Travel / Driving in Poland, are there any rules at all? [149]

"Brussels, 29 March 2012 - Progress in cutting road fatalities significantly slowed last year (to -2%) compared with a very promising EU-wide reduction throughout the last decade (on average -6%), according to new figures published today by the European Commission. Worse still, some EU Member States, like Germany and Sweden, who have very strong safety records, now show a significant increase in deaths. In other Member States, like Poland and Belgium - already lagging behind in road safety - the number of deaths went up. The problem of motorcycles - where fatalities have still not fallen after more than a decade - still persists."

So according to the table, Poland is the country with the most fatalities per million people. Something that for those of us who actually drive on the roads over here, doesn't come as a surprise at all. People here drive like complete and utter idiots. And no-one gives a shyte about the number of fatalities either.

Travel / Wroclaw airport to the city center-how? [5]

Scottie ... with regard to the bus - have a look here wroclaw.jakdojade.pl/?locale=en.

Enter under A "przyst. PORT LOTNICZY" and under B "przyst. Renoma". From there you can easily walk to the city centre. You will see that it costs PLN 2,40.

With regard to the taxi - since Sunday March 11th the new airport is open. So the distance is a little longer. Nowadays there are only three companies who are allowed to carry passengers from the airport. The fare should set you back around PLN 50-60.

If you want to go for a beer, don't hesitate to send me a PM ;)

News / Should countries be boycotted for offending Poles? [60]


You know what the reason is? They don't know the language. What do you want ... ?

History / Was the Polish/ Lithuanian commonwealth a European power? [111]

I remember walking through Zwinger Museum in Dresden in the beginning of January and reading about this Augustus The Strong, who collected all these treasures. I thought he was a pretty nice guy, but now I read that politically he wasn't such a success. But man ... the things he collected ... FANTASTIC.

And it never hurts to learn new things ... while writing these posts I came across this guy - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krzysztof_Arciszewski - Polish - pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krzysztof_Arciszewski Interesting. In fact this guy worled for the West India Company.

History / Was the Polish/ Lithuanian commonwealth a European power? [111]


So you are telling me you can't see the difference between the economy of Poland and the other countries? You know what? Let me search a little longer and will come up with similar stories about the economies of other European countries. And you will see this wonderful Polish economy of yours slowly dropping down the list.

Some more quotes from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish%E2%80%93Lithuanian_Commonwealth#Economy:

- The economic strength of Commonwealth grain trade waned from the late 17th century on.
- The Commonwealth's major attempts at countering this problem and improving productivity consisted of increasing serfs' workload and further restricting their freedoms in a process known as second serfdom

- The Commonwealth's preoccupation with agriculture, coupled with the szlachta's privileged position when compared to the bourgeoisie, resulted in a fairly slow process of urbanization and thus a rather slow development of industries.

- From Gdańsk, ships, mostly from the Netherlands and Flanders, carried the grain to ports such as Antwerp and Amsterdam.[63][64] Besides grain, other seaborne exports included carminic acid from Polish cochineal, lumber and wood-related products such as ash, and tar.[58] The land routes, mostly to the German lands of the Holy Roman Empire such as the cities of Leipzig and Nuremberg, were used for export of live cattle (herds of around 50,000 head) hides, furs, salt, tobacco, hemp, cotton (mostly from Greater Poland) and linen

- Somewhere between the 16th and 17th centuries, the Commonwealth's trade balance shifted from positive to negative.

History / Was the Polish/ Lithuanian commonwealth a European power? [111]

Because of these companies, I'm afraid the Netherlands at that time was one of, if not even the richest country in Europe.

I will quote from Wikipedia (quick, before some zealous guy here changes it):

The economy of the (Polish Lithuanian) Commonwealth was dominated by feudal agriculture based on the plantation system (serfs) -

and

eh.net/encyclopedia/article/harreld.dutch here you can read everything about the Dutch economy during the same time. countrystudies.us/germany/135.htm Here is Germany. And here britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/615557/United-Kingdom/44830 /England-in-the-15th-century, (scroll down to Henry VII - Economy and society) you can read about the English economy during that period.

