Language / twoj wasz [12]

That's actually Scottish English, and used widely by people of all educational ability. It may actually have came from there.

Language / Polish was chosen the HARDEST LANGUAGE in the world to learn... :D [1558]


Funny, 40 million plus people don't seem to have any problem with it... if even the lowlife kurwa boys can manage, it can't be that difficult ;)

History / Yalta Conference and Poland [78]

Ah, it's always fun to ask them what they expected Churchill and Britain to actually do.

Truman, for some bizzare reason, doesn't get mentioned at all - and Roosevelt is excused on grounds of being sick. Yet if anyone could "save" Poland at the time - it would've been America!

Life / Having a baby in Poland as a US citizen [9]


Not Poland, but google the Chen case for more. In a nutshell, it was known for mothers to travel to Northern Ireland to give birth - as the child then had automatic Irish citizenship (due to the then-in force jus soli law regardless of the legal status of the parent(s)). It was then ruled that the parents had the right to stay in the EU to look after the child, which was an Irish and by extension EU citizen.

But yes, it's also not unheard of for Americans to think that their child being born abroad means that it's automatically a citizen of the country in which the birth took place.

Life / Exam for Drivers License in Poland; English? [99]

Any city should have the theory test available in English. The major cities will also have courses - Warsaw, Wroclaw and Poznan do for certain.

The driving test itself, you'll need a sworn translator.

News / Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport to close in September [27]


Could very well be the reason. I've had a quick look on Google and it suggests that there are quite a few problems associated with concrete laying in cold weather - problems that might not be a big deal in your new driveway, but you don't want to have *any* problems with runways. There's also the point that if they had a repeat of the A2 saga with the runways, people would absolutely slaughter them - so it makes sense to get the job done in the proper conditions rather than trying to do it in the cold. It may also be that doing the job in the cold would mean having to close the airport for longer.

Aviation safety regulators are paranoid and over sensitive about everything - they have to be, and it wouldn't surprise me if they were told that could only lay concrete in the summer months. Most ordinary people don't understand how detailed and proscribed aviation actually is.

Love / I love my Polish girl! Wanted to share my story. [55]


But compared to the UK, Germany is very easy going these days - much less paranoia about health and safety, and much more "use your brain, idiot" type attitude. Sure, they might need rules to function, but that's what makes Germany so funny!


Germans aren't really a welcoming, friendly race. But neither are the English and especially not the Welsh!


The UK is dreadfully unstable these days - look at the abuse of terrorism laws in relation to photographers as an example. Then let's look at the 'postcode lottery' for health care - the UK really isn't stable as a country anymore.

Life / Poczta Polska Is Killing ME! Transit time. [28]


Compare and contrast to DHL, who called me at 7am this morning about the delivery of a printer worth 1650zl, so a fairly hefty piece of equipment. Fine and well - but they want to either deliver at 10am or not at all today. It's absolutely useless for me - it means someone has to be here when both of us have business meetings today, so I've had to push back a meeting simply to sign for the parcel!

Real Estate / Can foreigners buy land, house, or apartment in Poland? [60]


Not in the first instance - I can do many of the 'first step' things for a lot cheaper than a specialised English speaking property lawyer will charge. For instance - I called quite a few up, asking how much they would charge to do a straightforward search of the property records in the cartographic offices, the Starostwo and the property courts. Many of them were quoting hideous amounts - 500zl upwards was normal. I'm convinced that it was at least partly due to the persona on the phone - dumb American calling about some property that his grandmother left in "ye olde countree" - but still, it gives an idea that they can and will charge a ridiculous amount for something relatively trivial.

Obviously, making a claim on a property needs a specialised lawyer - but for routine things such as applying for searches of databases, it's nothing that the ordinary man in the street can't do.

(as an aside, one lawyer wanted 50zl to post the documents received from the offices!)

Life / Poczta Polska Is Killing ME! Transit time. [28]


I'm the exact opposite - never had a problem, even with deliveries that have the customs declaration clearly printed on it with the value/etc. They're not the quickest in the world, but that can be forgiven.

In fact, the only bad thing about them is the way they don't accept cards in the post office - but it's a small price to pay. Look at the integration between the post office and the delivery side of things - compared to the Royal Mail, it's an absolute dream.

Other people's mileage may vary - it's probably no surprise that the service in Poznan is efficient and....Germanic.

Food / What is your favorite Polish Vodka? [653]

Christ, I used to drink cheap shots of Goldschlager from Weatherspoons back in the day..these days, shots kill me :(

Law / Opening a Polish Bank Account by a foreigner in Poland. Recommendations. [299]


Standard. You're not going to get a credit card in most EU countries without valid residency.


And Brussels would tell you to obtain the EU residence permit which exists in all EU countries before complaining. If Nordea want you to be legally resident in Poland (which is normal for most finance institutions!) before issuing you with a credit card - then it's fair enough.

And..uh..tried doing anything like banking in France without a residence permit?


They're good if you need access to a branch network, but their offers are pretty dire otherwise.

Life / Do Polish workers have post-Christmas break? [12]


I got a delivery today as well from the UK that was sent on the 22nd December, really can't complain!

Law / What is NIP number? [15]

If you can't work out what a "tax identification number" might be, then....well...

*speechless*

Life / Do Polish workers have post-Christmas break? [12]


Things have got worse - Royal Mail has detoriated to the point where the permanent staff are nothing short of inept, incompetent and useless. The staff are refusing to adapt with the times, and with it, the service is going down the drain.

Poczta Polska are no worse than the Royal Mail - and in some aspects, are vastly better. The integration between the post offices and the delivery is excellent in Poland, whereas in the UK, it's disjointed and useless. The fact that they see Poczta Polska not having post offices in every village as "a disgrace" tells you a lot - most villages in the UK have lost their post offices!

