News / Positive features that distinguish Poland from other countries? [63]


Thanks Matyjasz, glad you enjoyed it. See you around

History / Jewish belongings [118]


Honestly, there wasn't anything phobic about it. As I recall, it was a small segment in the last episode of a series about Auschwitz (I use the German name deliberately). The program makers were clearly completely bemused by the reaction they got, they certainly hadn't set out to confirm some pre-existing stereotype or prejudice.

I'm not referring to you Grzegorz, but it does astonish me how many Poles/Semi-Poles are convinced that all Westerners have nothing but prejudices and negative opinions about Poland. We really don't.

Life / Etiquette at Polish weddings [15]

Glad you enjoyed it Lonman. Ah, how I envy you the opportunity to pop into a London pub *sigh*

See you in Krak

Perhaps you will enjoy batorego.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/ten-things-i-love-about-poland

UK, Ireland / Do Poles integrate well into British society? [18]


Searched, can't find it. Do tell, please.

Love / Need help: Can't get my polish girl to say "I love you" [84]


This is some kind of wind up, right?

History / Jewish belongings [118]

Saw a very interesting documentary on the BBC about a Jewish guy who went back to Poland after 60 years. He left as a very small child when his family managed to escape to the UK. He went to a small town (don't remember where) and tried to visit the house that his family once lived in. The current Polish owner was, not unnaturally, extremely suspicious about who this guy was and only let him in after much persuasion (and, who knows, a bit of cash from the producer perhaps). The Jewish guy found it a moving experience and even remembered a couple of items of furniture, a big oak table for example. The Polish owner insisted that he had bought the table 'a couple of years ago.'

Anyway, long story short, the guy went back about six months later and found that the Polish owner had almost completely demolished his own house searching for the 'Jewish gold' that he was convinced must be hidden somewhere.

There are countless urban legends in Poland of people finding gold or gems or other valuable items that were hidden by desperate Jews just before they were carted off to the death camps. I don't know if any of them have been shown to be true.

Life / Surviving the Polish Winter [27]


Who's a Brit basher? I AM British.

Let's talk about London fog :))

You realize the guy who started this thread got bored and wandered off weeks ago.

News / Positive features that distinguish Poland from other countries? [63]

Many Poles are extremely negative about their country, for complicated reasons, but it does kind of get me down.

I just wrote a blog post entitled

batorego.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/ten-things-i-love-about-poland/ - 10 Things I Love About Poland

Life / Surviving the Polish Winter [27]

As everyone had been saying, it's not a big deal. Once the temperature gets below -5 or there abouts it doesn't really feel any different, even if it's -20. For everyday walking about you just need a good jumper and a sensible coat and you'll be fine. I highly recommend a hat too. A good hat can work wonders (by good I mean one that covers your ears).

I think you're from the UK, so you're probably worrying about if it will be cold indoors. Have no fear, most places in Poland have extremely effective heating and insulation - unlike back in Blighty where central heating is generally pathetic and double-glazing is regarded as a luxury. These people know what their doing when it comes to building warm places to live.

History / Communist Era in Poland: Some questions [28]

Thanks Krzysztof, very interesting. So, many families have owned the land they have now for generations, there wasn't an interregnum.

How did the system cope with people buying and selling land? I'm sure it was all immensely complicated, but I find it fascinating how little us Westerners know about the way the economy of half of Europe worked for so many decades (not that I'm assuming it was the same everywhere in the Eastern Bloc).

Life / Etiquette at Polish weddings [15]

Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it!

Life / Etiquette at Polish weddings [15]


I attended a traditional Polish wedding a couple of weeks back - a few pointers:

1. Everyone lines up after the ceremony to congratulate the couple individually, this is the time to give gifts/flowers etc. and to roll out your best pre-rehearsed Polish phrase.

2. When they say 'the wedding lasts two days' what they actually mean is that you go back to the same place on the second evening and essentially repeat the meal - it doesn't actually last 48 hours (may seem obvious, but you can't be too careful).

3. When they say 'dancing' they mean proper old-school dancing with lots of couples twirling about and doing fancy steps - not the random leaping around in a darkened room that passes for dancing in my neck of the woods.

4. When they say 'drink' they mean vodka - but there are rules. Don't drink unless invited to by others or unless you can pull of inviting others to join you in a drink. Read my blog post 'Drinking in Poland - the Truth.'

5. When they say 'food' they mean heaps and heaps of delicious meaty grub that just keeps coming and coming until you lay on the floor and beg for mercy.

enjoy!

History / Communist Era in Poland: Some questions [28]

Hi everyone,

Something that I've often wondered, but have never been able to find a sensible answer to (ok, I haven't tried THAT hard): Did people own land under the former communist system? I know people in towns and cities didn't own their flats/apartments (i.e. they didn't hold title to them and couldn't sell them) but what was the deal with farmers and 'their' land?

People in rural communities in Poland today own land. How did they come by it? Did they continue to own family land throughout the communist period? Could they sell it or develop it in those days? Was it passed down from parents to children?

I'm intrigued by this since, in the West, we were always taught that communism meant that the means of production (including arable land) could not be privately owned.

Any clarification to undo my years subjected to propaganda?

Law / Average rate for proofreading English in Poland? [14]

As you rightly mention, it depends a lot on the organization and the material. However, I would be tempted to ask at an early stage if your clients want 'proofreading' or 'copy editing.' I've been an editor in the non-fiction publishing industry for years and these are distinct and quite different jobs. Proofreading is purely checking for errors in spelling/grammar/punctuation as the last stage before publication (it comes from the practice of checking the proofs of manuscripts before they are sent to press). Copy editing is a much earlier step in the editorial process in which a copy editor (natch) makes suggestions/correction on the style and content of the manuscript.

If you want to blind people with science a bit and hopefully impress them into paying more, I suggest pointing out this distinction to your clients;)