Reconnecting with My Slavic Roots in Poland (and being homeless quite literally)

In this video, I will share my first impressions of Poland - what it was like traveling from Germany to Poland by train (including not having a seat), how I ended up literally homeless for a night, and the awkward situations I found myself in along the way!
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[@ominguti6345]

Cool. As a Polish person when I was watching your previous episodes in Georgia when you were talking about your trip to the EU I was hoping you would come to Poland to see your take on it. I hope the experience was mostly positive. Thanks for posting .

[@maxon4172]

Your narrative and observations are always very interesting. You are welcome in Poland. I am the viewer from Poland.

[@kyledammann4284]

Always great to see an update from Natasha.

[@katyafan]

Your adventures are never boring!! Thank you for bringing us along with you!

[@ifocus1776]

Hi Natasha! What I like best about your travel videos are the historical facts and the research you do about the place you are visiting! You have the skills to be a true freelance journalist as a career. Keep up the great videos and work! I wish you the best for future endeavors!

[@YouMatter-UDo]

My first time "walking through Poland" too. Thanks for the tour and glad you are doing well.

[@LatajaceStadoKotow]

Maria Curie is also Polish. At least in the west, they ommit her maiden surname, Skłodowska, and are often surprise that she wasn't French.

[@edw1045]

She was Polish

[@alexlysakowski329]

Oh my god, I left Warsaw 7 years ago, i swear every year the place becomes more like a sci-fi city

[@Elmirasjar]

What a surprise! Welcome, Natasha! It’s such a pleasure to see you in Warsaw!

[@MiSt3300]

Yay! As a Polish person I was waiting for a long time for this video! Ever since I leared you were in Warsaw! I'll be very interested to see your takes on my country

[@mik1984]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1030">17:10</a> that is the first McDonalds that was opened in Poland, our primary school was nearby, so we had a school trip for the opening.

[@MiSt3300]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1105">18:25</a> Natasha! You absolutely don't have to worry about having a T-shirt with Russian words on it. Many Ukrainians, and a lot of my Ukrainian friends speak Russian as their first language and use Russian all the time, for example talking on the phone. Everyone is absolutely chill about the Russian language here, because it's not the language that's at fault but putin and his oligarchs. And anyway, you are a tourist in Poland, and Ukrainians won't give you a hard time here, because they are guests in this country just like you, and shouldn't discriminate other guests. I think most people are completely chill. If you had a T-shirt with a big letter "Z" on it, then it would be a problem haha, but Russian words are completely fine.

[@aRGee1965]

I can't speak about the Polish people but I can give you two examples what happened in my country. My wife had a T-shirt with the letter Z. I adviced her not to wear it anymore allthough it had nothing to do with the symbol used by the Russian army. In the warehouse where I work we used a location called Z where some products were stored. Sometimes we wrote the Z on the plastic covering the pallets to find it's place in the warehouse. We tried to change that letter in something else so clients wouldn't have strange idea's about us. That's how sensitive we responded on all these symbols....

[@plrc4593]

I think most Ukrainians in Poland speak Russian.

[@svenbeowulfsson641]

Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; (1 March 1810 - 17 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period, who wrote primarily for solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown as a leading musician of his era, one whose "poetic genius was based on a professional technique that was without equal in his generation". He was leaving Poland at the age of 20, less than a month before the outbreak of the November 1830 Uprising. At 21, he settled in Paris. Thereafter he gave only 30 public performances, preferring the more intimate atmosphere of the salon. He supported himself by selling his compositions and by giving piano lessons, for which he was in high demand. Chopin formed a friendship with Franz Liszt and was admired by many of his musical contemporaries, including Robert Schumann. Seven

[@plrc4593]

Used to say I like Chopin That classic, sensational, sentimental, unusual

[@StachuRh]

In most countries in Europe the capitol is at the same time the best city. In Poland that's not the case. We don't have one super city, the atractions are spread throughout whole country. Warsaw was demolished many times (in 2nd war, but also in XVIIth century), and it's relatively new city. Polish top is I would say Krakow, Gdansk, and historically Torun. Second league: Wroclaw, Poznan, Warsaw, Lublin, Szczecin. Good to see you in Poland after all these years. And yeah, for us russian and ukrainians languagues are the same. Also russian is quite well known by older people. We had it obligatory in school until 80/90

[@Medytacjusz]

They sound similar but Ukrainian has a few more commonalities with Polish (due to shared history) than Russian, there are more words that I can spontaneously understand. And pronunciation is also slightly clearer. Linguistically speaking Ukrainian, Russian and Belarussian are of "East Slavic" language family, and Polish, Czech and Slovakian are "West Slavic". But again, Ukrainian had a lot of contact with Polish so there are a lot of influences. Check out how "I work" is in Ukrainian, it's like Polish "pracuję" when in Russian it's more like "robota".

