I can assure you that there is no need (nie ma potrzeby) to take any extra supplies with you as cosmetics and other goods are all available in Poland with no need for you to bring things to Poland in heavy luggage. The only exception (wyjątek) is medicine (lekarstwa). Here there is no space for any risks and if you need to take special medications then you are advised to bring enough with you to cover the duration of your stay. If you have something serious which needs specific medication prescribed by a doctor only, take them with you and the prescription should you need to buy this medication in Poland [e.g. if your luggage is stolen (skradziony bagaż), medicines contaminated with water, or lost (zagubione)].

All other product can be purchased on spot. There is no need to take cosmetics (kosmetyki) or hygienic products with you especially when coming to Poland for a long time. Many of these products might even be cheaper here, though of the same quality (tej samej jakości) as those in your own country. In these times of globalization you can be sure that you will find the same products with the same brand names and of course the same quality here. Some of these products may have a different name (inną nazwę) to fit the local language and market, but just look at the packaging (opakowanie) and colors (kolory) and you will see that they are the same (są takie same). Take for example the international ice cream producing company called Wall’s in Britain, in Spain Ola, and here in Poland you will find it under the name Algida. And this is true for many other commodities. It can be funny though when a world brand comes to a country and does not change its name as in the case of OSRAM, of electric light bulbs fame. The meaning in Polish so bad that I really shouldn’t publish it here without giving offence to some of our more delicate, and younger, readers! 😉

So you can expect to find most of the worldwide brands, clothing, video products, cars, you name it, here in Poland.

Any hygienic products (produkty higieniczne) that you might need urgently are available in the many little kiosks and corner shops, salons around the city. As to condoms (prezerwatywy) they are in sale in all supermarkets and many shops and are of course of European standard.

One thing I would advise to bring with you is an electric converter. You will need it to charge your cell phone, camera, laptop or to use a hairdryer (if you took it with you from USA). The voltage throughout Europe is 220. American voltage is only 110. You can get these converters at Walmart, CVS or stores with the sport and travel equipment. I think they are sold at supermarkets as well. They are little and do not take a lot of room.

To sum up – pack carefully, do not take extra heavy products, just take your favorite (ulubione) ones and buy the rest when exploring our country.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)