Just curious. I'm not specifically looking for facts, intimate history or insightful political analysis, just what (if anything) you think of when you think of Poland.

Even if you know almost nothing about it, surely you still have SOME impression?

One of my best friends is Polish and he's one of the finest most educated people I ever met.
Polish politics IMHO have been strange however since the Iron Curtain came down. All I've heard is that many of the former Communist magistrates have retained their places in the new government as in some other countries of the former Warsaw Pact ;) *points to ExKGB-chief Vlad Putin*

P.S.: Been to Krakow. Beautiful city!
P.P.S: Don't forget to tell everybody that lots fo great people commonly believed to be French are in fact Polish - e.g. Frederic Chopin or Marie Curie

[ 06-08-2003, 11:33 PM: Message edited by: Faceman ]

Impressions of a (very brief) visit there in 1978. Cold. Lotsa wheat. Lotsa vodka. Many, many pretty girls. So, all in all, favorable. ;)

I have a friend from uni days who's Australian born of Polish parents. She has talked about the food and culture somewhat, and has a very strong family unit. So from my limited experience of Australian Polish culture, I can only say that it seems warm and tasty. ;) [img]smile.gif[/img]

<font color='white'> I think Poland is a pretty cool country.

My uncle had an exchange student from Poland a while ago (Around 95 I think) all I remember about him was that his name was Damien and he was very pro-captalist.

It has a pretty cool language, and I hear there are losts of castles in Poland. And you have to admire the Warsaw Ghetto story. </font>

[ 06-09-2003, 12:00 AM: Message edited by: Iron_Ranger ]

I WANT TO LIVE IN POLAND
(by Gnome)

the audio is on www.hughwilson.org in the news page

Oh I want to live in Poland
Oh I want to live in Prague
and be an Eastern European
who can make love in the dark
to a seamstress from Vienna
or a writer from Crakow
I want to live in Poland
I want to live
I want to live there now....

now...

I want live there now....

oh.....

Oh I want to live in Poland
Oh I want to trample through the snow
to a ship in downtown Danzig
and get carried off in the flow
I'd party up to Sweden
keep going till I hit the pole
I want to live in Poland
I never said
I never said it was a hole....

oh...

I never said it was a hole....

Wheres Poland?

Eastern European country where many people live in poverty and where the wodka flows freely. I wouldn't wanna live there, not even for a lifetime supply of booze.

I haven't been there (yet) but I know where it is and what the main cities are of course. Will probably visit there some day, I still need to visit most Eastern European countries [img]smile.gif[/img]

Hugh, I like that song! Have been playing it recently [img]smile.gif[/img] :D [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

A friend at work had a polish dad, though he was raised in England. One of his dad's memories is being in the Polish Air force based in England during WW2 and his flight log reading

date1... Dresdan
date2... Dresdan
date3... Dresden
date4... Dresdan
date5... Dresdan
date6... Hamburg
date7... Dresden
date8... Dresden

ECT. for a long time.
With lots of nasty anti German sentiments written in the border. Seemingly he and his friends hated the Germans with a passion and had no regret about what he helped do to dresden and Hamburg even to the day he died. so when I think of Poland I still think of a memory based in WW2 and not of the modern years.

Ok, here's my impression of Poland:

"Hello, I'm Poland" Ahahahaha [img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img] Aren't I funny? Hello???

Actually, I've never been there, but I'm always interested in finding out about other countries. I've only ever been to Canada (a bunch of times because I'm only an hour from the border), Aruba, and France. So far I've had nothing but pleasant experiences in foriegn countries, so I see no reason why Poland would be any different. Do you have any pictures of what the country looks like that you can share?

And of course it's the country where this cheerful fellow was born.

http://www.popejohnpaul.com/Pope.jpg

For those who don't know him, he's a really famous pop star who had quite some success with Abbá Pater a few years back. His Dutch accent is also remarkable, remarkable enough to make the headlines every year during Easter in our country. Oh, and I believe he had something to do with some sort of church as well. ;)

[ 06-09-2003, 09:07 AM: Message edited by: Grojlach ]

Yeah :D I missed his 'kiss the tarmac' tour in the eighties :rolleyes:

Missed that one too, my mum wouldn't let me. :( Said I was "too young" :rolleyes: - as if I couldn't take care of myself, I mean, I was already six years old, but she treated me like I was still 5. :( ;)

