100 facts about Poland through the eyes of Russians Bashny.Net

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Writes our reader Vitaly Chernoriz: For almost a year I live in Warsaw. We are pleased to share the facts about Poland.

1. Poles often complain that they got the hill to the south and the Baltic Sea in the north, and warms it all that well either. But luck with lakes, formed after the toe of the glacier. Mazury lakes - a favorite place for sailing or kayaking, the latest very popular.

2. Polish the weather is very unpredictable and the locals are constantly complaining to her: in winter by European standards freezing (-25), and the summer is not warm enough. Generally it is the Poles in the blood - to be dissatisfied with something. In the spring of the same day, 3 times the rain can begin, end, hail fall, after which all trace dry in the sun. Seasons, as is customary in Europe, do not start from the first day, and on the astronomical calendar, so do not be December 1 All congratulations to the onset of winter, will not understand.

3. Poland is quite homogeneous ethnically, linguistically and culturally. Nevertheless, it is composed of a large part of Silesia (Slaskie Voivodship), detached Poles after World War II. The area is very specific, especially industrialized Miner Upper Silesia in Katowice with the center, with its incomprehensible dialect and shlёnskim own opinion about the rest of Poland. [Next]

4. Economically more developed western Poland often outraged that feeds lazy and drunkards from a poor agrarian eastern part.

5. The problem of internal migration from rural areas to big cities in Poland is very serious, the infrastructure is quite decent. The usual story when a Warsaw family living in the apartment starts to build a country house, then moved back, and apartment rents.

6. Throughout its history, the country was divided many times, as evidenced by at least the fact that the Christmas presents for children in Warsaw brings St. Mikolaj, Poznan - Gvyazdor (from the word star), in Cracow - Angel, in Silesia - baby Jesus, and in the eastern regions found even Grandfather Frost ...

7. Polish small businesses and NGOs often live at the expense of subsidies and grants from the European Union. My friend has thus received 40 thousand. Euro for the opening of a kindergarten in its suburbs, and free enterprise economics course to boot.

8. Since 2007, the year a law, according to which 1% of your taxes should be transferred to the activities of public benefit organizations, organizations choose yourself. Therefore, the street meets compassionate advertising - Give 1% of children in Africa or in the shelter for dogs.

9. homeless animals here. Nuclear power stations, too, all is well with the environment. In the cities, on the bank of the Vistula River a lot of gulls, parks teeming with proteins. In my residential area of ​​Warsaw in the evening repeatedly ran across hedgehogs.

10. In Poland, the highest proportion of white storks (23% of the world population). Like the bison from the Bialowieza Forest, storks - one of the symbols of the country.

11. Separation of garbage there, although not strictly controlled. Many are placed where containers for old clothes that her then I do not know.

12. Since 2004, Poland is in the EU, and from 2007 to the Schengen area.

13. Since the beginning of the 90s from gushing wave of emigrants mostly in England. With rising living standards, many have returned, but still there are cases when a doctor working in a Polish clinic, flies to London for the weekend, where he received a week at a time salary.

14. The Polish Government clinics are free, but not so much as grandmothers with sores. So sign up for an appointment with the therapist needed somewhere for a month or two, or go to a private clinic. Of course, in cases of emergency is not the case.

15. Chicago is the second by the number of Poles living in it a city of peace.

16. As the Poles declare they do not like the two nations - Russian and German. You can find a bathroom with monuments to the victims of Nazism and Communism. However, such a dislike more stereotyped than real, and manifests itself except during sporting events.

17. Russian hostility to meet almost not necessary. Often the opposite is very friendly and hospitable, always prompt way, if you need to phone from your phone, and will sing "Let there always be sunshine". Somehow the song everybody knows.

18. The Russian language is clear to most of the older generation, as is mandatory in the schools of the Polish People's Republic. However, in the 90s, as a language forcibly imposed, Russian ceased to be studied, and only recently started to come back again to enjoy popularity.

19. For the Germans, the Poles are poor and cold neighbor without electricity, voruyuschim their cars. Hence the widespread jokes like this: How does the Polish triathlon? - Came to the pool walk and came back on a bike.

20. On the other hand the Germans actively using proximity and cheapness of Poland and go on holiday once belonged to Germany Wroclaw or Szczecin. From Berlin to last a little more than 100 km away, buses go from 10 zloty, and all excursions are offered in two languages ​​- German and Polish.

21. To the untrained ear polish - it is simply a collection of sizzling, especially if you do not listen. For example, the word happiness sounds like "shchenschche».

22. Despite his kinship with all Slavic languages, many words in Polish meaningful totally different things than in Russian: sklep - Shop dworzec - Station zapomnić (read as "Remember") - forget zakaz - ban urodliwy - beautiful dywan - Carpet owoce - fruit

23. Tania means Polish cheap, so the girls with beautiful sim name better represents how Tatiana. «Tania odzież« - this is not the author's collection of fashionable and widespread name for second-hand.

