History / Chance of Lwów once again became coming part of Poland [344]


And it was Lemberg in Austro-Hungary for many years, too.

Life / English and Polish bank account - to move money between the two easly [2]

No - such things don't exist yet - banking laws in individual EU member states are different so any bank operating in the UK and Poland would have to run their operations as completely separate organisations.

Your best bet Is to send money between your Polish and UK banks using a money transfer broker which would (hopefully) lower the transfer fee and certainly convert currency at a much better rate than a bank or kantor.

I use World First and can recommend it. People also speak well of Transfer wise. There are others, but those are the best known ones.

Another tip is that if you're using banks in more than one country and sending money between them, choose very big banks. Smaller banks or ones that belong to other banks cost more when making international transfers because they have to use an intermediary bank who take a fee as well as your own bank's normal transfer fee. Bigger banks are "correspondent" with each other so transfers are a bit cheaper.

Also have a look on moneysavingexpert.com for the UK debit/credit cards that are best and worst for using abroad.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

Why would somebody need the franchise in a country they've never lived in and in which they may not even be able to speak the language well in any case?

Or for that matter why would anyone need to vote in more than one place?

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]


Staring in the mirror too long is never good. Where did you say you were from?

The issue of people in other countries with little connection to Poland, without the language or any direct experience is a problem. The other European country affected is Italy. Fortunately the EU are addressing this to make a common Europe-wide policy about who can vote.

Very fortunately, the overseas vote has little effect, being counted only in the Warsaw electoral district, which is hardly the most typical in Poland.

News / Warsaw no longer the most congested city in Europe! [16]

Very sensible. Istanbul traffic is much scarier than Warsaw's - crossing the road is a nightmare. Warsaw does have its moments though. by the way, we also chose our home in a place where my other half doesn't have to commute.

Some of the Warsaw problems could be solved with a congestion charge like London's together with improving the commuter trains (not just the SKM) and more park and ride. The few park and ride places that opened are so far a success.

History / WHAT IS POLAND? (Poem) [12]

A nice poem, Pol3.

You won't like this quote as much, however in context there's some sense in it. It's from the late Quentin Crisp, who between the 30s and the 50s lived with Poles:

News / Warsaw no longer the most congested city in Europe! [16]



Yep!

Another issue is that in the UK it's being challenged in the European Courts by pensioners' rights groups as illegal so an awkward time to introduce it to Poland.

In Warsaw, it's the 'lateral' buses (i.e. the one's that don't go towards the centre) and pass markets and supermarkets that are the worst. They get stuck in huge traffic jams anyway and the granny thing at each stop just makes it worse.

News / Warsaw no longer the most congested city in Europe! [16]


It's got a lot worse since the bridge stopped. Plus, while they were doing all the road works to connect up the bypass there were horrific jams in the North east of the city.

One exacerbating factor sometimes is when they stop traffic for some dignitary. When Angela Merkel visited, the whole of Trasa £azienkowska was sealed off for 45 minutes (during the rush hour!) before her journey - couldn't they have popped her in a helicopter? They even still stop the traffic for the Premier etc, Soviet-style.

Another problem is poor traffic management sometimes with unphased traffic lights causing gridlock at junctions. That and the very low standards of driving.

Down by the office parks by Galeria Mokotow was always the worst - partly due to a lack of joined up thinking when planning permission was granted to build them without reference to future traffic issues. Under the economic circumstances, that was excusable - the priority was jobs and the economy, but this was very little consolation for people stuck on the bus for an hour.


They actually do very well, however there is still some room for improvement, especially on commuter routes.

Restricting pensioners' discounts to after 9.30 in the morning and not between 15.30 and 17.30 would be a great help in Warsaw. It's a problem when people doing a full day's work are jammed on buses that stop for longer than they might and others having priority for the seats because of 85 year olds who must, simply must do their shopping every day during the 8am rush hour.

Life / Little-known facts about Poland [45]


Pretty hard to watch through obscure glass - and anyway, natural light and fresh air are the most important things. Mind you, in PL, I've seen people deliberately block ventilation holes!


Nope - both in Europe. Two written constitutions are older than the defunct Polish one. One (you'll have to find out where, but a clue is that it's in southern Europe) of them is even still in force....


I've come across it in cinemas and on video too unfortunately. It isn't unique to Poland - the Russians do it as well. I've heard various contrived excuses from people trying to explain why it's better - they don't ring true.The reason it's still done are four fold. Firstly because it's much cheaper - not only to do but also in licensing the film for use on the Polish market, secondly because Slavic languages in general and Russian & Polish in particular tend to be more verbose than English making dubbing awkward. Thirdly, a significant section of the Polish film audience finds reading a chore, and finally, because it allows for quick and easy bowdlerisation.