But I'm really a great fan of his work! I mean, you can tell that despite all of his successes, he's still the same person he used to be before his Big Break, just a regular Joe like the rest of us; you know, just like Michael Jackson. ;) And don't get me started about his lyrics! Man, they're so deep, and you can just tell he really means what he sings by his sincerity; it isn't just lyrics to him, he really believes in what he sings. There aren't that many people in the music industry who are as sincere as he is. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]
Gonna see him during his Magical Pope Mobile Tour later this year, can't wait. [img]graemlins/heee.gif[/img]

[ 06-09-2003, 09:29 AM: Message edited by: Grojlach ]

Pope like Michael Jackson??? ... :eek: ok I'm out of here [img]graemlins/hidesbehindsofa.gif[/img] I can hear the stamp of moderators boots from Australia. Good luck Grojlach, It was nice knowing you [img]graemlins/blueblink.gif[/img] :D

Missed that one too, my mum wouldn't let me. :( Said I was "too young" :rolleyes: - as if I couldn't take care of myself, I mean, I was already six years old, but she treated me like I was still 5. :( ;)

But I'm really a great fan of his work! I mean, you can tell that despite all of his successes, he's still the same person he used to be before his Big Break, just a regular Joe like the rest of us; you know, just like Michael Jackson. ;) And don't get me started about his lyrics! Man, they're so deep, and you can just tell he really means what he sings by his sincerity; it isn't just lyrics to him, he really believes in what he sings. There aren't that many people in the music industry who are as sincere as he is. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]
Gonna see him during his Magical Pope Mobile Tour later this year, can't wait. [img]graemlins/heee.gif[/img] </font>[/QUOTE]You know, an old mate of Yorick's and mine mixed The Pope when he toured Australia! Apparently he used to get a guitar out and sing a few tunes and this guy was the sound man. What a gig...

Thanks Sah! I like it too! :D :D :D

O.k. I've taken that song down. Let me know if you want it back up... ;) :D

Honestly didn't think I'd get any replies.

Well when I think o Poland I think:

Sweden gonna kick as with them in the next qualifying round for the European championship in soccer =)

My girlfriend's grandfather was in the Warsaw Uprising which took place a few months after the Ghetto Uprising. Think about it: 200,000 dead in 2 months. The Russians camped on the west side of the river Vistula and waited and waited for the Nazis to use up their ammo before moving in to "liberate" the place.

Her grandfather was taken early on and sent to Auschwitz where he stayed for 9 months. He was young and not Jewish, though, so they didn't try and work him to death. I never met the man but Monika says he didn't talk much about it. No surprise, huh?

But just reading about Polish history makes me respect how much crap they've gone through.

I´ve met a foreign student from Cracow, and I must say the language sounded interesting. Too bad it´s not spoken elsewhere.. I´ve never been there.. but my first impressions are coldness, high crime rate, endless fields, and lastly, but not least, friendly people. Sorry but I generally tend to highlight the negative sides of each country. [img]smile.gif[/img] I suppose it´s not terribly different from Finland, however.

My Music Teacher is Polish, but all he can say is "Dzien Dobry". I know how to speak more Polish than he does, and I'm an English born Irish person! ;)

*cough* *splutter* Cheerful? HAHAHAHAHA! [img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img]

Anywho, I have no experiences of Poland since I have never been there. Haven't visited that many eastern European countries, been to Romania. From what I've seen in the news it seems you have huge environmental problems and a rather underdeveloped agriculture. I could be wrong though.

Here at IW you (almost) always get a reply [img]smile.gif[/img]

thoughts on Poland: mainly the recent EU-vote - with nearly 40.000.000 inhabitants you'll be the major power among the new EU-members. We got quite a few rapports on the news up to the vote and they painted a picture on a country split between the major (and richer) cities and the (poorer) rural areas.

We won against them in the em-qualification :D
We rock! [img]graemlins/rocking.gif[/img]

Watch your words, my Swedish friends...Poland may yet surprise you in Euro 2004!

(Oh, who am I kidding? The only team they beat in the World Cup was the U.S., a country where people think "foot"ball is a game of throwing and catching...)

I finally found out Poland is in Cleveland, Ohio. It did take a lot of research but now we know [img]smile.gif[/img]

Yeah lol they must be stupid [img]tongue.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/kidding.gif[/img]
Well I wish u better luck 2004, I know ur not gonna get far but I didn't want to say that to hurt ur feelings...oops I just said it ;)