24. If somewhere on the streets of Krakow you ask how to get to the library, and they'll tell you "just" do not think of the answer, as a mockery. "Simple" means "right».

25. Spoko - Poland is a standard phrase in almost any situation and means something like "Spokuha." Solomon was in Poland for Euro «Koko-koko, Euro Spoko» choir grandmothers.

26. Traditional song for his birthday, a wedding or any other event where you need something to desire - «Sto lat!», Willing hundred years respectively.

27. Pepper Poles call only black pepper, for the rest (Chile in particular) use the word "paprika" very surprised as we discern about what is in question pepper.

28. In other words, causing tenderness: adidasy - sneakers, rajstopy - tights, kawaler - bachelor.

29. Polish girls really very beautiful, dress nicely, but not provocatively. Bright coloring, mini-skirts and high heels is usually characterized only to representatives of certain professions.

30. The Polish cuisine is very similar to ours, but less fat. Traditional dishes include Russian perogi (pierogi ruskie), Ukrainian borscht (barsz ukraiński) and fish in Greek (ryba po grecku). They can be easily found in every restaurant.

31. Russian perogi - is dumplings with cottage cheese and potatoes in Poland after cooking, they are often fried. Note that, if you decide to buy in the store, they are usually cooked and better again into the water does not dip. Familiar as we pies baked in Poland.

32. Another national dish is bigos - stewed cabbage with meat and smoked products. Depending on how much home bigos was prepared recipe varies from mountains with occasional glimpses of the meat to the cabbage dish of cabbage with slices of sausage.

33. Soups - this is where to start any holiday in Poland. The obligatory first dish for Christmas is a red mushroom soup or borsch (beetroot soup with condiments monosyllabic). Red borsch often do not eat and drink, so do not relax when on Christmas Eve will get a glass of liquid that looks like a mulled wine. Yes, you can stumble on soup and coffee machines, again stumble do not recommend. At Easter eat Zurek - a soup sourdough white sausage and egg, and even a wedding feast begins with soup. However, in ordinary days eating soup for lunch every.

34. What has not been able to get used to, it's the fact that the Poles almost do not eat bread with the soup. Well, in establishments catering to the bread first relies very rare. But you can try Zhurek in bread pot (Myakushko removed and transformed into bread bowl).

35. One of the most exciting events in Poland - All Saints Day on November 1. Something like our memorial Sunday, only on a large scale. People come to the cemetery at dusk and lit candles in large numbers, it is as bright as day. In general, the number of lampadok, arrange around the monuments and cemeteries, as for me, the Poles - the world's leaders.

36. On the other hand in vain to come to Poland tourists to admire the present Catholic Christmas. December 24th at 15.00 all the shops, museums, cafes, bars are closed and so for the next three days. At this time, the Poles are mainly going to families sit at home, drink, eat and watch TV. On Christmas night, my friends and found only one working on the two-million Kebab Warsaw and a few stalls with alcohol, and a day later only open a pizzeria on a huge shopping mall.

37. The employer has no right to compel subordinates to work on Christmas, so the opening can only be small family shops or stores at gas stations. At last we once offered to buy half-liter bottle of 96% alcohol. With alcohol, selling alcohol only on prescription, there's no fighting.

38. Poland's number one fast food - a kebab. In terms of composition still the same shawarma only twice and placed in a half loaf, eaten a plastic fork, because all at once in the mouth does not fit.

39. The pizza at the pizzeria often relies more jar of sauce (ketchup or garlic). Pizza from this turns out more juicy. In other countries, like I never met.

40. From the remnants of the Soviet era, in many cities of Poland survived the so-called "milk bars", was originally subsidized by the state. Food in them always was and remains cheaper than in other places. 10-15 PLN (100-150 rubles) can fully eat. However, orders in milk bars are very shovels.

41. One of the main products exported from Poland are fruits and vegetables. Buy here can be quite cheap: 4-5 PLN (40 rubles) a kilo of peaches. The same applies to the prices of meat and dairy products.

42. Of the products, which are in Poland or not, or very difficult to find: sticks to beer, fermented baked milk, condensed milk, dumplings and Taranco (Poles do not tolerate its smell).

43. Contrary to popular opinion, even in Poland, the Poles do not drink so much and share stories with each other about neprosyhaemosti Finns, who are in a drinking bout from Friday to Monday, or about 5 liters of beer, drank German for the evening.