There wasn't the same concept of citizenship then, and nobody (except you) claims him as Polish, With Copernicus, nationality is a grey area. With Hevelius, it isn't.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

Ideal really - most of the PiSuarzy don't live that far away and they've certainly got a strong leader with very traditional values.

UK, Ireland / Polish Migration to the UK - A moderate speaks! [41]

I agree too, but remember that some people are better at learning languages than others, and some people from Poland who've gone to the UK may plan to only stay a short time.

News / Is Poland a safe place to live? CBOS survey. [7]

As things get better economically, it's become safer. People are a bit more clued up about personal security than they used to be. Also, the crime rate dropped after EU accession - young and unemployed people started to leave to find jobs elsewhere.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

A lot of people are saying this at the moment

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Work / B2B (business to business) vs normal employment contract in Poland [7]

Exactly that and made a lot of analysts and programmers rich, back in the glory days of late 80s, early 90s, especially with all the deductibles. They mostly insisted that the contractor formed a limited company and for some the tax expenses funded their whole life. Not so much now unfortunately, and in Poland the tax office are wise to it.

In PL, 12000 to your a/c every month is nice - you do have to have a very good book keeper to maximise the deductions in order to pay no more tax than you have to or a good understanding of Polish and accounting yourself.

Work / B2B (business to business) vs normal employment contract in Poland [7]

Always as in sales. This is just a scam to employ people as contractors rather than employees. Yes, it may be beneficial for the employee as long as job security isn't an issue.

Love / Any Polish Muslim girls living in Poland? [103]

Remember that the post is a gentleman looking to meet someone for romance, not a discussion on traditional clothing from different regions of the world, though since you asked, a couple of sentences about it that are relevant to the thread not least because the partly address a potential cultural misconception by the poster.

No, Levi, they are not 'obliged to wear Burka'. The obligation is for an Abaya when out in public, a light garment covering clothes, very practical in hot weather. Face covering is not an obligation, though most (especially in central and eastern ksa choose to). Expat women mostly don't. Burkas by the way are intended for sandstorms and are not a Saudi thing. In the rest of the region, outside KSA, the rules are much freer.

Clothing issues no help for the OP though and largely irrelevant in Poland. I do know several Muslimas in Warsaw, both Polish women who've reverted to Islam as well as people who were raised Muslim. None wear an Abaya and only the converts cover their heads.

The OP doesn't mention if he's actually in Poland or not - if yes, the best way would be to meet families in the mosque and hope to be introduced to someone. There are also Polish women on Islamic dating sites. If he isn't in Poland but has heard of the legendary beauty of Polish girls, perhaps he isn't aware that only a very small proportion are Muslim and that Polish Muslims tend to be educated and sophisticated and more likely to seek a life partner closer to home rather than half way across the world - they are also likely to be more affluent than the average inhabitant of KSA.

@TheTurth man, try this site: bestmuslim.com/bycountryview.php?gender=Female&country=Poland

There's also loveawake.com

And don't let people in this thread put you off just because they've got prejudices.

Hi Levi, you're going off topic as usual so I won't respond to your ravings about Islamic dress, except to say that I have far more experience of the region that you ever will and that your answers to TheTurth man's posts are not helping him at all in his question.

The thread is about Polish Muslim girls and the posters question is how to find one. Yes, there are Polish Muslim girls, both reverts and otherwise - however the poster may have the wrong idea. Perhaps you can suggest to him how he can meet a Muslim girl from Poland or another girl who may be willing to revert.

The two websites I mentioned could be useful to him - do you know of any others?

Love / Polish girlfriend told me we cant have sex because I'm not religious [40]


Love's a powerful thing, and yes, love sometimes hurts. Sexual frustration too is pretty hard to deal with ('scuse the pun). She's obviously blowing hot and cold, letting you go part of the way but not all. Maybe she understands the effect that is having on you, maybe she doesn't. Maybe she gets off on leading men on, maybe she's just naive.

My suggestion is not an easy one but might be for the best. That's to seem less desperate, less interested and let her do all the work. If she really does want to go further, then she will. If she doesn't, then that's a sign to move on.

Work / B2B (business to business) vs normal employment contract in Poland [7]

You mean B2B as in a back to back rotational contract - meaning the work involves being in a different country? If yes (I'm on a back to back contract) it means that someone else and I alternate months in a particular place. These are common in petrochemicals and shipping. The tax is often something called 'equalised taxation' which is usually very advantageous however the exact terms depend on the actual employer - usually large and/or state owned concerns. In the case of Poland, you'd be out of the country for more than 183 days so unlikely you'd have any liability at all.

