$3,000-$4,000 a month - would we have enough money to live in Poland?

Sorry to hear about the loss. At the same time,it is very nice to know you move to Poland to be close to your sick father-in-law. Your wife is lucky, and i am sure you are also a lucky man to have such a loving wife, still close to family etc.

I did'nt read the middle part of this thread except the page 1 and this page. Im wondering any plan to move back to US and get on to continue with your business as now the reason to be in Poland father-in-law is no more? .....

And how do you like the experience in Poland so far? ...im curious. :-)


I agree some of the member here are real nasty or such a jerk (let me borrow your word). Even on a simple post they automatically flared up, and wrote 'sucker' etc., so check yourself on some of my thread post.

Don't be sad by sick minded people my friend. They get angry whenever they see a foreigner. You are a welcome presence with your kindness in Poland. Thank you for coming and sharing your time in our country.

Ok funny thing happened the other day I just have to share. I was on the bus and at this particular stop there was a very old lady walking with a cane, slowly getting on the bus. Apparently the bus driver did not see that she was not all the way in the bus and he closed the doors. Well the lady's foot got stuck in the door and she started yelling "JEZUS JEZUS JEZUS!" So the driver opens the door and the lady starts to fall out of the bus backwards. I jumped forward and grabbed her arm. I then helped her into the bus. Upon her getting her balance she RIPPED her arm out of my hand and said something in Polish started shaking her head and sat down.....WTF? lol:)

Please tell me why the older people push like hell to get out of the bus, like they are in such a hurry and then walk slow as heck when they get out?? Just an observation.

So the family is putting there lives back together and things seem to be getting back to some sort of regular. The task of going through all of Grandpa's stuff is still ahead. One step at at time.

Things between my wife and I are proving to be harder than I had thought it would be. Basically, all of her family is right, no matter what they do and I am wrong. but we are working on it and I hope things will turn back around soon. I swear, I am adjusting better than she is to Poland! (except for the food( I really am having trouble with that one), but again,working on it) One thing she keeps complaining about is a car. SHE WANTS TO BUY A CAR ! AND THAT'S FINAL. I do not want one. I am the guy that has trouble walking (getting better since I walk so much) I just think Europe, more specifically, Gdynia looses some of it's charm when you take away the mass transportation. I like memorizing the bus numbers and where each goes, the schedule for each bus, People watching on the bus, etc. It's fun!


Thank you for having me !


Please tell her that !


We will move back to the US but we are going to stay for a while to help Grandma , We knew he was not going to make it for long, so part of the reason for coming was to help after he passed.

Until next time!

Hey, that's life: funeral, marital problems, family issues, bus numbers we like, helping others, meeting weird locals while helping them.... Enjoy while it lasts and be blessed!

You are not related by blood, you are only the husband lol

If you have plenty of time on your hands, try helping out at your sons school, offer your services to read stories in English or help some of the kids with English, it will raise the profile of your son at school, and the other parents will make an effort to talk to you.

I also live in Gdynia :) Have you been to Sopot and Gdańsk? Sopot is the best, espacially in high season :)

Soooooooooo... Although things are starting to get to a norm around here, I got very bad news and that is that my left arm has blood clots AGAIN. Last time 3 years ago they did a surgery and everything was better, now they say it is inoperable. They are two large clots in both arteries in my lower left arm. So they put me on all kinds of meds and supplements to try and open up my remaining veins. Let's keep our fingers crossed. If it does not work I may loose my fingers if not my hand.

Anyway back to Poland, Why are the sidewalks so flipping uneven?? I am tripping everywhere lol Is there a reason you guys use brinks or stones for sidewalks? instead of pouring cement?

Well instead of going through all the red tape of getting my residency permit (and there is a lot!) I am just going to go to London for a day (out of Schengen) and come back. Polish embassy said that would re-set the 90 clock. Anyone in London want to show me around for a day? I will be there in June.

