00:00One of the things I love the most about living in Krakow is that it's a perfect place to
00:05educate yourself, entertain yourself, socialize, find some international friends and just live
00:13your life to the fullest.
00:15Krakow is hip, full of life and students.
00:19It's one of Poland's top university cities and has a cosmopolitan vibe.
00:24What's it like to live here?
00:26Hi, I'm Katarzyna.
00:27I'm 23 years old.
00:28I live and study literature in Krakow and today I'll show you what my typical day is
00:35like.
00:36Come along.
00:39Hi.
00:40Come on in.
00:41Welcome to my student's apartment.
00:43Well, actually, it's not completely mine.
00:46It's rented and exclusively this room is what I would call my private space.
00:52As you can see, it's not much.
00:54But as a person who grew up with my sister in my room, sharing the room with my sister,
01:00I'm really grateful to have that.
01:03She lives in a shared apartment.
01:05She shares a bathroom and kitchen with two roommates, but they don't have a common living
01:09room.
01:09She pays her rent through a scholarship and support from her parents.
01:16The rent for this room in this apartment is around 1,200 lotis.
01:24And it's quite cheap for almost the center of Krakow.
01:32That's 280 euros for a room in a 1960s-70s apartment block.
01:37To get to campus, she takes the tram.
01:40Krakow has one of the densest tram networks in Poland.
01:44A yearly student pass costs 470 sloty, around 110 euros.
01:50Katarzyna is pursuing a master's degree in Polish and Jewish literature at the public Jagiellonian
01:56University, one of the oldest in Europe.
01:59So, now we're coming to one of my favorite libraries.
02:03Her generation is more educated than any that have come before.
02:07Some 42% of Poles aged 25 to 34 hold a university degree.
02:12Among women, that tops 50%, among the highest in the EU.
02:18Reading is a big part of her studies, and Katarzyna loves it.
02:25To study literature, you need to train your attention span to be able to concentrate on
02:32longer texts.
02:33And since for my generation, and even the younger ones, it's getting more and more difficult.
02:42I think it's a nice training.
02:46Plac Novi, or the new square, is a popular meeting spot and the go-to place for a cheap,
02:51quick lunch.
02:53Zapie Kanki, toasted, open-faced baguettes, is a Polish specialty.
03:02Good as always.
03:04Krakow attracts up to 10 million visitors a year.
03:08Katarzyna tries to avoid tourist hotspots like the Main Market Square.
03:13This afternoon, Katarzyna is meeting her friend Kristina just outside the Old Town.
03:20They show us their favorite spot, where the prices are right for students.
03:29There is plenty of nice and affordable spaces to have lunch or coffee from a student's perspective.
03:38Places that are not necessarily dedicated or designed with the tourists in mind.
03:44But you need to know where to find it.
03:49Katarzyna hopes to work in academia in the future, though it's a field with limited job openings.
03:54Still, her overall career prospects are solid.
03:59Youth unemployment in Poland stands at just over 10%, significantly lower than in many other EU countries.
04:07If I'll be lucky enough to pursue my academic life, then I would probably love to stay here.
04:18I would love to stay here anyway, because I love this city.
04:22I'm not sure whether or not it will be possible with the cost of living, but for now I'll just
04:28try to navigate it in the best way possible.
04:36That's my pleasure.
04:37You
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