Or perhaps they're naughty and have made up a term like 'business to business' contract. That would just mean you'd be freelance and paid gross. You'd still have to pay tax on it, but you'd be a freelancer so the employer wouldn't get involved in deducting it. This could also work to your advantage, however there'd be a lot more paperwork.

Food / Location, telephone numbers and information for Indian Pakistani grocery stores in Poland [7]

Yes. There's the Ahmad shop opposite the old mosque on ul. Wiertnicza. Here's a list that might be useful to you:
poland-muslims.de.tl/Sklepy-Halal.htm

Law / Is Polish language certificate necessary to get citizenship of Poland? [6]

Yes, I think you can do the language test at private places although the exam is still the official one. A bit like doing FCE at a privately owned school that's accredited as an exam centre.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]


Most people do. I've never seen such ridicule or such a rush to get his brother out.


Only the late middle aged were voting adults in those days, the overseas embassy vote has little or no effect on overall results (and in 20 years I've never heard even one Pole say that they feel what 'Polonia' thinks is important or even relevant), and of the various European countries, polls show that Poland is one of those with the strongest support for the EU.

Interesting how the second round will be. People do remember how disastrous the last PiSuar president was and I suspect there will be tactical voting for President Komorowski.

Love / Polish girlfriend told me we cant have sex because I'm not religious [40]

Yes! The language thing is very significant! Maybe in fact she's waiting for a sign of commitment.

Love / Polish girlfriend told me we cant have sex because I'm not religious [40]

Why would his/her nationality be relevant. After all, they're dating. If a woman wants to date a guy from a developing country like India, Brazil or Nigeria, why shouldn't she.

I suspect in this case she's torn in two. There's obviously attraction (the "hand stuffs") but she's just not the type of woman to go all the way, and he is after all a younger guy.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]


Not that interesting. Much of Mazowsze is one-horse towns plus farming villages. That and many Warsaw residents being registered to vote elsewhere and a lot of OAPs voting in town.

The Kukiz thing is significant too - many first or second time voters choosing the rock musician for the first round but almost certainly not choosing the stodgy Duda for the second.


If they're actually Poles, perhaps with an old age pension due from Poland that's dependent on government policy, if they're paying tax there and/or have a home, or if they don't have a vote where they live, it's no problem voting. If they're actually Americans who have roots in PL but no fiscal link then that's a bit different - people oughtn't to vote in that situation. I still vote in the UK but my pension is there and some real estate plus I'm there several times a year so it's excusable. Some WASP in Boston, Buenos Aires or Melbourne voting there just because their grandpa and grandma were Brits would be plain wrong. Interestingly, in Europe it only seems to be Poland and Italy who do this. In most other countries you lose the vote after a certain number of years.

I suspect the U.S. votes have a small impact on the Mazowsze result. I do know that there has been an unprecedented turnout among Poles (especially younger ones) who've moved to the UK - most come from small towns and villages with high unemployment and interesting to know who they voted for and why so many turned out.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

An interesting map.

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News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

Yep. I can think of the few people the same. One guy I know (very political and nearly a libertarian candidate himself) campaigned for Kukiz but would rather pull his own teeth out than vote for Duda.

Law / Is Polish language certificate necessary to get citizenship of Poland? [6]

You need to do the state exam (and get a sufficient grade) as well as a certain length's time residing there on the same legal basis as well as other supporting factors. That's just one of the ways - there are more than one.

If you have a ten year residence permit though, why do you need citizenship so soon? Maybe better to wait a while, practise the language (the exam is not an easy one) and it will be a simpler matter.

News / Presidential elections and debates 2015 Poland [472]

Yep, the first round and the folks who voted for Kukiz (despite his support of right wing causes) are more likely to switch to the President.

Love / Polish girlfriend told me we cant have sex because I'm not religious [40]

I was wondering about the age gap too. I'd guess he's 25 and ganting for it and she's 15 and sensible.

Can't be that much younger since he's come among way to get here and she doesn't sound that much older. Could be students of course.


- ahhh, romance

Work / Why English Teachers stay long term in Poland [30]

Wow - I hadn't noticed! Sorry :-)

And by the way, your assessment seems a good one - there are certainly people back home with the same problems, just as a profession which attracts eccentrics (come on, that's true - ordinary people get jobs in insurance with luncheon vouchers and a swipe card round their neck) will certainly have some wild characters.

By the way, CMC (not cms) was talking about


in the Middle East and having to spend a lot to get out for the vacation. I don't think he realises that nobody actually buys their own tickets and that there's quite good social life there. More so than in small town Poland, which for someone as young as the OP must be a strain. When I worked for a large in-company EL provider based in Warsaw, they'd only send people out to the sticks if they were older and more self-sufficient.