Love / Advice Please! Meeting my Polish boyfriend's parents!! Gifts, customs... [105]

don't touch beer. you will be force fed vodka so just stick to juice (they drink them separately)! polish women LOVE flowers, so them for the mother. a bottle of pure vodka for the father from the airport or some good scotch. try all the food, no matter how bad. You may discover the joys of pickled herring, hhhmmmmm tasty.

Travel / Best way to get from Lodz to Warsaw? [48]

Had to do it several times. had to take a taxi, not cheap but alternative is taking last bus from Lodz and spending the night there. cost me about 200pln.

Polonia / i need advice for a korean friend [13]

The child can return to Europe as a citizen when he/she is 18. The mother has no right to reside in Europe while raising the child. The top EU court has upheld this ruling.

Hundreds of cases of Nigerian women having babies in Ireland and trying to stay on the basis their child is Irish born and therefore a citizen. They have been deported with the child and the child can return on his Irish passport at 18 only.

Love / Maintenance for child born between Irish/Polish parents. [60]


Under Irish law a father has to go to court just to get visitation rights. The mother has all the power. Fathers never get custody. It is very unfair (except in this case).

Inka: Change your number, get a barring order on this clown and have you solicitor inform him that he is never to contact you again. Go to court and get a judge to make a maintenance judgment against him, it is enforceable anywhere in the EU. If he quits his job he is the only one that will suffer.

History / When will you Poles give back German land and the cities which you robbed? [557]

POLENGGGs+BB what about Alsace-Lorraine, do you think the French will give that back? Simple fact is that the borders of Europe today are very unlikely to change ever again (not in my lifetime anyway). Even the Irish have accepted partition in order to prevent bloodshed.

It would take the complete collapse of NATO and the EU for it to happen.

The Poles were the least complicit nation in re-drawing borders after WWII, all the major powers used and betrayed her. When you get Alsace-Lorraine and Kaliningrad from these powers, then come looking for Western Poland and the Sudetenland.


Short answer: NEVER

UK, Ireland / Too many Poles in UK? [52]

I really doubt, judging by spelling and general errors, that this guy is an adult. Maybe best to ignore. These are things an average person would know by the time they're 7.

common repeated errors:
too = to
manny = many
you = your

Law / Signing a contract from Poland Telecommunication (TP) I didn't understand [20]

If you are only an english speaker they would have trouble enforcing it. You are supposed to have a translation or certified translator present. You have up to 15 days with insurance. Contact TP immediately and CC the ombudsman to keep them on their toes.

Love / Advice Please! Meeting my Polish boyfriend's parents!! Gifts, customs... [105]

don't make the schoolboy error and drink beer. ask for a juice or a coke when you get to the house as here Father will force feed you vodka. Pace yourself and good luck.

And I agree with flowers for Mamo, Polish women love them.

Life / Cost of Living in Lodz [50]

rent for own place starts at 1000pln
bills 300-500 depending on season and building
drink, whatever you fancy (beer 5-9pln per pint in pub, 2.50 in supermarket)
food: fresh food is cheap and excellent. you can get good cheap chicken and pork here. beef is poor. meals out start at 15pln for a main course, average about 22pln.

Life / Cost of Living in Lodz [50]

You would live on 3000pln if you use public transport and don't have a hectic social life. Social wise many locals have excellent english. Meeting people here and certain pubs/social outlets mean you could meet plenty of anglophiles quickly. Many foreign companies have a large foreign english speaking workforce. Dell, Phillips, Gilette, P&G, Infosys, SWS, Flextronics, Sercom all have a good portion of foreign staff.

UK, Ireland / Irish Student Locating to Lodz - Can I bring Irish Car? [9]

i'd advise you buy a LHD with an irish reg in ireland and drive it over. There are always over a dozen for sale at any time on the websites. You cannot register a RHD here, despite the government losing a case in the European courts. When you get here with the car you could then change the reg.

