Life / Who's Leaving Poland? [138]

Delphiandomine wrote:


where I come from, nearly everyone.

Life / Who's Leaving Poland? [138]

i'd say Seanus is really looking forward to being an Elf.

Elves - Humans: 3:1

Life / Who's Leaving Poland? [138]

i guess that makes you and i an elf and a dragon, convex.

we'll have to grab a beer one night before we both shove off.

Life / What are the things which cause culture shock in Poland? [164]

Torq wrote:


now you're probably talking about something else. IMO, people don't leave poland because of culture shock. there are many countries that would create even greater culture shock than poland.

people leave poland due to it's inadequacies.

Torq wrote:


not really, Torq. because Silesian food offers a twist on Polish food hardly makes Polish cuisine diverse.

Polish people eat Polish food and it becomes even more evident with the 40 and over generations.

let us not forget that even when they have an "ethnic" restaurant, it's polish food made to merely look ethnic.

i fully agree with Peterweg on this one.

getting back to topic, the food here was a major shock for me as well. eating the same food every day is just plain old boring. in america, i'd eat Italian, Korean, Vietnamese, Mexican and Japanese...all in the same week. out here, it's nothing but polish food because most of the time, the rest either doesn't taste how it should, is too expensive, or both.

Life / What are the things which cause culture shock in Poland? [164]

well, for starters, they don't use ice in Poland! :) hahaha, kidding.

convex wrote:


yep.

also, personal space, or lack there of in public.

lack of inconvenience in general hit me really hard, and still nags me.

another thing that hit me was the fact that nobody owns a house so i was never going from a house to another house. everyone i met in the begining, and even today, all live in tiny apts. it's rare to find someone in Wroclaw that says, "hey, i'm having a party at my HOUSE, you should come." in America, every adult owns a home, people under 30 have 100+ sq. meter apts., so that lack of space gave me a major feeling of being smothered when i first came. coupled with the language barrier, it's much stronger.

work ethic was and still is a culture shock to me.

good thread, i just hope it doesn't turn into the usual "us vs. them" argument.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

Delphiandomine wrote:


I officially award "Delphiandomine" with the worst comeback in PolishForums.com history. (see my last post directed towards him, #100 on this thread)

I know it hurts Mikey. the truth always does. just take it like a man, pappy.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

there's an even simpler way of looking at this....

go to a deli in Poland, look for an ice chest with big bags of ice for sale.

hell, go to a supermarket and look for the same.

go to a kiosk and look for the same.

go to a gas station and look for the same.

think about the last time you saw someone in Poland walking to their car with a bag of ice.

think about the last time you saw YOURSELF walking to your car holding a bag of ice.

with all that said, how much ice can one make in their freezer? for a party? before you go to the beach?

masz.

Law / How can I get Polish citizenship after been married to a Polish spouse [75]

my fiance looked into this, they told her that after we get married, we'd have to live in poland for another 2 years before I would be elligable for citizenship. granted, I already have over 3.5 years of residence in Poland, don't know if that makes any diffference. i never really looked into it that deeply because we're leaving for the USA next year and I can always come back and visit with my American passport, but if you don't spend time in-country, you won't get it just being married to a Polish national.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

delphiandomine wrote:


if that is not the most out from left field comment.....what in the world does that have to do with the topic at hand. what a joker.

Delphiandomine wrote:


yep. that's right Delph. and I got the degree and years of working in a laboratory for a Bio-Pharmaceutical company to prove it.

so if you have a bogus company (lindenia) offering services to foreigners that generates no business due to lack of credentials, experience, language skills, maturity and just overall time spent in-country, that would make you a "so-called".......???

let us not even get into your pathetic attempt at teaching English. non-native speaker that....wait....what was it you wrote about your little agreement with your school?.....you teach what you want and leave the grammar stuff to the other teachers? bravo, mate.

do you even pay rent yet, or is your girlfriend's mommy and daddy still taking care of that?

tak czy siak, what does your statement even mean? so if people use something that could potentially be dangerous if not cleaned properly, we should deem it "UNSAFE" or "UNHEALTHY"???

a car is dangerous if not maintenanced properly, yet we all use them.

losing sleep because you're sweating your balls off at night can be detrimental to your health, too.

delphiandomine wrote:


you really are just a kid, Mikey.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

magdalena wrote:


let me guess Magdalena, drinking a shot of vodka every morning keeps you healthy when you travel to foreign countries as well, right? and if you get sick, just throw some pepper in there, voila! healthy as a horse.

a big, dumb polish horse.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

wroclaw boy wrote:


that's exactly why they do it.

it all comes down to economics.

kinda like how all Poles convinced themselves that air conditioning is "unhealthy".

