Karolina PatrykContributed by Karolina Patryk
We are Poles and we are proud of it. Read 10 fun facts about Poland and get to know this beautiful country better!
1. We don’t use dryers
Yes, that’s true! After washing, we hang our clothes on traditional dryer. Then we take them off from the dryer and iron them. It’s very time consuming and just stupid. We have no idea why we can’t buy electronic dryer to make it faster.
2. We don’t trust people, if we don’t get drunk together
Ask any Pole if he has a friend with whom he didn’t get wasted. It’s just impossible! If you want to have good friend, you need to party hard with him at least once. You will see what kind of person he really is and whether you can trust him.
That’s crazy but we talked with many Poles and all of them agree. Their best friends are people who saw them wasted.
3. We are Catholics but we hate church
It’s really weird but many Poles hate church.
They go to church every Sunday though. Why? They must be seen by others and they don’t want to hear their mamas and grandmas complaining that they will go to hell. Yes, Poles are very hypocritical.
4. Every spring, we kill dolls
It’s Polish tradition to make human-sized doll by the end of winter (called Marzanna) and drown it when the spring begins. This is how we say good-bye to the winter.
5. Our donuts are round
For us, Poles, flat donuts with hole is just weird.
Our donuts are like a ball with frosting on the top. Inside we put marmalade, rose jam or other confiture.
Every year, on Thursday before Ash Wednesday, we celebrate Tłusty Czwartek (Fat Thursday). On this day you can eat as many donuts as you want. People ask each other how many donuts they ate.
The more you eat, the better for you :).
6. We celebrate name day
When you turn 18 years old, you become an adult.
Now you won’t just celebrate your birthday but your name day too.
It’s very popular in Poland to celebrate Name Day. Everybody knows that you need to call Maria on 2nd Feb, Jolanta on 15th June, Wojciech on 23rd April, Krzysztof on 25th July, Anna on 26th July, etc.
Also read: Poland’s Most Quirky Building You’ll Ever See!
7. We know English but we are afraid to speak
We have absolutely no idea why it’s so common in Poland to hide English knowledge.
Poles have low self-esteem and they are so afraid of making mistake that they chose not to speak.
Even our Prime Minister Donald Tusk who recently become president of European Council is afraid to speak English.
Take a look at the video below:
Maybe this is because in Polish schools, we learn only writing, reading and listening. It’s not very common to speak English at English classes.
Hopefully it will change in the future.
8. We are very superstitious
Many people believe in bad luck of number 13. They are worried if the black cat cross their road.
When we see magpie bird, we believe someone will come to visit us.
And stork in our garden is, of course, a pregnancy trailer.
9. Watching ‘Home Alone’ is Christmas tradition
Haha, yes! Story of Kevin is well known to every Pole.
Every year we watch Home Alone in Christmas Day and we still enjoy it.
Also read: When In Poland, Visit This Marvellous House That Stands On Its Roof
10. Our men still kiss our hands
We love this tradition! Polish man always kisses a woman’s hand when the occasion is solemn (e.g. first meeting, name day, etc).
So there you go! Some fun facts about Poland that we bet had you laughing and saying “Really?!”. Hope this inspired you to visit and see all these things for yourself too!