Please let me know if any of you are coming to Gdynia soon would love to meet up!
?
Cjj - Maybe this coming Saturday we could meet at the pool if you are going to be there. Send me an email and I will send you my cell number back!


Great idea! I put the offer out let see what happens!!


Great! no I have not been to Sopot or Gdansk since coming this time. Would love to go ! just do not speak enough Polish yet to go on my own :(

WOW I need to find something to do ! starting to go crazy !!!

Until next time !

You don't need to speak Polish to go to Sopot or Gdansk on SKM, just some zl and a map. Oh, an Oxford English-Polish pocket dictionary would be handy as well. You can get one at Empik, and they'll order it for you if there are none on the shelf. Be adventurous.

Here is another live Camera in Gdynia! we walk here A lot! now you can see when Gdynia has festivals ! very nice area!

task.gda.pl/uslugi/stream/kamera_gdynia_skwer_kosciuszki

email sent :)

Sorry to hear the bad news from you, the health problems and the death in the family. (I haven't been too much on the forum lately). I'm crossing my fingers for your complete recovery. And I do hope the life of your family will settle. Whether it's just moving to a new house or a new country, getting used to everything takes time. I still admire you guys for taking the step.

Make sure you get it double checked before you agree to any operation. Secondly if you have a blood clot are you allowed to fly?

nytimes.com/2007/11/06/health/06clot.html

Hello! I just stumbled upon your posts and I am so glad I did! I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your father-in -law. You are a great man for moving to Poland so that your wife could be closer to him.

My husband and I just moved our family to Gdynia from Chicago. My husband is polish, but he is only the one who speaks the language. Although it has only been 3 weeks I am desperate to connect with some ex-pats. Let me know if you have any time available to meet up. We have been enjoying weekends on the pier! My email is sarah.tristan@hotmail

Talk soon,
Sarah

If you are speaking of 3000 $ to 4000$ US DOLLARS a month, yes you have enough and i would even add plenty !

Most Polish household DO NOT HAVE such amounts per month .
Of course we are not speaking about a Deluxe way of life but a fairly good one ,in my opinion.

LwowskaKrakow.... 4000$us about 11000 a month (pensioners get about 900zl) hmmm How much would you need to have a deluxe way of life???? ta

I haven't read all your posts, but it seems you've experienced the nasty Pole. I am American and my wife and two kids are Polish, and I lived there for eight years. I know lots of nice Polish people, but generally they're not very nice people. Get used to it.

The thing I want to comment on is the schooling for your son. School was one of the major reasons why we didn't move back there. It is true that your average Polish high school graduate has more dates, names of capital cities and languages in his head than your average American high school graduate, but at what cost? I taught at a university there for eight years and saw educational bulemia; force feeding and later vomiting of information. Poles can't seem to grasp that education is about personal development, at any age. They seem to think that students should just put their heads down and memorize. Since your situation is only temporary, your son may actually have a good experience, but I wouldn't put my kids through 12 years of that system.

wielki pan

Well Wielkipan I do not have such tastes but a lot of people do in Poland and i would define a deluxe way of life and a simple cheap standard of living as followed:

Drive and maintain an expensive German car ( gas,insurance, parking)/ drive a second hand lada or Public transportation only
Live in a top end gated community in Warsaw( rent above 5000Pln)/live in a former communist block max size 25 Square meter for2
Eat at Fuckiers every week/ Eat at a bar mleszko
Send your kids to an international private school/send your kids to local state schools
Visit private doctors + hospital( international insurance costs/Bupa style)/visit public hospital
Shop at Alma gourmet supermarket everyday/shop at Lidl and Biedronka

ETC....
SO i would say a deluxe way of life costs 18 000 zl per month and a simple way of life would be 3000 zl to 4000 zl a month. Would you guys agree?

