Poland Travel 2023: Polish sushi isn't the same! Is food in Poland expensive?

Travel Date: 2023/03/24 ~ 04/12

We usually eat homemade meals at home with the family, but this time my cousin invited us for pizza and sushi. I prefer Polish pizza over Taiwanese pizza, not necessarily because of the flavors, but because Polish pizza has more toppings! A large-sized pizza in Poland costs around 50zl and a sushi set with 40 pieces costs 60zl. There's a big difference because fish is usually cooked or baked in Polish sushi, rather than raw. Additionally, Polish sushi mostly consists of rolls, not nigiri sushi. We also tried some unusual flavors, such as apricot, which was surprisingly good!

Poland isn't as cheap as it used to be. Dining out was already expensive before, but now the prices are even higher. When we went to the supermarket, we noticed significant price hikes. The most noticeable price differences are in sweets, sweet drinks, or anything with high sugar content. Due to the new sugar tax, the prices have increased significantly. Nowadays, a bottle of coke costs nearly 8zl, more than double its previous price.

Compared to Taiwan, many food items are still very cheap in Poland. Having a Taiwanese salary and living in Poland would be quite good, but for many Polish people who earn the lowest salary, life is becoming more difficult.

The most expensive things in Poland are probably utility fees. Electricity prices have risen significantly since the Ukraine-Russia war started. In Taiwan, 1 kWh costs 3NT, while in Poland, it's 5NT. Another cheaper item in Taiwan is petrol, with a cost of 30NT per liter for octane-95, whereas in Poland, it's almost 50NT.

Dairy products have always been cheaper in Poland, so despite the price increases, we were happy to buy milk, butter, cheese, etc., which are less than half the price compared to Taiwan. Something I love in Poland is the variety of ham and other meats available for making sandwiches. The price that surprised me the most was the price of bread, which has more than doubled compared to the past. However, it's still a lot cheaper when considering traditional sourdough bread, not just toast, which is what we usually buy in Taiwan. On average, one loaf of bread in Poland costs around 4zl, which is about 30NT, whereas in Taiwan, if you're lucky to find it, it would cost 250NT+ unless you stick with dry toast, which costs only 50NT.

Poland has plenty of juices, mostly apple and orange flavors, but not only those! Unlike in Taiwan, the juice in Poland is not less than 10% real juice, but it's almost always pure juice. A liter of juice costs about 3zl, which is approximately 22NT, so we drank a lot of juice during our stay.

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Poland Travel 2023: We got surprised this morning! Snow ~

Travel Date: 2023/03/24 ~ 04/12

Almost a week has passed since we arrived in Poland. Adrian was quite disappointed because he wanted to see snow, but it didn't seem like it was going to snow. I checked the weather every day, and although it wasn't very warm at first, it was a few degrees above freezing, and it was supposed to get even warmer in the following weeks. To our surprise, a cold front came back, and the temperature dropped a few degrees. On Wednesday morning (March 29), we woke up to snow! Even my cousin sent me a video that she recorded on the road to inform us about it while we were still lazily lying in bed.

As soon as I saw the snow falling, we all jumped out of bed, got dressed, and without even having breakfast, we went outside to play. After about 15 minutes, Adrian started to feel cold and wanted to go back inside. We returned home, had breakfast, and soon after, he asked to go back to the garden to play. Initially, it was gray, and the snow was falling a little harder, but when we went out again, the sky was already blue and the sun was shining. The snow barely covered the ground, but our son saw a sled and wanted to play. We took turns pulling him around. It was quite challenging on the grass, but we did our best for him. In the end, it seemed like the only snowy day he would get to experience.

We also made a tiny snowman and threw snowballs at each other. The snow didn't last long, but his happiness lasted the whole day. After three hours, the sunshine started melting the snow away, and the weather became very pleasant.

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Poland Travel 2023: Just 2 days in Poland and a lot of family meetings

Travel Date: 2023/03/24 ~ 04/12

In the first 2.5 days in Poland, we visited many family members who live nearby. No matter which house we went to, there was always an abundance of food, tea, and homemade desserts. Even my 50+ year old single uncle now bakes cakes, and to my surprise, his cheesecake tasted even better than the one made by one of my aunts. He even has a Facebook account now, although he doesn't use it much. This is still progress compared to some other family members who have yet to learn how to use smartphones and the internet. I thought it would only be my uncle at his place, but he informed some distant family members whom I haven't seen in years, and they also came to meet me.

While staying in Poland, I started driving a car more often. I really enjoy driving here, unlike in Taiwan. We don't have scooters coming from every possible direction, including reverse! It's much easier to drive, and nothing scares me on the road. The only annoying part is the new rule of stopping for pedestrians. It's okay to stop, of course, but having to do so when they are on the sidewalk with no intention of crossing the road is a bit excessive. The penalties for breaking traffic rules are quite high in Poland compared to Taiwan, and drivers generally follow the rules.

