Like the video if you enjoyed! Contact me/consultations: whereswes.setmore.com Instagram: @wesleezy weslythomasmusic@gmail.com Please consider donating to support the channel! Venmo: @Wesleezy Paypal: paypal.me/wesleezy Patreon: patreon.com/wesleezy If you want access to my unfiltered deleted videos, consider subscribing to my Patreon! You'll get access to a lot of my older deleted videos plus be able to contact me and ask me questions.
As Pole, we aren’t rude, we’re just honest, in states you like to talk bs to each other, we don’t like. About being friendly, you land in Kraków, Polish capital of tourism, people there are tired of foreigners don’t even attempt to speak Polish. If you want to live here long term, language is required, in other situations you will end in foreigners closed communities.
I don't completely agree with this. Every time I go abroad I have a strange encounter with the fact that people are very nice, and when I come back to Poland the impression is exactly the opposite. We generally have serious faces, we want everything quickly and we get irritated just as quickly. Generally, for people from another culture this is the definition of being rude. We may not notice it because it has been constantly changing and improving in recent years, but we are still a long way from being cheerful on the outside.
@@Pawel_Mrozek i literaly hope that we as a nation will never get cheerful on the outside, typical western openness is the most important thing that i do not travel west ever for 20 last years and every time i had to ii was very relieved when i got back here and away from western friendliness
Poles do not value shallow and superficial relationships, so they do not look for such shallow friendships or some applause, and for me this is an advantage. I think that similar features of Poles can be seen even in music, where Poles are weak at making empty commercial music and are best at making some more sophisticated music that has something more meaningful to say.
@@kafelka7832 Many of the best Polish songs have an emotional message that is also strongly based on words, and without understanding them and the context they lose much of their power of communication.
@@kafelka7832 There must be some national trait in this, because I honestly can't name even one good commercial song, and I could name dozens of good songs with an emotional message in history of polish music
Calling us rude is a stretch and a half. I can understand this point of view coming from an American but just because we are not overly friendly and giddy all the time doesn't mean we are rude. Polish people are a bit on the stern side, but I'd take rough honesty over fake friendliness.
Not only that, I'm from North Macedonia and on another video they said that everyone is rude and direct on the balkans and eastern europe and i was like....what?! Absolute garbage comment honestly.
That's why it is so depressing. No snow anymore. There is nothing more magical than walking early in the morning to school or work when fresh snow is sparkling in the morning sun :)
I lived in a few countries, including the US, and I don't think people are more rude here than anywhere else. You just need to speak the language to understand the culture. Try to go to the US without speaking any English. Dou you really believe everyone will adore you then? I speak Polish in Poland and in my opinion people are very friendly.
Actually US is a bit different in this situation. Due to the multicultural immigration base system for US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand you can kind of have your own group community as long as you speak 1 of the language below which is English, Chinese, Spanish, Arabic or Russian.
Exactly! I was walking up to Morskie Oko and some Polish guy just randomly started talking to me (in Polish). Within 30 minutes I knew everything about his family, he knew everything about mine, we bad talked about things that Westerners would shy away from in their wokeness, and had a frank talk like I have never had in 40 years living in the US except with the closest of friends. I have talks like that with taxi drivers, old women in small shops, basically nearly anyone. Poles are more open to talk about anything, but you need to know Polish because we know our language is tough, but it means if you learned it, you deserve a deeper dive into our soul, and then we don't care what ethnic background you have.
A little geographical note. You said, comparing different food and speaking earlier about Polish food, that Georgian food is excellent "in this region". Well, there is over 2,500 km between Warsaw and Tbilisi (the capital of Georgia); for comparison: the distance between Warsaw and Paris is about 1,300 km, and Madrid: about 2,200 km. In Europe, you only need to travel 200 - 300 km and you already have a different cuisine, even within the same country. The concept of "region" here is quite narrow. By the way: the distance between Beijing and Tokyo is approximately 2,100 km. Would you agree when someone eating in Tokyo talked "about the region" and also meant Beijing or Shanghai (about 1,700 km from Tokyo) food?
What never stops to amaze me is how great opinion on Poland most people who visited/lived here have, and how common anti-Polish hate is posted by others. It may be the difference between posts/videos and comments, but I truly have seen such a nasty, xenophobic hate, as we were wrong kind of European/white, second class citizens from people who never have put their foot in Poland nor ever tried to learn something and understand us..
I first speak Polish to everyone in Poland (no matter the race). Only after they want to switch to English, I do switch. I think this is most respectful: I don’t assume they’re not Polish based on their race.
We took in a lot of Vietnamese refugees during the Vietnam war and they integrated very well. I think this is why everyone thinks Asians speak Polish is because there's 3rd and 4th generation of Vietnamese in Poland who speak fluent Polish.
As to Poles starting conversation in Polish - it's not a rule - you simply look like a typical Pole of Vietnamese origin. If i saw you on the street I would just assume you're "just another Piotrek Nguyen" born and raised here ;).
Lots of generalisation, based on not much experience and being in one place only. It's a big country and there are regional differences as well. Find it quite unfair and a bit rude. Funnily, many Ukrainians say in their videos that Poles are more nice and polite than they are. It just shows how generalisation is not valid. Wish you all the best.
So true! Ukrainians often emphasise how surprised they are by Polish openness comparing to their own intimidation, distrust or even hostility to strangers. I find Wes' observations plainly superficial and based on haphazard facts.
As a Pole, winter was almost my favourite season. However the last years it's too warm with almost no snow just mud. So i am devoid of my favourite season ;).
Nah, I agree. We're super grumpy and a bit cold, so no worder we come off as rude to foreigners, who are used to more open approach to strangers. We're painfully honest, which sometimes does make us just plain rude. We lack tact.
Point of view depends on the point of sitting. What is the norm in your culture does not have to be the norm elsewhere. As for the language, I believe that if you are visiting another country, it is in good taste and respect to know at least the basic polite phrases of that language. However, if you decide to live in another country, learning and speaking the language is mandatory. Language is the core of every culture, if you decide to live in another country, you adopt its rules and language, not the other way around, otherwise you will always feel alienated and unwanted . If you can't do this, you should seriously consider changing a place that will suit you better and be closer to your heart.
Dude, never consider moving to Denmark then 😂 I used to complain about the weather in Poland too, but ever since I’ve been living in Denmark, I really miss my country. In Poland, at least you have four seasons. Here we have two: autumn and spring. And the weather is basically: I wonder if it’s going to be windier today or if it will rain. So it’s something like in the UK.
It's because we have a very large Far East Asian community here - Vietnamese, Laotian, etc. And those ppl are extremely included in their own world (sauce). But Poles - at least tolerate them - but I'd move further to the saying we like them! They're quiet, not bother anyone, they work hard for their living. I do really like Asian people! I love their food, I love thieir shops and stalls, I love their culture, I ... do just like them!
Getting into actual friendships require dedication. We are not into one time meets, I guess, but once You show dedication, we're pretty welcoming. I think.
10:16 just wanted to say that a lot of citys here may seem smaller because of how much of turism there is, but they're as big as other citys, just more business orientated then turistic, also great video keep it up
I like your perspective on Poles and culture. I have traveled to most European countries and personally I don't see much difference between people in this part of Europe (plus I work with many Ukrainians). Perhaps your trip to Ukraine was very nice or the people you met influenced your opinion. I think your seasonal depression was due to the fact that you immediately moved from a hot to a cold climate. I had similar experiences returning from vacation. Overall, if you experience the entire 4 seasons a year and get used to it, it's not that bad. You just have to adapt to a different lifestyle. You can ride a bike in spring, swim in summer, hike in autumn, and ski in winter :)
Zostałem wychowany w tolerancji do nacji które były w przeszłości "nękane" przez inne nacje. Tacy jesteśmy w większości. Kochamy Azjatów którzy wyzwolili się z kajdanów narzuconych przez inne nacje.