Life / Cost of Living in Lodz [50]

if you don't go out much and have no vice's Lodz is very cheap. You will get a small apartment for 1500pln including charges no problem. Fresh food is readily available from local markets. It is cheap and seasonal. Often you have farmers selling their produce directly at the height of season. Strawberries generally are between 5-15pln per kg depending on availability. Tomatoes are 5-10pln per kg, potatoes similar. Prices are will below western europe and are a better quality for fresh food as it is produced locally. salaries vary from 400pln in retail services per week, to about 1000 for a good office job in a foreign company. Remember taxes are high versus western countries but you get health and social coverage for that.

Food / I am a cider drinker, where to get it in Krakow [40]

big carrefour stores have a wiltshire cheese in the main fridge. alma and real do kerrygold cheedar, red and white at the cheese counter.

a wine shop in lodz does spanish organic cider that isn't bad. 22pln for 1L. pricey. I've also found polish cider in champagne bottles. like scrumpy with little fizz. similar price.

Real Estate / Websites for purchasing / exchange properties in Poland [6]

gratka.pl is the biggest. there is a search option to exclude agencies and have only sales by owner. site in polish but if you have a translation toolbar it's easy use.

daft.pl an easier site to use.

UK, Ireland / Irish leaving Ireland again. Economy forcing them to immigrate [39]


Because of what they think they have "lost". The generation just behind me never knew a bad day, never were hungry or really told no. The current government (it's there since 1997) have done anything to stay in power, including buying votes. 2/3rds of males jobs created in the boom were in construction and 2/3rds of female jobs were in the civil service, madness. The stated government policy was to get mothers out of the home and into work (contrary to our constitution). This meant children got less attention and their affection was bought with things.

It's a balance most Irish people are now questioning and realising that a better work/life balance is what we need. Most people realise that it is nothing to do with the foreigners that the economy collapsed. In my personal experience the lower the education level the stupider the stance on such matters. I've had a few gobshites make moronic points to me based on widespread unfounded rumours. I've seen the same thing in many countries though.

You are poor at portraying your point at times MG. Your first and last posts are completely at odds.

UK, Ireland / Irish leaving Ireland again. Economy forcing them to immigrate [39]


That's rich. You come on berating another nationalities and when it's pointed out that people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones you get all stropy.


No problem, I've criticised it plenty. You are doing so in a completely unbalanced way on a forum with many people who have never been to the country and therefore are forming their opinions based partly on what you are saying. I'm balancing that. I detest the current Irish government and they have much to answer for waste and the debt burden we all now face. I campaigned against them in 2007 knowing that what was happening was unsustainable. (I never imagined it could get THIS bad). Unfortunately, as you've just pointed out, people vote in a nonsensical/selfish way sometimes.

Maybe you're frustrated in Ireland but you choose to be here. Is Holland so much better/different?

PS: for someone setting up a call centre you have a huge amount of free time!

UK, Ireland / Irish leaving Ireland again. Economy forcing them to immigrate [39]


Party for Freedom. 3rd largest party in Holland with up to 17% support.
"the party believes that the Judeo-Christian and humanist traditions should be taken as the dominant culture in the Netherlands, and that immigrants should adapt accordingly. The party wants a halt to immigration from non-Western countries. Wilders has also put forward the idea that the Netherlands should open up its own "Guantanamo Bay" that would detain people which the intelligence service sees as a security threat, somewhat akin to the Israeli and Algerian administrative detention"

a few policies:
"# Ethnic registration, (went so well in Uganda)
# Active repatriation of criminals of foreign citizenship and Dutch nationals originating from the Netherlands Antilles,
# Restrictions on immigrant labour from new EU member states and Islamic countries,
# Removal of resources from anti-climate change programmes, development aid and immigration services
# Dutch language proficiency and a 10-year Dutch residency and work experience requirement for welfare assistance, page 15
# Constitutional protection of the dominance of the Judeo-Christian and humanistic culture of the Netherlands, page 35
# Repeal of anti-smoking legislation in bars, page 39
# Investment in more nuclear power plants and coal plants to reduce dependency on imported oil and because coal is cheaper"

Life / What would YOU do to make life in poland better?? [72]

Same thing you would do anywhere, get rid of the civil service.

