Work / Teaching English lessons with a native speaker in Poland [10]

I agree if the learner has no interest or motivation, but it's not impossible. I taught Turkish absolute beginners over twenty years ago without knowing their language, and it was tough, but we should never underestimate the power of the human mind. If a good personal rapport is achieved, it is possible.

Off-Topic / Polish and Russian Christians! Lest's unite today! [41]

Are you in the Craft, jon?

News / World's 'most wanted man' (a Pole) found working at British Subway restaurant [43]

I bow to your greater knowledge. Not from personal experience, I hope.


What a nightmare. Great that he was sent to Poland to serve his sentence.

News / World's 'most wanted man' (a Pole) found working at British Subway restaurant [43]

Białystok is known for its hospitality! But perhaps you're right. All I can say is what I was told. As for fresh bread, how would you deliberately source 300kg of guaranteed stale bread every day? The fresh bread I believe, at least.

News / PiS to impose blanket retail tax in Poland [291]


Car mechanics must be the worst tax dodgers.


I've lost count of the number of times people have said, "Oh, it's OK, I don't need an invoice". They get one anyway. Don't they realise how much better public services could be if everyone paid their dues?


They need to have better and more prizes, but yes, a good idea.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


And we all know how much JKM respects and values women, right?

History / "Poland's Concentration Camp" ?? [570]


Especially among the Royal family, the aristocracy and elements of the press. Try reminding the Daily Mail on their comments page, and be prepared for a long wait.

News / World's 'most wanted man' (a Pole) found working at British Subway restaurant [43]

Polish prisons may not be as bad as people think. Years ago I taught a guy who sold bread in large quantities to institutions like hospitals and prisons. He said that occasionally, when he was doing business in a local prison around mealtimes, the prison staff would invite him to join them in the canteen, where they would have exactly the same as the prisoners. He described breakfast to me: scrambled eggs, tomato and cucumber salad, cheese, and two kinds of fresh bread. On the January morning he told me this I had got up at 0500, breakfasted on a slice of the previous day's bread, walked twenty minutes to catch a freezing cold bus for an hour, and then walked another ten minutes to work. Who's the mug?

News / World's 'most wanted man' (a Pole) found working at British Subway restaurant [43]

The friend of a student of mine served a few months in a British prison for affray. He said it was a chance for him to do his FCE free, do some weight training, and eat healthily for a change. The prospect of being imprisoned in the future was anything but a deterrent.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Really? How did you get here?

Life / Africans in Poland and diversity [60]

But it's not your opinion, is it? You are a white racist who is making a wholly transparent and feeble attempt to troll this forum.

Off-Topic / Polish and Russian Christians! Lest's unite today! [41]


Nonsense. Shape-shifting reptilian aliens are. Haven't you seen the YouTube vids of Obama and HMQ Elizabeth? (some of the aliens are Jewish)

News / PiS to impose blanket retail tax in Poland [291]


But a good British private school can beat you. Whack!

Travel / INFORMATION ABOUT TOURISTS ARRIVAL IN POLAND [15]

Poland simply doesn't have the tourist infrastructure to accommodate large numbers of tourists. Anyway, who wants lardarse drunken Brits littering the Baltic beaches? Poland could do a lot more to encourage internal tourism. Hotels are often disappointing, and when you go on holiday in Poland, there's often not very much to do. It's improving, but veeeery slooooowly.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


I can't help you with the figures, but those numbers must have increased significantly. In my nearest town a small, ground-level retail park has just opened. It's nothing special, just a C&C, Rossman, Jysk and a few others, but there must be a hundred new jobs there, and Sunday is one of its busiest days.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Part of that looked-forward-to day off involves shopping for a lot of people. I see shop workers I recognise out shopping on Sundays. Governments should extend liberty rather than restrict it. This is less about protecting workers' rights than an attempt to socially engineer people's free-time activities. What next, 'vounteer' digging to create parks?

I remember when strict Sunday trading laws existed in the UK. Boy, were Sundays dull! A few big players like Tesco and B&Q defied the law and opened with much publicity. Their stores were packed and the government had to back down. The bishops weren't happy but the people were.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]

It's up there with cutlery chained to milk bar tables!

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


I think we are talking about checkout assistants here.


I also find it impossible to believe that these workers put on adult incontinence garments and excreted into them while sitting at the checkout.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


I remember when that came in in the UK, what, forty-odd years ago? My shift-working nurse mother used to go to Mass on Saturdays if she was working on Sundays.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]

So, an isolated incident of an abusive employer breaking the law. That hardly justifies the statement that



I do indeed remember how some Biedronkas exploited staff, and I boycotted the chain for several years because of it. Nevertheless, in modern Poland Sundays are the only days a lot of busy people have the time to shop. It beggars belief that any government would want to limit ciizens' choice in this way.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Could you clarify what you mean? You seem to be saying that all supermarket cashiers wear Pampers because they are not given breaks. Obviously that is absolute nonsense. Do you mean that you read a story somewhere in which a cashier claimed to have done this? If so, please supply details.

Life / Africans in Poland and diversity [60]

A white troll.

Life / Africans in Poland and diversity [60]

Such an obvious troll but some people fall for it.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]

We collect the old lady next door's pension for her. It's 1100PLN/month. I spend that filling the car.

Polonia / Should Poles help Germans organize protests demanding free media ? [136]

If that group is fairly represented by the angry, bitter reactionaries on PF, I sincerely hope so.

News / Is Jarosław Kaczyński the new Lech Wałęsa? [74]

Polonius, are you hallucinating? Who exactly is trying to violently overthrow the government? The only violence I see is in that post of yours that I objected to.

News / Is Jarosław Kaczyński the new Lech Wałęsa? [74]


So one way of removing the demonstrators, including people of all ages, would be to execute them. Perhaps internment in concentration camps would be less extreme. Please moderate your views. You are beginning to sound like a nazi.

News / PiS to impose blanket retail tax in Poland [291]

Standard and Poor's are not influenced by a mere demonstration unless there's a million people outside parliament for a month. They base their assessment on hard politics and the expertise of their analysts. They see a downward trajectory in Polish democracy (and not only they see it) and this new rating reflects that. S & P doesn't really care about ordinary people; they care about markets. Markets don't like unpredictable governments. If PiS want to alienate international commerce, they are going the right way about it.

UK, Ireland / Hundreds turn out for funeral of Polish man who died alone on in County Clare Christmas Day [28]

I worked with a lot of Irish guys on the Canary Wharf site years ago. They earned terrific money and sent loads back home, but in the evenings the choice was between sitting in a caravan (they were not travellers) or sitting in the pub. Drink got the better of many a good man, and it is no doubt the same for single Poles living abroad. The people of Ennis did a good thing, and that's all that needs to be said.

News / PiS to impose blanket retail tax in Poland [291]

Which of those jobs is Polonius'?