jon357
23 May 2012
Life / Let`s compare prices of services and products in Poland [359]
It's 15 in some places in Warsaw - more than that in the big hotels.
It's 15 in some places in Warsaw - more than that in the big hotels.
jon357
22 May 2012
Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]
Tyramine's ok. Almost all cheese, whether farmhouse or factory has it - it's what gives the flavour. As far as I know it's the natural result of the cheese making process and isn't an additive.
I'll probably be getting some more cheddar tomorrow so I'll get back to you on the label.
Tyramine's ok. Almost all cheese, whether farmhouse or factory has it - it's what gives the flavour. As far as I know it's the natural result of the cheese making process and isn't an additive.
I'll probably be getting some more cheddar tomorrow so I'll get back to you on the label.
jon357
22 May 2012
Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]
It's to do with the amount of tyramine. The Mlekovita one that I buy (perhaps they do a mild as well) is somewhere between medium and mature. Almost all Polish yellow cheese is very low in tyramine and white cheese has none.
It's to do with the amount of tyramine. The Mlekovita one that I buy (perhaps they do a mild as well) is somewhere between medium and mature. Almost all Polish yellow cheese is very low in tyramine and white cheese has none.
jon357
22 May 2012
jon357
22 May 2012
History / Early 80s - Could just anybody come stroling on in? [11]
You needed a tourist visa which they usually gave and for a while anyway, you needed to change a certain amount of hard currency at the official rate but unlike some of the Eastern Bloc countries tourists were not expected to be in an organised party and informal visitors were not escorted or followed. Nor were people on business trips and there were always (marshal law excepted) foreign people living in and visiting Poland for work, study, sport, culture, family visits, leisure etc.
Having said that, quite a lot of tourism in those days was connected to organised groups and if your screenplay is set during the marshal law period between Dec 81 and July 82 you should take into account that most foreigners who didnt have permanent residence had to leave the country.
You needed a tourist visa which they usually gave and for a while anyway, you needed to change a certain amount of hard currency at the official rate but unlike some of the Eastern Bloc countries tourists were not expected to be in an organised party and informal visitors were not escorted or followed. Nor were people on business trips and there were always (marshal law excepted) foreign people living in and visiting Poland for work, study, sport, culture, family visits, leisure etc.
Having said that, quite a lot of tourism in those days was connected to organised groups and if your screenplay is set during the marshal law period between Dec 81 and July 82 you should take into account that most foreigners who didnt have permanent residence had to leave the country.
jon357
22 May 2012
UK, Ireland / Transfer Money from UK to Poland [36]
Be careful with PayPal in Poland. If you open the account from here it won't have full functionality. Western Union is everywhere here, though they are of course more for emergencies.
Be careful with PayPal in Poland. If you open the account from here it won't have full functionality. Western Union is everywhere here, though they are of course more for emergencies.
jon357
22 May 2012
Life / Let`s compare prices of services and products in Poland [359]
Hi Mike. It depends if you mean a month on its own or one month of a longer stay. If you don't drinkor smoke, you can feed yourself and have money to spare on 1000 plan. Less if you are careful, more if you like to dine out.
I remember the flat on Hoza (if you recall, I took some photos before you came when we both used a different forum).
klubturysty.pl has a place on Hoza - maybe the same one - for short rentals
noce.pl also rents out flats. In very central areas like that though you'll find the rent is higher. And the apartment noisier.
Hi Mike. It depends if you mean a month on its own or one month of a longer stay. If you don't drinkor smoke, you can feed yourself and have money to spare on 1000 plan. Less if you are careful, more if you like to dine out.
I remember the flat on Hoza (if you recall, I took some photos before you came when we both used a different forum).
klubturysty.pl has a place on Hoza - maybe the same one - for short rentals
noce.pl also rents out flats. In very central areas like that though you'll find the rent is higher. And the apartment noisier.
jon357
22 May 2012
Life / Let`s compare prices of services and products in Poland [359]
I don't know what Sobieski does but personally I always have a look at Tripadvisor, Wikitravel, Lonely Planet etc first. If there are known issues about airport taxis they usually have something about it.
Your advice in post #9 is pretty sound. I'd add though that some businesses will certainly put their prices up during the Euro2012 period and anything could happen. A lady I know with a bar on Nowy Swiat in Warsaw told me the other day that if she wants to sell alcohol during the competition she has to display a banner from the sponsors who have already advised her what she should increase her prices to.
The toilets in Metro Centrum are also doubling their entry fee for the duration.
