selder: Living in the U.S. but loving Poland!

Hello everyone!

I found this forum almost a year ago. I was considering moving to Poland with my family permanently, but have not done it yet. I think I was going through a phase where I just wanted to get the hell out of the U.S. for one reason or another (many reasons now that I think about it).

My wife is from Poland and because my wife is so adamant that my kids learn Polish, I have 3 children that are completely fluent in the language. We spend every other summer in Poland and absolutely love it. However, instead of uprooting the kids and buying a one way ticket, I am now thinking of investing in both commercial and residential property in our favorite Polish cities. Eventually the kids will be doing their own thing and make their own decisions which will allow us to spend more time in Poland.

Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you to all those that have answered my questions. It’s just a matter of time before we (me and my wife) fine our way back there for at least half the year – every year. I believe my kids will eventually follow us as they get older and start to see what we see.

My biggest hurdle is the language, and I have to admit that I have not gotten much better over the last few years, but I am making it my goal to learn conversational Polish by the end of this year. It will really help me out in my business dealings with real estate, but I also would love to have the ability to speak to my wife’s family in their native tongue.

Once again, thank you to all those that have answered my questions, and I look forward to being a contributing member of this forum.

-Scott

Hey, Scott. You missed the boat. With a polish wife and three kids later...aren't you a late bloomer in learning polish? :)
I hope you'll get it going and will be able to have a simple conversation in polish at the end of the year. Never mind the real estate and business talk.
The best of luck. Follow your dreams.

hello :)

Welcome selder...

Hi selder (Scott) and belated welcome to PF ;)

I think it's great your kids are fluent in Polish and have been kept so in touch with Polish culture. I'm not sure of their ages though so yes, it might be too much to try and uproot them if they are mostly used to not living in Poland. If they are teens or younger they may see long periods in Poland as time away from friends etc. You're right, as they get older they will appreciate the things you see about Poland.

As for the language, yes it's difficult to learn but if you stick at it, it will come. Plus, more time in Poland around native speakers may also help :)

Good luck :)

I could have done a LOT more to learn along with my kids. They have been going to Polish school every Saturday since they were in pre-school. They are now 9, 11 and 13 years old and still going to Polish school on Saturdays – although it’s a fight to get them there some days, but I think even they would agree it’s been a huge benefit for them.

As for my learning, I would like to take a Berlitz course or something similar, but the local Berlitz here in Phoenix, AZ does not have a Polish teacher. I’m just now starting to look for other programs.

Thanks,

-Scott

Hey Scott;
If you are disatified with life in the US. then you SHOULD leave.

Welcome, scott. Hang in there.

Hi Franek,

I see how my original post may have come across a bit harsh. As I think about it, I don't really want to "get out" of the U.S. as much as I want to "get in" to Poland. I think the best of both worlds would be to continue to spend as much time there as we can without permanently moving there.

Thanks for the reply…

-Scott

Scott;
I should never had made my comment to you the way that I did. I was wrong. Im sorry. But I have seen so much America bashing on here that I feel that it is time to speak out in defense of America. There are things here in America that I am not in favor of too. But where can we find anything better than what we have here. People in other couuntries think that our streets are made of gold. Bull S***. We dont cry. If we cant make it on one job,then we take on another. America was built on Immigrants and blue collar workers.. It was not easy. But it worked.
Ok enough already. Scott No matter what you decide. I wish you all the luck in the world.
Here is a saying that my family used.
Niech ta gwiazda milosci co zawsze swice na ciebie nigdy nie zagasnie

Let your lucky star that always shines on you never be extinguished

No problem at all. I don’t like U.S. bashers either. I just did not articulate what I was trying to say very well. Anyway, I really look forward to spending more time in Poland and learning the language as best I can. If I had any guts at all, I’d enroll in one of the emersion programs in Krakow the next time I am there. For now, I think I might try Transparent.com.

-Scott