UK, Ireland / Culture shock (my neighbours in the UK are Polish and Slovak) [88]

Jars777 said:


I've noticed too that proszę which has a wide range of usage is used in almost exactly the same way as bitte - i.e. as please or you're welcome or after you, etc etc would you agree?

On topic, the funny thing is OP, that it's the Anglophones who are unusual - it's not a Polish or Slovak thing, as Jars777 has hinted.

The Spanish, French, Italians... all much more direct in their speech and don't, as they would see it, beat around the bush the way many English speakers do!

UK, Ireland / Culture shock (my neighbours in the UK are Polish and Slovak) [88]


I know what you're saying, but Poles do say miło mi (I'm only guessing the spelling)

It's not rare. Unless it maybe doesn't mean exactly the same as nice to meet you

UK, Ireland / Culture shock (my neighbours in the UK are Polish and Slovak) [88]


You might be making too much of this.

Could it be that he knew your Polish wasn't good, and neither was his English so he resorted to the internationally understood term of OK rather than, e.g. również or something (this term may not be even correct but you know what I mean) which might have caused confusion?

Food / Is chocolate popular in Poland? [52]


Just shows how wrong they can be LOL

It sounds like a piece of machinery or something to me

"Ooooooh sorry mate, your compressor is on the way out and looks like you'll need a new haagen daz soon as well"

Food / What's your favorite Polish beer? [870]


Yep, but not so different from Miller etc - is it?


OK, not sure I know these. Thanks.

Food / Is chocolate popular in Poland? [52]



Hmmm.

Call me crazy but there might, just might be a link between these two statements : )

Food / What's your favorite Polish beer? [870]

If you are looking for the taste that beer nerds tend to refer to as "Americana" * (Miller, Moosehead, Coors etc) I'd say you might be looking a long time.

Any Polish beer I've had is pretty robust, hoppy, earthy.

*whether it's Amercian or not.

Love / Foreigners: would you have moved to Poland if it was full of fat/ugly women? [42]

My main objection to the term Milf (and Gilf for that matter) is that they sound so asexual and wimpy.

I don't like cougar for the opposite reason - a bit too obvious and crass.

I want a new word.


Definitely NOT that one though!

; )

News / Poles are able to forgive their enemies - how noble. [68]

Possibly.

But no more than many Poles base their opinions of other countries on equally incomplete sources.

UK, Ireland / Why do so many Polish guys in the UK have a crew cut or buzz cut? [106]

What's all this crew cut anyway? This doesn't mean an all over number 1 or 2 does it? (I assume that's what we're talking about with the Polish hair)

To me, a crew cut anyway is like a 50s American GI or sailor - short but with a kind of flat quiff on top

I don't use the term buzz cut but it sounds more like what we're talking about.

To me, crew cut is something quite different.

UK, Ireland / Why do so many Polish guys in the UK have a crew cut or buzz cut? [106]

If you are noticeably losing your hair, shave most of it off or it looks silly. That's what I do. Many people do it.

UK, Ireland / Grateful Polish photographer stitches up his Welsh hosts [96]


I am quite aware.

I paint, I am an "arty" person and 3 of my friends are keen photographers - they are good. I am no expert but I stand by my assertion and would like someone to maybe indicate just 2 or 3 of those photos that are "great".

I'm not suggesting they are terrible but they are nothing special - are they?


Classic response.

USA, Canada / Moved back from Canada to Poland:). Here are the reasons why. [868]


I like it!


Well for anyone who has the cajones to call themselves Aphrodisiac, I don't doubt it : )

C'mon though, you must be full of quirky observations at this stage?

UK, Ireland / Grateful Polish photographer stitches up his Welsh hosts [96]

Has been said many times, but there are attractive/unattractive people in nearly every country.

The way in which they are unattractive varies from country to country admittedly, there is no universal standard and it's often the unfamiliar which leads to conclusions like BBman.

I've seen plenty of unattractive Swedes, Poles, Italians - all the clichéd "beautiful" countries.

Anyway, IMO, there are attractive women in those photos. Not all of them, but they are there.

UK, Ireland / Grateful Polish photographer stitches up his Welsh hosts [96]

Am I just a complete philistine or am I daring to saying what many might be thinking - that is, that the photos are not exactly a wonderful piece of work anyway?

I mean, that is the point mostly isn't it, that they are supposed to have artistic (albeit in a street sense) merit?

As far as I'm concerned any oul tit with a decent camera and half an eye could have taken these.

Anyone care to point out what is so good about them?

USA, Canada / Do you speak English? Have you lived in America? New LOVE/HATE list......... [144]


Yeah, it's probably the single worst thing.

USA, Canada / Moved back from Canada to Poland:). Here are the reasons why. [868]


Well, kind of, but more your observations as one of the repatriated ; )

But thanks anyway. It's a bit like Carrie Bradshaw without the sex.

USA, Canada / Moved back from Canada to Poland:). Here are the reasons why. [868]

Any update Aphro?

How often do you use English these days?

Language / Simple business Polish phrases required please [13]

Thanks all - very useful!

Miłego dnia ! ; )

(Although it's probably different if addressing a group...)

UK, Ireland / Grateful Polish photographer stitches up his Welsh hosts [96]


Have to agree.

Language / Simple business Polish phrases required please [13]

Thanks again!

Sometimes google translate ends up sounding weird as phrases don't always have exact equivalents.

Language / Simple business Polish phrases required please [13]

Thanks for that.

What about my Dziękuję i pozdrawiam does it sound OK or maybe awkwardly translated?

Life / Could anyone tell me about any Polish bands that are/were popular. [17]


Ha Ha - great name!

Riverside are another great Polish band - they seem to sing mostly in English though, don't know if they have any Polish language material.

Law / How deep is the Gloom in the Poland's Economy [84]

Poles are telling me that much foodstuff and many mundane consumer items are now equally priced or sometimes even more expensive in Poland than in Ireland. At broadly speaking one quarter of Irish salaries, and if the trend continues, I would imagine that many Poles especially those who currently straddle poverty and relative comfort, will simply not be able to afford to live in Poland at some stage.

All the growth and outlook in the world won't matter then.

Law / How deep is the Gloom in the Poland's Economy [84]

However, is it not generally the case that more or less all prices have increased and continue to increase relatively dramatically in recent years while wages/salaries stay static?

UK, Ireland / 50 babies a day born to Polish mothers in UK [81]

I agree with you Wroclaw boy, but, the word can be meant in more than one way.

Taking it at face value, I agree.

It being the term to refer to positive discrimination, laws and customs being circumvented or rewritten purely to satisfy the PC brigade, the encouragement of ghettoism via this, then I think it's a mess and a terrible mistake to be honest.

Closed for cleaning

UK, Ireland / 50 babies a day born to Polish mothers in UK [81]


Almost certainly utterly inaccurate anyway.

Work / Advice on Teaching English in Poland [709]

-1 to both of you for not pronouncing the R in comfortable ; )

Other than that though, yeah that's the way I would pronounce them too.

The other example just sounds robotic and machine gun like to me. Although plenty do say it. Probably the same ones who say tiss-you (tissue) and

dIAhmond (diamond)

Technically, probably both correct - I just think they sound awful.

I'm very lazy with "mutant" too and tend to do a kind of "semi-glottal stop" (not sure what you would call it?) in the middle, which is relatively rare for the Irish.

Work / Advice on Teaching English in Poland [709]


Er ... I ... might do ; )
Depends:
Do you say veg-et-able / com-fort-able or veg-tible /comft -or-ble?