Poland is a large country in Central Europe. It has a long Baltic Sea coastline and is bordered by Belarus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Lithuania, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast), Slovakia, and Ukraine.
Poland regained its independence on November 11th, 1918 with the end of the World War I. Soon, in 1920-21, the newly-reborn country got into war with Czechoslovakia and, especially, Soviet Russia over territorial disputes. The attack on Warsaw was defeated on August 10th-15th, 1920 in what is remembered today as the Miracle at the Vistula (Polish: Cud nad Wisłą) effectively ending major warfare by October, even though the agreement was finalised the next March.
After a period of relative peace and development, just as it was recovering from the great economic crisis of the 1920s, Poland was simultaneously attacked by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in what became World War II. During the war Poland lost about 20% of its population, and Polish economy was completely ruined. After the war it was forced to become a Soviet satellite country, following the Yalta and Potsdam agreements between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union; to this day these events are viewed by many Poles as an act of betrayal. Poland's territory was significantly reduced and shifted westward: the native Polish population from the former Polish territories in the east, now annexed by the Soviet Union, were expelled and replaced the German population in the west and in the north of the country. After the brief but sometimes bloody Stalinist era of 1945-1953, Poland was comparatively tolerant and progressive in comparison to other Eastern Bloc countries. But strong economic growth in the post-war period alternated with serious recessions in 1956, 1970, 1976, resulting in labour turmoil over dramatic inflation as well as shortages of goods.
In 1980, the anti-communist trade union "Solidarity" became a strong political force and, although persecuted by the communist government, led the country to the first free elections in 1989, inspiring a string of peaceful anti-communist revolutions throughout the Warsaw Pact block. A shock therapy program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe.
Nowadays, Poland is a democratic country with a stable economy. Poland has been a member of NATO since 1999 and the European Union since May 2004, when it joined with 9 other countries. In 2007 Poland joined the Schengen group.
HOW TO REACH
By plane - Most of Europe's major airlines fly to and from Poland. Poland's national carriers are LOT Polish Airlines . Besides there are several low cost airlines that fly to Poland including WizzAir, SkyEurope , EasyJet , Germanwings Norwegian and Ryanair.
Apart from direct air connections from many European cities, there are also direct flights from United States and Canada. LOT operates direct flights from Toronto, New York and Chicago; however, tickets for those flights are far from cheap and most people with limited budgets fly with other airlines which stopover in major European airports.
By car - You can enter Poland by one of many roads linking Poland with the neighboring countries. Since Poland's entry to the Schengen Zone, checkpoints on border crossings with other EU countries have been removed.
However, the queues on the borders with Poland's non-EU neighbors, Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, are still large and in areas congested with truck traffic it can take up to several hours to pass.
By bus - There are many international bus lines that connect major Polish cities, with most of major European ones.
By boat - From Sweden: Ystad (7-9 hours, 215 zł) by Unity Line ; Karlskrona (10 hours, 140-220 zł) by Stena Line; Nynäshamn (18 hours, 230-270 zł), Visby (13.5 hours, 170 zł), Ystad (9.5 hours, 230 zł) by Polferries
From Denmark: Copenhagen (9-11 hours, 220 zł), Bornholm/Rønne (5 hours, 125 zł) by Polferries.
By yacht - Although there are many ports along Polish coast, at least at every river mouth, don't expect high standards there. Bigger marinas are located in Szczecin, Łeba, Hel, Gdynia and Gdańsk but some of them are still lacking basic facilities. Although there are many sailors in Poland, overbloated bureaucracy still inhibits growth of sea sailing tourism.
STAY SAFE
The European unified emergency number 112 is being deployed in Poland. By now, it certainly works for all mobile-phone calls and most landline calls. There are also three "old" emergency numbers that are still in use.
Pickpockets operate in larger cities, including in public transportation, rail station areas, and clubs/bars. Immediately check you pockets if someone bumps into you in a large crowd. Even if it may seem harmless at the time, your cell phone might be missing minutes later.
Watch out for the Polish equivalent of thugs, called dresiarze -- young people with shaved heads, usually dressed in counterfeit Adidas tracksuits (and sometimes with a leather jacket on top of that). These are the young generation of the Polish underclass, whose sole purpose is to fight, especially foreigners. If you get into some sort of discussion or altercation with these thugs, run away as fast as possible and call the police. Do not expect help from roaming security guards or passersby if you're attacked. Fighting should absolutely be avoided so you are not arrested or seriously injured.
RESPECT
Etiquette - Some men kiss (rather than shake) women's hands to greet them or fare them well. Kissing a woman's hand is considered to be more chivalrous, but of course be sure as not to insult the woman you're greeting if she prefers you not kiss her hand. Alternatively, women may greet men with a kiss on the cheek. The preferences are not universal, so you can extend your hand for a handshake just to be safe.
A fairly common practice is for people to greet each other with a dzień dobry (Good day) when entering elevators, or, at the very least, saying do widzenia (Good bye) when exiting the elevator.
CITIES
