Real Estate / Polish Mortgage for a Foreigner [16]

Hi Griff, I think the question should probably be...who has had the least hassle with a bank!!!
That being said, BZWBK do have a section that deal with non-poles if they want mortgages. The office is located in their branch in Marszawlska St.(probably spelt wrong) in Warsaw. If you need any more details, let me know.

Here is a link to the english version of their site. You can find information on mortgage there.

english.bzwbk.pl/11591

Law / Taxes - Have not paid taxes yet for 2008 [6]

HI. dont get me started on the Tax office. I purposely went into the tax office to ask if my Tax for 2008 was in order. The woman had my file and said that everything was in order and that they owed me about 700pln... A few weeks later my accountant got an URGENT letter from the tax office saying that i owed the about 50% of the taxes due for 2008. I was able to provide proof and it is all sorted now.

To your question, I would pay up if you can. You are probably not at the top of their most wanted list but it it really better to get things sorted. I have heard, and i dont know how true it is, that if a non-national does not pay a fine e.g. jay walking, parking etc, and they have your passport number, that they put a flag on your passport so that next time you try to get in to the coutnry, they nab you. As i said, i am not sure if this is true or just an urban legend.

Work / Adobe package course in Warsaw [12]

Thanks John A.
Will keep a note of it.
Regards,
vincent

Life / Irish man wanna move to Poland [60]

Jedrula, would you like to know anything specific about everyday life?
Vincent

Life / Filling Prescriptions at the Pharmacy [5]

HI. I assume it is from a polish doctor? I have gone to pharmacies with doctors prescriptions and they have dealt with them no problem, without any PESEL number. I would try another pharmacy/pharmacies. Maybe bring along you passport just in case. (But i have never been asked for it)

Best of luck,
Vincent

Life / Taking action against landlords / landladies [10]

James, I would also advise the landlord.lady that you are going to report them to the tax office becasue of the way that they treated you. See what reaction that provokes.

While i have not yet been in that situation , i fully undrstand your frustration at being messed around.
Best of Luck,
Vincent

Life / So it's hit me too, isolation in Poland [46]

Thats a shame revorisimo...any chance you can reverse the decision and come back..

Study / How to get a degree in Polish Language and/or Culture? [4]

Hi. Try the university of warsaw. this is the english version of their website. They might have something that meets your needs.

uw.edu.pl/en/

Regards,
vincent

Work / Questions regarding visa (a bit specific situation) [13]

Hi. following on from harry's mail, if you do need to set up a one man company in wroclaw, i can give you name of my translator. She helped me set up a one man company in wroclaw and knows all the offices to go to. though i appreciate that your girl friend will probably be able to assist you as well.

Work / A list of English Schools in Poland run by a UK citizen? [24]

Hi. I know the university of warsaw has classes in english. However, i am not sure of the subjects which are covered. Here is the website for the english version. uw.edu.pl/en

Work / Adobe package course in Warsaw [12]

Hi there, 2 things.
Hi. I am trying to train myself up on the adobe products. I use this website for the training: totaltraining.com
You can buy a yearly membership and that gives you access to training for all the adobe design products. You can get a free trial to try it out.

Also, if you are a graphic designer, would you mind dropping me your email as i may be looking for some graphic work to be done on a free lance basis.

Regards,
Vincent

Life / why do People in Poland speak so quietly? [23]

Polish speaking quietly???!!! Where are they??? :-)
In the polish office where i work, it is very common to just shout into the phone. Also, another trick is to put the caller on conference call, even though it is only a 2 way conversation, and then they are shouting at the phone to be heard and you can also hear the other side of the call.

And dont get me started on when polish are 'discussing', as this normally ends in a shouting match with people talking over each other.

Law / Law relating to taking finger prints in poland [8]

It all seems very excessive...i was thinking about photo id as well. Going to keep an eye on it to see what happens.

Law / Law relating to taking finger prints in poland [8]


Somehow i dont think anyone will want to get into the swimming pool that much.

Work / Customs in workplace in Poland [11]

Actually, i politely asked to move desk..and they are facilitating me. I should say that i have worked in open plan offices all my life and never had a problem. The people who are in my room are very nice but boy, do they make a lot of noise in pursuit of their daily jobs. :-)

Work / Customs in workplace in Poland [11]

Yeah. It could probably be applied to a lot of offices around the place. I don't want to ruin their fun but boy, it is tiring... I definitely see an opening for 'effective communication' in Poland.. :-)

Life / How much will I pay for a dedicated Server in Poland? Web hosts. [10]

Thanks for those links..the az.pl one is great. Very good english site.