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

speaking of teeth.....
...

News / Should Poland Remove Visa Restrictions? [285]

Torq wrote:


aaahhh, a classic polish/english false friend.

you can't use "consequent" like this in English, it doesn't make sense.

News / Should Poland Remove Visa Restrictions? [285]

meowmeow wrote:


and how do you suggest a country should do that?

P1: "sir, do you plan on commiting any crimes and are you going to pay your taxes?"

P2: "no sir, i won't commit ANY crimes and i will pay ALL my taxes....."

geeze, i guess that's all they gotta do!

VISA restrictions are utterly essential in this world, mr. meowmeow.

UK, Ireland / Nursing staff from Eastern Europe about to 'flood' into UK ? [45]

i don't know much about what all of you are arguing about, but if there are a lot of qualified english speaking polish nurses out there looking for work, it would be great if they could go to the USA. America is absolutely desperate for nurses right now, trying their best to recruit more within the country, and the pay is excellent. i'm sure a lot of people in poland would make a great nurse in america, and they'd be pulling in a nice pay check immediately. RN's in america start at around $75,000 a year.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

peterweg wrote:


this has got to be the funniest post i've read in a long time. hahaha!

"Man, her teeth are messed up."

"Nah....nah dude.....she has natural variation."

haha, oh that's just precious.

"fake and ridiculous plastic smiles that certain Americans seem to prefer"......this is priceless. you mean straight, white, clean healthy teeth? is that what you're getting at?

nothing ridiculous about great teeth, partner. would hate to see yours.

Life / Returning to Poland. Where should I go? [16]

dtaylor wrote:


man, i'm in the wrong profession.

anyhow,

honestly, it depends what you want to do. you have cash, so if you want to just come here and travel and use Poland as a base, Warsaw/Krakow may be a good choice just because of their airports.

i'm in wroclaw and flying out of this city sucks. i can't get a direct flight to the USA, and outside of the major cities, direct flights are also often times not available. i looked into flying to Amsterdam last month, no direct flights out of Wroclaw, and door to door would be something like 8 hours and at least $250 USD.

if i had that kind of cash though, i'd probably avoid poland altogether.....at least go somewhere that's warm most of the year.

Life / To ex-pats living in Poland. Hanging around more with Poles or other expats? [20]

i don't know any other expats in Wroclaw at the moment, knew a couple and they all went home, so i guess i'd have to say that i only hang with poles.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

tygrys wrote:


yep.


and a mouth either absent of teeth or full of black rotted ones to boot.

dentistry is a travesty in this country, even with the younger generations.

Work / Wage and Salary rates in Poland [37]

milky wrote:


RIGHT???!!!

Work / Wage and Salary rates in Poland [37]

waluty.onet.pl/nie-bedzie-euro-w-2012-roku,18893,3322280,1,pras a-detal

short read, just noticed it on onet.pl

glad they mention teachers in Poland, their salaries are pathetic.

imagine Poland going to the euro currency.....teachers in public schools in Poland would be earning 300 euro per month :O

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

plk123 wrote:


you choose the wrong pizza huts. i've never NOT gotten a free refill at a pizza hut.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

plk123 wrote:


dude, i've been to probably a dozen different Pizza Huts on the east coast, and refills are ALWAYS free. every time.

plk123 wrote:


honestly speaking, i've never eaten at a Taco Bell, and haven't been to McDonald's in over 10 years, but fast food is obviously an exception because you're buying a meal and walking away. we're talking about restaurants where you're served by a waitstaff, not a fast food joint or a hot dog stand.

plk123 wrote:


one tastes better than the other......and the winner iiiiiisss........the American one. I don't drink soda to be healthy, so when I DO drink it, I want the real deal.....the one that tastes good. simples.