[@andgainingspeed]

I spent part of Saturday celebrating the Baltic Nations getting off their Soviet era energy grid and connecting to the west. I hadn't even realized these NATO countries had this vulnerability. I celebrated by reading up on the post WWI fights that broke out between multiple "Slavic brothers" nations, one of which was referenced by some of the protesters in this video. History is complicated and memories are long. Nice to have a laugh with a very self aware Natasha as she shares her sometimes awkward adventures. BTW - I carry an emergency t-shirt in my back pack. Not for anything that might be printed on them, they are just plain colors, but for food related accidents and other unexpected events.

[@live_free_or_perish]

Thanks! Your heart is in the right place. I've always been interested in your thoughts, and I'm glad you are not persuaded by your critics to change yourself. I like you just the way you are

[@MiSt3300]

Actually there are a lot of migrants from Belarus and Ukraine in Poland so speaking Russian with them in Poland is very common, you'll also hear a lot of Russian language on the streets because of that. Of course that's very good for me, since I'm learning Russian myself (; But Polish people overall don't know Russian in general, maybe some of the older generation will know some words, or speak broken Russian, but Poland wasn't in the Soviet Union and so it's much less connected to Russia language wise.

[@coldwar45]

Not true even though it wasn't part of the USSR it was a satellite country and part of the Warsaw Pact as a result the language was taught

[@MiSt3300]

@@coldwar45 the language was perhaps taught, but the documents, TV and everything else was in Polish. Also there wasn't any Russian imigration to Poland. If you compare that with the Baltic countries you'll clearly see the differences. Russian was never a state language in communist Poland, and you know, when people had it for 8 years in school, they don't remember anything nowadays, or just a few words. I asked my mother and grandma about this and this is the response I got. I am the first in our family to actually know Russian, despite being born in the 3rd Polish republic.

[@DuzySiersciuch]

@@MiSt3300 Same with me. My mother studied Russian for 8 years at school but she barely speaks it, I know it better after two years.

[@whitecrow1949]

Thank you for another excellent video.

[@mranonymous8815]

As a Croatian born and raised in Germany I absolutely agree, I'm always stunned how frozen Croatian drivers, saleswomen, nurses etc. are, they never smile and even rarely greet in total contrast of what I am used to and what as a lecturer I adhere to myself in Germany.

[@mik1984]

Welcome to Warsaw! 🥰

[@MrOgladaczu]

Russian language was obligatory or obligatorish in schools in Poland until 1990. After 1990 in changed to english. So younger people generally do not speak russian unless its their own intrest.

[@tomaszp1190]

Even after 2000 we could pick a russian as a second foregin language beside english, and - at least in my school - many did.

[@DuzySiersciuch]

But nowadays the presence of Ukrainians Belarusians etc. means that in some parts of Warsaw I get the feeling that 50% of street conversations are held in Russian.

[@rolandmartin3833]

Idem in Estonia

[@joeshmooo5327]

Thanks Natasha sure enjoy your content.

[@cjnewell2253]

Long time viewer living in Poland! Welcome!

[@adamxx3]

Well done Natasha 😝

[@juliuscesar4176]

I am so impressed you are an amazing person!

[@Joshua89]

Early March I will be in Montenegro for 1,5 week. You can stay in my room in Amsterdam for 7-9 days if you need something

[@magic_hotel]

I'm very much enjoying how you are becoming more relaxed and comfortable with your European travels. I think we could all feel the tension as your trip began, and I was wishing that you had a companion by your side, but now I think that these travels no longer hold any fears for you. Anyway, thanks for a brilliant video, I loved it a lot, and will look forward to seeing some more of Warsaw. Best wishes from Northern England.