We brought many different snacks to Poland. I think the most special one for my family was the strawberry waffle-flavored Lay's chips. My cousin and niece even wanted to take pictures with them. We also brought pineapple cakes, as they requested, and some traditional snacks such as Suncakes or wife's cakes, taro cookies, guava and starfruit drinks, and a variety of teas. My cousin also wanted oil-painted umbrellas as decorations. We couldn't find the authentic ones, as they are only made in Meinong, Kaohsiung, which is over 300km away from our place. Luckily, it was easy to find similar items made in China. We also found Chinese hair sticks for my niece, although I'm not sure if she will actually use them. I find them a bit difficult to hold my hair, maybe because they are too long for it?

I don't often meet or chat with some of my family members, but they are still happy to invite us to their homes. My husband had the chance to try some food that he hadn't eaten before. He also fell in love with tomato soup but wasn't a fan of pig's feet jelly. It's not the type of food I would normally eat, but it tasted much better than I had imagined.

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Poland Travel 2023: Going back to Poland, but why I don't feel happy!?

Travel Date: 2023/03/24 ~ 04/12

At the end of March, we are going back to Poland. It has been over 3 years since the last time I visited my home country. I have been living in Taiwan for nearly 6 years and have become quite accustomed to life here. In the past, I used to miss home and eagerly awaited each trip back. However, as time passed, and with the challenges of COVID-19, travel restrictions, and difficulties going abroad, I have somewhat lost that feeling of needing to go back. Of course, I still want to see my family, but after such a long time, I don't feel as close to them anymore. Everyone is living their own lives, some have gone through divorces and entered new relationships, and sadly, some have passed away. In recent months, one of my aunts was diagnosed with cancer, and I hope I will be able to see her again.

Not being there for the past few years, I now feel somewhat like a stranger, as I am unaware of what is happening in their lives. It is not like in the past when I lived close to my family and visited them frequently. Now, I am not as significant a part of their lives. Many of them do not use the internet or Facebook, so there was no way to stay in touch. Part of me also feels guilty for leaving my family and everything behind, especially leaving my brother shortly after our mother died and moving 8000km away. It was an incredibly difficult decision. I wasn't even there for his 18th birthday, thanks to COVID-19. We used to be close, but now we barely even talk. He has a job, and the time difference makes it challenging to communicate.

Our flight was on the 23rd of March. We left home at 7 PM, and our friends picked us up to go to Miaoli High-Speed Rail Station. We took the train at 8 PM to Taoyuan and then the MRT to the airport. We arrived a little after 9 PM and boarded the flight at 11 PM. We had a layover in the Netherlands. This time the flight was 16 hours!!! It was crazy... Due to the pandemic, the flight was 3-4 hours longer than it used to be. At least there weren't many people flying, so we had plenty of space. My husband and a few other people sat in empty seats around us. He had three seats to himself, while I sat with our son. Flying with kids is always challenging. Our son slept for a few hours, but then he became bored and only watched cartoons for a while. He kept asking when we would finally arrive. At least he had his own seat on the plane. The last time we flew, he wasn't even 2 years old, so he sat on my lap the entire flight. After arriving in the Netherlands, we only had a 2-hour wait for the next airplane, which would take us to Poland. That flight was also about 2 hours long. We rented a car and drove for the next 2 hours... After counting, the entire journey from leaving our home to arriving at my family's home took 30 hours! It was an incredibly long trip. Additionally, the price of the tickets was much more expensive, nearly double what we paid 3+ years ago.

Our son, Adrian, was really happy. As soon as we landed in the Netherlands, he heard some people speaking Polish and became very excited. He doesn't have memories from our previous trips back to Poland, so I hope this time he will remember everything we do there.

On the first day (actually in the afternoon, as we arrived at 4 PM), we first visited my father and brother. My uncle, who lives nearby, came to help cut some dead roses, and that's when I learned that my aunt had just left the hospital and was staying at home. We also went to visit her, although I felt so anxious to see her because I knew she was seriously ill and didn't look well. At first, I wanted to cry when I saw her, but I told myself that I should try to make her feel better. So we chatted and joked for a while, but she was already very weak at that time. Later on, we drove to another aunt's place, about 40 minutes away, as we will be staying there for the next almost 3 weeks. Adrian fell asleep in the car, and I initially wanted to let him sleep and carry him to the room, but all of a sudden, he became full of energy and excitement because everyone was speaking Polish. He played for another 3-4 hours before finally going to sleep! I wish I had as much energy as he does... We were so tired, and we slept really well that night. My aunt's home is right in front of a railway, but even the sound of passing trains didn't bother us.

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