I don't know what Sobieski does but personally I always have a look at Tripadvisor, Wikitravel, Lonely Planet etc first. If there are known issues about airport taxis they usually have something about it.
Your advice in post #9 is pretty sound. I'd add though that some businesses will certainly put their prices up during the Euro2012 period and anything could happen. A lady I know with a bar on Nowy Swiat in Warsaw told me the other day that if she wants to sell alcohol during the competition she has to display a banner from the sponsors who have already advised her what she should increase her prices to.
The toilets in Metro Centrum are also doubling their entry fee for the duration.
jon357
22 May 2012
Food / Where to buy British mature Cheddar Cheese and salted butter in Poland? [289]
Try the cheddar that Mlekovita make here in PL. not many places sell it but it's actually OK and my local shop has it at 23 zl a kilo.
Try the cheddar that Mlekovita make here in PL. not many places sell it but it's actually OK and my local shop has it at 23 zl a kilo.
jon357
22 May 2012
UK, Ireland / Sooo many Polski Sklep in the UK, LOL [64]
What sometimes puzzles me about those shops is that they sell things like dried pasta and margarine from Poland which are pretty much the same wherever you go.
Then again, M & S in Warsaw sell white sugar and flour.
What sometimes puzzles me about those shops is that they sell things like dried pasta and margarine from Poland which are pretty much the same wherever you go.
Then again, M & S in Warsaw sell white sugar and flour.
jon357
21 May 2012
UK, Ireland / Sooo many Polski Sklep in the UK, LOL [64]
People like their favourite brands and Poles are extremely conservative about food.
People like their favourite brands and Poles are extremely conservative about food.
jon357
21 May 2012
Life / Where to buy online credit for PLAY? [6]
I don't think there any. Certainly none that take PayPal etc. And the ones that take visa need a pesel. I'm surprised they don't want an insid leg measurement grandparents' first names and the address of three reliable witnesses.
I don't think there any. Certainly none that take PayPal etc. And the ones that take visa need a pesel. I'm surprised they don't want an insid leg measurement grandparents' first names and the address of three reliable witnesses.
jon357
20 May 2012
Real Estate / Renting in Poland - tenants' rights? [51]
Re the monthly admin charge (czynsz) it is either included in the rent (in which case the landlord deals with it) or it isn't (in which case the tenant pays). The former is more usual than the latter unless the landlord lives a long way away. They don't always want the spoldzienie - or the tax office - to know they have a tenant.
Re the monthly admin charge (czynsz) it is either included in the rent (in which case the landlord deals with it) or it isn't (in which case the tenant pays). The former is more usual than the latter unless the landlord lives a long way away. They don't always want the spoldzienie - or the tax office - to know they have a tenant.
jon357
20 May 2012
Life / Polish people are the most ignorant people in the world! [331]
In effect,There is a grain of truth in what he says. But only a grain. The British, for example, often do speak foreign languages; we learn at least one from age 7 or 8 and often a second at high school. However wherever we go people want to speak English to us. You can't blame a busy shop assistant in Paris for replying to us in English when we ask for something in French but here in Poland they take it to an extreme.
A couple of examples. I've lived here for years and like to think I speak Polish well - certainly well enough to give evidence for an hour in court during a complicated lawsuit and to deliver U3A lectures in Polish. When I'm here, I don't usually speak English from one week to the next. And my accent is good enough for me to pass as Polish (for a while anyway) if I really try hard. Yet a few weeks ago I was in a restaurant and ordered for myself and my guest in flawless Polish. Yet the waiter (whose English was so basic as to be almost unintelligible - he didn't even know the word 'fork') insisted in replying every time in some sort of English. And about a year ago, I was in a bar that I've been a regular at for 12 years with my closest friend (who doesn't speak English). For around half an hour we were talking about betting systems and why they mathematically don't work. All in good Polish. Then a guy leant over and said to me "How you like stay? How long you are visit? What hotel you?"
So people are criticed for not making the effort to learn Polish but treated with extreme ignorance by a certain type of Pole when they do. In effect you're dammed if you do and damnedest if you don't. No wonder so many people feel they don't have to.
In effect,There is a grain of truth in what he says. But only a grain. The British, for example, often do speak foreign languages; we learn at least one from age 7 or 8 and often a second at high school. However wherever we go people want to speak English to us. You can't blame a busy shop assistant in Paris for replying to us in English when we ask for something in French but here in Poland they take it to an extreme.