[@solconcordia4315]

Natasha's being "liberated" by Free Europe a bit more at a time.

[@Relag244]

I really like your introspection towards the end of the video, you are very self aware. Take care and safe travels!

[@curtvona4891]

I hope you have an enjoyable stay in Poland, Natasha. ❤

[@szymonkuc1370]

Natasha I am currently in my home in Warsaw suffering from cold. So it was weird watching you travel around my city with short sleeve. If you will be visiting Poland next time i recomend you to visit other cities than Warsaw as it is more of a bussines and living city, most of the buidling were build after ww2 anyway. For me the best cities to visit in Poland are Gdańsk and Kraków.

[@alistairmccausland1580]

Natasha, never stop using KZbin as a way of presenting your life to us. Your honesty in explaining your own personal thoughts is so refreshing, thank you...

[@mranonymous8815]

As a German: welcome to the Deutsche Bahn chaos. You can buy a ticket for a certain train (and you can reserve a seat for some additional €) which will be cheaper, or you can buy a more expensive ticket for the connection (without "Zugbindung", i.e. without being bound to a certain time, e.g. when you don't know when you will leave the city). The information and usability on the web application is pretty bad though.

[@TecOneself]

I ❤ your documentary and follow your journalism. You are a flower of many to open its seeds and fragrance. There is so much to learn from you by example, not just talks.

[@kokoloka1223]

It's so nice to see you here. Welcome to Poland!

[@wilczydukt]

Cieszę się z Twojej wizyty w Warszawie i czekam na kolejny film! :)

[@Ula-I-Recka]

Happy to see a E.Wedel bag. I hope you enjoyed the chocolates.

[@MrBozunio]

Welcome to Poland Natasha ❤

[@raymondwinn6479]

Poland looks like a lovely place. Thank you for sharing this.

[@salad7776]

It is an honor to host such a nice and wonderful guest in Poland 🥰

[@2mek99]

In Poland, most trains (especially international and premium) require buying seats. In many trains, you can not get on the train without a seat reservation. In local trains, there are not seats reservation.

[@Truthasvictim]

What a great vieo Natasha! Though I felt empathy for your troubled start in Poland, but glad it was resolved by the next day. Your cultural and political dissections are so insightful, broad and well thought out. I'd be happy and proud to call you a friend in some other life situation and keep up your great videos!

[@az4399]

Witaj z Polski. Miło cię było gościć. ❤

[@tnczm]

So glad to finally see you here!. I'm sorry for your experience in Warsaw (I'm not very fond of the people from Warsaw anyway), I can see that you booked the room through a company, I generally recommend to search for private offers from people because you can always call them and explain the situation. At least that was my experience staying in Poznań - I also had some problems but they were resolved after some time. Also I do recommend other places like Kraków (where I live currently), Wrocław, Poznań, Łódź. Also the smaller cities can be interesting and quite beautiful :)

[@krzysztofkietzman3332]

Wow, I've been watching for several years and I didn't expect to find you here. Greetings from a fellow English studies / literature studies major.

[@lodragan]

Your humble self reflection is admirable. Thanks for sharing your adventures!

[@Ayewonderfullife]

You have a kind heart. Give yourself a break. Another great VLOG. Thank you!

[@peterek59]

Welcome to Poland. Have a nice time.

[@jarcopolo3109]

Good to see you in Poland, hope you enjoyed your stay here :)

[@tudorm6838]

At a restaurant in Warsaw, on the contrary, a waitress was one of the most polite and smiling hosts, being at the same time skilled in presenting what they had and giving us advice. Very professional.

[@johngodden4363]

Hello Natasha, your English is excellent. I’m an Australian and I like to vicariously travel overseas by watching and experiencing the adventures of young folk such as yourself. If you are ever able to travel to my part of the world you would find people here are very welcoming and friendly. Good luck in your travels! Cheers

[@robertmaltbie1188]

Imagine the memories and stories you’ll tell looking back on such an extraordinary historical time (maybe even a book). Another cool video! Thanks, and stay safe

[@sergiusspb]

Hi! Watching your video I remembered when I've been in Germany visiting my friend. We took a one day trip to the Czech city Liberec. When we crossed the border the conductor approached and we were adressed 'Dobry den' in Czech which felt like a quite authentic Russian and evoked a warm feeling deep down after many days of germanophone entourage.