Now DE ... don't tell me you can't see the difference.

History / Was the Polish/ Lithuanian commonwealth a European power? [111]


Ahh ... so now you start your cussing and cursing against me as well, ehh? Classy, DE, classy. It just shows what you really are.


Read about it, DE ... expand your knowledge. It has never hurt anyone. When you did, please come back to me and I'll be glad to discuss it with you. The fact that you wrote your "invaluable contribution" 5 minutes after I wrote mine only leads me to believe that you didn't even try to look it up.

History / Was the Polish/ Lithuanian commonwealth a European power? [111]


And of course it is not true as anyone with the faintest knowledge about the Dutch East India Company and Dutch West India Company knows.

But it seems that our friend doesn't mind adapting the truth a bit so he can further his misguided attempts to glorify his country, which unfortunately only has the opposite effect.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


Well ... maybe because they have to write something in ticketing systems ... ? And it should be understandable for their colleagues ... . And for me ... .

Maybe they have to respond to the customer by email?

Just a few ideas ... .

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


Probably you don't understand English very well yourself. Never in my posts have I even hinted at the fact that PF'ers can solve my problem, am I right? I have just been describing a situation. And the fact that I am looking for people with English skills might hint at the fact that speaking English in this position is kind of important ... ? Just a guess ... :S


No rozumienic, it's not my own company. I wrote <my company> cause I don't want to spell the name here. Although quite a few people know which company I am talking about.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


Want me to send you photocopies, boy? No smartass, I did it on Friday. Unlike you, I have a social life and I can't be bothered to post on PF every day. Man ... some people ... :S:S:S:S


Because, rozumiemnic ... I am not involved in the hiring process. In the morning, I asked around why they hire people with university degrees and not people with language skills. "Ahh ... it is very simple", I was told. "The salary of people who are highly educated and are out of a job are being largely paid by the EU and not by <my company>". So there we have the problem, don't we? A company is trying to save a few bucks on salaries, they ask for a grant from the EU, they hire highly qualified people, who are -unfortunately- unsuitable to do the job.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


That would be no problem, gumishu! They'd only have to read through a script and that's it. That's why I said ... I'd rather have someone with no (relevant) education, but who actually lived in England or Ireland for some years, than some over-qualified university guy, who doesn't speak the language and who will be bored out of his wits very soon.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]

Right ... because I got some flak from people and because some of you didn't believe me, I decided to do an experiment at work. I welcomed two dozen new "recruits" and I decided to have them write a couple of sentences about where they saw themselves in two years time. Here are some of the results:

Person A - In 2 years i waan be a leader of my team and upgrade my experiens for Windows serwer familii and unix
Person B - After 2 years I wuld be like be Aministrator Windows of Second or third line
Person C - In next two years top quality manager will be good i think, buy requires a lot of work to do (and earn some knowledge)

Persom D - when i study i create which other student a network project, programs, datebase. I hose <company> because is My opportunity to learn new skills. Personal and career growth/and because is a good company. I would steel down in Wroclaw. Completed additional course, promote higher position.

I can go on and on. Now these guys ALL went to University. They are about 24, 25 years old. They did their matura.

Now there are two possibilities: either all of these guys are a bay leaf short of a bouquet garni or there actually IS something wrong with the matura exam over here.

And there is something wrong with the hiring process as well: I need these people as first liners on a helpdesk. They will HAVE to speak English. Now, why did they send me university graduated people who barely speak English and not a couple of cleaners, painters, builders, etc ... etc ... who spent a couple of years in England or Ireland or where ever, but who actually speak the language? But maybe that's a subject for another thread ... :(.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


Wouldn't the same have to apply to Polish people then, Lyzko?


Prove it? How can I prove something here when my better half comes home from this course, with a lot of materials and instructions how to mark something. You just have to take my word for it.


