Poland's expats' colonial mentality?

People remote in time from various sources often display residual behavior they may not even be aware of. Many expats on PF display traces of their countries' colonial past as regards the country they are in at present. They hail from former colonial powers such as Britain, Belgium and Holland, whose representatives tried to impose their values on the natives they had conquered. Many expats in Poland seem to want to remake the country in the image and likeness of their own prejudices rather than accepting it the way it is. They often display a snooty, snobbish, arrogant. elitist and colonialist attitude and revile and look down their noses on whatever is not to their liking. There used to be the concept of an 'ugly American'. Now perhaps the term 'ugly expat' would be more appropriate.

and no Pole has ever gone abroad and done the same.

That fits so many of your posts perfectly. And while you don't bother to define an 'expat', I would remind you that you moved to Poland from another country and made your career on skills learned in that country.

Pot and kettle.

Indeed they have, and theh Chinese have acted that way towards Koreans and Mongolians. except that the topic here was expats in Poland.

Perhaps Polonius could explain why he is trying to force the ideals of the 'fourth republic's upon people that have consistently rejected such concepts?

Judging from their PF performances you are right in your money about that.

You mean that they are all likely to vote PO and all think the duck is a joke?

I take people as I find them. And of course, I feel superior to white supremacists, anti-semites and the like. Perhaps the 'Poles' we find on Polish Forums are not representative of the population of Poland.

I think that anyone who has lived outside their native country does something similar to varying degrees depending upon the person and how they are feeling at any point in time.

There are hardly any expats anymore in Poland. Only EU citizens who came here to stay. Expats are too expensive to hire. I never knew I had a colonialist attitude...because I like Michnik, the President and I vote all the time PO?

my husband, from Poland, said something interesting today. Poland has a peasant mentality. Not on purpose, but because the majority of the privileged and elite were killed during the war or managed to escape and haven't come back. And this is why it is that much harder to change the effects of communism- even though the environment is different,you can't change the way people think.

And of course, I am aware that I will get a lot of slack for this but perhaps if you sit and think about it for a minute you will see that it is true.

Look at it this way: they come to Poland not really knowing what to expect. They don't know anyone, they don't speak the language and they don't know the local customs. So what do expats do? First, they meet with other expats, which gives them the opportunity to communicate in their own language - usually English. After half a year or so, isolation and loneliness often sets in, and some expats become increasingly critical of their host country and their decision to move there. That's what you call "They often display a snooty, snobbish, arrogant. elitist and colonialist attitude and revile and look down their noses on whatever is not to their liking". Very human reaction, if you think about it, and - having been an expat myself for many years - I've seen that countless times before. This kind of behavior usually wears off once people get to know the local language better and start to make friends amongst the locals. You need to be a bit more patient and understanding, Polonius.

the majority of expats I know here don't want to go home because they are enjoying Poland so much. Except for one lady from Texas....need I say more?

I don't think it is being snobby or looking down on anything- but some things in Poland, like every day life, can be a huge challenge. Perfect example: poczta Polska. What a clusterfluck. The roads here are a mess. Many people, not all, have the me first mentality. These are the same people that park in handicap spaces or on sidewalks because they don't want to walk to far to do their shopping. It is little things like this. The old Babcia's that push ladies holding babies on the stairs out of the way (this actually happened to a friend of mine). I have another friend who was hit with a bat by an aggressive driver. My self- I have been chased by a car because I didn't take a turn fast enough.

It is things like this that make Poland difficult to live in, but overall, most expats that I know are enjoying Poland.

" Many expats in Poland seem to want to remake the country in the image and likeness of their own prejudices rather than accepting it the way it is."

Some of us expats very much accept the third republic. Other expats want to see a fourth republic. Which of those views does Polonius hold?

I came first time to Poland in September 1989, so I had a pretty good idea what the country was like when I emigrated. Also went to evening and weekend classes Polish for many years so the language was not really a problem...But yes, between shuttling back and forth between Antwerp and Warsaw and living here on a permanent basis was a big difference. I always made a point of not going to expat hangouts because you find yourself trapped in a separate world...Warsaw Insider, Someplace Else, Warsaw Tortilla Factory, Nowy Świat hangouts...

Interesting. Did you stop in Berlin on your way to Poland? Biggest party I've ever seen in my life.


Being prepared is always a plus, but for an expat this is rather unusual.


It can be fun sometimes (especially if you need a break from the local culture), but in my experience expats hanging out together have a tendency to whinge a lot about their host country. If you spend too much time with fellow expats, you are trapped as you've correctly said, and you will never really adjust to the country you're currently living in.

