Łódź from a different perspective

I was living abroad for couple of years and when I spoke to my friends who never left Poland, they advised me to try in Warsaw, Wrocław or other cities. They said if you go to Łódź it will be your biggest mistake,as they saw Łódź as an old, sad , very dark city with no opportunities for young people. I thought to myself , I will give it a go, I will try,let’s see how it goes.

Now two years later I must say I don’t regret my decision. I lived in multicultural environment for so long and it wasn’t easy for me to adjust in polish reality. But along the way I met some fantastic people we ensured me that I have made a good decision back then.

As everyone know , there are a lot of people from every part of the world who are currently living in Łódź. They came here either to work or study, sometimes both of the things in the same time ( like I did) . I live here for only couple of months but I have met people from countries like India , Taiwan, Indonesia and many more. They are so different but their opinions about Łódź are similar. I was always wondering what was the reason for them, to travel across the world to Poland, when some of foreigners don’t even know where Poland is.

I have spoken to them recently, just to ask how they see Łódź .
Shanu- lovely guy from India, very religious, hard working, who is always happy, always ready to help. Came here to study at Medical University. I really admire him because he is studying and working full-time. He live in Łódź three years and his polish is getting very good  He is a guy who never went to a pub, never had a drink but his favourite place in Łódź is Piotrkowska Street, he calls it P Street
Here is what he said about Łódź :

“For me as a foreigner Lodz is a city that you love or hate. No other city in Poland was so strongly associated with 4 different nations, Poles, Russians, Germans and Jews. Their traces can be seen in many places. In my opinion it also makes this city so unique. The places attracted me in Łódź are Piotrkowska Street, Jewish Cemetery, Łagiewnicki Park, Saint Alexander Nevski Cathedral, Botanic Garden, Radegast (Radogoszcz ) Station. Łódź would have been much more beautiful if there were no graffitis and the native population can fix a small smile on their face.”

Sansan- I never saw that girl being upset, easy going , fun to be around. She came here for work, found the love of her live. Recently she moved to Warsaw, but she lived in Łódź almost two years.
Here is what she said about Łódź:

“Łódź  is a very lovely and homie place, which makes me feel so comfortable staying in this city. As a foreigner living in Poland, it's pretty often you feel that you don't belong to the city and the country because you're so different. But the moment you enter Lodz, the view and the air makes you feel like you're home. You can't say the old town is so amazing like those famous tourism cities in Poland. But walking on Piotrkowska is one of the best way to chill me down. I like the city and friendly people from Łódź a lot, and definitely a great place to visit”.

Overall I guess Łódź is not so bad. There is a lot of events, a lot of places to go to. It really doesn’t matter if you are polish or you come from a different part of the world, I guess everyone can find something interesting for themselves in that city.