Point 2 is totally true, even for Polish people. I came back after many years of living abroad and struggled to build relationships with people. People form cliques and are not open to adding new members to their circles.
I moved to colombia because of u and loved it there until i decided to explore other parts of latam and man i hope u visit buenos aires and santiago chile i think u will love it here currently spliting my time between argentina and colombia 6month each. Cant wait to see when u get back to latam should host a meetup with subscribers
So true about Polish culture to be negative and argue. I am firstborn generation American, and at our family gatherings, it always starts off with the adults around the table having a good time, laughing, singing, etc. But as time passed, there would be arguments, raised voices, etc. But then they would go back to laughing and singing. I miss those days, they kept our family together.
I watched a couple of your videos. I must say that it gets on my nerves when you repeat: "Poles are mean", "Poles are not nice". There is a difference between being unapproachable and being mean. People from North America (not only the US but also Canada) are (at least from the outside) much more optimistic and open to other people - so they very often misinterpret the rather indifferent face of Poles. In our culture, smiling aimlessly or puzzling people on the street often indicates that someone has mental problems. Many Central, Eastern and Northern European nations behave similarly. What you say is simply offensive and comes from a very one-sided point of view. It's like a European would go to America and say: Americans are stupid, because they laugh without reason (in Poland we say: "laugh like a fool to cheese"). Greetings
also your statement doesnt really make sense because you say the opposite of what ukrainians say about themselves. ive noticed that americans often stereotype quickly and without much thought, and i was raised there
I think you're taking it too personally. From what I understand, he was trying to say it respectfully, not in a way that Polish people are intentionally rude. Just that our way of being may be perceived that way by foreigners. And I think it's true, if you're used to people who are overly friendly, Poles may seem standoffish. Of course, you have to consider that it's just cultural differences, but it doesn't mean you're not allowed to feel that way.
@@WheresWes, but "mean" is mean. Poles can seem unapproachable, cold or whatever, I might even after with rude, but mean has a very negative connotation and it's not true.
It's true that sometimes is hard to spot a person that cheks if you have a ticket on a bus, but it's not that common to meet them... I live in Wrocław for over 30 years (my whole life) and I met them like a handful of times. But yeah, it's not worth the risk imo.
Actually, Poznań is considered one of the bigger cities in Poland, even though it's slightly smaller than Kraków or Wrocław, it's surprising that you used it as an example of a smaller city with lesser knowledge of English language (especially since the English Philology on Adam Mickiewicz University is supposed to be one of the best, if not THE best, in Poland) 😅 Toruń or Bydgoszcz might be better examples, and evdn more so - smaller cities like Koszalin, Zielona Góra etc. (with around 100 000 people or less).
Im Brazilan and im thinking about go study in Poland but i have a fear of how ppl would behave at me, how would they judge me considering my Brazilian eay out going. Idk if they would like that
Hi, I just found your channel, quite interesting to hear about Poland from the perspective of a foreigner, good work, keep it up! You kind of tricked me into writing the comment, why have you put Edinburgh Castle at 4:20 when you make a video about Poland? :D
You can definitely live for less than $1000 a month in Poland. My living expenses are close to $500, with anything beyond that I can spend on luxury or save up. Now, it helps that I sort of inherited an apartment, but if that weren't the case, I could still keep my living expenses around $500 by living in a shared apartment or even sharing a room with other people. You should also keep in mind that yes, in big cities rent is expensive, buying an apartment is expensive, and buying a home is extremely expensive. But no one forces you to live in a big city. Small cities are much cheaper, and in remote villages you can expect to pay a third of what it would cost you to live in a big city. The tricky part is having that AND a good job. But there are many solutions to that problem e.g. working remotely, or accepting long commutes. Or if you're a pensioner.
We need some time to open up to others, but it doesn't depend on their nationality, cuz we're like this with Poles too. Lol Imo, what you said about polish people isn't accurate, but you can speak only from your experience, so... Being fake nice is a waste of time and energy. We prefer to be real. Btw- Poznań isn't a small city and there are MANY foreign students there. 🙂
Some of my fellow Poles try to find justification for the rude and cold interactions. But as someone who grew up in Poland, studied in the US, and lived in Austria, I also find many kinds of behavior so prevalent in Poland to be so unreasonable and unacceptable. It’s also quite judgmental and unfair to assume that politeness (e.g. smiles) is necessarily fake and insincere. Good manners can be followed by a bad person, but they are good manners nonetheless. In the US, I felt more like at home when it comes to how strangers approach each other and how respectful people are in conversations. Of course, I’m talking about proportions here (e.g. how common certain behavior is or if it’s bad, then how bad), as you can find all sorts of good and bad examples in all countries. But the proportions matter for how you feel in a country. Let’s learn some good virtues from the foreigners rather than justify our vices.
People in Warsaw have to be some of the flakiest I ever seen. lol Not sure if it’s the big city thing but they would make plans then just cancel last minute. Totally agree on the 2nd point. I went out of my way to try making friends but Poles don’t seem to have any interest on hanging out with friends outside of their circle or their own clicks. Not really saying right or wrong just an observation. Which is why I am probably gonna leave soon. Just not a place for me.
Nice video :) I returned to Poland after a total of 13 years in Western Europe and I have similar observations about those countries and nationalities, I will tell something that an Italian once told me in Tuscany while he was on holiday from the UK: "If you want Italians to understand you, stick with Italians emigrants". And he was absolutely right, there is a Polish saying "travel educates" and as an emigrant your horizons are somewhat broadened - with experiences, languages, cultures...people who spend their lives in one place, in some sense, live in an information bubble. All the best and :)
4:40 Well, you see, from a Polish perspective, I can tell you that my husband (also Polish) and I consider Ukrainians to be two-faced people and we don`t base our opinion on prejudices, but on real-life examples. Yes, it is unfair to judge an entire nationality based on the example of a few individuals, but in the case of Poland and our history, judging others is a matter of self-survival. If I had to trust one person who was German, Ukrainian, Russian... I would choose a Russian because I know what to expect from them. Personally, I don't mind our national gloominess and the thick skin under which we hide our sensitive interior. I feel good in such an environment where I don't have to try to impress people I don't know, look for friendship where I don't need it. We only react when the situation really requires it and we can count on each other... apart from that, we try not to get in each other's way and not to disturb each other... unless we have extreme views (either from the left or right) and we don`t want to shout them out (especially after drinking alcohol). Yes, we miss activities in the community for the community... all because of the Russians and their communism who imposed force on us... now we are afraid to do something together so as not to imitate the system with which we want to have as little in common as possible. That's why I appreciate and respect people of different nationalities who want to face our thick shell and want to get to know us from the inside ;). I think only you can crack our shell, we can't do it alone.