A couple of examples. I've lived here for years and like to think I speak Polish well - certainly well enough to give evidence for an hour in court during a complicated lawsuit and to deliver U3A lectures in Polish. When I'm here, I don't usually speak English from one week to the next. And my accent is good enough for me to pass as Polish (for a while anyway) if I really try hard. Yet a few weeks ago I was in a restaurant and ordered for myself and my guest in flawless Polish. Yet the waiter (whose English was so basic as to be almost unintelligible - he didn't even know the word 'fork') insisted in replying every time in some sort of English. And about a year ago, I was in a bar that I've been a regular at for 12 years with my closest friend (who doesn't speak English). For around half an hour we were talking about betting systems and why they mathematically don't work. All in good Polish. Then a guy leant over and said to me "How you like stay? How long you are visit? What hotel you?"
So people are criticed for not making the effort to learn Polish but treated with extreme ignorance by a certain type of Pole when they do. In effect you're dammed if you do and damnedest if you don't. No wonder so many people feel they don't have to.
jon357
20 May 2012
Travel / Wroclaw Euro 2012 - how much zloty I should be taking with me? [16]
I'd also be wary. And never, ever choose the option for the money to be taken in sterling, euro etc at a fixed rate. The same goes for ATMs. This isn't a Poland specific thing - it is Europe-wide, however it is a scam by the banks to convert the money at a lower rate.
Personally If I were visiting for the Euros, I'd maybe bring a small amount of zloty, no more than 50 or a hundred pounds worth and some sterling to change at the bank. The kantors will probably inflate their prices for the Euro2012 however the banks won't.
One good thing for visitors (from Britain, anyway) is that the zloty has plummeted against the pound due to the euro zone crisis and depending on what happens in Greece may plummet further. Already it's about 20% less than a few months ago!
I'd also be wary. And never, ever choose the option for the money to be taken in sterling, euro etc at a fixed rate. The same goes for ATMs. This isn't a Poland specific thing - it is Europe-wide, however it is a scam by the banks to convert the money at a lower rate.
Personally If I were visiting for the Euros, I'd maybe bring a small amount of zloty, no more than 50 or a hundred pounds worth and some sterling to change at the bank. The kantors will probably inflate their prices for the Euro2012 however the banks won't.
One good thing for visitors (from Britain, anyway) is that the zloty has plummeted against the pound due to the euro zone crisis and depending on what happens in Greece may plummet further. Already it's about 20% less than a few months ago!
jon357
16 May 2012
History / Ukrainian-occupied Eastern Poland [135]
And in this case there is legitimate consent; Poland recognises the present borders of Ukraine. It is not occupied, nor is any other part of Europe.
And in this case there is legitimate consent; Poland recognises the present borders of Ukraine. It is not occupied, nor is any other part of Europe.
jon357
15 May 2012
Law / Poland's Zloty 43% undervalued [30]
The zloty's really plummeted against sterling due to the Greek crisis. My only question is whether it will get much worse before it gets better. Good news for Uk tourists....they'll get more for their pound
The zloty's really plummeted against sterling due to the Greek crisis. My only question is whether it will get much worse before it gets better. Good news for Uk tourists....they'll get more for their pound
jon357
14 May 2012
History / Ukrainian-occupied Eastern Poland [135]
Occupation has a precise meaning. No part of Poland so occupied nor is Poland occupying anywhere else.
Occupation has a precise meaning. No part of Poland so occupied nor is Poland occupying anywhere else.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Achievements of the Tusk's Polish government [532]
What makes you think that a. he'd be doing the same thing or that b. the government haven't thought about that? They aren't PiS, so they do actually think!
What makes you think that a. he'd be doing the same thing or that b. the government haven't thought about that? They aren't PiS, so they do actually think!
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Achievements of the Tusk's Polish government [532]
And the issue is that if he has what you describe as health problems then he is in any case unfit tor work. If he is fit for work, then being 66 is no longer a reason for the state to retire him on full pension.
Unless you know of some magic source of money.
And the issue is that if he has what you describe as health problems then he is in any case unfit tor work. If he is fit for work, then being 66 is no longer a reason for the state to retire him on full pension.
Unless you know of some magic source of money.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Achievements of the Tusk's Polish government [532]
That's just nit-picking. There's an aging population, life expectancy is increasing and there's a finite pot of money for social provision. The current government are working with the same situation that any other party would - except PiS would simply duck the issue or make promises that they could never fulfil. Or hope that prayer would solve the problem.
