PolishForums LIVE  /  Archives [3]    
   
Posts by guesswho  

Joined: 17 Mar 2010 / Female ♀
Last Post: 22 Jul 2011
Threads: Total: 4 / In This Archive: 3
Posts: Total: 1272 / In This Archive: 974

Displayed posts: 977 / page 29 of 33
sort: Latest first   Oldest first   |
guesswho   
26 Oct 2010
USA, Canada / Giving up canadian citizenship for a Polish one? Cant be true! [20]

Don't do anything crazy that you might regret later on. If this is really a requirement to give up your Canadian citizenship to get a Polish one, think twice before you do it, especially because you want to stay in Poland just for a while.
guesswho   
25 Oct 2010
Food / Kotlet schabowy again. I love it. [47]

Guess you could also throw Pierogi also into that basket

I know, it's just that I like bigos and pork chops but I'm not into pierogi that much :-) Oh, stuffed cabbage is OK too.
guesswho   
25 Oct 2010
Food / Kotlet schabowy again. I love it. [47]

It tastes more German than Polish:/

Well, it's a correct statement, I ate it in Germany too. It's a same with bigos, Poles say it's theirs and I've met Ukrainians who said it's theirs too. It doesn't really matter as long as it taste good.
guesswho   
22 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

Maybe because they were trying to speak to yo their local language?

Maybe I just didn't know if they were Poles or not, when they spoke to me, it was either English or German. No one ever offered Polish (unless in Poland of course).

Poles are everywhere, even when you don't expect them to be.

Agree but most of them (once live abroad) know one of the popular languages.
guesswho   
22 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

Lots in Germany, heh, and the UK for that matter

We're talking about two different things. Sorry, about confusing you. I'm talking about the necessity of knowing Polish in those countries and you're talking about a possibility of coming across a Pole in one of these countries. Huge difference !

Besides, I don't know how it is in UK but in Germany, unless you really look for a Pole, you won't necessarily find him. With Turks, that's another story.

t's also nice for basic communication in the Ukraine, Slovakia, the Czech Republic. In Siberia, there were a couple of Polish speakers as well

Never been to Siberia (thank God), I associate it with Gulags and it's not a place to be ;-)

And Germans when in the mood start speaking polish.

lol
guesswho   
22 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

there's plenty of places (in Europe, at least) where Polish is useful

Other then Poland? Where?
I visited most of the European countries, I haven't heard anyone speaking Polish other than in Poland.

and if I had children, there is absolutely no doubt that they would be taught to speak Polish

Of course, you are Polish and/or you have a Polish background but why would a foreigner do it unless he plans to live in Poland for a long period of time?
guesswho   
22 Oct 2010
Travel / Will I have a problem upon exiting Poland? (American visited Poland through Germany) [20]

That's because you were travelling inside the Schengen zone.

yeah, that's right.

Makes no difference at all: the OP would still get nailed when he left Germany because he has overstayed in the Schengen zone!

When we entered Poland from Germany, no one made any remarks in our passports so in our case it wouldn't happen anyway but it will be a problem for people who fly into Poland for sure.
guesswho   
21 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

out of curiosity, do you, guesswho, speak any Polish?

answer here #26 (above)

But I learn Polish and I think this is more useful than learning the other mentioned languages. In Norway there are lot of workers coming from Poland, and some Germans as for the French and Spanish people I never meet them.

In your situation it might make more sense because you're working with Poles. Other than that I don't see any reason to learn Polish unless one lives in Poland for a longer period of time.

I personally like languages and learn it whenever I can but it doesn't mean that someone who feels different is an ignorant.
guesswho   
21 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

It doesn't really have anything to do with being in America. It's kinda obvious that someone who lives in one country as a citizen for so long should really know the language unlike someone who just stays there for a couple of years.
guesswho   
21 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

"Ignorance", lack of knowledge. She's ignorant.

Jeez, so anyone who doesn't learn (or doesn't want to learn) Polish is now an ignorant, right?
ridiculous...

If I were to do that, I would be studying for months beforehand out of respect.

