Work / Learning Polish in Olsztyn... crazy prices for private lessons. [27]

You don't need an instructor to learn the basics. I really doubt people give up all together because they don't have a top level professor from the get go. The BEST solution (contrary to your smart @ss twisting of what I mean) is to make some friends and get them to teach you the basics through exposure and socializing. Of course you are biased because you get PAID to teach Polish.

Far more people get fed up with using a course from the start because they are so pedantic. People learn in my experience much better in a natural way.

The technical stuff is for later when you can actually manage the basics. I know Poles love rules and structures in language but not everyone is like that.

Work / Learning Polish in Olsztyn... crazy prices for private lessons. [27]

Chat up some people your age at a pub or coffee shop. You can get all kind of free language help or exchange from people who just want to be social or improve their English. I would never pay 100pln an hour even in Warsaw for Polish instruction.

I am sure some linguists will disagree but I would avoid a teacher in the beginning anyway as they will bombard you with rules and you will be too focused on them rather than natural language. Save the teachers for when you get more advanced and need to worry about details.

Love / They seem nice, but could Polish girls be "gold diggers"? [196]

Wrong...a man who cheats with a married woman, wrecks her marriage then marries her for her fortune would not be admired and that is exactly what she did.

People who work and earn fortunes are ambitious and admired. People who steal them by sex, cheating or lies are scum. Those who are handed them by parents etc are generally resented.

Travel / Best place to exchange money in Poland? [98]

Most travelers give stupid advice. About 80% of the stuff people told me I HAD to do when I first went abroad was nonsense. NOBODY uses travelers checks or those lame hidden waist wallets. Just act like you would at home and all will be fine. Sensible is sensible all over.

I spent years living in Warsaw walking around at all hours in all parts of the city and never once had a problem. I still can't figure out what is so dangerous about Praga yet everyone still acts like it is Lebanon.

A hearty "f*ck off" will run most Polish chavs away. They are more talk than action. I am sure they expect an older woman to be an easy target. Just use common sense.

Travel / Best place to exchange money in Poland? [98]

ATM is always the best exchange rate. Banks depend on the brand and branch. Some Millenium branches are open to 7 or 8pm on Weekdays and Saturday but all are closed on Sunday.

Bringing cash dollars is large amounts is stupid since if you lose it or it gets stolen you are screwed.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

While sometimes service in America can be over the top service in Poland is non existent. Simply trying to dismiss it as a lower key European way is not accurate. There is a difference between low key service and bad or no service.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


Because every city in the USA has it's own percentage for sale's tax (VAT) and it changes often. They would never be able to keep up labeling things right. I don't mind so much because it's typically 6-8% rather than the 22% in the EU. Couple already cheaper prices and lower VAT I don't care if it's on the price tag or not as I come out ahead.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

More brunettes please. Blondes are overdone.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

Why do these beautiful girls ruin their lovely dark hair by dying it blonde? I want to see them natural.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

I am not going to beg...again ;)

Have it your way.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

Anyone can Google pictures of hot girls. If you are real however I would like to see more of you. A woman would be flattered by that so you make me more suspicious.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

Ioxana I am suspicious that you are the guy who was posting all the UKR pics before...you need to post one of yourself holding a sign reading "I love you Beelzebub" to prove it's you.

;)

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]


I just question anyone that says all of those girls are not very pretty. Of course looks are only one thing so not any would do ;)

Plus none of them would likely put up with me anyhow so it's all academic.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

You are either gay or blind...which is it ? ;)

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

They are all gorgeous but let's see more of the fairest of them all....yourself ;)

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

Looks like an older photo...is it just stylized or are you vintage beautiful now?

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

So that's you now? In any case the girl in that photo is beautiful.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

AHHH you tricked me...I thought those were pics of YOU as I asked. I did think they looked a bit different but figured it was the makeup. The girl on the right in the first reply of yours is perfection.

Let's see YOU girly.


Dude it's a joke...if you were not impressed by those girls then you MUST be gay because any straight guy would find them hot.

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

You know how I know you are gay? ;)

Love / Polish girls vs Ukrainian girls: Who do you think is hotter? [152]

Holy god....is that really you? If so you are absolutely gorgeous. I much prefer dark hair. You have about the most perfect bone structure I have ever seen and eyes that could melt steel.

Have I sufficiently kissed up to you yet? :P

Meant every word though. Of course I know nothing about your real personality but in the looks department you are amazing. Thank your parents for those genetics.

Damn.

And about the screen name...goofy-ugly-yank didn't sound as neat :))

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

I can comprehend fine you twit. I just believe you are wrong. The ONLY people who complain about it and claim it's deserved as you do are servers who can't do their job right and get merit based tips. The general public and those who earn good tips understand the system fine. People like you are why many customers are adversarial. They can smell your entitlement and fake friendliness from 10ft away.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Again...Europeans nor anyone else are obligated to subsidize your poor choice of salary.

You perform well you get a good tip..that is how it has worked forever yet some entitled servers are trying to convince or guilt people into giving them a service fee.

I am going to start demanding 30% more since that's how much the IRS takes from my paycheck....I bet that will go over well eh?

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

The only servers in the US that do badly are the crappy ones or the ones that choose to work at some place like Golden Corral which is frequented by cheap dregs of society. Most servers in most places do fine.

They also have the advantage of not reporting a lot of their tips to the taxman...they all do this and there is no way to prove if they did or didn't.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Follow your own advice if you wish others to. I guess you would like 15% for that "tip" as well eh?

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Why doesn't it surprise me that F-stop thinks bad service should still get a tip since it won't fix it by not leaving one?

How about not tip the idiot....AND let the manager know?

Life / Do you think that Polish people are rude? [951]

Well I would. And I am clearly not the only one who thinks so.

Life / Do you think that Polish people are rude? [951]

There ARE cultural trends whether people want to admit them or not. Polish culture IS rude compared to what your average person in the world would expect. But of course Poles don't want to admit this because they cannot be critical of themselves.

You get scowled at in shops and offices...snapped at by clerks...bumped into in public without any attempt to say "przepraszam" before at all...and rarely after. So yes Polish people "in general" are rude in public.

Stereotypes are based in truth. Of course not ALL people within a culture are the same and not all trends are so dramatic but they ARE real.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


But if you don't they do something nasty like spit in your food or some other form of "punishment". I find it despicable that people do such things and it is a crime in many places to tamper with foods. They could infect someone with a disease. I hope they get caught when doing so and are jailed for it. Suddenly their 15% entitlement will not be so important.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Sorry I meant it's why the businesses are expecting tips now....but I agree with you that the customers likely do it even in places it's not the standard for the reason you listed.

Personally I do not like the tip culture...first of all it's not around in all businesses and how is that fair? Secondly it breeds a mentality where you don't get good quality unless you pay the "bribe"...F-Stop has made it clear that he and his colleagues would "remember" someone who didn't bribe them appropriately. They accepted a low paying job and then blame the customer for their poor wages.

I think it would be far better to have salaries to be reasonable than to expect tips. Some people make out very well with tips however especially since they don't report some or all on taxes.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

The cultures where tipping wasn't normal are starting to do it because they see it as more money in their pocket...but they don't grasp often that it is "earned" not automatic. Poles generally want the extra tip but still give the same cr@p service that is normal there. It is the "entitlement" attitude. It's ironic too because servers don't understand that they could make a TON more if they were just nice and gave good service. People will tip much more if they feel taken care of than if you act like F-Stop.