That's just nit-picking. There's an aging population, life expectancy is increasing and there's a finite pot of money for social provision. The current government are working with the same situation that any other party would - except PiS would simply duck the issue or make promises that they could never fulfil. Or hope that prayer would solve the problem.
jon357
14 May 2012
Food / Your favourite Polish foods! [180]
There were issues about it, but most (including all supermarket stuff) is pasteurised now. I'd be wary of buying it in street stalls though. Have you tried it grilled?
There were issues about it, but most (including all supermarket stuff) is pasteurised now. I'd be wary of buying it in street stalls though. Have you tried it grilled?
jon357
14 May 2012
History / Why are Jews pestering Poland for "proper" WW2 monetary restitution/reparations? [750]
Any religious aspect is irrelevant - the people were dragged out of their homes in Poland regardless of religious belief - indeed in Bialystok a lot of Anglicans were taken away due to being either converted Jews or descendants of converts. I understand that church also has property claims going through.
religious
Any religious aspect is irrelevant - the people were dragged out of their homes in Poland regardless of religious belief - indeed in Bialystok a lot of Anglicans were taken away due to being either converted Jews or descendants of converts. I understand that church also has property claims going through.
jon357
14 May 2012
Food / Your favourite Polish foods! [180]
That's one of the better Polish products though a lot of it is industrially mass-produced.. 99% of the other cheese is either white cheese (sometimes called 'farmers' cheese though it comes from huge factories), industrially processed and bland 'yellow cheese', things like Kraft slices or gooey blocks of spreadable chemicals wrapped in tinfoil There are one or two artisan cheesemakers who've started up - one of them quite good - but they haven't caught on with the public yet.
that gross smoked cheese, oscypek
That's one of the better Polish products though a lot of it is industrially mass-produced.. 99% of the other cheese is either white cheese (sometimes called 'farmers' cheese though it comes from huge factories), industrially processed and bland 'yellow cheese', things like Kraft slices or gooey blocks of spreadable chemicals wrapped in tinfoil There are one or two artisan cheesemakers who've started up - one of them quite good - but they haven't caught on with the public yet.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Achievements of the Tusk's Polish government [532]
There are always jobs to suit and given that the increase in retirement age is partly due to more and more people staying fit and healthy for longer, we shouldn't make assumptions. Anyway, nobody here is expected to perform a task at work that they are unfit for.
Another factor I forgot to mention but quite obvious - where all those people will be working ?eh?
You do not expect 66 years old zipping up and down scaffolding ? or digging coal at the fore ?
eh?
You do not expect 66 years old zipping up and down scaffolding ? or digging coal at the fore ?
eh?
There are always jobs to suit and given that the increase in retirement age is partly due to more and more people staying fit and healthy for longer, we shouldn't make assumptions. Anyway, nobody here is expected to perform a task at work that they are unfit for.
jon357
14 May 2012
Food / Your favourite Polish foods! [180]
Or just sophisticated. I notice that when eating out here people are starting to prefer a variety too.
For your fried out taste buds :D
Or just sophisticated. I notice that when eating out here people are starting to prefer a variety too.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Will the new National Stadium in Warsaw help build Poland's picture in the world? [13]
You do know that when governments commission something, there's always a signature somewhere.
You do know that when governments commission something, there's always a signature somewhere.
jon357
14 May 2012
Food / Your favourite Polish foods! [180]
Those I like. Also the Lwowski ones with a sort of bolognese sauce in are interesting. By and large though, the Ruski and cabbage ones people eat day to day here are very samey and diversity isn't always appreciated. There's also two schools of thought about how thick the dough should be. I tend to prefer thin though stodgy is definitely more popular.
Those I like. Also the Lwowski ones with a sort of bolognese sauce in are interesting. By and large though, the Ruski and cabbage ones people eat day to day here are very samey and diversity isn't always appreciated. There's also two schools of thought about how thick the dough should be. I tend to prefer thin though stodgy is definitely more popular.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Will the new National Stadium in Warsaw help build Poland's picture in the world? [13]
No, not mythical at all.
Right, the mythical others
No, not mythical at all.
jon357
14 May 2012
News / Will the new National Stadium in Warsaw help build Poland's picture in the world? [13]
Given that construction started shortly after they took office and assuming that the design, contracts, logistics etc weren't just knocked up on the back of an envelope I think we can say others were involved.
PO
Given that construction started shortly after they took office and assuming that the design, contracts, logistics etc weren't just knocked up on the back of an envelope I think we can say others were involved.