Work / Poland IT jobs websites? [22]

What type of development? I assume working remotely?

Work / I'm retired teacher, age 69 - I want to teach English in Poland voluntarily, in return for Polish language [18]

Do you have enough funds to support yourself for a period of time while you build up clients? If so, you could get your own company established while you are taking Polish lessons and slowly build you client list. The benefit of starting your own company - first 2 years ZUS (social, medical) costs are substantially less (in my case, from what I recall 254PLN for first 2 years, after that 900+). I would also suggest if you do come over to get a good accountant ASAP. I pay about 60 PLN/month for this service - money well spent, believe me.

If this is what you want to do, and you have some funds available to give it a go, go for it. Note: I am assuming that you are in relatively good health.

Travel / What to do with six hours to spend in Wrocław? [5]

If you only have 6 hrs, just hit the rynek area and perhaps the islands. Botanical garden is one of my favorites but probably too early in the year. It will be interesting to hear your observations about what has changed. I hope the weather will be nice for your trip. I worked there for 4 years and kind of fell in love with the place.

Real Estate / Wroclaw....good parts? Any "affluent, quaint European, suburb" areas here? [14]

Tonyd, are you serious? Suburbs in America suck. Please stay where you are. By the way, have you checked out 'death by gun stats' worldwide recently? Try thinking outside the box for a few seconds. What is this obsession with crime? If you can afford $1200/month for housing alone, you will be living like a king here in Poland.

Real Estate / House for rent - cost per month in Poland (Wroclaw). Affluent neighborhoods? [7]

If you are budgeting $1200/month just for housing in Wroclaw, you should be ok. Not sure if it will be high-end, but certainly comfortable and safe. I lived there for 1 year in a company paid apartment, and to be honest, I never felt 'unsafe'. I guess there are places you could go at certain times of the night that might not be safe, but that is your choice.

Work / Salaries in corporations vs elsewhere in Poland; interview procedures [8]

I don't see anything wrong with offering to come in at a lower rate if they agree to a review in 3-6 months. I have done that for my last 2 Software Dev jobs in Poland. I am old for the industry so I basically had to prove in the first 3 months I could contribute. I'm not financially strapped so I could afford to work for a lesser salary for a few months until they felt comfortable. If you are confident in your skills and abilities give it a shot. It seems like a lot of places will hire you for a 3 month trial period anyway, which IMHO is actually not a bad idea for both parties. They get to see what you can do and you get to find out if you actually like to work there.

Life / Canadian Moving to Poznan, Poland - what to bring over, areas to avoid, school for a child. [54]

I bought a transformer before we moved to Poland so my wife could continue to use her juicer and so far, no problems. TV, just but one here.

Work / Suggestions for starting a business in Poland ( I have 50/60,000 USD ) [59]

Are you interested in any kind of partnership arrangement? I am thinking about turning some land I own (50KM north of Warsaw) into a track for dirt-bikes/quads. Rentals, camping, long term investment. We also have a house available near the property to use while developing the business. Need to find out first if Gmina will allow it (zoning) and contact a good lawyer about limiting liabilities. I used to ride dirt-bikes when I was younger.

Law / Urgently need somewhere in Poland to stay - short-term government assistance? [17]

Do you have any relatives here that you could stay with for a while?

Work / Prospects for Finding a Job Teaching English in Poland or Elsewhere in Europe [17]

Actually, I don't find anything wrong with the suggestions offered by DominicB. The teaching opportunity in the larger cities has passed. I would loved to have been asked by an American software firm to open a branch office in Poland and move here still getting paid at US wages. I did some conversational English instruction for a few years, and it helped fill the gap. And I enjoyed it. But, I would recommend CELTA. Teaching groups English of any age, requires some additional training. One-on-one you can get away with if you are competent and open minded.

If you like to teach and are ready to move to some place off the beaten path and you have some reserve funds, it can work!

Why don't you want to stay (if I may ask) in the greatest country in the world?

Study / POLA Language Course - how is it? [3]

Check out iko.com.pl. I enjoyed it many years ago. They are focused on conversation, minimal grammar. Seem to offer lots of outside activities (cooking/eating/movies). Have fun!

Law / Are European Union Funds available for people wanting to start a new business? I'm based in Poland. [16]

Maybe it is the usual - who you know. My wife has several friends who all started a 'business' and got 20,000PLN with the only stipiulation that they had to maintain the business for 1 year. Loan did not have to be repaid. She is applying for her brother to start his 'business'. He is 60 year old, unemployed. If EU still has money for Poland in next 5 year cycle, I may have to start a 'business' too.

Food / Are eggs in Poland refrigerated/not refrigerated? [33]

We pay extra to get fresh (non-factory produced = no stamps) from our local village store. Not always available, but we try. I don't think they ever stay in the store more than a day, they are in such high demand. Better taste, visibly better yoke color, etc.

Anyway, issue will be a non-issue for us next year because wife gave me the go ahed to get our own chickens next year. Probably start with just 6-10 to get a feel for how to take care of them. Everything will be instantly consumed so we don't have to worry about spoilage or refrigeration issues. She is also thinking about getting a couple of geese.

Life / Is 10500 monthly is enough for a family to live in Warsaw Poland [136]

As a single guy, you should easily be able to save 5kpln/month on that salary and still live very well. I work from home (outside of Warsaw as a VOIP sw/dev) and make about 10k net. You will have no problem here not speaking English but I recommend you start with an intensive course of Polish for foreigners ASAP. You will enjoy it. Perhaps your company can also pay for the language lessons. If you are open minded and enjoy different things, you will be glad you took the job. I've been here for several years (the first 4 in Warsaw) so if you have any specific questions, let me know.

