Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]

Thanks D. If I come back to Polska for a long stay again, I'll take driving lessons to try to get over this fear, but then again I might just get an urbancard for 3 months :o)


Well, it scares me anyway, and I drove in rush hours and all hours in London and the M25 for 20 years.

In my experience, this negative review of Poland's roads and drivers is quite near the mark. Sure, bad drivers aren't all around, it's not everyone. But, there are enough fools on the roads to make it far more challenging than in, for example, the UK. Also, roads are often indeed poor, in layout, lighting and marking.

/poland/driving-to-poland.html

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]


I've been back there, and the good news is that my left turn was absolutely perfect, I watched where the left-turning bus went and I was spot on the other day. The bad news is I'm not a bus. As there's a camera there I shall expect a ticket in the post.


You're right, there is a no left turn sign and another sign next to it says in Polish 'does not apply to public transport'. Next to that is a yellow diamond and diagram of the junction and it shows a left turn as well as right turn priority (thick black line), but I now realise the left means just for buses. The no left is also quite near another left turning, so slightly ambiguous. Unfortunately, I didn't spot the sign as I've been on the bus many times on that route and of course seen other non-bus vehicles turn there (I even saw one tonight when I was there briefly, along with legally turning buses). I also saw a car overtake a stopped bus tonight and narrowly avoid a head-on with a vehicle coming the other way. In fact, it's seldom that I don't see others' near-misses on almost every trip I make. The other day it was nearly me involved when that car came the wrong side, so I think I'll stick to the trams and buses for the remaining time I'm here, I'm just not comfy on these roads or perhaps just not smart enough to drive here. Never had road phobia before, but I think I'm going to throw the towel in on this one before I end up as a statistic. Now, where did I put my Urbancard...

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

Ironside, if that's what American mature cheddar tastes like, you should get yourself over to Britain.

Some Isle of Man and Farmhouse cheddar in some Wrocław Lidls, literally a few packs left (6.66zł, 240g). This is the same range as was carried in recent weeks. That ends this newsflash, and I now return you to your regular reading.

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]


I've noticed the birds eye view doesn't match the streetview (different years, road redone). I will go there and photograph it this week if it's on my route this week. I will of course be wearing dark glasses and a hat...


Not far, but the location is top secret now while I go and photograph some cars and buses turning there and look for 'buses only' signage ;o)

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]

Clear as mud then as others turn left there, and of course the bus does too, D.

I feel like a criminal now, if you're right.

I'll have to lie low, wear a hoodie etc, avoid the old bill if I see 'em, I'd better leg it back to STN sharpish...!

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]


I can go take some photos if that would help. I can show you a bus turning left there or other cars. It's news to me that there's no left turn there. I only know about that left turn because the bus goes there and a rental agent drove me left there earlier this year. Problem is I never noted where they positioned their vehicle before turning left, so I just followed the markings and I hope I did ok, apart from that car that I mentioned. It wasn't a near miss, but a few moments later and it would have been.


That's what I thought, but I am not sure, so I have asked, because had I have been on that part of the road a moment or 2 earlier (to go straight or turn left) he'd have hit me.

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]

Everyone turns there, including buses, D. Which markings are you referring to that say no turn? What is the purpose of the marked off area, for straight traffic and left turns? I see a solid white line for traffic from the other direction, which AFAIK means don't cross (for traffic opposite).

Life / Learning Driving In Poland - rules? [55]

Anyone advise on whether I was in the wrong in the following example? See the attached diagram.

My route meant turning left and I positioned my vehicle in 'A' while waiting for the red lights nearest 'A' to go to green.
At green, I then gave way to the traffic from the opposite direction including from 'C'.
When there was no traffic from the opposite direction or in conflict with me and with the nearest traffic lights at green, I successfully turned left and went to 'B'.

Was the above correct? (the yellow line shows my eventual path at green)

I ask because just moments before I drove on to the area marked 'A', a car from the opposite direction somehow drove (at speed) considerably over 'A', so if I had been there I would have been in his path. How did that happen? Fortunately, I was still driving along and signalling left and had not yet reached 'A'.

Was he allowed to somehow stray into 'A'? Was it my mistake somehow? It doesn't seem to be my mistake but I am not sure. In the UK I understand junctions fully and have been driving for decades. Here, I get scared, frankly.

(I know the traffic light shows a straight arrow for there, but I assume it applied to me turning left. I know buses and cars turn left there.)

• 
  Junction illustration
  

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]


For 200g? Whadya think, I work for Credit Suisse or somethin'?! I can't afford that on a regular basis, I'll have to go cold cheddar now until I return to Asdaland.

Mind you, it's the best price in Wroc that I know of for Kerrygold, apart from the special offer I posted above. I think I prefer Cathedral City though if push comes to shove.

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

He means Fenicks or Fenwicks in Wro.


Unfortunately, they aren't cheap for regular users I mean consumers ;o)

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]


Sounds like your branch gets a lot of stock or the cheese sells at a slower rate there. Here it sells out on the first day, for whatever reason. Thanks for the tip -- I'll check Lidl again on the 15th or 16th but it looks like they're only going to be selling the same varieties again which aren't really what I want, although they'll do for cheese sauce.

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]


Thanks, noted and I might dine there, thanks for the tip :o)

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]


Horrible story, and sorry to read you have suffered.

FWIW, I keep my eggs in a fridge and always have.