Thanks for your post, you suggest that a lot of people in Poland earn 18000zl a month (216000zl a year)..well I'm scratching my head and thinking where are these people, I doubt if the President earns that sort of money.. it seems to me that only forum members boost of earning this sort of money..lol

whether you shop at Alma gourmet or biedronka for a pound of sugar I don't think it makes much difference. Lets come down to ground level and agree that most poles earn around the 3000zl mark (gross) and can only dream about earning any more... Can I ask you where you shop LK?

No I did not. I said that a "Deluxe" way of life in Poland could cost 18 000zl a month.
As for shopping i love food so i go to Hala Targowa open air market ,Alma supermarket and Biedronka ( for basic household products)mais I do not own a car and i do not live in an expensive Warsaw gated community.

I agree that most Poles earn about 3000 zl per month which for a Polish hoursehold would be 6000 PLN.

But believe me some make much much more( restaurant owners,private doctors and surgeons,bank directors etc)

This is a very blunt comment from you ." Not very nice "- can you explain , why ? Or it is just an assumption that people are not nice, because they don`t look at you with artificially glued false smile meaning nothing but obtuseness.

I think that Polish students , in terms of the level of knowledge required, are very well educated .
Polish primary or high school students when they move to USA are placed , on average, two years in advance after passing evaluating tests . And so, it proves something Do not be such a critic to the Polish life , because it is an attitude, that will not help and even prevent from assimilating . People are generally polite and maybe do not understand your attitude here or maybe you always try to say "that we , over there in USA do these thing this way : .........." , such attitude meets with obvious instant objection . Poles doesn`t like to be advised in their own country:) .

Well,he has a point.People in Poland could learn a thing or two from Americans.Last time I visited Poland I opened and held the door for some Polish women.Now,in the US she would say "Thank you" and I would respond "You'r welcome" or "My pleasure" (If she was hot).Guess what,this Polish "princess" just walked thru without even looking at me and I was staying there in a deep shock thinking "WTF?".

So, I am sorry for you , but not all of them are like that . Some people are rude and with bad manners . This happens in every country . But don`t generalize by one example all women here . I am shocked when I see men entering the doors without letting women to get in first , it happens . But in general men keep the door for me , when I enter . I always say thank you :). It is very individualistic matter how you were raised at home :).

Agreed, the same is seen elsewhere - Polish students, in terms of raw knowledge, do rate very highly.

Monia my wife is Polish, my kids were born in Poland and I lived and worked there for eight years, so yes I think I can say a thing or two about it. There's no way that I would say "Poland you suck!" I had some really great experiences there. Whenever I'd go home to the States, I'd also get irritated at things there. Six of one, half a dozen of another.

The discussion about education is too subjective, really. All Poles I talk to prefer their system, and all non-Poles prefer their own system. Hard to have a good discussion. The one thing that was annoying about having this discussion was, though, that it was next to impossible to get a Pole to give the advantage of knowing the capital of every country. Yes we can cite stupid Americans on YouTube and of course George Bush, but is your average Polish doctor, teacher, policeman more capable in their duties? I've been looking for the answer to this question for years.

my husband is Polish and went to highschool and university in Canada. We prefer the Canadian system. Not to say that the Polish system is crap but I think there are better opportunities with a western education. my kids both go to private school so if we move back to Canada they will not be lacking. I think that the Polish school system has yet to evolve from communism. The teachers are poorly paid and have little resources. There is no thinking outside the box--ultimately it reflects on their teaching skills. Of course, not all teachers are bad--but when you have a room full of mouthy children and poor pay.....tough job.

You will be fine. Go for it. Life is too short to sit on your ass. Try something new. With $3000 you will be fine, majority of polish nationals earn $600. Europe is a different world, so much to see, history, culture, food. I am a pole married to american girl living in Philly. Every time we go to Poland we have a blast. Do not miss the Malbork Castle!!!! The largest castle I have ever seen. Built by the Teutonic Knights. All best to you and your wife!

