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Posts by dhrynio  

Joined: 8 Jun 2008 / Female ♀ 		Last Post: 9 Oct 2016
Threads: Total: 5 / In This Archive: 5
Posts: Total: 90 / In This Archive: 64 		From: Lomza
Speaks Polish?: yes..not perfectly

Displayed posts: 69 / page 2 of 3
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dhrynio   
11 Sep 2013
Life / Becoming a Polish citizen, what did it change for you? [6]

I am American married to my Polish husband for 11 years and have lived here in Poland for 9 years. We are planning to stay here and I am considering getting my Polish citizenship and having dual passports.

So for those who have done it, what did it change for you? Did it make things easier?
dhrynio   
11 Sep 2013
UK, Ireland / wife wants to have baby in poland not ireland [52]

I think WHERE in Poland you have your baby makes a difference. I am American and had both of my children here, but we live in Lomza. it was great, they were fantastic to me and I was treated very well.

It is your wife who is having the baby, not you. In the end she should get the say. I would imagine that she would want to end up close to her family after the baby is born, let her.

As for the language issue in the hospital. Does she have English speaking family members? Like a cousin who could be there to translate in case something goes wrong?

Unlike the above post by jam13, my husband was allowed in the operating room during my emergency c-section, so again it really depends on where you are.

Also she cans till fly until her last month, she would be smart to be in Poland for all of her last appointments anyways.

I have neighbors who are form Belarus. When she was a month from having her baby she went back home and did not come back until the baby was about two months old. Here husband traveled back and forth during that time and they are all healthy, happy and she has told me that it meant the world to her to be able to go back home to have her baby where she was comfortable. Here husband was understanding, they communicated about it and realized that her being calm and comfortable was more important than them being together all the time.
dhrynio   
6 Sep 2013
Travel / Holidays next month - suggestions for which part of Poland to visit [14]

It really depends on what you enjoy. If you like sailing, swimming and a more relaxed outdoor time then Mazury (lakes district) would be fantastic. If your thing is hiking and mountain views then the Tatry/Pieniny are in the south would be a good bet and your are close enough to Krakow to add them in. Or maybe sitting on the beach, lazy time fun in the sun, then look to the Baltic coast...however, the water is cold, the weather is iffy and it is kind of pricey. But there are some lovely areas. I did not add in cities because I don't feel a city really gives you a real look at the people, culture or what is in worth while in a country.

Where are you coming from? Do you speak any Polish? Is driving an option to be able to see more or you want to stay in one place?
dhrynio   
19 Jul 2012
UK, Ireland / Polish woman living in England is moving back to Poland. How much money do I need? [87]

Cleaning a 150 sq.m house in four to five hours means you are doing a very shoddy job, which might explain why you were only being paid 3.85zl per hour (50zl per day (i.e. 200zl per month) for a 13-hour day is 3.85zl per hour).

Uh that is not true and you are being very rude in how you are saying it. Our house is 260 sq meters. When our cleaning lady cleans she does it all in less than 5 hours and it is spotless. I do not ask her to do any ironing...I find that idea so weird. But to say that a 4-5 hour cleaning is something as small as 150 sq m is shoddy is very imcorrect and rude.
dhrynio   
17 Jul 2012
UK, Ireland / Polish woman living in England is moving back to Poland. How much money do I need? [87]

Ignore the rud epeople.

I think the most important question is where will you be moving to? It makes great difference in how much you will need if you will live in Warsaw or Lomza. Here in Lomza you will need about 1500zl for food, flat fees (what is it called? czynsz/) bills, insurance and clothes and such. But in Warsaw it could be 2 or 3 times that.
dhrynio   
13 Jul 2012
Life / English speaking nursery in Poznan [3]

kinderki.com.pl - Prywatne Przedszkole Anglojęzyczne Poznań

But do not be afraid to sign your child up in a regular Polish preschool. He/she will pick Polish up so quickly and will be just fine, that and the second language is so good for them!
dhrynio   
29 Feb 2012
Life / Polish plantlife and similar flora where you live. [81]

Thanks gumishu!!

