Episode 02 · Hello and Goodbye

Welcome back to Kazimierz. Yesterday, Tom stepped off the train with a head full of unpronounceable letters and a rising sense of panic. But thanks to Ola, he learned the real trick to Polish: it's perfectly phonetic. If you can listen, you can survive.

Today, Tom is testing his new confidence. He steps out of his attic building, ready to greet the world. The only problem? He's about to discover that in Poland, you don't just say 'hello'. You have to know exactly who you're saying it to.

Cześć, Tom!

Cześć, Ola!

Notice that? Tom remembered Cześć from yesterday. But then, Pani Kowalska, an older neighbor with impeccable posture, walks by the café.

Dzień dobry, pani.

Dzień dobry.

Ola didn't use Cześć here, because in Polish, the register matters. Cześć is for friends, family, and kids. For anyone older, or anyone you don't know, we use the polite form: Dzień dobry.

Cześć! / Dzień dobry! — Hi! (casual) / Good day! (polite) · CHESH-ch / jain DOH-bri

Literally, Dzień dobry means good day. The tricky part for English speakers is that Dzi sound at the start. It's not a hard D, it's a soft J sound, like the J in 'jeep'. Say it with me. Dzień dobry.

Cześć! / Dzień dobry! — Hi! (casual) / Good day! (polite) · CHESH-ch / jain DOH-bri

Let's try the pair. First the casual Hi: Cześć! And now the formal Good day: Dzień dobry. Once more, nicely and clearly. Dzień dobry.

Cześć! / Dzień dobry! — Hi! (casual) / Good day! (polite) · CHESH-ch / jain DOH-bri

Tom looks a bit nervous now. He realizes he can't just throw Cześć at everyone. If Dzień dobry is for the daytime, what happens later, or when they leave?

Dobry wieczór. Do widzenia.

Dobry wieczór. / Do widzenia. — Good evening. / Goodbye. (polite) · DOH-bri VYEH-choor / doh vee-DZEN-ya

Exactly. In the evening, you shift to Dobry wieczór. And when you part ways formally, you use Do widzenia. Let's look at those two.

Dobry wieczór. / Do widzenia. — Good evening. / Goodbye. (polite) · DOH-bri VYEH-choor / doh vee-DZEN-ya

Dobry wieczór means Good evening. The W is a V sound, and that O with an accent is an oo sound. Wieczór. Say the whole thing: Dobry wieczór. And for goodbye, Do widzenia. Literally, until seeing each other. Try it with me: Do widzenia.

Dobry wieczór. / Do widzenia. — Good evening. / Goodbye. (polite) · DOH-bri VYEH-choor / doh vee-DZEN-ya

Let's take a quick breath and review the basics we've picked up so far. For friends, we say Cześć. For anyone else during the day, Dzień dobry. In the evening, Dobry wieczór. And to formally say goodbye, Do widzenia. You're already navigating the Polish register!

Back at the café, the door opens and out comes Pani Basia, the owner. She treats everyone like family, but she still expects good manners.

Dzień dobry, kochanie. Herbata dla was.

Dzień dobry. Dziękuję bardzo.

Proszę. A Tom... jak się masz?

Jak się masz? — Dobrze, dziękuję. — How are you? — Fine, thanks. · yahk shyeh MAHSH / DOH-bzheh jen-KOO-yeh

Ah, the classic question! Jak się masz? How are you? In English, 'how are you' is just a noise we make when walking past someone. In Poland, it's a real question. If you ask it, be prepared for an honest answer.

Jak się masz? — Dobrze, dziękuję. — How are you? — Fine, thanks. · yahk shyeh MAHSH / DOH-bzheh jen-KOO-yeh

Let's practice the question first. The tricky part is that little word, się. It's an S-I with a tail, making a soft sh sound. Jak się masz? Say it with me: Jak się masz?

Jak się masz? — Dobrze, dziękuję. — How are you? — Fine, thanks. · yahk shyeh MAHSH / DOH-bzheh jen-KOO-yeh

To reply smoothly, Tom can say Dobrze, dziękuję. Fine, thank you. The RZ in dobrze is that buzzing zh sound. Dobrze. Try the reply: Dobrze, dziękuję.

Jak się masz? — Dobrze, dziękuję. — How are you? — Fine, thanks. · yahk shyeh MAHSH / DOH-bzheh jen-KOO-yeh

Dobrze, dziękuję, Pani Basiu.

Tom is feeling pretty good. He's got the formal polite rhythm down. But Kazimierz is a neighborhood of all ages, and here comes Kuba, a local university student, cruising past on a skateboard.

Siema, Ola! Co tam?

Siema! Co tam? — Hey! What's up? (casual, Kuba) · SHEH-mah / tsoh TAHM

Wszystko dobrze, dzięki Kuba.

Tom looks utterly lost again. What happened to Cześć? Kuba just used Siema, which is extremely casual street slang. It actually comes from shrinking down Jak się masz.

Siema! Co tam? — Hey! What's up? (casual, Kuba) · SHEH-mah / tsoh TAHM

Siema is like 'hey' or 'hiya'. And Co tam literally means 'what's there', but it's used exactly like 'What's up?'. Say it with me: Siema! Co tam?

Siema! Co tam? — Hey! What's up? (casual, Kuba) · SHEH-mah / tsoh TAHM

Remember, this is strictly for peers and friends. Do not say Siema to Pani Kowalska, unless you want a very long, disapproving stare. Try it once more, nice and relaxed: Siema! Co tam?

Siema! Co tam? — Hey! What's up? (casual, Kuba) · SHEH-mah / tsoh TAHM

Dobra, lecę. Na razie!

Na razie! / Do zobaczenia! — See you! / See you soon! · nah RAH-zyeh / doh zoh-bah-CHEH-nyah

Do zobaczenia!

Na razie! / Do zobaczenia! — See you! / See you soon! · nah RAH-zyeh / doh zoh-bah-CHEH-nyah

And there goes the casual goodbye. Kuba said Na razie, which means 'for now' or 'see ya'. Ola replied with Do zobaczenia, which means 'see you soon'. Both are great for people you know.

Na razie! / Do zobaczenia! — See you! / See you soon! · nah RAH-zyeh / doh zoh-bah-CHEH-nyah

Na razie has that buzzing RZ again. Na razie. And Do zobaczenia is a bit of a mouthful, but very common. The CZ is like the ch in church. Do zobaczenia. Let's practice both: Na razie. Do zobaczenia.

Na razie! / Do zobaczenia! — See you! / See you soon! · nah RAH-zyeh / doh zoh-bah-CHEH-nyah

So, Tom has survived his first morning. He knows how to say hello and goodbye to everyone from a skateboarder to a strict neighbor.

So, Tom... you can say hi in four different ways now. But wait, what actually brings you to Krakow? What do you do?

The smile freezes on Tom's face. He can open and close a conversation flawlessly. But the second someone asks him who he actually is... he doesn't have a single word for it.

We will leave Tom to figure that out next time! For now, let's lock in what we've learned today. For a casual hi and polite good day: Cześć. Dzień dobry. For the evening and polite goodbye: Dobry wieczór. Do widzenia. To ask how someone is and reply: Jak się masz? Dobrze, dziękuję. For a very casual hey and what's up: Siema. Co tam? And for casual goodbyes: Na razie. Do zobaczenia.

Great job today. We release new episodes every Tuesday and Friday, so make sure you come back to see how Tom manages to introduce himself. Until then... do zobaczenia!