I come from the south part of Turkey, my city has a warm climate during the wintertime. Before my arrival in Poland, I thought that this is a very cold and snowy country. I was even a little bit afraid that it would be very hard for me to adapt to Poland. I have been in Bydgoszcz for three months and I really enjoy this city which has authentic streets, historical and typical buildings, and hospitable local people.

Poland is a developing country located in the middle of Europe. This country has a lot of amazing historical and at the same time modern cities. During my stay in Poland I have visited Kraków, Poznań, Toruń and Gdańsk. I must admit that Krakow made the biggest impression on me. I find it very worthy to visit Wawel Castle, big churches and illuminated streets. I have also visited Warsaw the capital city which has a lot of attractive and modern places. If you are interested in historic places you should come to Poland and travel around this country.

Having been here for a quite long time, I have noticed that Poles are very friendly, helpful, and hospitable people. Unfortunately, on the other hand, many of them are intolerant and very serious. When you go to a hospital, pharmacy or you just do the shopping, people who work there are generally serious and they do not smile. Sometimes, due to the fact that they do not know English, they try to force you to speak in Polish. Happily, young people are very easygoing and they speak English quite well. I have noticed that some elderly people know English, however, because of the language barrier they speak English hardly ever.

The third thing I would like to mention is food. Due to the fact that Turkey and Poland differ significantly in terms of culture, traditions, and religion, Turkish and Polish meals are also absolutely different. At the beginning of my stay in this country, I could not get used to Polish food but now I find traditional, Polish cuisine very delicious. I like especially żurek, pomidorowa and sernik.

Moreover, the Polish language is really difficult to learn, to write and to speak. It has a lot of consonants such as “sz”, “cz” etc. When you try to speak Polish, Poles appreciate it. Although Poland is not a multicultural country, Polish people have always respect the foreigners who visit their country.

In conclusion, I believe that Erasmus Programme in Poland contributes significantly to my life experience. If I got a chance to live in Poland after Erasmus, I would decide to stay here because I feel Poland like the second home.