The Republic of Poland, which consists of 120,728 square miles (312,685 square kilometers), contains of 38.6 million people, most of whom live in urban areas such as the capital of Warsaw.

The country’s official language is Polish, while English and German are the most popular second languages. Religions present in Poland include Roman Catholicism, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, and the Uniate faith. 

When greeting one another, men shake hands while women greet each other by either shaking hands or kissing cheeks.  Close friends greet one another by kissing the right, left, and once again the right cheeks.  Poles greet guests at gatherings individually, beginning with the women.  When meeting a woman either older or younger than he is, a man may kiss her hand, but he cannot do so to the hand of a woman around his age.  When addressing each other, adults use full names until they both consent to using first names.  Poles frequently visit each other, and customarily bring either a bottle of wine or vodka or an odd number of flowers (an even number is reserved for somber occasions).

The Polish education system consists of free education until students turn 18.  After nine years of elementary education, students go to either a three-year high school or a two-year vocational school.  In order to attend a university, students must take an exam; only five percent of applicants are accepted into the prestigious schools.  A university degree takes about five or six years to finish.

Web resources: Poland

General Information: http://www.poland.pl/index.htm
Polish Tourism: http://www.polandtour.org/
Warsaw Daily: http://www.warsaw.com/
Krakow: http://www.krakow.pl/en/
Poznan: http://www.cs.put.poznan.pl/poznan/
Auschwitz Museum: http://www.auschwitz-muzeum.oswiecim.pl/html/eng/start/index.php

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