The Real Poland

I’ve been living all my life five minutes away from the sea and the idea of spending nine months abroad should, at first, include a coast. But as I said, it was “at first” cause sometimes you have to change your mind so as to live an unforgettable experience far from home.
Even Poland was not the country I wanted to go for Erasmus, but, who knows why, everything was turning just to the contrary of what I have always thought, and thanks to I do not know who, my destiny was Wroclaw.

I still remember as if it was yesterday the moment when I was given this place in the University of Wroclaw with my best friend. We both started to cry out of emotion (yes, also a little bit because we were scared), big hugs, big smile and lots of sms to our family and friends.
Everybody was surprised, “why Poland?”, “ can’t you change the University?” , “why not something better?”, but if they did not know Poland, why were they talking like that? I know the answer:  Poland is an absolutely unknown country for Spanish people. 

We ignore Polish history, Polish language, Polish culture and even Polish geography. We should be ashamed. But I found myself coming to this country after all, it was an adventure and you can learn a lot from good and bad things.
So off we went! Long trip and we arrived: cold, rainy and strange language. The following day, first day in the city, the weather turned sunny. I started do discovere a very green country, with classic air and the magic of the dwarfs all around the city. Just gorgeous market place, colourful flower market, history all around me. Old country, yes, but not old and not fashionable, but old and absolutely magic, different, new for my eyes.

Already checked the city, transport, first meals and so on, the first day of lessons meant the first contact with the Polish people. Maybe it is also in the Spanish character, but I did not have any problem to start chatting with my classmates, all were kind, smiley and with plans for the future.
The idea of cold people, classic, old way of thinking etc. changed completely.  Since that week, Wroclaw has been offering me many ways of enjoying:  parties, walking routes, fantastic food, snow, sun, swimming-pool, trips to many villages and  cities in Poland, lakes, mountains, just amazing. 

It could never be better,  I discovered the real Poland, the kindness of the people, the good food, good parties singing in Polish, a completely different life from mine and also as positive as I considered my own in Spain, so now I can say that stereotypes are never good, you can not think something is wrong just because you heard that, you should discover things on your own, and maybe then, you have a great surprise as I had; because Poland, that country I did not know many things about, became my favourite one,  and every time I have free days,  for sure I will spend them in here, my second home.