[@GranPaMark]

I love your street view videos. You are such a brave young lady. I pray for your safe passage.

[@ashleyupshall7641]

Best wishes moving forward Natasha 🙏🏼

[@ttyk19]

Thanks for sharing your adventures! I learned alot from your travelling - like what to do and not do. Through your “irritations”, you are helping everyone learn what to do - so thank you! Chopin from Poland? interesting! Smiling info was also interesting 😅 I didnt realize but you’re right. it makes sense to me. 😐

[@motherlesschild102]

Thank you Natasha. I found this episode very fascinating and felt I could relate to your experiences. Reality is so complex !

[@tomcarr1358]

Clearly not Poland in winter.Great to have your impressions at any time of the year.TC UK

[@mathedguy]

So nice to share your summer adventure. I thought it was a nice view from your room in Warsaw, and wondered if you enjoyed any sunrises or sunsets from there. You are a great communicator !

[@misterkiller89]

Sending support from Los Angeles, you got this Natasha

[@CarrieJamrogowicz]

Customer service in Poland is…. an adventure 😆 I love it tho, visit every year.

[@gothowy3624]

Bardzo intersujące doświadczenia i spostrzeżenia.

[@mclurr3197]

I still remember you some guy following you in Spassk? and you said "it's okey because I can run faster". That was so unreal, scary and funny at the same time.

[@papageno11]

Greetings from Wrocław🥰

[@harrydecker8731]

I reslly enjoy watching your videos as you travel. I learn a lot about other countries and about traveling abroad from videos posted by vloggers like you. Natasha, you may not realize it, but you, and others like you, are actually providing international news from a personal perspective. Mainstream news rarely does this. Also, you as well as others are unbiased. The primary message you guys spread is that most people everywhere are good people. They don't want wars. Most are accepting and tolerant of others who are different, as long as they are not extremists who resort to violence. Lastly, Natasha, you are a good ambassador for Russia. I think that most Russians have a good heart like you, but unfortunately they cannot speak their minds for fear of retribution.

[@alphacat791]

Great video! :)

[@ericsolnitzky795]

Very cool to get your perspective of Poland and the slavic and Russian influence. Thanks for sharing. Hugs and kisses from Minnesota😘

[@zibikubi]

Dear Natasha, I'm following your trip around Europe.You are watching Europe but even more carefully, Europe is watching you. Happy travels.👍

[@msgeorgem]

I found your channel when you were still in Russia planning to leave and here you are in my country. Enjoy!

[@aro8570]

You were in the Netherlands. If i remember well you went by train too. In NL you can only reserve a place in some special trains. Most trains you just hop on. It is even worse, they only need to bring you from A to B. It is not necessary for a seat.

[@Retired2811]

I am also from the Netherlands. It is indeed the case that when you buy a ticket in the Netherlands, the NS [and possibly other rail operators] are only obligated-under certain conditions-to transport you. So complaining about overcrowding or not having a seat is [financially] pointless. However, the real question arises when you board a train using bought card under assumption ‘seat or not’ AND find an available seat, and later discover that your found seat also have been sold. This effectively means you are purchasing a ticket with a guaranteed standing place on a train [AND NO SEATINGPOSSIBILLITY by possible pre knowing] from which the operator could reasonably predict that it would be overcrowded. ‼️In such a case, who has the greater right-the person who is already seated or the person who arrives later with a reserved seat which [in this case] forces the earlyer bird away?‼️ Or should it be the Russian way ‘the strongest wins’? I don’t know… 🤷🏻‍♂️ This is an interesting case to examine from a legal perspective. It becomes even 🔥more intriguing considering that the train in question is traveling from Germany to Poland.🔥Political and historical factors could play a role here, alongside what I believe to be profit maximization on rather questionable grounds. PS compare by example with the [international] ‘thalys’ [now named Eurostar, orso.. correct me if i’m wrong?] … they sell only reserved seats and don’t sell free-place-seating-tickets .. also for safety-reasons probably. PS2 imagine ukraine gril is sitting [free place] and russian militair orso [have a reserved seat] or vv … or some Gaza / Israel confusing, skinny queer against Arab iman😂😅 … it does not have to, but it could easily touch the safety on the total train wenn this kind of confusing escalates [without communicated protocol] …. I think it could be an interesting international legal case .. to solve and change in the eu / world .. whatever.. 🤔 [50/50 problem… which screams for a more clear protocol!]