Law / What is NIP number? [15]

It's your tax identification number.

Life / Do Polish workers have post-Christmas break? [12]

Or it might have gone missing in the UK...hardly an uncommon occurance!

Life / Having a baby in Poland as a US citizen [9]

First things first - you do know that having the baby in Poland will not entitle it to Polish citizenship automatically? A few Americans have made this mistake in the past, due to US law having the 'jus soli' clause.

Secondly - I think in your case, the best advice is to have the baby in America. There's the language barrier and an entirely different way of doing things here - while having a gynaecologist look after you is normal, other things might be different. Of course, you can get an English speaking one easily enough - but with everything, you'll have to pay.

Incidentally, it's December now and Autumn (fall) isn't until September...how will you be able to fly so late?

Law / How to register a foreign Non-EU car in Poland? [25]


Hah, can you imagine going to one of those tiny insurance offices and asking them to process the paperwork for a RHD car? They'd have a heart attack!

But...why do people want to register RHD cars here anyway? I could understand in Germany or Spain, but given that you need to overtake constantly to get anywhere here, an RHD would be murder!

Law / How to register a foreign Non-EU car in Poland? [25]


It's possible in Poznan -the official website even says so, and they've told me that there's no problem with it provided all the papers are in order.

Food / "Browar Jabłonowo" beer, A Christmas word of warning [18]


I didn't expect nectar, heck, I didn't even expect the quality of cheap Lidl beer in the UK (Fink Brau...the stuff of student days) - but this stuff is truly, absolutely awful :(

(still drinking it now....!)


Is that the stuff that comes in plastic bottles? I have a British friend that mysteriously loves the stuff :(

Life / 3 reasons why you hate Poland. [1049]


It's just like the UK - and most of the problems are caused by the fact that the old idiots just HAVE to go to the post office at peak times. I'd be hugely in favour of introducing a rule that bans retired people from post offices at peak hours!

Off-Topic / PF members MEETUPS.....everyone welcome! [52]


I don't think he offended anyone, more he caused fits of amusement and laughter :D

(I tagged him on facebook as "fingers") :D

Law / Poland - Temporary Residence card - Karta pobytu - required documents [142]


Give me a shout at lindenia, we can advise you :)

Off-Topic / PF members MEETUPS.....everyone welcome! [52]

tonight!

there will be lots and lots of people if anyone wants to come? :)

Law / Poland - Temporary Residence card - Karta pobytu - required documents [142]

Keep things simple - you would be well advised to get a Phillipine police check because that's what they'll be expecting. The general rule in Poland is no nasty surprises - if they think you're from the Phillipines, then they want a police check from there.

Having said this, getting a UK police check wouldn't be a bad idea in case they decide to be stubborn.

Off-Topic / PF members MEETUPS.....everyone welcome! [52]

Indeed - December 11th at 7pm :)

(Grr, with the old thread deleted, I don't have a ready access of a list of people to send messages to!)

Yoohoo..anyone else? :)

Off-Topic / PF members MEETUPS.....everyone welcome! [52]

Dec 3, 09, 00:17 - Thread attached on merging:
Poznan Meetup Thread - times, dates and details

Apologies for starting a new thread, but it's easier for newbies if they see the first post with location details for where we meet up! Admin - please don't delete this thread, there is something going on in Poznan virtually every week and this thread is invaluable for keeping details of these events in one place.

The location :

Van Gogh Cafe (but it's a pub, a proper boozer!), Zydowska 12, Poznan. It's located on the corner of Zydowska and Mokra, across from the PRL Pub. You'll find us downstairs in Van Gogh - if in doubt, ask at the bar for where the foreigners are!

Directions :

From Stary Rynek, Zydowska is in the corner nearest the town hall and the goats. You have to walk about 100m down Zydowska, and the Van Gogh Cafe is on your left hand side.

From Plac Wielkopolski, tram stop for 4, 8 and 17 - head down 23 Lutego until you reach Kramarska. Keep going down Kramarska until you reach Zydowska, turn left, then Van Gogh should be about 50m on your left hand side.

From Wroclawska, tram stop for 5, 13 and 16. Head down Wroclawska, across from Kupiec Poznanski shopping mall. When you reach Stary Rynek, follow the directions as above.

If anyone needs help finding the place, feel free to ask - we can help!

A map is attached below for your convenience.

1pixelhost.com/images/lud8fbcicgnjhr4tchi5.jpg Van Gogh location

New and old faces are more than welcome - and feel free to bring guests! The more, the merrier, as many people can attest to. All we ask is that you bring a smile - and an interesting story!

Life / 3 reasons why you hate Poland. [1049]


A lot of their problems are caused by national and provincial governments, not by themselves. For example -

'Gifting' Przewozy Regionalne to the provinces when the provinces didn't want it was exceptionally stupid, particularly as the richer provincial governments would rather fund their own services than into the mess of debt that is Przewozy Regionalne. They paid off the debts with the transfer, but did absolutely nothing about the reason *why* PR was in such trouble to begin with.

Allowing PKP Intercity and Przewozy Regionalne to compete is absolutely nonsense at the highest level.

When PKP was split into the thousands of companies, not ensuring a unified ticket system was one of the more interesting disasters - of course PR and Intercity are not going to collaborate if they don't have to!

The transfer of the Posp. trains last winter was another disaster - Intercity didn't want them and pretty quickly cut many of the services. Intercity should've stayed firmly a reservation-only operator - but did the relevant Ministry listen? No!

I could go on - but it's clear to me that weak government, not bad management is the problem.

Incidentally, IC trains are an absolute dream in Poland - uncrowded, comfortable and fairly quick!