Very helpful! as for trees, we were very lucky that the land we bought had lots of trees. I am planning some bushes though! Pigwa for nalewka will go inthis spring!
dhrynio   
28 Feb 2012
Law / American Presidential Elections - where to vote in Poland? [3]

I got an email from the embassy with a link to find my state to apply online to get my absentee ballot. They will usually send it to you in an email, you print it out then mail it back in.

Here is the email I got:

2012 ELECTION CYCLE - ALREADY UNDERWAY

Be an active voter. Start thinking about your participation in the U.S. 2012 elections today!

New absentee voting laws are in effect for the 2012 elections. You will no longer automatically receive ballots based on a previous absentee ballot request. All U.S. citizens outside the United States who want to vote by absentee ballot in the 2012 primary and general elections must complete a new Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) every year if they wish to vote from abroad. States are now required to send out ballots 45 days before an election. No matter what state you vote in, you can now ask your local election officials to provide your blank ballots to you electronically (by email, internet download, or fax, depending on your state). You can now also confirm your registration and ballot delivery on-line.

republicansabroad.org/voting_info.php

If you have additional questions or concerns, you may contact the U.S. Embassy's American Citizen Services unit either by telephone at (48) (22) 504-2784 or e-mail at acswarsaw@state.gov. The after-hours telephone number is (48) (22) 504-2000. The U.S. Embassy in Warsaw is located at Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31. The Consular Section entrance is located around the corner at ulica Piękna 12.

American Citizen Services
U.S. Embassy Warsaw, Poland
poland.usembassy.gov
tel. +48 22 504 2784
fax +48 22 504 2122
dhrynio   
28 Feb 2012
Life / Polish plantlife and similar flora where you live. [81]

well, it depends what you like. I don' have a garden, but my father does and I help him every year.

Yes should have been more specific...veggie garden is what I meant. In American garden means a place where you grow food. Here garden is your yard.

I keep being told that tomatoes won't do well unless in a hot house. I think i will give them a go. I do hope this summer is less rainy than last.

I will be doing raised bed or square foot gardening, so almost no weeding and no digging! Right now I am planning beets, cucumber, lettuce, parsley, radishes, spinach, strawberries, tomatoes, beans and other hebs. Although I am thinking that may be a bit ambitious for my first time here.

Oh and we are planting pigwa to make more nalewka! This last yeas was amazing.
dhrynio   
27 Feb 2012
Life / Polish plantlife and similar flora where you live. [81]

Merged: Let's talk gardening in Poland!!

I have lived here for 8 years and have yet to make a garden. But this is the year!!

So what do you grow? How has it turned out? Any tips for me?
dhrynio   
26 Feb 2012
Study / Polish language courses....Suggestions wanted. [12]

[Moved from]: Polishonlinenow - Anyone know about these new online Polish courses?

I saw it advertised in the online version of the New Poland Express.
polishonlinenow.com/en/lessons-courses
dhrynio   
10 Jan 2012
Study / Opinions about '2 weeks intensive Polish course' [26]

We were discouraged from speaking English. This was also my third or fourth level, so I knew quite a lot. I would not want an intensive for my first.

We were able to speak to each other in English during the breaks. Also thr groups were small, like 5 people maybe. Ideal really.
dhrynio   
10 Jan 2012
Study / Opinions about '2 weeks intensive Polish course' [26]

I took a 3 week intensive course in Warsaw at IKO. It was great. It was my 4th Polish class and my only intensive. It was tough though. The amount of stuff we learned was the same as a full time course but we attended 5 days a week for about 4-5 hours if I recall correctly.
dhrynio   
9 Jan 2012
Life / English channels on Poland's Cyfra+ [13]

Anybody know if you can do this to n Television?

