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Posts by Qacer  

Joined: 9 Jul 2007 / Male ♂ 		Last Post: 3 Feb 2014
Threads: Total: 38 / In This Archive: 13
Posts: Total: 125 / In This Archive: 33 		From: Florida
Speaks Polish?: Barzo Little
Interests: The world and its peeps

Displayed posts: 46 / page 1 of 2
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Qacer   
14 Aug 2007
Law / Tax in Poland? [57]

<snip>....Cars cost $16,000 average and gas is $2.80/gallon. Insurance is $100 per month for 2 cars. We have no public transport from where I live to the city, 30 mins away. You have to drive; the fastest way requires you to pay a road toll coming and going of $2.00 each way per car daily and it costs us $180 per month to park one car downtown. <snip>.....

What you are describing almost sounds like the Tampa Bay area. Are you a Tampon as well?
Qacer   
15 Aug 2007
Life / Polish ghost stories [38]

I have many friends from other countries. Whenever we hang out, we always end up talking about something interesting including ghost stories. However, I don't recall hearing any ghost stories from my Polish friends. Plus, I have not encountered any Polish movies that featured ghosts, yet. It seems like they don't talk about it much.

Are ghost stories prominent in Polish culture?
Qacer   
18 Aug 2007
Real Estate / Mortgage in Poland (rules, rates, types, websites)? [26]

I'm interested in finding out more regarding mortgages in Poland. Does anyone have any English websites that deal with mortgages specifically in Poland?

I want to find out the rules, rates, types, etc. Thanks!
Qacer   
24 Aug 2007
Real Estate / Mortgage in Poland (rules, rates, types, websites)? [26]

Well, after the sub-prime market disaster, lenders are slowly tightening their mortgage requirements. Good thing Poland does not have any interest only loans or some type of adjustable rate mortgage (ARM). I think those two options share the blame for the sub-prime crash.

I have a friend who works at a bank in Poland. He claims that he can get some discounted interest rates on loans. I think I'll discuss this with him some more.
Qacer   
27 Aug 2007
Real Estate / The current property boom in Poland is a bubble [342]

how much further do you think they will fall?

Here's the latest article on CNN regarding the housing market in the US:
money.cnn.com/2007/08/27/news/economy/homesales/index.htm?cnn=yes

You may also check out the Greater Tampa Bay Realtor's website to get a sample of Florida's real estate market:

The FL market is one of the main markets hit by the sub-prime crash. I was keeping track of a few home prices and two homes on my list went down from $249,000 to $239,000 and $242,000 to $230,000 in a two month time span. Some inventory homes went down from $350,000 to $250,000. The foreclosure rates are also going up. Because of this, banks have tightened lending requirements and eliminated some of the fancy mortgage options like unconventional ARMs and interest only loans.
Qacer   
8 Dec 2007
Love / My Polish wife doesn't want to move to the UK with me - what to do? [96]

You can always tell her to accompany you to the UK for an extended vacation. Just don't mention anything related to a permanent move. She needs to be assured that the move is just like a vacation, and that she can go back to Poland any time to visit family and friends.

However, I'm not sure if that is going to work well if she already has a full time job. It normally works a little bit better if she has a business that she can run away from home.

If you are flexible with your employment environment, you can also try partitioning your time between Poland and the UK. Many people do that in the US. They move up North during the warmer months and go down South during the winter.
Qacer   
5 Jan 2008
Food / Barszcz czerwony recipe (Beetroot Soup) [48]

Funny, I just had barszcz and uszka for dinner. By the way, what's the difference between uszki and uszka? The packaging shows uszka.
Qacer   
7 Nov 2008
News / Polish-American soldier and his wife murdered by four marines [163]

The four were charged Tuesday with the execution-style slayings of Marine Sgt. Jan Pawek Pietrzak and Quiana Faye Jenkins-Pietrzak. The couple, who were originally from New York, were found gagged, tied and shot in the head on Oct. 15 in the living room of their home in Winchester. Sheriff's deputies were called after the sergeant failed to show up for work.

4 Marines Charged in Murder
nbcsandiego.com/news/local/4_Marines_Charged_in_Murder_of_Marine_Wife.html

This is very sad! I'd say hang all four of them.
Qacer   
2 Dec 2008
Food / Polish food in Pictures. [277]

I hate you guys. I was ready to head to bed until I saw this thread. Now, I'm hungry. Tsk. tsk.
Qacer   
14 Jun 2009
Law / What can I do with 250000$? [33]

I've got a friend who runs a restaurant right on the beach at Stegna, near Gdansk. He does pretty well in the summer time. But any other time is dead. Still, you might want to look at investing in lodging and food near the beach. Or you can scope out areas near universities and invest in lodging or food there. There are always students looking for board.
Qacer   
5 Mar 2010
Travel / Time between flights in Frankfurt International Airport [3]

I found a cheap flight to Gdansk. It has a stop over in Frankfurt International Airport for about 50 minutes, where I will have to switch flights. I don't know what the gate numbers are, but is 50 minutes enough time for me to get off the airplane and go to the next gate to catch a flight in Frankfurt Airport?
Qacer   
25 Mar 2010
Travel / Driving from Gdansk to Vienna, Austria [2]

Hello... We are planning a road trip. We would like to drive from Gdansk all the way to Vienna, Austria, but we were thinking of stopping by some other places on the way. So far, I have the following on my list:

- Poznan
- Wroclaw
- Prague

Are there any other places that we can stop by that is on the way?

On the way back, we'll probably swing east to Slovakia and up to Zakopane, Krakow, Warsaw, and back to Gdansk.