44. On the other hand vodka - one of the symbols of the country. When we were with friends on the first day sat in a cafe in the center of Warsaw and ordered beer, the waiter with a smile, looked and said: "Guys! You're in Poland, take vodka! "Meanwhile argue that vodka was invented in Poland, but not in Russia here will not.

45. Traditional Polish vodka - Zubrovka with a blade of grass inside. For soldering of the female half is often mixed with apple juice, this mix is ​​called "Charlotte».

46. ​​In Poland, there is no chemical alcohol drinks such as a screwdriver, but full of different varieties of honey and fruit beers.

47. Also available at the bar ordinary beer with the addition of raspberry or ginger juice and then drink it from the tube is considered quite normal.

48. The Poles are very sporty, do not suffer from excess weight, many are running, go to the gym, doing dances, salsa studio grow here like mushrooms.

49. The number one sport is football. Despite the mediocre game team and weak domestic championship, almost everyone in Poland - is an ardent football fan. Somewhere in Lodz, you can easy to beat, if not correctly identify a fan of the local club (ŁKS or Widzew) you are.

50. Since the Polish clubs and the national team fails often, the popular slogans is «Polacy, nic się nie stało» («Poles, nothing happened»).

51. Even the current title of the Polish representation in the World Volleyball League volleyball championship football is not particularly shaken.

52. At the site of the present National Stadium in Warsaw, built specially for Euro 2012, used to be the biggest market in Eastern Europe. You could buy everything from contraband cigarettes and Ukrainian pirated discs to any clothes and documents. This part of the right-bank Warsaw called Prague, and a couple of years ago, the area was considered the most dangerous and crime in the capital.

53. By the way Poland - the first European country massively published on protests against ACTA, limiting the free flow of information online. Do not say, and torrents Poles very close.

54. The Polish road is hardly ideal. Wide and fast highways connecting the major cities, especially before the European Football Championship, almost was not. Now the country has committed itself to improvement of infrastructure and which do not go, new roads are being built everywhere.

55. On the right hand over the Poles with an average of 3-5 times. This is one of the vestiges of the old corrupt system. Now it is impossible to bribe the examiner, the camera installed in the vehicle, but the work paid off instructors who give intends to fill up on small errors.

56. Poles are quite punctual. This and a public transport system with an unwrapped schedule all routes at each stop. And the schedule is almost broken.

57. Of all the Polish cities of the metro is only in Warsaw. The only line of today was started in 1995, the opening of the second line is planned for the year, and while the whole Polish capital carefully dug Metrostroi.

58. According to legend, after the soldiers Stalin as a gratuitous gift from the Soviet people to the Polish people suggested to construct in Warsaw a choice of either the subway or the Palace of Culture. The Poles chose the latter, for which he received erected by type Stalin skyscrapers today the tallest building in Poland - 237 meter Palace of Culture and Science.

59. During the Second World Warsaw 85% was destroyed by retreating Germans would level the city to the ground. There were proposals to leave the ruins and move the capital to another place. Warsaw today - it is a city built from scratch. Recovery was heightened pace, hastily built block houses in the style of socialist realism, so the majority of Poles do not like Warsaw, said that she was very noisy and gray.

60. Old Town (historical center) of Warsaw recovering from paintings 17-18 centuries and was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List as an example of a thorough restoration of the destroyed property. In other cities of Poland with the restoration is not always in a hurry, because the rehabilitation of houses suddenly found the owner, who owned the house before the war.

61. When talking about Auschwitz, the Polish you corrected - Auschwitz concentration camp properly called because it was built by the Germans. In May this year a massive response here has caused Obama's speech, in which he used the phrase "Polish death camp».

62. Public transport in Poland is a holistic system. In Warsaw, the same ticket allows travel on the subway, city bus, ordinary or tourist tram, suburban train, and even a ferry across the Vistula plying in the summer.

63. A variety of tickets is also striking: 15 min in Krakow for 2 zlotys (≈ 20 rubles.) And 20 minute in Warsaw for 2.60 to plastic travel card with the completion of 90 days for 220 zlotys.

64. Children under 7 years, honorary blood donors who have passed more than 18 liters, people over 70, as well as luggage, bicycles and pets travel for free.

65. Tickets can be purchased in vending machines or kiosks. And the kiosk - a common name for small shops with basic products and the press, and the kiosk can be placed anywhere, including shopping centers.

66. Trolley buses have only three cities in Poland: Lublin, Gdynia and Tyhe.

67. At night, in all major cities night buses ply their route differs from the usual route and covers several daily. All that is forbidden in public transport (smoking, drinking alcohol, property damage fleet fights) with more than you can enjoy in the night buses.

68. Despite the abundance of modern buses with low-slung, air conditioning, plasma panel, which shows the route and current location, around a quarter of buses in Warsaw - it's old Ikarus. Often they act as night buses, and will finish when - not sorry)


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