Krakow and Poland has fantastic places for tourism.
Poland is a country with more than thousand years of recorded history, rich and varied, and first to free itself from communist domination in 1989, is now fully democratic and a member of the European Union. Since the fall of communism the country has undergone rapid economic and social changes and the process still continues.
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Krakow, as the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland is located in the southern part of Poland in the Lesser Poland region. The history of the city dates back to the 7th century. Since the Middle Ages Krakow had been the capital of the Polish state until the 17th century and has kept the character of a spiritual capital till the present day.
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Krakow is one of the places in the world which have been included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list. The architectural complex of the Old Town has survived all the cataclysms of the past and preserved the same, unchanged layout since the Middle Ages. The Old Town together with the Wieliczka Salt Mine have been recognized as some of the most valuable architectural treasures of the world. There are over 300 town-houses and 58 churches and palaces, all considered historical monuments just within the old center of Krakow and that is just a small part of all the monuments of this city.
Climate
Poland has as many as six distinct seasons. Apart from the four typical European seasons, there are also two periods described as early spring and early winter. Throughout the year you might experience almost every type of weather. Krakow has a temperate continental climate. The city doesn't see much rain and summers (June, July, August) are hot.
Autumn: from September to November
Usually from the end of September till late November the temperatures vary from 5° to 15° Celsius. 15° Celsius means people usually wearing a bit warmer clothes. The nights are cold with around 0° to 5°Celsius. Very often it rains during this period, especially in November.
Time change
Poland uses Central European Time (GMT + 01:00). Due to the Daylight Saving Time (DST) on the last Sunday of March at 2am we change time by adding one hour and on the last Sunday of October we take one hour back.
Various
Zloty (PLN) is the currency in use. 1PLN = 0.24€ (approximately).
Power plugs and sockets are on the Europlug compatible standard (eg as in France or Germany), voltage 230V.
EHIC: European Health Insurance Card. This card is free and allows attendees coming from European member states to receive medical treatment for free or at a reduced cost. Probably to be requested from your provider of health insurance?
Polite expressions in Polish
good morning, good afternoon - dzień dobrygood bye - do widzenia
hello, hi! - cześć!
bye! - pa!
please - proszę
thank you - dziękuję
thanks - dzięki
you're welcome - proszę bardzo, nie ma za co
I'm sorry - przepraszam, przykro mi
excuse me! - przepraszam!
cheers! - (toast) na zdrowie!
Time expressions
today - dzisiajtomorrow - jutro
yesterday - wczoraj
week - tydzień
month - miesiąc
year - rok
hour - godzina
minute - minuta
three days ago - trzy dni temu
in three days - za trzy dni
Questions
how? - jak?what? - co?
how many? - jak dużo?
who? - kto?
where? - gdzie?
when? - kiedy?
why? - dlaczego?
which? - który?
Useful sentences
Do you speak English? - Czy mówi pan / pani po angielsku?I don't speak Polish. - Nie mówię po polsku.
I don't understand. - Nie rozumiem.
Speak slowly, please. - Proszę mówić wolniej.
Can you repeat that, please? - Czy możesz powtórzyć?
I don't know. - Nie wiem.
How are you? - Jak się masz?
Nice to meet you. - Miło mi cię poznać.
What's your name? - Jak masz na imię?
My name is Kevin. - Mam na imię Kevin.
My name is David Atkinson. - Nazywam się David Atkinson.
Can you spell it? - Czy możesz to przeliterować?
Where are you from? - Skąd jesteś?
I'm from Poland. - Jestem z Polski.
Where do you live? - Gdzie mieszkasz?
I live in Warsaw. - Mieszkam w Warszawie.