Maybe they will not answer you properly , it depends on the person , but the system requires it . So, all depends from the individual level of educational level of a person . But our system gives such opportunity, , while the American does not . Your educational system does not let an average person to learn history and geography on the level is taught here . The same with phisics , chemistry and math . If someone goes to higher education institutions he should know basic information which Polish students learn at school at compulsory level . Geography is not all about cities and countries . It is about how the earth was formed , what is it built from , earth movements , how climate works etc . So it teaches you simple things about your living environment . I think that a person who becomes a doctor or a lawyer should have the opportunity to learn this at school . But the course is not obligatory in geography or history in your country . Chldren are taught about native history, but I doubt they know anything about history of Europe as we are taught

.Later on in adult life they know nothing about the world and make simple mistakes and other nations mock from you .

I might say the same as you said people in USA are not nice , fair enough? Point made , thank you .


Of course they are .

Better and broader education gives you better perspective in life; it helps to acquire knowledge better and in a faster way . Memorizing helps brain to work faster ; it helps the process of faster thinking and

making proper conclusions

To tell you the truth Mona, I doubt they know much about American history.

However, I really have a hard time believing that there is really any tangible difference when it comes to people doing their jobs. I am not saying that Polish doctors, teachers and etc. are less qualified, hell maybe you're right that they are more qualified, but what difference does it make? Do you really think that you'd have to worry about the competency of an American pilot, electrician or dog catcher because he doesn't know the capital city of every country? I am not advocating that ignorance is okay, but what's the sense in beating kids' brains in for 12 years? By the way, I taught at a Polish university for eight years, so I have some insight.

Maybe I should start a new thread as this seems pretty far off topic from the original post.

I have already explained that . I was also angry that at school I had to learn biology or phisics on a very advanced level, althought I wanted to become a lawyer from the begining . To me it was a waste of my precious time . But from the prospective I think it was worth and now I am not a complete ignorant if I see an explanation in some manual or data on data plate on some appliance I buy :).

Merged: From the beginning of this year ($ 3000.00 to $ 4000.00 a month... just an update

For those of you that remember.... We left America to go take care of my wife's Polish parents you can read the whole thread here make sure you goto the first page to know what is going on. but here is the update......

Just strange to think.... one year ago, I did not know that I and my family would pick up all we knew and move to Poland, Did not know that I would fall in love with that country, Did not know that I was able to walk 2.4 miles (After a lot of practice), did not know that I would argue with the wife about a car.. hehe she wanted one and I said NO! we can walk or take a bus!! lololololo those of you that know me... know that last statement does not sound like me, did not know that I would (after 2 months in the hospital) loose my left hand, did not know that we would moved back to America 6 months earlier than planned, did not know that I would have the support of my family as much as I did and still continue to receive, Did not know what a Phantom pain was let alone be living with them!!, did not know I would miss the evening walks down to the beach with my family, did not know I would miss playing cards with my Mother-in-Law until the wee hours of the night, Did not know I would miss Poland so much and the way of life as well as hope, deep in my heart, that I will return some day, did not know that I would not be able to button my own pants (it is so demeaning to have to ask your wife to button your pants) or get that last bite off the plate with my fork! (with one hand, you have to chase that last couple of bites, they keep sliding around and keep jumping of the flippin fork! hehe, did not know that I would EVER NEED a shoe horn, did not know that I would be embarrassed to go to a restaurant because I need to have someone else cut my food up, just do not go anymore!, did not know that I would HATE my shadow when I am walking to the mail box with the sun behind me and I see a stump hangin' there!

I have shared probably too much here and I am sorry , just going through some tough times right now. bye the way also, a year ago I would never know how hard it would be to type with one hand.

I pray that the year ahead holds a much brighter future for us ALL!!

AS YOU HAVE JUST READ, YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THE NEXT YEAR HOLDS FOR YOU!

God Bless!