UK, Ireland / Irish leaving Ireland again. Economy forcing them to immigrate [39]


Really, all you have ever done is criticise Ireland and it's people on this forum. Last time you just went on a rant completely off topic when an Irish guy asked for advice on moving to Poland.

On developing infrastructure, you mean like the link below where Ireland has the fastest link between the US and Europe now. Small sensible steps to a sustainable economy that is Irish developed and job creating.

irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2010/0723/1224275281028.html

Many of the multi-nationals in Ireland including Google have announced new jobs this year. Yeah they'll go where's cheapest but that doesn't mean we shouldn't get what we can, while we can. I see Irish band U2 are now declared Dutch tax resident as we have been undercut us on such taxes, how sustainable is that for Holland?

Why do the little things cost more in ireland? I agree there are excessive prices, but Ireland will always be more expensive than most of Europe. It is a small island off the coast of Europe, check the same prices in Iceland.

Progress is expensive but we now have interlinks for gas and electric with the UK grids and prices for both are way down on what they were. The Irish national electric company is buying its northern equivalent to merge the grids to bring scale, cost savings and security. We were a second world economy until the 90's remember. How long is Holland a free Republic, well over 400 years. We are a nation of 4m who have yet to reach our centenary of freedom. We have never colonised anyone to create our wealth, don't have vast natural resources and aren't lucky enough to be strategically located. We're slowly making the best of what we have, with plenty to learn along the way. By the way Dublin 4 is not Ireland and it's people are not a general representation of everyone.



The above 2 statements aren't too consistent are they?


I'm home, thanks for asking so not home-sick, no need to get into childish comments.

Sorry for making you angry MG, not my intention. Just straightening you out on a few points you've made. It's easy to pick holes in any country, see it all the time here about Poland. I'm sure I could be done to Holland too.

UK, Ireland / Irish leaving Ireland again. Economy forcing them to immigrate [39]


Bitter yet MG?

God you're painful to listen to. If you don't like Ireland leave now, you're happy enough to collect a cheque there though.

This constant rant you go on with against Ireland is pathetic. Accepting some of your points about young people thinking the CT would never end, racism being a problem etc. Is racism not a problem in Holland, the USA, Canada? I've spent a lot of time in the latter 2 and the US is the most racist place I have ever been. Everyone is judged on their ethnic background, not just colour. Ireland has a lot to learn and much to improve. You say we have wasted our boom, we are about to complete an orbital motorway from Dublin to the 6 largest cities in the country. 15 years ago we had no motorway in the country. We have invested more in our train infrastructure in the past decade than since the inception of the state.

I think all Irish people would be happy to chip in and send you home ASAP.

PS. You should hear what Poles call Dutch women.

USA, Canada / What do Polish people think about Canadians? [44]


You are all unable to pronounce 'about'

History / Give back Lwow to Poland and Kaliningrad to Germany - is it possible? [198]


Lwow was an island city of Poles surrounded by land inhabited by ethnic Ukraines. Also a large proportion of the Population were Jewish and targeted by the nazi's. After the war Lwow and its institutions, people etc were re-located en masse to the new city or Wroclaw post war.

Wilno/Vilnus was a more Polish city and unlike Lwow was surrounded by Poles.

Travel / Can I enter first to Poland having a Czech visa? [13]

If you have a Czech visa it is not valid anywhere else, even if traveling within the Schengen area. I don't think there is any body/country that issues a Schengen Visa, just national specific ones for Non-EU citizens.