Great point, respect would be really the only reason to learn it unless you plan to live in Poland for a longer period of time. I've learned some Polish while I was in Poland too but it was my choice. I don't think that someone who stays in one country for a limited period of time and chooses not to learn it, is an ignorant. In this case, this girl might have all kinds of knowledge other than the Polish language but she's automatically downgraded (by many here) to an ignorant. Obviously it doesn't take much for some of you to talk crap about us. I didn't see any reactions when I mentioned that guy from Chicago who barely speaks English after 35 yrs in the US. In my eyes, he is an ignorant. He's not a tourist, he lives here and has even our citizenship while the girl is staying in Poland just for a while and goes back home.
guesswho   
20 Oct 2010
News / Giant Jesus Rising in Świebodzin ( Tallest in world ) [323]

And does it really symbolizes our religion?

this is the question, it's probably way more that for the most of you. My guess is that it opposes all those Stallins and Lenins you guys had to live with for so many years (correct me if I'm wrong here).
guesswho   
20 Oct 2010
News / Giant Jesus Rising in Świebodzin ( Tallest in world ) [323]

Giant Jesus Rising in Świebodzin

Nothing's wrong with it guys. Poles lived under the Russian occupation and had to take all kinds of Soviet symbols long enough. The church was the only institution that gave them hope. The statue of Jesus is probably seen as a symbol of freedom of Poles and Poland.
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

which makes her ignorant... :)

Well, not really, she's just making her choices. Maybe not what we would choose but that's what's so great about people, we're all different (thank God).

let's stay on topic tho, ok?

actually, we're very much on topic. Talking about the differences between the Polish and the American way of thinking is kinda pointing out how I think about Poles. Nothing dramatic, people are people. We're just different.

well, that's weird... why not to learn any language... so what if you don't use it... is knowledge so bad?

and this is the difference between Poles and Americans (I already posted it in some other thread too), Poles would learn anything, whether you need it or not and we're only learning what we (I'm generalizing here, not everyone of us) believe is useful to achieve our goals. (I believe, I posted it here "Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible").

For example, an average Pole knows more about history and geography but he doesn't learn anything really (don't get me wrong here) important to make a better living.

well how convenient for them!! taking the easy, lazy way out as always. Then learn some other language, if English just so happens to be most popular.

call it lazy but it's just the way it is, English is the most popular language.
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

i try to see everybody's good and bad sides... nobody is perfect... :)

True but tell me, what you posted before (below), was it rather our good or bad side? (lol)

"of course, lets stay dumb... she should see an opportunity and learn the language while being there... but Americans are ignorant from the definition anyway so....

;)


I fully agree with the middle sentence as far as grabbing a chance to learn another language while in Poland (however, Polish is not one of the mostly desired languages to learn, huge majority of people, just about anywhere in the world, would most likely choose English, French, German or Spanish).

and expect people in the country they're visiting to speak English

Maybe because English is one of the most popular languages in the world, actually the most popular (not counting Chinese of course, lol)
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

but Americans are ignorant from the definition anyway so....

why, because they don't learn Polish? or because we're dumb and fat?

Let's create a thread about the reputations of various nations, I bet it will be "really" interesting.
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

he should complain that nobody speaks Polish there!!!! lol

You mean, once he meets someone who doesn't speak Polish (probably doesn't happen very often in Chicago, lol)
I've never been in Chicago, was applying for a VISA but it was always denied ;-)
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
Life / Foreigners in Poland and what they think of us [54]

and the princess from the USA complaining that nobody speaks English! well, you've been there a couple of years and still no word in Polish?!

How about that (already posted earlier on PF), I've met a guy from Chicago, 35 yrs in the US and still speaks a very broken English.

I guess, it happens anywhere.

Besides, she's most likely going back to the US anytime soon and since Polish is not exactly a world language, I don't blame her for not wanting to learn it even though it's obviously nice to know as many languages as possible.
guesswho   
19 Oct 2010
News / Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible ? [317]

Because the Polish people want it all, now. They aren't willing to tolerate a few years of pain for the greater good

To excuse Poles, maybe they're just fed up with never fulfilled promises? When you wait and wait and nothing ever happens, you start being very impatient. I'm not talking only about the current situation, as far as I'm informed, Poles had to wait many times on something in their past but it almost never came so I kinda understand them now even though, of course I know that you're right about what you're saying.