Work / ZUS rates for self employed [9]

Thanks for the link.
Regards,
vincent

Life / Is private health insurance necessary in Poland? [9]

By the way, How long are you coming for? You might be able to apply for the European health card which means residents from one EU country is entitled to free medical treatment in another EU Country. I am not sure of the details but it might be a runner if you are not in a position to pay for private health care.

Life / Is private health insurance necessary in Poland? [9]

Hi. Not sure about clinics which are free....Can I ask are you working? if you are working you should be paying ZUS which entitles you to access to the public health system. This can be very hit and miss and you may have to wait depending on what might be wrong with you.

In relation to private care, there are a load of private health clinics around. Word of warning, just because they are private, does not always mean they are better...most of the doctors who work here are from the public health service. That is not to say they are all bad but like anywhere in the world, there are good and bad doctors. i had to visit a number of these places last year, and the diagnosis i got from each one was very differrent.

A lot of these private hospitals have schemes where you can pay a month charge and it entitles you to certain amount of visits etc. unfortunately, i dont know the costs.

Work / ZUS rates for self employed [9]

Yep...ZUS is a killer. If the introductory rate has gone up to 330pln, do you know what the 800 pln has gone up to?

Life / Top 3 Most Important Things about which polish dentists will LIE to you bigtime [46]

Hi DNZ....could you pass on the details here as well as i need to go get my teeth checked.

I did go to a few dentists 2 years back and each had something different to say.

Life / 1st ex-pat assignment advice needed about settling down in Warsaw. [16]

Eh....not quite...!! :-)..


Not really unforunately...was able to buy a few years ago..doubt i could do it now.

Life / 1st ex-pat assignment advice needed about settling down in Warsaw. [16]

hi Ceaton, Just wondering if you have found an apartment yet? If not, i have one coming free next week. I am not sure what i want to do with it as i may be moving to warsaw early next year. So if you wanted it for a month or two while you get settled, i am sure we could come to some agreement. Its 77 sq m, 2 bedroomed, in Zoliborz area.

Work / Move to Warsaw and will teach English (advice needed) [23]

Hi Nando,
I am kinda lucky in that at the moment i am actually working remotely for a company back in ireland. That was not the plan (did not really have one) but it worked out quite well. It is a contract gig and will likely be coming to an end by the end of the year. It is testing software. When that finishes i intend to develop something on my own around online training. Will have to wait and see how that goes.

Regard,
vincent

Work / Move to Warsaw and will teach English (advice needed) [23]

Hi Nando,
I am a fellow irish man in poland(not an english teacher) but know the set up to moving over here. Here are a few pointers, for what it is worth -

- If you are not working at the moment, it would probably make sense ot try and get the CELTA. AT least that way, you can hit the ground running.

- Also, if you were thinking about doing the Business English, you might see about preparing stuff for it now e.g. buy a few books and prepare handouts etc. From my time learning (trying to) polish, you get handed crap. And preparation of classes can take a while so if you have some free time, get some in early. If you want to do the business english, professional looking documents would go down well.

- Any chance you could give some english lessons in ireland as a bit of preparation. Firstly, you can use it as 'experience' when you apply for a job. Also, it gives you an idea as to what is involved in teaching english. I have given a few english lessons(in exchange for polish lessons) and you get asked questions you would never think of.

- If you were working in a holel, maybe you could prepare classes for staff dealing with customers. You could then sell you services to the hotels e.g Communicating with your customers in English...etc.

- Talk to delphiandomine about the 'CAllan' method...apparently, your only qualification required is an ability to speak english.

And in relation to livingi n Poland, i dont think you will regret it. I have been here 3 years and have no intentions about going back to the aul sod...

Best of luck

Vincent

Study / Excel Power point courses in Warsaw [3]

Zion,
I dont know of any in warsaw but i use an online training company for a load of online courses. They have Excel and Word as well. have a look at

totaltraining.com

If might be of use to you.
regards,
vincent

Travel / trendy clubs in warsaw ? [7]

From what i know about clubs in warsaw. the few you mention (excluding Extravaganza) would be considered very trendy. Never saw the attraction about Cinnamon though. Platinium is a very nicely designed bar. Though beware...as these bars are trendy, they are patronised by a fair share of rude individuals who think they are sooooo important.