I know of an Iraqi who had a student visa for Poland. He traveled by train to Denmark and was arrested while returning through Germany. Spent 2 weeks in a German jail before being deported to Iraq, and had to pay for a flight to get back to Poland. Think he was told he would have trouble ever getting back into Germany again too.

UK, Ireland / Moving from Ireland to Poland [29]


That was a great reply to the question, concise and informed as ever. Everything he needs in there!

Don't worry us Irish intend to crawl back under the nearest stone and put on our Leprechaun suits. Forgive us for trying to better ourselves, mistakes and all. What were we thinking, we should know our place and accept it right?

News / Cadbury Wedel invest PLN 960mn in Poland by 2012 [19]

online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703964104575335093747472322.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Brit - US - Japanese ownership in a year.

E. Wedel has been bought by the Japanese Lotte group. They will take on the E Wedel brand, 1000 or so employees and the plant in Warsaw.

The Cadbury, Hall's and some other small brands along with 2 plants in Skarbimierz will stay with Kraft. Kraft also wish to hold on to another plant in Bielany Wroclawskie but need EU approval.

Looks like good news for Poland as Lotte are the 3rd largest maker of gum in the world and will use Wedel as a way to break into Europe.

Polonia / TRAVEL TO DUBAI - VISA for a POLE? [29]

I and my Polish wife had this same problem last year. The best advice I can give you is simply not to go to the place.

I did not need a visa. We booked with Emirates via Dubai to Australia just to visit a friend in transit, We ended up going straight through on the way to/back from London, after an ordeal trying to get a tourist visa.

You must have a sponsor to get a visa for a Polish national. This can be a company, a hotel or a resident. A resident can apply for a visa on your behalf but will have to pay a deposit to ensure you leave the country. Most hotels want nothing to do with the applications as we experienced. My friend had to pay a few thousand of a deposit to get the visa himself and did not want to do as they are difficult to recover. Do not book a hotel until you have confirmed with them that they provide a visa service. We booked a hotel and discovered after that would not get involved in a visa application, but tried to refuse a cancellation.

By the way as you have a girlfriend and not a wife you are in a difficult position. Technically you cannot share a room in a hotel unless married. You could be imprisoned for it if caught. If you get in any trouble you have no rights to access to each other, unlike a husband. Trust me we could tell just from the airport women are very much second class citizens in Dubai. Couldn't believe some of it.

This is the official web site we used and explains visa options, far from straight forward.
uaeinteract.com/travel/visas.asp

This is just 1 example of their morality code. As a boyfriend you have no rights. These 2 kissed in a tourist hotel! I have read far worse stories than this about tourists being mistreated by local courts/law enforcement.

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8602449.stm

History / Poles and (Polish) Jews... Victims of war... and beyond [301]


And you say I don't understand! The thread started as a discussion that the holocaust was not exclusively a word for Jewish victims of Nazi's. It's not. You assert in one line that it is exclusively for Jews, and then say that I must include Soviet victims. I am happy to include any civilian that suffered under the Nazi's. You are just being inconsistent.

History / Poles and (Polish) Jews... Victims of war... and beyond [301]



Ditto.

I'm trying to stay on topic. Unlike your original assertion above, you are now agreeing that the term holocaust is not exclusively a Jewish term. That's what the thread is about. I'm not arguing anything else.

As I've said people of all religions and nationalities died under the Nazi's and should be all counted as victims of the Nazi holocaust.

History / Poles and (Polish) Jews... Victims of war... and beyond [301]


If you use that logic how many British, French or North African victims had the Nazi's. For that matter New Zealand, Canada, the USA, India, Nepal....... Now we're splitting hairs. The borders of Europe were very different at the time. If you want to get into military causalities you're talking a totally different story. I'm well aware of how the Nazi's treated the "occupied" civilian populations.

This thread is about whether the use of the word holocaust should be used exclusively to define Jewish victims of the Nazi's. Nothing you have said defeats that notion, in fact I think you have endorsed it.