Looks like ruder than average depending on the race. I’m southern european so they are very nice to me. Specially girls. But I heard Canada has fake niceness and are not actually warm as us southern europeans. Canada / US is very shallow and hook up oriented. I love Polish girls, they have strong family values and don’t like hook ups
Hi man! Doubt you reading comments for video you posted 7m ago, but... :D I agree with almost everything what you said, but... I'm not sure if this pop up in comment, but whenever I approach someone looking not like typical Polish individual, I speak Polish to him/her to not be disrespectful if they can speak Polish and put super effort to learn it or they have mixed (or just foreign) parents and Polish is their native. I already been there and felt sooo stupid, I judged such person by how he/she looked. If you read it by any chance, let me know what is on view on this!
it is not true that from the age of 18 a Ukrainian woman aims to find a husband and start a family, I am Ukrainian and I am 29 years old and most of my friends are not yet married and do not have children yet. Maybe 30 years ago it was like this but last 30 years young people trying to get good job, earn money and buy some place to live first before starting a family
I think number 2 is right, however you could use better words to describe it Lol. I think you said you are from LA, which from my experience people there are very outgoing and very open, so if you will have the same approach towards a Polish person who is not used to it, at first it can be off-putting. I don't know you well, and i don't know how much are you influenced by Chinese/ and American culture, i will give you an example from my subjective perspective -i don't feel comfortable when a stranger calls me Bro, which in America this is something normal that you can use in a daily conversation, i think in China this is also very common, when you can refer to a stranger as 哥哥 or 姐姐. However as you said, i think your comparsion to coconut is correct, when you manage to break that shell you will truly get a good friend. Number 3. Is pretty much the standard for homogenous countries and every other country that is not super multicultural. Poland is one of those countries, sure with every year more and more foreigners live here and interact with the locals, but still for the most part, this country is mostly all Poles. Even though i'm Polish if i would go to China people there would immediately think that i'm either American or Russian. It's nothing wrong to have such assumption, because that's what those people are used to the most.
Zobaczyłam początek filmu i tak sobie myślę: wiesz, co to "fałszywy przyjaciel"? Polak, jeżeli jest przyjacielem, to nim jest bez wg na okoliczności. Ludzie okazujący pryjaźń nie zawsze są przjaciółmi "na dobre i na złe".
Once winters in Poland got so much snow cars would be buried under, the snow sometimes could reach your ankles, plus the weather could be -40 outside or even colder that was winter, true the sun could be gone but recently the winters have gotten less and less harsh thanks to Global Warming once it would have been safer to stay indoors.
What a strange thing to say about assuming your race because they speak Polish to you in Poland. It is normal around the world for locals to use the local language in conservation unless you tell them you don't understand it. Is it different in the USA?
still easier to befriend us than the Swiss :D we are aware our language is difficult so we don't expect foreigners to speak it. Switzerland? the german speaking part writes in 'official' german and speaks in local dialect and it's like trying to understand a drunken scottish sailor. Hard. And you are EXPECTED to speak local lingo.
Chauvinism and xenophobia are two phenomena that go hand in hand in Poland. I lived in Wroclaw for 7 months and I have never seen so much open hostility towards foreigners. Just to be clear, I have lived in different European countries: Austria (Vienna 2017), Germany (Dresden 2019), and the Czech Republic (Prague 2020) and have been as a tourist to Italy, France, Belgium, and the UK, others. It is really clean and really safe here in Poland. That's where the advantages end. In a shopping center, at a kayak rental place, in a movie theater, you can easily be told that they do not understand English and “Pan powinien mówić po polsku, ponieważ jest w Polsce” (You must speak polish, as you are in Poland now). I have seen a similar attitude towards different nations only once in my life in the Czech Republic (I was actually told that the Czechs perceive the Germans and the British as their equals, or even admire them), while in Poland I faced it every month. So I had the opportunity to notice there, when speaking English without an accent, that as long as a person thinks you are British, they will openly try to help you (like on reception in sports gym), but as soon as they find out that you are Ukrainian, they will not even look at you and will ignore you or pretend that they have more important things to do. My brother who lives as a refugee here had his car scrached with a key twice (as the car is on UA plates). Prices are not that low AT ALL. In Italy and Spain, even in France, food prices are lower than in Poland. Prices for imported goods are unrealistically high because authorities subsidize local producers and, on the contrary, cover everything non-Polish with excise taxes. On every pack of sausage it is written that it is made in Poland, and I think for a reason, because this is the only reason a Pole can buy something. The service is terrible - people who work in the service sector are lazy and rude. Honestly, at some point you just don't understand what you are paying for. Poland is a country where prices for services can easily be equal to Central European ones, but the quality of life is Eastern European. I still can't forget the Biedronka and Lidl counters where products are not laid out on shelves, but simply kept on pallets in plastic packages from wholesale warehouses. If you need it, you just tear it open and take it out yourself. And just try to tell a Pole that Poland is Eastern Europe - they are embarassed of it)
Lidl is a discount chain, that’s why they don’t hire staff to stock shelves. That’s literally their business model. I don’t know why anyone would find that weird as similar discount shops exist all over the world, it’s not just a Polish thing.
If you travel by communal transport more than 20 time a month buy subscription from MPK single use tickets are expansive as fuck, and if You pay your income tax in Krakow you will have a discount
Krakow is not a good place to live. It's just easy to find a job there. But generally it's better to go to a slightly smaller, less touristy city and then you'll get to know the real Poland. And if you can also speak some Polish, you'll see that many Poles will smile because they'll know that you care.
So i think i have some explanation for curious ones about being rude, language with foreigners and race judging. So i think its not being rude its restraint imo because it works the same way between 2 polish people if we dont know each other its less like friendly i think its cultural thing but we are helpfull imo. Language with foreigners i think its true what u said but also its hit or miss if i see someone speaks polish but not good enough i ask if they speak english i aint saying my english is incredible but i think its good enough to help. And about taht race judgign imo its european thing especially in our part of europe we have stereotypes abotu every neigbour and vice versa and older people tend to be even more like that because of the past and iron curtain and stuff liek that i wotn say its racist because as i said its kind of european thing i heard simillar things about poles when i was abroad but i was the foreigner one. People tend tto dig to deep when it comes to that or trying to find problems where there is no problem.
Polish POV on using polish language - i don't want to assume that you don't know my language/you're not Polish just because you look like a foreigner (in whatever way), but just a word from you and I switch to english, no problem ;)
Wow, so many comments from Polish people proving your point. Listen guys, he specifically said that he doesn't mean we're bad people, but we're just cold in first encounters and that's absolutely true. Poles here saying that they prefer our rudeness to American fake friendliness is weird. What's a "fake friendliness"? You're not gonna be friends with everyone and that's totally normal. What's so harmful in being optimistic and happy? I much rather see a smiley person on let's say public transportation who's like "oh, how are you? It's a beautiful morning, right?" than a grumpy, sad person who looks at me weirdly just because I asked if they can scan my ticket. Do you know what I mean? It just makes the day a bit better. And a lot of you proceed here with insults that he doesn't know polish so he shouldn't even make comments on Poland, that he's an entitled American. Like what? You're all proving his point.
If you think Polish people are mean and rude, I highly encourage you to come to UK and try NOT using British native language ;) you will quickly find out that people in Poland are nice and cheerful when dealing with you, using foreign (to them) language in their own country ;)
Lets count: - 123 years of partitions - 21 years of freedom (II RP) - 6 years WW II - 49 years communist government - 34 years of freedom I think we just dont trust people we dont know, becouse of huge experience when wrong word could destroy you and your family. Of course you can call it rude, but we wont spout nonsense to strangers. When you ask you will get answer or help. Free of chargers and free of unnecessary gossip and fake friendliness. 😂
We are also no that much educated in far East culture as we should be, as a whole. That's why if You're Asian, You are Chinese or Japanese. Vietnamese if You drive a restaurant. It's not racism, is's just a lack of specific knowledge. Please don't be mad about this, You're tolerated equally, and equally ok (at least in Warsaw ^^")
Hey bro, could you observe or see how brown guys are doing in Poland when it comes to dating? I always wanted to go to Poland and consider it for it next year.