Yes you can!! We got N a few months ago and there are many channels that you can change to English! The other thing I like about N is that it remembers your setting for each channel, so once you set a channel to English it will stay that way until you switch it.
dhrynio   
9 Jan 2012
Life / Life in Lomza - Is it a cheap place to live? [9]

This one I can help with! I live in Lomza and have for 7 years now. The owner of Lingua (Steph) is a Canadian who had also lived and taught here in Lomza for about 8 years. She decided to open her own school this year and has many students who followed her from the old school to this new one. However, I know very little about the school other than that she and the few teachers that I know are excellent teachers.

Lomza is a fairy cheap place to live. Rent is cheap compared to a big city and food is very reasonable.

Entertainment...huh that is a tough one. There is a movie theatre but they are now building a new shoppng center. I have heard rumors that it will be a Tesco and others that say it will be a mall with a theatre and a Tesco. One thing I can say is that Lomza is growing and getting better every year. Shopping is also better than it used to be.

Yes there is a hospital. Quite a good one. I delivered both of my children there and also was in a few other times. It also helps to know doctors. I am quite sure though that Steph and the others will help you out if the need arises.

If you have any more questions feel free to contact me on here. I will be happy to help. There are actually only a handful of expats in town but there are a few great bars with lots of people who are very interested in meeting English speaking people.

May I ask...and I know this may seem strange, but are you introverted? Extroverted? Shy? Outgoing? What are your interests?
dhrynio   
20 Nov 2011
Language / 'lubię, lubisz' - Infinitive [86]

The same as in English. When we say I like to listen to music. It the same. In Polish you use the infinitive after the verb like.
dhrynio   
21 Oct 2011
Love / I'm a black African man and can't cope with my Polish mother in law [34]

Hi Negra,
I have been married to a Polish man for 9 years and I have had a few issues with my MIL. But looking back I realized that most of them were just me trying to butt heads with her culture. The role of the Polish Babcia is very defined and it is instilled in them from an early age. I could not understand the soup thing for a very long time, but now I see it's value. First of all it is a great way to get veggies into a kid. But second and most importantly is it part of the culture and I live here as a non native and since it is not one that harms anyone I decided to stop resisting it a long time ago.

As for doing daily shopping...well again falls under culture. The older/middle age generations grew up like this and they are rather grossed out by supermarkets...and again age and time has taught me that fresh is best. If she wants to go do the shopping why would you want to stop her? I have two kids and take all the help I can get. My father in law goes to the bakery and brings us fresh bread every day, it used to bug me. But I decided to embrace it and after some time my preception changed.

As for the money spent, you need to sit down with her and have a good long talk. But it will not be taken well if it is you laying down the law and expecting her to be the only one to admit fault and to change. IMO it should look something like this:

You: I greatly appreciate all the help you give to us and I think it is wonderful that you make some fantastic homemade food, you are a great cook and after doing some thinking I see that since soup is important to you for the kids that maybe I should look at it differently. But we really need to work on a budget.

It really sounds to me like you are fighting her culture...but you live here in Poland. It is rude to fight the culture of the place where you live. I think you could do well to take a good hard look at yourself and your perceptions of things. I know it is hard to veer from our own upbringing and embrace that of another but polish culture and their ideas do have value. If you plan to stay here you would be wise to work on changing your perception, stop trying to fight who she is and work harder and making compromise on your side and getting your wife to work with her mom to get some compromise from her side.
dhrynio   
5 Oct 2011
Life / Expats/Immigrants in Poland: Needy, Greedy or contributor. Which one are you? [118]

Odd categories. Your definition of needy is a peculiar one, you must know some strange expats, and that definition does not include those who reltaionships are stable.

I must admit that my view of many expats is an unusual one. I find many of them social misfits, it seems many left home to find a place where no one knows them and they can start over, but the misfit part always shows through.

I am married to a Pole. I have lived here for 9 years and we have two bilingual children. I have taught English, but have stopped for now to stay at home.

So I guess from the choices in the OP I am a contributor/needy...just not sure what is so needy about a stable marriage and family.

There are many reasons to come to this wonderful country, some are selfish, some to take, some to give and some for love. For me the more important category for this thread would have been are you a contributor/integrator or not.