I didn't say I did. I said I get applicants (who unfortunately are hired without any proper test of their English, because the people in HR don't speak proper English themselves). It's in IT. In various positions, from 1st liner to PM's. Suffice to say that it's sometimes beyond me why they hired some of them. It's like hiring me for a Polish helpdesk.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


No, it is not. It means that you are not allowed to enter the school for up to a week. In other words, you are missing the lessons which will probably get you into trouble when it is exam-time. That in turn might mean that you have to redo the year. And you also get extra homework which you will have to present after school hours.

A school is also allowed to remove a pupil from school (for example because of behavioural issues or low results) and then it is pretty much up to the parents to find a school which wants to accept their brad.

Absolutely no problem with either of them. Nor with detention, by the way.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]

Jee ... I was a pupil. How should I know? I guess I wasn't one of the easiest myself, judging by the amount of detention I got (by the way, a good idea to introduce this in PL as well instead of these wimps winging about their human rights and all that - if you don't behave get out of the classroom and stay after hours)

And I remember a couple of my fellow-pupils with some behavioural issues as well. Two committed suicide. I got into a couple of fights ... you know, a normal, run-of-the-mill school period.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]

Ohh come on ... how do you know where I went to school? I attended normal schools in Amsterdam (NL), Cheltenham (GB), Saintes (F), Keerbergen (B) and Nieuwegein (NL). Nothing fancy, just normal schools.

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


Come on a.k. ... EVERY country has its share of (either complete or functional) analphabetics. Poland is no exception (pisa.oecd.org/dataoecd/54/12/46643496.pdf).

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]

@Foreigner4, pawian
I respectfully disagree - if i run around Wroclaw and say things like "byc holender, zyc Wroclaw", one could argue that I can communicate. But that's not really the point, is it? I am not asking for perfection (everybody makes some mistakes), but a little proficiency kind of adds to people's understanding of what one is trying to convey.

@a.k.
Of course I've had languages in school. Everybody has to start somewhere. But still, if I look at the level of teaching here and I compare it to the countries where I went to school (and by the way, my wife is an English teacher here in Wroclaw - so I think I actually CAN compare), then the level is less than adequate (and then I am being polite). As far as I know, students here don't have to read foreign literature for example (here are three pages of English literature, you have to read 7 in the Netherlands, per language - here is French and here is German) or get lessons in literary history.


Obviously you don't have a clue what you are talking about. If you move from England to France and your father just puts you in the local school, believe me you HAVE to bust your ass. And in case you don't know, French belongs to a different family, but obviously you do know cause you conveniently forgot to mention edit Yes, I swear, cause I refuse to be called Hitler when I have an opinion that is contrary to yours. It says a lot about your intellectual qualities when you can't have it when people disagree with you.

No name calling .

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


No, a.k. ... not perfect English. But really, in my time my English was seriously much better than the examples I gave you. Especially after 5 or 6 years.


No ... of course not. But I spoke Dutch and German by the time I was three (bilingual parents), English came when I was 9 (moved to England) and I learned French when I was 13 (moved to France, later to Belgium).


And people from other countries are more or less on the same page as me. What does that tell you?

Study / Shocking! Test standards in Polish schools. [165]


I'm sorry ... that's not what it is about.


BS!! They have had English for 5 or even 6 years!

Basic English? That's no English at all!

Yes, mine were actually. When I was a teenager I spoke fluent Dutch, fluent German, fluent French, and rather good English and I didn't even had to study for these languages. And yes, I spoke Latin as well.

Stop being so ridiculously defensive. The level sucks! There are no two ways about it.

Food / Types of CHEESE in Poland [150]

Are you sure it is Narzer Käse and not Harzer Käse?

For Harzer Käse, look on: germanfoodguide.com/chdetail.cfm?cheese_number=4. At the bottom there are a couple of recipes.

Here you can find recipes in German - chefkoch.de/rs/s0/harzer+k%E4se/Rezepte.html

Life / Poland - abandon all logic [25]

Or where the government actually gives information to foreigners in different languages.

