help as you go...

Hope you enjoy you trip.

Travel / Traveling within Poland into my destination city - Lublin (from Warsaw airport) [43]


How much time do you have between when you arrive and when you need to be in Lublin? I realize if this is business related you may be getting stressed about it, but if your schedule is not tight, just take a deep breath and enjoy it. As long as you are not too uptight and can smile (but not too much or in a creepy way) you will do fine. Your English language skills will be enough to get you by. As I said, just ask young people for help if needed. Offer stands. If i am in town, and you still feel you need help, let me know. I'd be happy to show you that getting around in Poland is not that bad...

Life / Is 10500 monthly is enough for a family to live in Warsaw Poland [136]

As a single guy, you should easily be able to save 5kpln/month on that salary and still live very well. I work from home (outside of Warsaw as a VOIP sw/dev) and make about 10k net. You will have no problem here not speaking English but I recommend you start with an intensive course of Polish for foreigners ASAP. You will enjoy it. Perhaps your company can also pay for the language lessons. If you are open minded and enjoy different things, you will be glad you took the job. I've been here for several years (the first 4 in Warsaw) so if you have any specific questions, let me know.

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]

We pay extra to get fresh (non-factory produced = no stamps) from our local village store. Not always available, but we try. I don't think they ever stay in the store more than a day, they are in such high demand. Better taste, visibly better yoke color, etc.

Anyway, issue will be a non-issue for us next year because wife gave me the go ahed to get our own chickens next year. Probably start with just 6-10 to get a feel for how to take care of them. Everything will be instantly consumed so we don't have to worry about spoilage or refrigeration issues. She is also thinking about getting a couple of geese.

Law / Are European Union Funds available for people wanting to start a new business? I'm based in Poland. [16]

Maybe it is the usual - who you know. My wife has several friends who all started a 'business' and got 20,000PLN with the only stipiulation that they had to maintain the business for 1 year. Loan did not have to be repaid. She is applying for her brother to start his 'business'. He is 60 year old, unemployed. If EU still has money for Poland in next 5 year cycle, I may have to start a 'business' too.

Study / POLA Language Course - how is it? [3]

Check out iko.com.pl. I enjoyed it many years ago. They are focused on conversation, minimal grammar. Seem to offer lots of outside activities (cooking/eating/movies). Have fun!

Work / Prospects for Finding a Job Teaching English in Poland or Elsewhere in Europe [17]

Actually, I don't find anything wrong with the suggestions offered by DominicB. The teaching opportunity in the larger cities has passed. I would loved to have been asked by an American software firm to open a branch office in Poland and move here still getting paid at US wages. I did some conversational English instruction for a few years, and it helped fill the gap. And I enjoyed it. But, I would recommend CELTA. Teaching groups English of any age, requires some additional training. One-on-one you can get away with if you are competent and open minded.

If you like to teach and are ready to move to some place off the beaten path and you have some reserve funds, it can work!

Why don't you want to stay (if I may ask) in the greatest country in the world?

Law / Urgently need somewhere in Poland to stay - short-term government assistance? [17]

Do you have any relatives here that you could stay with for a while?

Work / Suggestions for starting a business in Poland ( I have 50/60,000 USD ) [59]

Are you interested in any kind of partnership arrangement? I am thinking about turning some land I own (50KM north of Warsaw) into a track for dirt-bikes/quads. Rentals, camping, long term investment. We also have a house available near the property to use while developing the business. Need to find out first if Gmina will allow it (zoning) and contact a good lawyer about limiting liabilities. I used to ride dirt-bikes when I was younger.

Life / Canadian Moving to Poznan, Poland - what to bring over, areas to avoid, school for a child. [54]

I bought a transformer before we moved to Poland so my wife could continue to use her juicer and so far, no problems. TV, just but one here.

Work / Salaries in corporations vs elsewhere in Poland; interview procedures [8]

I don't see anything wrong with offering to come in at a lower rate if they agree to a review in 3-6 months. I have done that for my last 2 Software Dev jobs in Poland. I am old for the industry so I basically had to prove in the first 3 months I could contribute. I'm not financially strapped so I could afford to work for a lesser salary for a few months until they felt comfortable. If you are confident in your skills and abilities give it a shot. It seems like a lot of places will hire you for a 3 month trial period anyway, which IMHO is actually not a bad idea for both parties. They get to see what you can do and you get to find out if you actually like to work there.

Real Estate / House for rent - cost per month in Poland (Wroclaw). Affluent neighborhoods? [7]

If you are budgeting $1200/month just for housing in Wroclaw, you should be ok. Not sure if it will be high-end, but certainly comfortable and safe. I lived there for 1 year in a company paid apartment, and to be honest, I never felt 'unsafe'. I guess there are places you could go at certain times of the night that might not be safe, but that is your choice.

Real Estate / Wroclaw....good parts? Any "affluent, quaint European, suburb" areas here? [14]

Tonyd, are you serious? Suburbs in America suck. Please stay where you are. By the way, have you checked out 'death by gun stats' worldwide recently? Try thinking outside the box for a few seconds. What is this obsession with crime? If you can afford $1200/month for housing alone, you will be living like a king here in Poland.

Travel / What to do with six hours to spend in Wrocław? [5]

If you only have 6 hrs, just hit the rynek area and perhaps the islands. Botanical garden is one of my favorites but probably too early in the year. It will be interesting to hear your observations about what has changed. I hope the weather will be nice for your trip. I worked there for 4 years and kind of fell in love with the place.

Work / I'm retired teacher, age 69 - I want to teach English in Poland voluntarily, in return for Polish language [18]

Do you have enough funds to support yourself for a period of time while you build up clients? If so, you could get your own company established while you are taking Polish lessons and slowly build you client list. The benefit of starting your own company - first 2 years ZUS (social, medical) costs are substantially less (in my case, from what I recall 254PLN for first 2 years, after that 900+). I would also suggest if you do come over to get a good accountant ASAP. I pay about 60 PLN/month for this service - money well spent, believe me.

If this is what you want to do, and you have some funds available to give it a go, go for it. Note: I am assuming that you are in relatively good health.

Work / Poland IT jobs websites? [22]

What type of development? I assume working remotely?