If you want to learn anything of value about Poland I would rather recommend you to visit such Yutube channels like Love my Poland or Vigo's Dad. These guys really have a grasp of what living in Poland is about and do provide much more than very shallow and inaccurate idea of Poland. In here for example I can easily tell that owner of this channel didn't manage to break the ice with Polish and Ukrainian people to really get to the core of their cultures. What he sees as superiority of Ukrainian politness for example has a lot to do with soviet union enhanced concept of " a useful idiot", very common in Ukraine and very little to do with American-like politness actually. While Poland unlike US is not limited by the rules of "political corectness" and historically has 3 main core values: unrestricted freedom of free speech and self- expression in public, respect for human life ( core value on which Polish legal system is based and which is embedded in Polish constitution) and family ( in this regard Polish people are a bit like Italians)- we have "family" as highest value declared by all Polish people in every generation from year to year in any public rsearch. Even our Vitenamese immigrants and their kids born in Poland convergate with us on this one. As for dating, due to all those values and legal restrictions coming from them- one of the most restrcitve anti-abortion laws in EU and in the world, males cannot expect from Polish women being reckless in terms of their sexual life. So yes, we do not have "high body count" in here from past relationships, women in here rather seek long term relationships, Polish women usually educate till university level so typicall age for settleing down is higher than some countries and corellates with 1-2 years after university graduation. And we have Bologne system so we have two cycles of university studies- 3 years long BA and 2 years long MA studies. We cannot repeat the first year of studies, so many women focus on education during 1-2 year of their BA and by observing stats but also lifes of my fellow students I can tell that we tend to form first serious relationships around first half of last year of those 3 years long BA studies. So women at such age are probably still free and with low "body count". As for the body count itself it's not high for females. Recent research shows for majority of Polish women it's not higher than 4 males and only for not more 25% of total population it may be somewhat higher. And yes, in Poland when it comes to getting invloved in short-lived relationships women are cerful since getting abortion is unnlikely whereas over 1 million of males avoids paying child support to their own children, so we can say women in here are aware of it and try to make responsible choices. As fo dating across the cultures- yes, Polsih women date males from all countries and cultures. Polish people learn foreign languages well and easily and are curious about the world. To blend in with Polish people well it's good to know a bit about Polish history, Polish language and Western Catholic religion in version that is know from Europe, countries like Spain, Italy, France etc. Not mistake it with American mutations. It's very European version of western catholic traditons. And in terms ov value system and ways of thinking it does influecne even these Polish people who consider themselves to be "atheists". How we know it? If we confront such people with people from Protestant countries of people like Ukrainians who were more influenced by orthodox catholic church the differences are clearly visible. As for knowing about all 3: Polish language, Western Catholic culture, Polish history- a person knowing all 3 can be easily and very warmly accepted into Polish society as if this person was born in Poland. And in here comes a stark difference between how non-racist Polish culture is if comapred for example to French culture. All our stats for over 80 years say that if someone learn about Polish language, Western Catholic culture, Polish history such person is no longer " a foreginer" to us anymore but one of us. Regardless of their own race, ethnicity, roots, religion etc.
Bro Im happy u had a good experience in Ukraine but u went there on one trip and in reality you know nothing. In terms of politeness, happiness, open mindedness and general vibe in Ukraine compared to Poland u need to divide it by two. Go on few dates with Polish and Ukrainian girls and you will see the difference. Regarding the cold approach Polish girls are one of the most approachable in Europe if u compare to Western Europe and Nordics but of course it’s not Colombia. My advice would be to grow some balls and just approach and see for yourself, there is tons of guys doing that.
In America when the weather was extremely bad I used a grocery delivery service a handful of times. A few times some of the groceries weren't delivered. Like I'd go through the groceries and an item or two missing.
There's so much BS here I'm not gonna dig deep in it... But just: people _pay attention on race_ but they address you in Polish... so like despite of race 🤔
Huh? Rough winters? There hasn't been a real winter for years. I would say summers are terrible (and they are getting worse year by year) :-P It feels like I'm gonna melt. Also, I am surprised you say we have good public transport in Cracow. Maybe it's just my bad luck but my buses are always late and crowded and it's hard to find a connection without a change (which are quite troublesome because of delays). Anyway, your videos are great. I really like to know how foreigners see our country :-D
Like the video if you enjoyed!
Contact me/consultations: whereswes.setmore.com
Instagram: @wesleezy
weslythomasmusic@gmail.com
Please consider donating to support the channel!
Venmo: @Wesleezy
Paypal: paypal.me/wesleezy
Patreon: patreon.com/wesleezy
If you want access to my unfiltered deleted videos, consider subscribing to my Patreon!
You'll get access to a lot of my older deleted videos plus be able to contact me and ask me questions.
Polish Winter now is a piece of cake due to global warming. It used to be way worse, with a lot of slow and -20 C temperatures.
As Pole, we aren’t rude, we’re just honest, in states you like to talk bs to each other, we don’t like.
About being friendly, you land in Kraków, Polish capital of tourism, people there are tired of foreigners don’t even attempt to speak Polish.
If you want to live here long term, language is required, in other situations you will end in foreigners closed communities.
I don't completely agree with this. Every time I go abroad I have a strange encounter with the fact that people are very nice, and when I come back to Poland the impression is exactly the opposite. We generally have serious faces, we want everything quickly and we get irritated just as quickly. Generally, for people from another culture this is the definition of being rude. We may not notice it because it has been constantly changing and improving in recent years, but we are still a long way from being cheerful on the outside.
@@Pawel_Mrozek i literaly hope that we as a nation will never get cheerful on the outside, typical western openness is the most important thing that i do not travel west ever for 20 last years and every time i had to ii was very relieved when i got back here and away from western friendliness
@@Pawel_Mrozek Not a Pole but just look at the Tadeusz guy. I mean revelling grumpiness and disgruntlment. You have a long way to go.
@@vmoses1979 Maybe but I am not sure if we even trying
Same, learning basic words is that hard?
Poles do not value shallow and superficial relationships, so they do not look for such shallow friendships or some applause, and for me this is an advantage. I think that similar features of Poles can be seen even in music, where Poles are weak at making empty commercial music and are best at making some more sophisticated music that has something more meaningful to say.
But then it automatically becomes untranslatable, so it stay known only in Poland
@@Marsend as Polish I can confirm this, many songs/comedies in Poland are very hermetic
@@kafelka7832 Many of the best Polish songs have an emotional message that is also strongly based on words, and without understanding them and the context they lose much of their power of communication.
@@kafelka7832 There must be some national trait in this, because I honestly can't name even one good commercial song, and I could name dozens of good songs with an emotional message in history of polish music
@@shooroombooroom6185 many good polish songs are references to life in Poland or polish history, same with movies and other stuff
Calling us rude is a stretch and a half. I can understand this point of view coming from an American but just because we are not overly friendly and giddy all the time doesn't mean we are rude. Polish people are a bit on the stern side, but I'd take rough honesty over fake friendliness.