It's really not that difficult, you know?

Site of the city of Den Haag, in several languages amongst which Russian

If a small country like the Netherlands can do it, then maybe other countries (not only Poland), can follow the example

Life / Poland - abandon all logic [25]


Simplistic thing to say, Anthead. Go to a railway station in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, and maybe even more countries and you will most certainly find people behind the counter who at least speak English, if not also German and French.

News / Don't let Poland become like my country, France. [630]

Ever heard about the Taliban and Sharia? Ohh, and before you ask ... yes, I have ... I experienced it first hand. And it isn't pretty. Wanna try it? Move to Iran or Afghanistan for a couple of months. Then come back and tell us how it felt. Maybe you can even set up an interview with Abu Qatada ... he really seems to be a charming man and can tell you ALL about it. Don't forget your niqab when you go and see him, though ... (although he lives in England). And he probably won't shake your hand either (again - although he lives in England).

<Sometimes I feel like I am living in a parallel universe, just not in the one I want to>

Work / Moving and working in PL as a teacher (near Zory/Katowice) [53]

Okay ... hopefully my wife doesn't read this, but here's my two pennies worth.

I moved here on June 1st, also because the missus wanted to be close to her family and friends again. I gave up a career as a Lt.Col. and now work as a Sr. Project Manager in Wroclaw. In the evenings I also teach languages, mainly Dutch (there is a Dutch faculty at the university here), German and some French. I sold my house in the Netherlands, so I have nothing to go back to.

Believe me, I would NEVER EVER do it again. Maybe in my case it is a bit different, cause I not only had to adapt to living in a country which is completely different than the Netherlands, but also because I am having to adapt to civilian life. Don't, under any circumstance, give up everything YOU have. It's a recipe for disaster, in my opinion. One of the partners will have his or her way, the other one is left without anything. I don't have to remind you what happens if things go haywire, and you are left on your own in a country where you don't know the lingo and you are pretty much on your own.

Well ... that's just my opinion. Having said that, tomjustyna, all the best to you both. Hope for you it works out, no matter which decision you make in the end.

Travel / Long weekend in Wroclaw - tourist sights to see (waterpark?) + Polish food + soccer game [8]

Yeah ... I've read them as well. I was there last Tuesday, and it wasn't too bad. Some people just always have something to complain about. I was with very nice company, so I had a great time.

You never know about these others showing the game. I haven't got the faintest; have never been to either of them (or at least for as far as I know or can remember ;) ).

Travel / Long weekend in Wroclaw - tourist sights to see (waterpark?) + Polish food + soccer game [8]

Have a look here ... https://polishforums.com/travel-tourism-5/attractions-wroclaw-must- see-list-51995/.

Aquapark is good for all ages, no worries about that.

Probably they will show the match in Guinness on Solny.

Remember that most shops will be closed tomorrow (Nov. 11th).

News / Polish hero pilot lands 767 without wheels. (Warsaw) [191]


Thank you, Skysoulmate, for your eloquent answer. Let me stress that my question had NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with the age old "Airbus is best, Boeing is best", "Europe vs. US" discussion. I was just wondering what the changes in the use of materials would mean to emergency situations like in Wwa, tailstrikes and other situations that you describe. I simply was not aware that the new A350 will be made out of composite materials as well, or I would have mentioned that aeroplane as well.

I think your comparison to the Comet is a very good one. I remember seeing a documentary once where a Comet was submerged in a great, big watertank again and again, which brought the flaws of the aeroplane to the forefront. Didn't all this came out when one of them mysteriously disappeared over the Mediterranean off Italy? I think we can only hope that the use of these composite materials won't give rise to a new Comet-situation and that the designers have thought this through very, very carefully.

Again ... thank you, Skysoulmate, for your views on this. I appreciate it. I would also like to stress again that in no way I intended to bash Boeing. If I gave that impression, then I am very sorry indeed. The Dreamliner was just the only aeroplane I knew which is made out of composite materials.