Here, a UK newspaper reports that scientists did a study and found in or out of a fridge made no difference to how eggs kept. I'm not sure what to believe, but I will probably continue to keep mine in a fridge, as after all most fridges have egg compartments.

dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2421530/So-eggs-fridge-Scientists-crack-age-old-argument-chilled-room-temperature-best.html

EXTRACT:
/...FoodTest provides the food and drink industry with government-approved laboratory analysis to ensure the safety, quality and legality of their products.

The company kept two batches of eggs for a fortnight, one at room temperature, the other at a typical fridge temperature of 6c.

Samples from both batches were regularly tested for nasties such as E.coli, the superbug staphylococcus aureus, salmonella, listeria and campylobacter.

The results, taken at the start point of the test, at the end of the first week and at the end of the second week, were all the same.

There was no difference whatsoever between the two batches. Both remained bacteria-free...

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

Some Carrefour branches until 09.12: Kerrygold mature cheddar approx or just under 40zł a kilo, from the deli counter.

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]

I said earlier: Some of the small grocery stores do indeed refrigerate their eggs here, as their turnover is slower than the big shops.


I can now confirm that today I saw a major supermarket (no, not Tesco) with their ordinary eggs in 2 different cabinets which, by the sound and feel of the cabinets, had some refrigeration on. Probably not on full tilt, but they seemed to be switched on. I couldn't see a temp gauge.

Most consumers here would be surprised to learn that it is against the regs to do that, if indeed it is, and I assume it is if you say it is.

Work / Living in Poland (telecommute to London) [27]


ISAs have been around a long time and they allow Brits to save a sum each year tax-free, building on that sum each year. A lot of Brits will have had ISAs going back 20 years. If a Brit becomes tax resident in Poland, it is a worry if the ISA account has to be closed because that can be many years of past allowance gone, because if the person returns to the UK to again become tax resident there, it could be that they'd have lost the right to the accumulation of perhaps 20 years' of tax-free allowances. When interest rates are reasonable again for depositors, that's quite a lot to lose in tax-free interest each year. I'd not wish to lose UK tax resident status unless I found a job in Poland that made staying on in Poland financially the better option.

Thanks for checking the info., I've not put any money in the ISA for 1 or 2 years because I simply have been using up my savings to live, so that's a happy coincidence maybe :o)

Work / Living in Poland (telecommute to London) [27]


Thanks for the replies :o)

If a Brit becomes taxable under the Polish system, do they lose the tax-free status of their UK ISA account? Not good news if so. "Hello, Ryan Air? Er a ticket to Stansted sharpish, please..."

Work / Living in Poland (telecommute to London) [27]

If a person from the UK is registered here with a PESEL and/or the blue registered stay card, is completing a tax return mandatory even if there's no job income to tax and only very little or no bank account deposit interest? Because I don't think Poles in the UK have to send in a tax return unless they start earning and it's not PAYE.

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

I know, it's hard to believe, and I will keep checking every time I pass a Lidl, but I reckon they all get the same stock here.

Unfortunately, animal rennet is still used in a lot of cheese here.

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]


Yes, those of us in Wro can only dream of the access to mature cheddar some lucky people have elsewhere in the country where mature cheddar at Lidl (and Bedronka) is stocked daily like milk and potatoes !

The one thread of hope we have is that they will eventually roll this out to Wro -- maybe one day. We can indeed but dream...

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

Checked 2 Lidls here in Wro today -- no mature cheddar of any kind.

Checked 2 Biedronkas again today -- ditto.

Work / Living in Poland (telecommute to London) [27]


Would the polish tax office also want to tax any interest he earns in his Aus savings account if he is in Polska >185 days per tax year? Or is there some treaty agreement meaning it's not taxable? I think I'm right in saying Polska is less generous with personal tax allowances.

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]


Some of the small grocery stores do indeed refrigerate their eggs here, as their turnover is slower than the big shops'.

Work / What salaries are for IT specialists (Senior QA Engineer) in Poland? [59]


Thanks, frd. (I find the roles a bit confusing!)

Work / What salaries are for IT specialists (Senior QA Engineer) in Poland? [59]


This poster's remark is probably correct, I'm probably confusing your role with another more specialist one. So, forget my 8K talk.

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

I believe Valley Spire is Lidl's own brand, and I think the cheddar is Irish.

I hope it has vegetarian rennet (podpuszczka) which in Poland is usually called mikrobiologikal or something like that in Polish on the sklad/ingredients.

The local Lidls here don't have it (yet?) which is surprising as people from many different countries use my main branch. I saw several shoppers looking disappointedly at the empty cheddar shelf on Mon.

Work / IT Jobs in Poland? [30]

Big computer and IT co seem to be planning to make 1000 redundant in the UK next year
news.sky.com/story/1177620/hewlett-packard-to-cut-1100-uk-jobs

Will they send the jobs abroad? Will they make Poland staff redundant too?

They say they want to focus more on cloud storage. Will that focus be concentrated on any existing or new work locations?

Work / What salaries are for IT specialists (Senior QA Engineer) in Poland? [59]


+1

Btw in my limited and perhaps merely worthless hearsay experience, the salary is between 8 and 15K PL gross/brutto per month in Wrocław. I don't think jobs are plentiful but at times it seems those with specialist IT skills do a lot better than average.

News / Poland, still corrupt, but not as bad as Czech/Hungary & Italy [36]

In Q2, I ceased bribing my stylist to use a blob of extra fixing gel on my hair. This may have skewed the figures somewhat.

Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]

@Irishlodz, thanks. Unfortunately, they're not doing those lines here yet, if ever. I'll keep my eye on their stock with renewed hope from now on though !