We are rude. But you can be rude and frendly at the same time.
We're direct and it comes across as rude. I deal with Americans online everyday and that's really the main reason conflicts arise :)
@@Darlf_Sevillove it! Love those comments about “being rude”. You’re spot on! Rude & friendly 👏
yeah thought he was American, says it all.
Not only that, I'm from North Macedonia and on another video they said that everyone is rude and direct on the balkans and eastern europe and i was like....what?! Absolute garbage comment honestly.
Rough winters? Man, our winters used to be much colder 15-20-25 years ago :) Temperatures minus 25-30C staying with us for weeks was a standard :)
I miss those days
That's why it is so depressing. No snow anymore. There is nothing more magical than walking early in the morning to school or work when fresh snow is sparkling in the morning sun :)
@@annazann7236 Yeah, I miss the real winter so much...
That's true, no more true winters and barely any snow nowadays
I miss those days when driving in 40cm snow was only a minor inconvenience
I lived in a few countries, including the US, and I don't think people are more rude here than anywhere else. You just need to speak the language to understand the culture. Try to go to the US without speaking any English. Dou you really believe everyone will adore you then? I speak Polish in Poland and in my opinion people are very friendly.
Actually US is a bit different in this situation. Due to the multicultural immigration base system for US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand you can kind of have your own group community as long as you speak 1 of the language below which is English, Chinese, Spanish, Arabic or Russian.
Exactly! I was walking up to Morskie Oko and some Polish guy just randomly started talking to me (in Polish). Within 30 minutes I knew everything about his family, he knew everything about mine, we bad talked about things that Westerners would shy away from in their wokeness, and had a frank talk like I have never had in 40 years living in the US except with the closest of friends. I have talks like that with taxi drivers, old women in small shops, basically nearly anyone. Poles are more open to talk about anything, but you need to know Polish because we know our language is tough, but it means if you learned it, you deserve a deeper dive into our soul, and then we don't care what ethnic background you have.
A little geographical note. You said, comparing different food and speaking earlier about Polish food, that Georgian food is excellent "in this region". Well, there is over 2,500 km between Warsaw and Tbilisi (the capital of Georgia); for comparison: the distance between Warsaw and Paris is about 1,300 km, and Madrid: about 2,200 km. In Europe, you only need to travel 200 - 300 km and you already have a different cuisine, even within the same country. The concept of "region" here is quite narrow. By the way: the distance between Beijing and Tokyo is approximately 2,100 km. Would you agree when someone eating in Tokyo talked "about the region" and also meant Beijing or Shanghai (about 1,700 km from Tokyo) food?
Thanks!
You’re absolutely correct, and I appreciate your honesty. This video reassured me that I’m not the only one thinking this way.
What never stops to amaze me is how great opinion on Poland most people who visited/lived here have, and how common anti-Polish hate is posted by others. It may be the difference between posts/videos and comments, but I truly have seen such a nasty, xenophobic hate, as we were wrong kind of European/white, second class citizens from people who never have put their foot in Poland nor ever tried to learn something and understand us..
I first speak Polish to everyone in Poland (no matter the race). Only after they want to switch to English, I do switch. I think this is most respectful: I don’t assume they’re not Polish based on their race.
YES!
We took in a lot of Vietnamese refugees during the Vietnam war and they integrated very well. I think this is why everyone thinks Asians speak Polish is because there's 3rd and 4th generation of Vietnamese in Poland who speak fluent Polish.
As to Poles starting conversation in Polish - it's not a rule - you simply look like a typical Pole of Vietnamese origin. If i saw you on the street I would just assume you're "just another Piotrek Nguyen" born and raised here ;).
Lots of generalisation, based on not much experience and being in one place only. It's a big country and there are regional differences as well. Find it quite unfair and a bit rude. Funnily, many Ukrainians say in their videos that Poles are more nice and polite than they are. It just shows how generalisation is not valid. Wish you all the best.
So true! Ukrainians often emphasise how surprised they are by Polish openness comparing to their own intimidation, distrust or even hostility to strangers. I find Wes' observations plainly superficial and based on haphazard facts.
As a Pole, winter was almost my favourite season. However the last years it's too warm with almost no snow just mud. So i am devoid of my favourite season ;).
Nah, I agree. We're super grumpy and a bit cold, so no worder we come off as rude to foreigners, who are used to more open approach to strangers. We're painfully honest, which sometimes does make us just plain rude. We lack tact.
Point of view depends on the point of sitting. What is the norm in your culture does not have to be the norm elsewhere. As for the language, I believe that if you are visiting another country, it is in good taste and respect to know at least the basic polite phrases of that language. However, if you decide to live in another country, learning and speaking the language is mandatory. Language is the core of every culture, if you decide to live in another country, you adopt its rules and language, not the other way around, otherwise you will always feel alienated and unwanted . If you can't do this, you should seriously consider changing a place that will suit you better and be closer to your heart.
Dude, never consider moving to Denmark then 😂 I used to complain about the weather in Poland too, but ever since I’ve been living in Denmark, I really miss my country. In Poland, at least you have four seasons. Here we have two: autumn and spring. And the weather is basically: I wonder if it’s going to be windier today or if it will rain. So it’s something like in the UK.
It's because we have a very large Far East Asian community here - Vietnamese, Laotian, etc. And those ppl are extremely included in their own world (sauce). But Poles - at least tolerate them - but I'd move further to the saying we like them! They're quiet, not bother anyone, they work hard for their living. I do really like Asian people! I love their food, I love thieir shops and stalls, I love their culture, I ... do just like them!
Getting into actual friendships require dedication. We are not into one time meets, I guess, but once You show dedication, we're pretty welcoming. I think.
10:16 just wanted to say that a lot of citys here may seem smaller because of how much of turism there is, but they're as big as other citys, just more business orientated then turistic, also great video keep it up
I like your perspective on Poles and culture. I have traveled to most European countries and personally I don't see much difference between people in this part of Europe (plus I work with many Ukrainians). Perhaps your trip to Ukraine was very nice or the people you met influenced your opinion. I think your seasonal depression was due to the fact that you immediately moved from a hot to a cold climate. I had similar experiences returning from vacation. Overall, if you experience the entire 4 seasons a year and get used to it, it's not that bad. You just have to adapt to a different lifestyle. You can ride a bike in spring, swim in summer, hike in autumn, and ski in winter :)
Zostałem wychowany w tolerancji do nacji które były w przeszłości "nękane" przez inne nacje. Tacy jesteśmy w większości. Kochamy Azjatów którzy wyzwolili się z kajdanów narzuconych przez inne nacje.
I’m polish , I travel alot and i agree with most of you videos about 🇵🇱.
Even some polsih comments are great proof of that 😂
Point 2 is totally true, even for Polish people. I came back after many years of living abroad and struggled to build relationships with people. People form cliques and are not open to adding new members to their circles.
I moved to colombia because of u and loved it there until i decided to explore other parts of latam and man i hope u visit buenos aires and santiago chile i think u will love it here currently spliting my time between argentina and colombia 6month each. Cant wait to see when u get back to latam should host a meetup with subscribers
What are your favorite cities in Latam?
@@Mo_Sofi buenos aires, slavador bahia brazil, Santiago chile, for colombia It's barranquilla love it being between Santa marta and cartagena
@@MRZE506 ok interesting, thanks
Keep up the great content sir🎉😊
So true about Polish culture to be negative and argue. I am firstborn generation American, and at our family gatherings, it always starts off with the adults around the table having a good time, laughing, singing, etc. But as time passed, there would be arguments, raised voices, etc. But then they would go back to laughing and singing. I miss those days, they kept our family together.