[@aro8570]

@Retired2811 in this case I think it is : because you reserved a seat. The seat is yours Like in a plane. At least in Zwitserland, Germany and Romania it works that way. They cannot sell more seats than available. (For sure there's somewhere in the conditions something about calamities or something like that)

[@Retired2811]

@@aro8570 I think it’s quesionable … because if the transporter knows with 99% certainty that you will be forced to leave your [honestly found] seat [with missing the essential information that also reserved seats were sold to people who will give you a free of charge debate or worse, I think the legal outcome is - for reasons of their own - highly questionable. People are express intend to being deceived. It could be that people who on forehand knew they had no change of a seat had chosen another transport option for a higher price but with a guaranteed seat [so they could work or whatever]. The price is without for sure knowing ‘you seated or not’ … but in reality the price IS BASED on ‘no-seat available’ … the transporter know the [all] seats are sold and should imo informed the client better [ but maybe there is some written text some where, pointed at/given, with ticket buy or something like that. I don’t know. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@AutomanicJack]

i never heard that a russian citizen who is against putins regime got any problems in europe and i wouldnt be worried about the T-Shirt

[@dgibelli]

Yes trains in Czech/Poland you book the seat separately...I learnt the hard way too 🙄

[@tj2375]

Separate seat reservations is a very confuse system. In some countries this is no longer done, either the seat is directly on the ticket (inter cities, fast trains) or the seats aren't reserved (local trains, suburban trains, regional trains). But Germany keeps the most complicated system, like always 😂

[@spasnikolov1238]

The systems with open ticketing is much more flexible and supportive for through international ticketing. Usually in countries like Italy/France where seat is included in the price they sell tickets for each train separately. And you can't really buy any through international ticket involving more that 1 train. Open tickets allow booking a single ticket from one end of Europe to the other. But, yes, there should be a warning that your ticket doesn't insure you a seat on the train.

[@solonutiket564]

Keep brooding your horizons

[@SalyLuz-hc6he]

Broadening?

[@johnstevens6865]

Thanks Natasha! Come to America next! We'd love to have you!!

[@mclurr3197]

Nice you see you in my country!

[@nocaster51]

I (don't really, but) hate to admit, you, as Russian born, have no filter on seeing Warsaw and just plain describe it as it really is. Anyway REALLY GREAT so see you, after watching you for years. What a nice surprise!

[@howardw7727]

Thank you!!!

[@w.neuman]

"I Am A Master At Starting A FriendLy Communication" ••••••• Yes You Are, °Miss•Natasha, YES YOU ARE ! ❤😊❤

[@MrVince8]

You have matured greatly from your first videos at your home in Russia. Keep up the good fight.

[@ИннаШерифа]

Love your insight 👍

[@KalleKilponen]

Not smiling for no reason sounds pretty familiar to me as a Finn. People can mistake our neutral expressions as being grumpy or cold, but it's just what it is: Neutral. We smile when we have a reason to smile, but we don't put up a fake facade of smiles either.

[@karolinaa.6183]

I have been following your story almost since the beginning of the channel. The first video I watched was the one where you showed Russian letters in your hometown of Spassk. :) And I remember there was a moment when I was worried about your safety while you were still in Russia. So it's a nice surprise to see you visiting my country as a tourist. I'm sorry you had problems. Polish customer service is not the best, to put it mildly. I presumed you would notice a lot of similarities between Poland and Russia, because I noticed them myself when watching your videos. In my opinion, however, Poland is much more modern and European than Russia, and life improved tremendously after 1989 and breaking free from Russian influence. With the Volhynia issue, the dispute is mainly over the question of exhumation of the victims. The Polish and Ukrainian sides seem to have come to some agreement, but some alt-right political parties are trying to make political capital out of the Volhynia genocide issue and anti-Ukrainianism. Russian was compulsory in school until about 1990, so the older generation knows Russian, while the younger generation is more likely to know English.