Thanks!
Qacer   
12 Aug 2010
USA, Canada / Sending money to Poland from the USA? [48]

Merged:Sending money to Poland from USA or another country

I thought I'd share some of my initial findings.

I'm trying to figure out the most cost effective way to send money to Poland from the US. The following are my comparisons of 4 services:

XOOM.com
$4.99 transfer fee
exchange rate 1 USD = 2.9328

Western Union
$43.00 transfer fee
exchange rate 1 USD = 2.9634926

ATMCASH.com
$5.00 transfer fee
Monthly maintenance $1
ATM Withdrawal Fee $1.50 (* excluding local owner ATM fee)
exchange rate 1 USD = 2.91

Citi Bank Global Transfer
$8.00 transfer fee
exchange rate 1 USD = 2.9843

... so far Xoom.com gives you more bang for your money. Although, the transactions are a bit slow.
Qacer   
12 Aug 2010
USA, Canada / Sending money to Poland from the USA? [48]

My bank has the following fees for wire transfers:

What are the fees associated with an international wire?

Customer Funds Sent in US Dollars (USD) - $45

Customer -Funds Sent in Foreign Currency (FX) - $35

Not quite sure how this works exactly. But if you can send USD to a Polish bank and withdraw it in USD, then it probably works better especially for large amounts since you can just take that money to a kantor for a better exchange rate... no?
Qacer   
13 Aug 2010
USA, Canada / Sending money to Poland from the USA? [48]

It is probably so if you are not in the US. But Moneybookers.com does not offer the same service here in the US.
Qacer   
30 Jan 2011
Travel / Airline tickets from LOT... changing flights. [29]

I called up LOT today to ask some questions about airline tickets, and they told me all the information is on the website. The customer service representative probably just wanted to end the conversation quickly so she could have some kielbasa. Anyway, I could not find all the information on their website. Here are my questions:

1. If I get a refundable (or economy flex) ticket, how many times am I allowed to change my flight?

2. If on a refundable ticket, do I need to pay the difference between what I paid and the ticket price of the new date? If so, what if the new ticket price comes out cheaper than what I paid? Will I get a refund?

3. What's the latest notice I can give them to change my flight to a new date? Can I change my flight as late as 1 day before my current departure date?

4. If you change your flight, do you still have to pay additional taxes on the new ticket?

5. If I buy a non-refundable ticket (or economy saver), is there a cut off time period where I cannot change my flight anymore? I know that you can change your flight after you pay 100 EUR, but I wasn't sure if you can still change your flight 1 day before your current departure date.

.... and the reason I am asking is this. My mother-in-law will be coming to visit with us. However, we may want her to stay with us a little bit longer (a few extra months) just to help us when my wife starts her new job and school. I know that a B-2 tourist visa is allowed up to 6 months of stay, but the actual length of stay is determined by the customs officer. If we can get her to stay for up to 1 year, then she'd be able to help us with the household (i.e., cook and clean) while we adjust to a new schedule.

Thanks!
Qacer   
29 May 2012
Law / Bringing overseas foreign workers into Poland? [2]

I met a business man on a trip. We were discussing about starting a business. The topic of bringing in overseas workers to Poland came up. The idea was to build up a business like a spa resort using overseas workers for some of the services and eventually integrate local employment as the business pick up.

The unknowns of our conversation include:

1. Laws regarding hiring temporary foreign workers
2. Tax implications
3. Restrictions of workers from certain countries
4. Requirements of foreign workers

These questions are geared towards someone specializing in law. But I do not know if there is a specific law discipline that covers this or if multiple ones are involved. If so, what type of lawyers should be consulted?

Thanks!
Qacer   
3 Oct 2012
Travel / Ideas on what to do in the vicinity of Paslek, Poland this Christmas [8]

I'll be in Paslek this December to spend the holidays with the family. I've searched this forum as well as Trip Advisor, but could not find anything useful. The tri-city area will be on my list of places to visit, but I'm looking for additional ideas. The family was suggesting a trip to Zakopane, but I'm not a big fan of driving 10+ hours south for just a few days of skiing. I'm not sure if there are closer ski areas, but if there are, then that would be a possible option.

Anyway, if anyone has tips, I would greatly appreciate it. I want to be proactive with planning this time because the last time I was in the area, I pretty much just stayed in the house. Dziekuje!
Qacer   
8 Nov 2012
Travel / Białka Tatrzanska lodging? [17]

We tentatively have reservations for U Dziedzica, ul. Środkowa 292, 34-405 Białka Tatrzanska from the last week of 26 December until 1 January. A friend wants to join us, but the lodging place doesn't have any more rooms I've checked Booking. for nearby lodging, but they all seemed sold out.

Are there any other places I can check for lodging? I'd like to find one with an open room that is nearby (walking distance or within 5 mins drive). Thanks!
Qacer   
9 Nov 2012
Travel / Białka Tatrzanska lodging? [17]

Thanks! When you say 30-60 mins in line, do you mean the ski slopes? Or is this the line for breakfast and dinner?
Qacer   
9 Dec 2012
Travel / Białka Tatrzanska lodging? [17]

Thanks again! By the way, can you tell me more about this Zakopianka?

I hate to be stuck in traffic especially since we have baby with us. If there are alternative routes, then this might be better.
Qacer   
9 Dec 2012
Travel / Fireworks during the New Year (Sylwester) celebration in Poland? [7]

I've searched both Google and here. I'm not sure if I'm typing int he right keywords. In some European countries like Germany, I hear that people celebrate the New Year with a lot of fireworks. Everyone sets off fireworks from their place, and it seems like war has broken out. Is it the same thing in Poland?

I'll be spending my first Christmas and New Year in Poland, and if fireworks can be had and allowed during the New Year, then I would like to take part of it.