I watched a couple of your videos. I must say that it gets on my nerves when you repeat: "Poles are mean", "Poles are not nice". There is a difference between being unapproachable and being mean. People from North America (not only the US but also Canada) are (at least from the outside) much more optimistic and open to other people - so they very often misinterpret the rather indifferent face of Poles. In our culture, smiling aimlessly or puzzling people on the street often indicates that someone has mental problems. Many Central, Eastern and Northern European nations behave similarly. What you say is simply offensive and comes from a very one-sided point of view. It's like a European would go to America and say: Americans are stupid, because they laugh without reason (in Poland we say: "laugh like a fool to cheese"). Greetings
If you look all over social media Polish people make jokes about it themselves. Not saying anything new here.
its one thing to make a joke about yourself, and its another for someone else to repeat it as fact
also your statement doesnt really make sense because you say the opposite of what ukrainians say about themselves.
ive noticed that americans often stereotype quickly and without much thought, and i was raised there
I think you're taking it too personally. From what I understand, he was trying to say it respectfully, not in a way that Polish people are intentionally rude. Just that our way of being may be perceived that way by foreigners. And I think it's true, if you're used to people who are overly friendly, Poles may seem standoffish. Of course, you have to consider that it's just cultural differences, but it doesn't mean you're not allowed to feel that way.
@@WheresWes, but "mean" is mean. Poles can seem unapproachable, cold or whatever, I might even after with rude, but mean has a very negative connotation and it's not true.
It's true that sometimes is hard to spot a person that cheks if you have a ticket on a bus, but it's not that common to meet them... I live in Wrocław for over 30 years (my whole life) and I met them like a handful of times. But yeah, it's not worth the risk imo.
Nice video, You haven't mentioned many Kraków specific venues here. I guess they are mentioned in your other videos
Poland is free for only 35 years that is why we are like coconut 🥥
Actually, Poznań is considered one of the bigger cities in Poland, even though it's slightly smaller than Kraków or Wrocław, it's surprising that you used it as an example of a smaller city with lesser knowledge of English language (especially since the English Philology on Adam Mickiewicz University is supposed to be one of the best, if not THE best, in Poland) 😅 Toruń or Bydgoszcz might be better examples, and evdn more so - smaller cities like Koszalin, Zielona Góra etc. (with around 100 000 people or less).
Im Brazilan and im thinking about go study in Poland but i have a fear of how ppl would behave at me, how would they judge me considering my Brazilian eay out going.
Idk if they would like that
Hi, I just found your channel, quite interesting to hear about Poland from the perspective of a foreigner, good work, keep it up! You kind of tricked me into writing the comment, why have you put Edinburgh Castle at 4:20 when you make a video about Poland? :D
You can definitely live for less than $1000 a month in Poland. My living expenses are close to $500, with anything beyond that I can spend on luxury or save up. Now, it helps that I sort of inherited an apartment, but if that weren't the case, I could still keep my living expenses around $500 by living in a shared apartment or even sharing a room with other people. You should also keep in mind that yes, in big cities rent is expensive, buying an apartment is expensive, and buying a home is extremely expensive. But no one forces you to live in a big city. Small cities are much cheaper, and in remote villages you can expect to pay a third of what it would cost you to live in a big city. The tricky part is having that AND a good job. But there are many solutions to that problem e.g. working remotely, or accepting long commutes. Or if you're a pensioner.
We need some time to open up to others, but it doesn't depend on their nationality, cuz we're like this with Poles too. Lol
Imo, what you said about polish people isn't accurate, but you can speak only from your experience, so...
Being fake nice is a waste of time and energy. We prefer to be real.
Btw- Poznań isn't a small city and there are MANY foreign students there. 🙂
😲 Poland is a great place to start a business! The taxes are good and it's easy to get legalized.
Some of my fellow Poles try to find justification for the rude and cold interactions. But as someone who grew up in Poland, studied in the US, and lived in Austria, I also find many kinds of behavior so prevalent in Poland to be so unreasonable and unacceptable. It’s also quite judgmental and unfair to assume that politeness (e.g. smiles) is necessarily fake and insincere. Good manners can be followed by a bad person, but they are good manners nonetheless. In the US, I felt more like at home when it comes to how strangers approach each other and how respectful people are in conversations. Of course, I’m talking about proportions here (e.g. how common certain behavior is or if it’s bad, then how bad), as you can find all sorts of good and bad examples in all countries. But the proportions matter for how you feel in a country. Let’s learn some good virtues from the foreigners rather than justify our vices.
Oh man, you know more about living in Krakow than I do...
u havent touched an important aspect and that is safeness- how safe it is out there?
Safest country in Europe. U can Google it
as a pole, i think poland is actually pretty safe
@@Roxi_Dragons ty for ur reply!
As a pole i can say it depends, some city districts can be dangerous
„the nature of Polish people to argue and complain” yes
People in Warsaw have to be some of the flakiest I ever seen. lol Not sure if it’s the big city thing but they would make plans then just cancel last minute. Totally agree on the 2nd point. I went out of my way to try making friends but Poles don’t seem to have any interest on hanging out with friends outside of their circle or their own clicks. Not really saying right or wrong just an observation. Which is why I am probably gonna leave soon. Just not a place for me.
Hahah, try hanging out with Koreans, the Japanese or the Chinese.
Unfortunatly well delivery systems are present only in quite big cities. In countrysides and smal towns Glovo or Bolt don't work at all.
Nice video :) I returned to Poland after a total of 13 years in Western Europe and I have similar observations about those countries and nationalities, I will tell something that an Italian once told me in Tuscany while he was on holiday from the UK: "If you want Italians to understand you, stick with Italians emigrants". And he was absolutely right, there is a Polish saying "travel educates" and as an emigrant your horizons are somewhat broadened - with experiences, languages, cultures...people who spend their lives in one place, in some sense, live in an information bubble. All the best and :)
4:40 Well, you see, from a Polish perspective, I can tell you that my husband (also Polish) and I consider Ukrainians to be two-faced people and we don`t base our opinion on prejudices, but on real-life examples. Yes, it is unfair to judge an entire nationality based on the example of a few individuals, but in the case of Poland and our history, judging others is a matter of self-survival. If I had to trust one person who was German, Ukrainian, Russian... I would choose a Russian because I know what to expect from them.
Personally, I don't mind our national gloominess and the thick skin under which we hide our sensitive interior. I feel good in such an environment where I don't have to try to impress people I don't know, look for friendship where I don't need it. We only react when the situation really requires it and we can count on each other... apart from that, we try not to get in each other's way and not to disturb each other... unless we have extreme views (either from the left or right) and we don`t want to shout them out (especially after drinking alcohol). Yes, we miss activities in the community for the community... all because of the Russians and their communism who imposed force on us... now we are afraid to do something together so as not to imitate the system with which we want to have as little in common as possible.
That's why I appreciate and respect people of different nationalities who want to face our thick shell and want to get to know us from the inside ;). I think only you can crack our shell, we can't do it alone.
Fair point, I can see what u mean by the two faced thing.