Travel / Traveling within Poland into my destination city - Lublin (from Warsaw airport) [43]


How much time do you have between when you arrive and when you need to be in Lublin? I realize if this is business related you may be getting stressed about it, but if your schedule is not tight, just take a deep breath and enjoy it. As long as you are not too uptight and can smile (but not too much or in a creepy way) you will do fine. Your English language skills will be enough to get you by. As I said, just ask young people for help if needed. Offer stands. If i am in town, and you still feel you need help, let me know. I'd be happy to show you that getting around in Poland is not that bad...

Travel / Traveling within Poland into my destination city - Lublin (from Warsaw airport) [43]

Farop,

It will not be as bad as you think. Bus 175 is good, or you can go to the taxi queue outside (don't accept offers inside the airport). There are many reliable companies that can get you to the main train station. If you are really uncomfortable with the whole thing, I can meet you at the ariport, take you to the train station, and get you on your way. How you get back, will be your problem. But I think you will see that it is not very difficult.

Or, just look for young people (under 30) and ask them for help as you go...

Hope you enjoy you trip.

Life / What is the penalty for driving a car without the annual technical inspection? [17]

On a positive note: I got stopped speeding one time (very bizarre - I am the slowest driver in Poland) only to find out we did not have the inspection papers. My wife who is Polish, didn't even know about the requirement (she had been out of the country for a long time). The officer held our registration

and told us that if we went and got it done now, he would meet us back at the police station in a few hours when he got off work and return the paperwork to us when he saw the inspection had been done. We did, and he gave us the registration docs back when we met him at the station.

He told us that if we had been involved in an accident and didn't have the inspection paperwork we would have been in deep trouble.

Not everything that happens in Poland is bad...

News / Priests are paid by the Gov't in Poland. [86]


Is it really that easy? I ask because I remember someone I knew who was married to a non-Catholic that eventually moved to Canada because of this very issue. I guess the experience could differ according to location.

News / Priests are paid by the Gov't in Poland. [86]

I don't mean to pour gasoline on the fire, but I noticed the phrase about the priest teaching 'religion' in schools and getting a salary paid by the state. Is the priest teaching comparative religion including the ideas of atheism and agnosticism? IMHO, that would be a public service. If he is promoting the values and the ideas of the Catholic church, then the Catholic church should be paying him.

News / Priests are paid by the Gov't in Poland. [86]

Thanks. The answer below was what I was looking for. My apologies for opening up a can of worms...

Travel / Narrow-gauge railway into the Kampinos forest in Poland [9]

I'll double check when I go home this weekend, but if you are envisioning a trip through the forest, I think you will be disappointed. If on the other hand, you like narrow-gauge trains, you might enjoy it, especially if you have kids. I believe it leaves from Sochaczew (they have a museum of narrow-gauge trains there that is worth a visit) and heads towards Wyszogrod, but I don't think they have restored the track the whole distance. There is still track heading into Kampinos, but most of it still needs to be cleared. I think it is a work in progress. I'll post an update in a few days.

UK, Ireland / Do Poles in the UK pretend to be uppity because they have an inferiority complex? [60]


My wife was laughing her ass off!

News / Euro 2012: Budget cuts delay road construction in Poland [21]

Personally, I'd much rather see dwindling funds be spent on upgrading rail lines and services. In the long term it will prove to be a much better investment. Why waste money repeating the mistakes of others? Perhaps there is a better thread for continuing that discussion. The ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) age is drawing to a close. Why should Poland bother attempting to look like 1990 America? Just skip over it and move on!

Life / 55 minutes to write a ticket ("mandat karny")? [28]

Interesting topic wrt IDP. I really need to know the 'real' answer. I have been renewing my IDP every year to avoid having to take the written test and give up my US license (not that I have any intention of returning) . But, I suspect that the truth is closer to what Delph wrote: permanent residents, should/must get a valid Polish license within 12 months of becoming a permanent resident. As long as you were not, you could always play the part of the travelling business man.

Next year my US license expires, so I guess I will need to take the plunge anyway...

Travel / Holiday in Poland - do I need to learn Polish? [26]

It won't hurt to learn a few phrases and people will be more willing to help you if you at least make the effort as already pointed out. On the other hand, if you will mostly be in areas like Warsaw, don't be suprised if your waitress is perfectly fluent in English!

Have fun. You'll be fine!

Work / Average monthly salary in Poland is around 1000 PLN (few hundred bucks). [387]


So you don't think it would be unreasonable for me to ask for 60zl per 45 minutes on my next offer? I have been doing this on and off for a few years, mostly at advanced level. Is it easier to justify if I am teaching a small group (in Warsaw)?

I have a regular day job, but I like to get out of the house and away from the computer now and then, and I enjoy meeting new people. They asked at the last contract signing if 50 was still ok, so I'm guessing that they are suprised I haven't raised my rate.

Love / I'm a black African man and can't cope with my Polish mother in law [34]

You will thank her one day for that.

Law / EU citizen residency certificate to live in Poland [34]

I'm curious if something like this might make it easier for me to get contract work in other EU countries (for example Ireland). I have a permanent resident card but as an American citizen, although I can work in Poland, every recruitment agency I have dealt with in other EU countries, so far has balked - not worth their time! My wife is Polish and it seems like the easiest thing for us to do, would be to have her go live in the 'other' country first, and then bring me over.

I'd really just like to be able to go and work on short 3-6 month contracts but being a non-EU citizen makes it very difficult! Hard to believ that I could just buy a piece of paper that would solve this problem.

Work / Software Engineer in Wroclaw. Reasonable salary for this position? [16]

I would think for a mid-level position, 9-10k PLN/month might be appropriate. You might try Samsung in Warsaw. They are always looking for warm bodies... It might be a bit less now since the economy has cooled off.