Work / Wage and Salary rates in Poland [37]

Harry wrote:


I know what my fiance earns, gross and net, and the percentage she takes home after all deductions is about the same as what I pay each month having my own company. same story with my poor graphics designer friend.

1,950. 2,434. 2,298, etc.....i think we can all agree that is shite money, which is the point of this thread.

Delphiandomine wrote:


aaaahhhh, that's just your style isn't it, pappy.

how's lindenia doin' bud?

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

delphiandelmine wrote:


since you have never been to america Delph and as usual, you don't know what you're talking about when anything regarding america is the topic at hand, i'll help fill you in:

standard in a restaurant in America is a 12 oz glass. if you go to a chain place like TGIFriday's, Houlihans, ChiChi's, Pizza Hut, you usually will get a pint glass (16 oz). Add a bunch of ice to it and how much Coca-Cola do you get?.....i'd guess around 10 oz. Refills are free, and ice cold, every time.

only here, it's often times not cold enough or has 2 ice cubes floating at the top, you have to pay (overpay) for every refill, and it doesn't taste like Coca-Cola, or Pepsi, or Mountain Dew because it was bottled in warsaw and made with some funky sugar alternative (but that's a whole 'nother topic now ain't it....how soda tastes completely different in Europe than in the good ole' USA)

again, if you ever make it to America Delph, you'll have to taste the soda there to see the difference. delicious, and coooooooooooold ;)

man, i'd kill for a cold 20 oz. bottle of Mountain Dew from the states. it's gonna be 33 degrees C tomorrow.

plk123 wrote:


VERY rarely does it occur, and when it does, everyone at the table after receiving the bill has the same response:

"Are you F#cking kidding me? They charged us for refills!"

you KNOW i'm spot on with this, plk123.

Food / WHY IN POLAND PEOPLE DON'T USE ICE? [142]

z_darius wrote:


you're leaving out one very very significant american detail, pappy: FREE REFILLS.

Work / Wage and Salary rates in Poland [37]

GoskaGrad wrote:


although i'm quite sure based on the people I know and have spoken to that 3398 is too high, but even so, if you subtract ZUS from that and taxes, how does it come out to 2433?

ZUS is 800, and 19% tax on that is another 645. that gives you 1,953 zl. net.

A Polish friend of mine, 33 years old, master's degree from Poland and straight up FLUENT in English, just got a job about 4 months ago doing graphics design. he clears 2,000 per month.

who knows, maybe all the rich folk living in the big cities pump up the avg. somehow, but I think the stats found online are grossly inflated.

Language / So why did you give up learning Polish? [105]

an even bigger question is this:

with polish being of little use now, as well as being watered down with english word after english word every day, on top of many Poles leaving to work in other countries, many times an English speaking one.......wouldn't that mean that the need for Polish will only become less and less? some people argue that polish will become more and more popular due to Poland's recent economic.....well......success?, having deeper involvement in foreign markets, etc., but i think this is even more the reason why other languages will become more dominant. foreign countries don't care about Poland's language, they care about cheap labor and operating costs, and learning Polish is last on their list. the more foreigners coming in to Poland means LESS polish IMHO.

even more of a reason to "give up learning Polish".

let us not forget that by the time someone learns polish to say a B2 level, you could be a C1 level in let's say 2 romance languages in the same amount of time, both of which will be more useful than polish.

put 2 resumes with equal experience/qualifications side by side, 1 guy says "B2 Polish" and the other says "C1 Spanish and C1 French"....it's obvious who will be of more use 99 times out of 100.

not to mention the B2 guy in Polish still has to email his friend Agnieszka every week to ask, "how do you say 5 of ______?"

;)

i study Polish because it's half my heritage, I live in Poland, my fiance is Polish and my children will speak Polish. it's a no brainer, gotta learn it. if i didn't have this situation, i wouldn't even give Polish a second thought.

Language / So why did you give up learning Polish? [105]

convex wrote:


face some facts, Seanus. the question was addressed to people who stopped learning. the thread is getting answers. and the above, well, that's why 99.9% of the non-poles living here don't bother.