Looks like ruder than average depending on the race. I’m southern european so they are very nice to me. Specially girls. But I heard Canada has fake niceness and are not actually warm as us southern europeans. Canada / US is very shallow and hook up oriented. I love Polish girls, they have strong family values and don’t like hook ups
Hi man! Doubt you reading comments for video you posted 7m ago, but... :D I agree with almost everything what you said, but... I'm not sure if this pop up in comment, but whenever I approach someone looking not like typical Polish individual, I speak Polish to him/her to not be disrespectful if they can speak Polish and put super effort to learn it or they have mixed (or just foreign) parents and Polish is their native. I already been there and felt sooo stupid, I judged such person by how he/she looked.
If you read it by any chance, let me know what is on view on this!
11:41 i will telly how to say it but i dont know what you say i probobly hard name
it is not true that from the age of 18 a Ukrainian woman aims to find a husband and start a family, I am Ukrainian and I am 29 years old and most of my friends are not yet married and do not have children yet. Maybe 30 years ago it was like this but last 30 years young people trying to get good job, earn money and buy some place to live first before starting a family
I think number 2 is right, however you could use better words to describe it Lol. I think you said you are from LA, which from my experience people there are very outgoing and very open, so if you will have the same approach towards a Polish person who is not used to it, at first it can be off-putting. I don't know you well, and i don't know how much are you influenced by Chinese/ and American culture, i will give you an example from my subjective perspective -i don't feel comfortable when a stranger calls me Bro, which in America this is something normal that you can use in a daily conversation, i think in China this is also very common, when you can refer to a stranger as 哥哥 or 姐姐. However as you said, i think your comparsion to coconut is correct, when you manage to break that shell you will truly get a good friend.
Number 3. Is pretty much the standard for homogenous countries and every other country that is not super multicultural. Poland is one of those countries, sure with every year more and more foreigners live here and interact with the locals, but still for the most part, this country is mostly all Poles. Even though i'm Polish if i would go to China people there would immediately think that i'm either American or Russian. It's nothing wrong to have such assumption, because that's what those people are used to the most.
Zobaczyłam początek filmu i tak sobie myślę: wiesz, co to "fałszywy przyjaciel"? Polak, jeżeli jest przyjacielem, to nim jest bez wg na okoliczności. Ludzie okazujący pryjaźń nie zawsze są przjaciółmi "na dobre i na złe".
To prawda Polacy są lojani
Once winters in Poland got so much snow cars would be buried under, the snow sometimes could reach your ankles, plus the weather could be -40 outside or even colder that was winter, true the sun could be gone but recently the winters have gotten less and less harsh thanks to Global Warming once it would have been safer to stay indoors.
What a strange thing to say about assuming your race because they speak Polish to you in Poland. It is normal around the world for locals to use the local language in conservation unless you tell them you don't understand it. Is it different in the USA?
still easier to befriend us than the Swiss :D we are aware our language is difficult so we don't expect foreigners to speak it. Switzerland? the german speaking part writes in 'official' german and speaks in local dialect and it's like trying to understand a drunken scottish sailor. Hard. And you are EXPECTED to speak local lingo.
Chauvinism and xenophobia are two phenomena that go hand in hand in Poland. I lived in Wroclaw for 7 months and I have never seen so much open hostility towards foreigners.
Just to be clear, I have lived in different European countries: Austria (Vienna 2017), Germany (Dresden 2019), and the Czech Republic (Prague 2020) and have been as a tourist to Italy, France, Belgium, and the UK, others.
It is really clean and really safe here in Poland. That's where the advantages end.
In a shopping center, at a kayak rental place, in a movie theater, you can easily be told that they do not understand English and “Pan powinien mówić po polsku, ponieważ jest w Polsce” (You must speak polish, as you are in Poland now).
I have seen a similar attitude towards different nations only once in my life in the Czech Republic (I was actually told that the Czechs perceive the Germans and the British as their equals, or even admire them), while in Poland I faced it every month.
So I had the opportunity to notice there, when speaking English without an accent, that as long as a person thinks you are British, they will openly try to help you (like on reception in sports gym), but as soon as they find out that you are Ukrainian, they will not even look at you and will ignore you or pretend that they have more important things to do. My brother who lives as a refugee here had his car scrached with a key twice (as the car is on UA plates).
Prices are not that low AT ALL. In Italy and Spain, even in France, food prices are lower than in Poland.
Prices for imported goods are unrealistically high because authorities subsidize local producers and, on the contrary, cover everything non-Polish with excise taxes. On every pack of sausage it is written that it is made in Poland, and I think for a reason, because this is the only reason a Pole can buy something.
The service is terrible - people who work in the service sector are lazy and rude. Honestly, at some point you just don't understand what you are paying for. Poland is a country where prices for services can easily be equal to Central European ones, but the quality of life is Eastern European.
I still can't forget the Biedronka and Lidl counters where products are not laid out on shelves, but simply kept on pallets in plastic packages from wholesale warehouses. If you need it, you just tear it open and take it out yourself.
And just try to tell a Pole that Poland is Eastern Europe - they are embarassed of it)
Lidl is a discount chain, that’s why they don’t hire staff to stock shelves. That’s literally their business model. I don’t know why anyone would find that weird as similar discount shops exist all over the world, it’s not just a Polish thing.
@@patrikvavro1611 carefour, aldi, etc. I haven't seen a single supermarket were they have no such approach. Nothing close in Italy, France, etc
You don't have to care about talking that we Poles love to complain, we can complain that winter are as harsh and long as they used to be
If you travel by communal transport more than 20 time a month buy subscription from MPK single use tickets are expansive as fuck, and if You pay your income tax in Krakow you will have a discount
Very informative as always!
Krakow is not a good place to live. It's just easy to find a job there. But generally it's better to go to a slightly smaller, less touristy city and then you'll get to know the real Poland. And if you can also speak some Polish, you'll see that many Poles will smile because they'll know that you care.
I moved here from U.S
I was never more lonely.
So i think i have some explanation for curious ones about being rude, language with foreigners and race judging. So i think its not being rude its restraint imo because it works the same way between 2 polish people if we dont know each other its less like friendly i think its cultural thing but we are helpfull imo. Language with foreigners i think its true what u said but also its hit or miss if i see someone speaks polish but not good enough i ask if they speak english i aint saying my english is incredible but i think its good enough to help.
And about taht race judgign imo its european thing especially in our part of europe we have stereotypes abotu every neigbour and vice versa and older people tend to be even more like that because of the past and iron curtain and stuff liek that i wotn say its racist because as i said its kind of european thing i heard simillar things about poles when i was abroad but i was the foreigner one. People tend tto dig to deep when it comes to that or trying to find problems where there is no problem.
Hmm Polish language is not useful...I have a feeling you won't stay here for long😅
We will see, if I get into a relationship with a Polish girl I will learn
Polish POV on using polish language - i don't want to assume that you don't know my language/you're not Polish just because you look like a foreigner (in whatever way), but just a word from you and I switch to english, no problem ;)
So what you’re trying to say is that polish people are efficient and don’t let their emotions control their life?
Wow, so many comments from Polish people proving your point.
Listen guys, he specifically said that he doesn't mean we're bad people, but we're just cold in first encounters and that's absolutely true. Poles here saying that they prefer our rudeness to American fake friendliness is weird. What's a "fake friendliness"? You're not gonna be friends with everyone and that's totally normal. What's so harmful in being optimistic and happy? I much rather see a smiley person on let's say public transportation who's like "oh, how are you? It's a beautiful morning, right?" than a grumpy, sad person who looks at me weirdly just because I asked if they can scan my ticket. Do you know what I mean? It just makes the day a bit better.
