Made in Poland - Souvenirs
Most people like to take home a reminder of their travels, so here’s a guide to the popular souvenirs from Poland.
1. Jewellery
Uniquely designed and crafted jewellery can be a fantastic gift or a souvenir from Poland. Pendants, earrings or bracelets with Polish amber (Poland is one of the biggest producers of amber) are particularly popular.
2. Vodka
Just as whiskey is identified with Scotland, and tequila with Mexico, vodka can easily be identified with Poland. Vodka in Poland is produced in a variety of flavours, although pure vodka is still the most popular. The diversity of brands that you will see might confuse you, but regardless of which one you buy, the quality should always be up to the high standards.
If vodka is not your thing, you are still left with plenty of other options. Amongst endless fruit liqueurs (nalewka), mead (miód pitny) and beers from the large or micro- breweries, you should be able to find something that will suit your taste buds.
3. Kiełbasa and food items
Kiełbasa is probably one of the most famous foods from Poland. Kiełbasa comes in numerous varieties. It is usually made of pork meat and is flavoured with different spices and herbs such as pepper, garlic, caraway seeds, or marjoram. Most kielbasa is smoked or dried, but fresh one, usually served in a soup, is also available.
For more diverse food products made in Poland check our article about Souvenirs from Polish Supermarket.
4. Porcelain
Beautiful handmade and hand painted porcelain items, with both traditional and modern designs, are practical gifts and a treat for one’s eyes.
5. Christmas tree ornaments
Mouth blown and hand painted Christmas tree ornaments have been a symbol of Polish crafts for decades now. You might not find them easily in the summer months, but in the winter time, you should have a great choice of various shapes and colours.
6. Polish Folk Art
Sculptures, wooden toys, hand sewed dolls, lace are just examples of Polish folk arts and crafts still produced in the country.
7. Computer games
For a less typical but completely contemporary gift from Poland, choose one of the popular Polish computer games.
The number one game is The Witcher that also proved to be a huge international success.
Other titles include, to mention just a few: Painkiller; Call of Juarez; Sniper; Ghost Warrior and Afterfall: Insanity; This War of Mine.
For the full list of video games developed in Poland visit Wikipedia.
8. Music
Apart from the obvious choice of the music of Fryderyk Chopin, you can pick some great compositions of other Polish artists, regardless whether you like classic, jazz, folk, rock or popular music.
Examples of well-known artists:
Jazz – Krzystof Komeda Trzcinski, Zbigniew Namyslowski, Michal Urbaniak, Tomasz Stanko, Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski, Adam Makowicz, Wojciech Karolak, Włodzimierz Nahorny, Leszek Możdżer.
Folk – Trebunie-Tutki, Psio Crew (from Bielsko-Biała), Kapela ze Wsi Warszawa, Zakopower.
Classic music and composers – Fryderyk Chopin, Krzysztof Penderecki, Wojciech Kilar, Witold Lutoslawski, Karol Szymanowski, Wladyslaw Szpilman.
Other – Akurat (from Bielsko-Biała), Mannam, Maria Peszek, Ania Dabrowska, Kasia Nosowska, Dawid Podsiadło, Krzysztof Zalewski, Kortez, Monika Brodka, Marek Grechuta, T-Love, Czeslaw Niemen, Coma, Kult, HappySad and much more.