[@letter203ify]

Thanks for bringing us along on your trip. Feels like I am really accompanying you. I’m learning new things from you. Namely to get the building code for the apartment rental. I had a similar experience in Miami. My niece has an apartment but without building passcode I can’t use the elevator and can’t get in the building. And of course my phone didn’t have signal so I couldn’t call her.

[@tom3kggg732]

I'm Polish. I'm waiting for more videos about Poland😀👍

[@peter_oso]

Witamy, witamy podróżniczkę z Azji 😀 Very good attitude in travel

[@tudorm6838]

I stayed in Warsaw, also in an apartment. It was cheaper than a hotel and a bit bigger than the one in the video. It was before the pandemic.

[@MiSt3300]

About Ukrainians, most of them are not refugees, but simply migrants. They work and have worked in Poland since around 2010, just like Poles worked in the UK in 2005. Yes, some of them could possibly be refugees, but most will simply be regular migrant working people. And of course they are welcome to stay in Poland and help our economy (:

[@Medytacjusz]

that's not exactly true, yes Ukrainians were significant portion of migrant workforce in Poland before the war but there weren't 1,5 million of them. It would be a suspicious coincidence if suddenly so many people decided to work in Poland exactly when Russia invaded, wouldn't it.

[@pansaltman]

@@MiSt3300 Not true, most od them are refugees, most od them are women with kids . Read the statistcs.

[@rawimir]

Welcome to my country, Poland :)

[@Yamasalloway2025]

Did not realise Fred-Chopin was from Poland, you can also go from Berlin to Amsterdam which is a good price, Poland looks clean and safe, I want to check if it's good for cycling, from Poland to Estonia for the ferry.

[@smthcrazy]

Hey, we all give a S* about you - please take care of yourself. It's not all hopeless, I promise you that.

[@LatajaceStadoKotow]

I don't endorse 100% the "smiling like a fool" and "we are cheerful when familiar" attitude, but I do support it up to 90% I rather know, when someone is familiar with me, that means something, that I can open myself, rather than stay in the shallow mode of interaction. The (at least) 10% I'm not willing to give, is people being assholes and using this as an excuse. You can be neutral without both "smiling like a fool" and being antagonistic. Also, I agree about the Slavic look. Not all Slavs look the same, but many Russians (not all of course) look more Polish than a random Bavarian or Dane. Probably even more than vice versa, as we have a little less Finno-Ugric and Tatar than some percantage of ethnic Russians do.

[@GioGeorgian]

Thanks

[@KZKonradZ]

Regarding the seats in the train. If you book in advance you will have a seat that means at least two weeks in advance😅. Polish railways don’t do extra rail cars

[@rscmcl]

Natasha don't feel bad for having fun.... it's not your fault what's happening in the world. Live your life how you want to live your life. Laugh, cry, be angry, etc because you feel it not because is the correct state of mind you have to have in the moment. I hope someday you visit South America. Bye (Paka Paka)

[@fabricio4794]

Stay in Poland you are safe(i hope)on this Land..

[@Piotrek_J]

Welcome in Poland, you have to visit Kraków,.

[@K0r0n1s]

A rough start, but I hope that Warszawa will be a bit more inviting to you in the next coming days 🙂 Another interesting city I can recommend for exploring is Gdańsk, if you ever have the chance to visit another Polish city. Lots of churches, old buildings and interesting places to go to^^

[@geraldc.37]

Hi Natashia Good Video. Appears you filmed this a while ago. The foliage indicates late summer or fall.

[@peter486]

hey i think i saw you in sweden a few weeks ago, could that be the case? "gröndal sweden stockholm " you steped off the tram.

[@MsFemininity]

Natasha, you explain yourself too much, we understand you mean well :). Polish people usually can't tell if they hear Russian or Ukrainian and many Ukrainians speak Russian, so your language shouldn't be a problem at all. Younger generation is going to speak English, older people speak Russian. I am so sorry you had this problems with a seat in a train and with airbnb. Polish railways do sell tickets without seat reservation, but this is mainly done when all the other seats are booked. So it's either that or not going to your destination :(. If you are planning on visiting Poznan please let me know if you experience any problems, I am willing to help :)