And a lot of you proceed here with insults that he doesn't know polish so he shouldn't even make comments on Poland, that he's an entitled American. Like what? You're all proving his point.
Everyone here knows English because schools in Poland teach English
If you think Polish people are mean and rude, I highly encourage you to come to UK and try NOT using British native language ;) you will quickly find out that people in Poland are nice and cheerful when dealing with you, using foreign (to them) language in their own country ;)
what would they think of latinas? i’m colombian and puerto rican but born and raised in new york…
neutral, haven't heard anything bad.
As a pole i can say: we do like latinas if they are not too loud 😂 joke, we like Latino style is kind of oppostie to us and we ejnoy it.
Lets count:
- 123 years of partitions
- 21 years of freedom (II RP)
- 6 years WW II
- 49 years communist government
- 34 years of freedom
I think we just dont trust people we dont know, becouse of huge experience when wrong word could destroy you and your family. Of course you can call it rude, but we wont spout nonsense to strangers.
When you ask you will get answer or help. Free of chargers and free of unnecessary gossip and fake friendliness. 😂
Thought of watching your videos but when i check all comments it was like oh no im not gonna watch it ..
good to know something new about my country :) I am so postcommunist
🤣🤣🤣
Nice video thank you
cheers bro, fan of your content as well.
We are also no that much educated in far East culture as we should be, as a whole. That's why if You're Asian, You are Chinese or Japanese. Vietnamese if You drive a restaurant. It's not racism, is's just a lack of specific knowledge. Please don't be mad about this, You're tolerated equally, and equally ok (at least in Warsaw ^^")
Don't compare Poles to Ukrainians until you check the history that shows true relationships!
I wish I had known? 😅😉
no its not, you make friends anywhere.
your friend looks like a good vibe
Poznań isn't small city. Its similar to Wrocław
greetings from Tricity in Poland
'Asian food is superior' - that's it. Close the channel! ;)
oh and complaining is our national sport. If you want to befriend Poles, find out what they dont like and start complaining about it.
poles are rude indeed, handlujcie z tym
Sałatka Jarzynowa
Hey bro, could you observe or see how brown guys are doing in Poland when it comes to dating? I always wanted to go to Poland and consider it for it next year.
they do fine, Polish girls date foreigners of all kinds.
@@WheresWes that awesome, good to hear
If you want to learn anything of value about Poland I would rather recommend you to visit such Yutube channels like Love my Poland or Vigo's Dad. These guys really have a grasp of what living in Poland is about and do provide much more than very shallow and inaccurate idea of Poland. In here for example I can easily tell that owner of this channel didn't manage to break the ice with Polish and Ukrainian people to really get to the core of their cultures. What he sees as superiority of Ukrainian politness for example has a lot to do with soviet union enhanced concept of " a useful idiot", very common in Ukraine and very little to do with American-like politness actually. While Poland unlike US is not limited by the rules of "political corectness" and historically has 3 main core values: unrestricted freedom of free speech and self- expression in public, respect for human life ( core value on which Polish legal system is based and which is embedded in Polish constitution) and family ( in this regard Polish people are a bit like Italians)- we have "family" as highest value declared by all Polish people in every generation from year to year in any public rsearch. Even our Vitenamese immigrants and their kids born in Poland convergate with us on this one. As for dating, due to all those values and legal restrictions coming from them- one of the most restrcitve anti-abortion laws in EU and in the world, males cannot expect from Polish women being reckless in terms of their sexual life. So yes, we do not have "high body count" in here from past relationships, women in here rather seek long term relationships, Polish women usually educate till university level so typicall age for settleing down is higher than some countries and corellates with 1-2 years after university graduation. And we have Bologne system so we have two cycles of university studies- 3 years long BA and 2 years long MA studies. We cannot repeat the first year of studies, so many women focus on education during 1-2 year of their BA and by observing stats but also lifes of my fellow students I can tell that we tend to form first serious relationships around first half of last year of those 3 years long BA studies. So women at such age are probably still free and with low "body count". As for the body count itself it's not high for females. Recent research shows for majority of Polish women it's not higher than 4 males and only for not more 25% of total population it may be somewhat higher. And yes, in Poland when it comes to getting invloved in short-lived relationships women are cerful since getting abortion is unnlikely whereas over 1 million of males avoids paying child support to their own children, so we can say women in here are aware of it and try to make responsible choices. As fo dating across the cultures- yes, Polsih women date males from all countries and cultures. Polish people learn foreign languages well and easily and are curious about the world. To blend in with Polish people well it's good to know a bit about Polish history, Polish language and Western Catholic religion in version that is know from Europe, countries like Spain, Italy, France etc. Not mistake it with American mutations. It's very European version of western catholic traditons. And in terms ov value system and ways of thinking it does influecne even these Polish people who consider themselves to be "atheists". How we know it? If we confront such people with people from Protestant countries of people like Ukrainians who were more influenced by orthodox catholic church the differences are clearly visible. As for knowing about all 3: Polish language, Western Catholic culture, Polish history- a person knowing all 3 can be easily and very warmly accepted into Polish society as if this person was born in Poland. And in here comes a stark difference between how non-racist Polish culture is if comapred for example to French culture. All our stats for over 80 years say that if someone learn about Polish language, Western Catholic culture, Polish history such person is no longer " a foreginer" to us anymore but one of us. Regardless of their own race, ethnicity, roots, religion etc.
@@Mo_Sofi they will open legs for you even if you are hindu or gypsy
Bro Im happy u had a good experience in Ukraine but u went there on one trip and in reality you know nothing. In terms of politeness, happiness, open mindedness and general vibe in Ukraine compared to Poland u need to divide it by two. Go on few dates with Polish and Ukrainian girls and you will see the difference. Regarding the cold approach Polish girls are one of the most approachable in Europe if u compare to Western Europe and Nordics but of course it’s not Colombia. My advice would be to grow some balls and just approach and see for yourself, there is tons of guys doing that.
Good to know
At least Polish and Chinese share many sounds, it shouldn't be so difficult to learn.
Also something I've noticed
I thought you were Uzbek, Kazakh or some other variation of Soviet. You don't give off Cali vibes.
I've gotten that quite often actually. That or Vietnamese.
In America when the weather was extremely bad I used a grocery delivery service a handful of times.
A few times some of the groceries weren't delivered.
Like I'd go through the groceries and an item or two missing.
you speak authoritatively but you know Poles very little. You repeat stereotypes.
I speak of my experience
Tattoo? Yuck! We don't like even here, in Poland!
Nothing satisfying you I guess go to Andromeda galaxy very weird guy 👦🤔
just another Tourist with extended visa. Not staying, don't belong and knows it.
these comments keep proving my points in the video lol
@@WheresWes 🤣🤣🤣You are very superficial.
@@WheresWes don't mind these people. You are very observant! (and I'm a Pole)
There's so much BS here I'm not gonna dig deep in it... But just: people _pay attention on race_ but they address you in Polish... so like despite of race 🤔
This is boring
Huh? Rough winters? There hasn't been a real winter for years. I would say summers are terrible (and they are getting worse year by year) :-P It feels like I'm gonna melt.
Also, I am surprised you say we have good public transport in Cracow. Maybe it's just my bad luck but my buses are always late and crowded and it's hard to find a connection without a change (which are quite troublesome because of delays).
Anyway, your videos are great. I really like to know how foreigners see our country :-D