Nope. Went by car from Belgium to Salzburg-Vienna. Got in Vienna Czechoslovak transit visa and a Hungarian visa. Vienna-Budapest. Later transit to the Czechoslovak/Polish border. Had to buy on the border Orbis coupons for diesel fuel (paid by DM). On to Kraków and later to Wałbrzych via Auschwitz....

I still remember having gotten my first Polish traffic fine in Kraków. I was driving in the "A" zone designated for Kraków citizens. At that time I did not speak Polish at all so I could not read the traffic signs. I stayed in hotel Saski and remember there were three room rates. 1. For Poles 2. For Comecon 3. For capitalists.

Dude, no offense but have you ever visited countries which accept large numbers of immigrants AND observed those immigrants in said countries?
Expats in Poland have got NOTHING on those groups.
The bullsh*t I've seen Chinese people pull in Canada, the horsesh*t anyone who'd name their child Mohammad gets away with in UK, Ireland, France, Sweden and Australia, no sir there is no comparison, not even a little bit.

A lot of the stuff I tend to gripe about is stuff like the lady on the road today who didn't seem to be troubled that she was in the oncoming lane of traffic, it still seemed like a good time for her to stop and search for something inside her vehicle - that sort of thing is so hopelessly moronic yet so incredibly common in Poland.

The in your face corruption is another one that I simply marvel at. I can't do anything about it but if I pay taxes here and someone is wasting those funds then you're damn straight I'm going to speak my mind.

Tell your husband to define peasant and then to check himself in the mirror.
Then tell him about Soviet Poles.


I'm sure that there are plenty of people exactly like you describe, struggling with a new environment. However not all, and plainly many expats here on PF have been pegged right by Polonious.


As per usual you missed the point completely.


You are another one who missed the point and this time I'm surprised.

Hey, it was late, what can I say?
What was the point in your opinion?
I mean if you look at what I was responding to, there wasn't exactly a plethora of detail that Polonius really laid out on the table, was there?

Hey, it's early, what can I say?

Exactly. Very few left.

Expats are in Poland for work related reasons, normally on assignments of 2-4 years.


Many old Polish families living outside of Poland, still have interests in PL.

I am not sure I agree with the peasant mentality although I do agree with your husbands direction. Since 1989 many people have gained wealth and a place in Polish society they could only have dreamed off. With this new found status a second skin of respectability and self importance has been layered, if you scratch this veneer hard enough you will soon draw red.

I take it that you are not going to comment on the question about where you stand on the topic accepting Poland or remaking as a 'Fourth Republic'. How surprising.


If anybody wants to see the textbook example of such behaviour, all they need to do is have a read of Polonius' posts.

There are many things in Poland worth criiticising and improving like excessive red tape, Tusk's unkept promises, the healthcare system, poor driving skills, etc. These however are not part of Poland's national legacy. But the nation's Catholic heritage as well as the culture and traditions it has generated constitute the core value of what Polishness is all about. By attacking it, arrogant expats and misguided Poles, who have succumbed to outside influence, are showing their contempt and disdain for Poland's millennial heritage. Nothing more need be said!

I see that you have nothing at all to say about your treasonous calls for the Republic of Poland to be overthrown and replaced by a 'Fourth Republic' (would that happen to be a thousand-year republic). How interesting that even you know your hypocrisy is indefensible.

Plenty more need be said, not least what you actually mean by 'expat'.

I'd be willing to bet that Polonius won't have anything more to say about the staggering hypocrisy he displays by criticising people for wanting to "remake" Poland and not just accepting Poland as she is while at the same he calls for the rise of the thousand-year Fourth Republic.

How he is not banned for such obvious trolling & flaming?

Given that you've spent the last week posting all sorts of hate filled nonsense on PolishForums about how you and your friends are going to bring down the Republic of Poland and replace it with some "Fourth Republic", I think it's pretty obvious who is attempting to remake the country. Those that you mention are quite content with much of what is going on in Poland right now.


Would you like me to quote the vast amount of posts in which you display exactly that behaviour?


One day, you absolutely must tell us about Poland in those days in detail, I'd love to hear it :) Where did you cross the border in Poland?


No, Polonius. Poland draws on her long history of being a tolerant, multicultural society that flourished for hundreds of years. Tell me, how many times is the word Catholic mentioned in the Constitution?


Perhaps he would like to explain this?

It seems rather strange that he is attacking others that don't want to change Poland while he is calling for the complete overthrow of the Republic.

Then again, it wouldn't be the first time that he supported such regimes.

You're not the only person who'd like to see that question being answered.