Live Erasmus in Krakow

This is my experience as an Erasmus student of architecture at the Politechnika in Krakow for ten months.

Architecture and landscapes

The truth is that as Poland has been a very battered country historically speaking, it does not have much important architecture, since before many of the great existing works were destroyed and today they do not have as much money as others European countries. Krakow has a beautiful old town where we can find the Cloth Hall, Wawel Castle, St. Mary's Church... Although it is quite neglected and poorly lit at night, but the main square of Krakow, apart from being one of the largest in Europe, is one of the most beautiful.

Warsaw, for example, has much more architecture than Krakow, since it was completely destroyed in World War II and all the buildings it has been "new". Of course, a historic town like Krakow in Warsaw is unthinkable.

The landscapes outside the city are beautiful since due to the high humidity of the environment they are very green fields and with very lush vegetation (similar to Asturias so that we understand each other). Also in winter, it is usually snowy always, since once it snows, as temperatures do not rise above 0ºC it never defrosts.

Culture and customs

The culture is a bit outdated compared to other European countries such as Spain, France, Italy... There is everything from totally liberal people to homophobic and xenophobic radical groups. But if you do not go with bad companies they usually do not give problems. The customs are quite similar, although with their exceptions. They do not like to talk during the meal or stay at the table chatting with friends, it seems disrespectful to the cook. Also, whenever they enter a house to stay for a while, either their own or visiting, they take off their shoes and go in socks.

One very important thing: watch out for soccer. They carry it in their blood and they have a bit of a headache on this issue. If they win they throw firecrackers, they go out with drums, firecrackers, and everything and get drunk. If they lose they get drunk and get in a really bad mood. There is even graffiti on the streets insulting other teams, so be very careful with that issue that they become very sensitive.

Gastronomy

Polish food usually consists of soup and a main course. Both are very abundant and very copious dishes since they use butter, breading a lot... The typical Polish dishes are pirogi and zurek.

The pirogi are a kind of dumplings that can be eaten cooked or fried and are filled with many things: meat, fruit, vegetables, cheese... The typical ones are those of cheese and fried potatoes, and they call them Russian pierogis.

Zurek is the typical Polish soup. It can be eaten in a loaf of bread to which the crumb has been removed and the crust serves as a container. This soup has everything: mushrooms, sausage, cheese, potato, egg and chives, and other spices.

Party

Krakow is one of the European cities where you will find more party. Every day there are 3 or 4 parties in different places in the center, no matter how Saturday is Monday. If you go to Banialuka or Teatro Cubano any day you will find that it is full of Erasmus (mostly Spanish) drinking from 8-9 in the afternoon.

Of course, in Krakow as in the rest of Poland it does not come out at 12 o'clock at night like in Spain, here at 8 o'clock everyone is already on the street, and they endure until 5 or 6 in the morning as champions.

Apart from all this every day of the week there is an Erasmus party in a bar. You just have to ask and they will give you a little card with the schedule of the whole week and the bars you have to go to.

One very important thing: prohibited to drink in the street. The police are very exquisite with this and if they catch you they can put a fine of up to € 50 per person, so between the cold in winter and the fine, you want to drink in the street.

Leisure and free time

I'm in Erasmus Krakow, so spare time is spare. Krakow has many possibilities, you can go to the bowling alley, ride a hot air balloon, play paintball. Just by putting activities in Krakow on TripAdvisor you will get many things to do.

Transportation

Transport is another of the great advantages of Krakow. The city is super well connected to each other and to the towns and shopping centers around. If it is not by train it is by tram but there is a line that arrives anywhere with a lot of frequency. For example, from my street to go to the university on the outskirts, a tram passes every day every 3 minutes. Another strong point is the price. A ticket for any train or tram in the city for 20 minutes costs you 50 cents, 25 if you have a student card. For longer stays, I recommend the transport voucher. You pay € 40 and for 6 months you can ride all urban buses and trams (very important to keep in mind what are the limits of Krakow if you do not want a fine) you want unlimited.

The taxi is a bit more expensive as in all places but it is still very cheap if you take a good one (there are up to 20 cents per kilometer). In Poland, there is an application called Uber, which indicates where you want to be picked up and left and it is super cheap.

Prices

The price of everything is usually very cheap. Between the country is not very rich and they have no euro and the zloty is very devalued things compared to Spain tend to be very cheap. The beer is one of the cheapest in Europe (half a liter for 90 cents). Eating in a restaurant with first, second, accompaniment and salad usually consist of about € 4. In the super things are a little cheaper than in Spain but not much. The flats the same, a little cheaper than in Spain but also not excessively if you want a good one and in the center. The residences are terribly cheap, € 90 per month with electricity, water, heating... Of course, the rooms are double, so you have to share it with another person, and the kitchens and quadruple bathrooms, so with three others.

The clothes if that is more expensive than in Spain, not much but if you can tell the difference, especially if you go to franchises like Zara, Stradivarius... You have to take advantage when the zloty is very low because prices do not change and you get for a little less.

Climate

It is Poland, so there is not much doubt about this aspect. I arrived in mid-September and it was about 10ºC while in Spain it was twenty-one. Since then it has only come down arriving a week until -30ºC (only one week in which you fill the fridge with food and do not leave home). Best of all for me is the snow, since it usually snows a little every week that accumulates until a good layer of snow is achieved, but that is for tastes already, I love it because in my area in Spain it never snows and I missed it, maybe there are many people who have snow all winter take a little back.

By the way, if you want to see a bit of survival in Krakow with a touch of humor, I leave this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHyYoDZgtLw&t=4s