Site Search:
 
Get TEFL Certified & Start Your Adventure Today!
Teach English Abroad and Get Paid to see the World!
Job Discussion Forums Forum Index Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Rise and fall
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4, 5  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> Poland
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
oipivo



Joined: 02 Jan 2012
Posts: 163
Location: Poland

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 12:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

" Expecting Swiss style perfection in a country that has been democratic for 23 years and which had an economy in ruins is just - frankly - insanity."

I like you. It drives me up the wall when expats have these expectations. After living abroad for a while, you just come to accept these things. I remember being frustrated with this as well.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
sharter



Joined: 25 Jun 2008
Posts: 878
Location: All over the place

PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:37 am    Post subject: erm Reply with quote

Who mentioned Swiss style perfection? X-raying my chest when my foot needed the scan or ordering a Meat Feast and getting a Hawajska is hardly expecting 5* service....what's democracy gotta do with that? It's just dumb, can't-be-bothered, useless service. They sure learned how to coin your money in quickly. Even the hospital I was sent to by my private BUPA there sent me off somewhere else on my broken leg. Then there was the monitor that didn't work in the private hospital my then wife gave birth in. Just shabby. Currently I'm moving my banking there from the UK and what a rigmarole that is proving to be. Forget the zillion Poles who moved to the Uk with ease and set up accounts and mortgages and even claim benefits. First I got to register permanently there even though I'm paying close to 20k a month in the account and so on and so forth and that's just to get a visa card. My landlord, who is required by law to register me after 3 months if I so require is umming and ahing....not doubt it can all be arranged for a fee. It's backwarks and parochial.

And why oh why do people keep mentioning Brovaria? It looks like and airport lounge bar. I've had the golonka there and it's ok. The salmon lasagna was dreadful. It's one of the most sterile bars on the planet.

The Liberal apologists here do my nut. If you pay good money, you should get good service. You shouldn't be told to go and buy something cos they have no change or made to wait an hour for a meal to arrive or screwed over when the remote-control helicopter exploded the first time you used it.

Nope....good for a laugh short-term but a truly uninspiring place in which to settle. If the girls were ugly, half you lot wouldn't be there.....maybe even 90%. There was an article in a Brit paper some years ago which basically took great mirth from the fact that Poland was full of Rodney Trotters (TEFL teachers) surrounded by way-outta-their-league beauties. It was spot on.

The students are lovely to teach though.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
delphian-domine



Joined: 11 Mar 2011
Posts: 674

PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

oipivo wrote:
I like you. It drives me up the wall when expats have these expectations. After living abroad for a while, you just come to accept these things. I remember being frustrated with this as well.


Honestly - if I sat there and dwelled upon all the things that might drive me nuts (like the lack of decent bacon) - I'd go out of my mind. Much better to focus on the nice things, such as having wonderful friends and being able to discover all sorts of interesting places.

[quote=sharter]X-raying my chest when my foot needed the scan or ordering a Meat Feast and getting a Hawajska is hardly expecting 5* service....what's democracy gotta do with that? It's just dumb, can't-be-bothered, useless service. [/quote]

I really wonder what's wrong with you that all these terrible things keep happening to you. I've never once received the wrong meal in Poland, and the health care - although it looks shabby, has always been fine. How come these terrible things keep happening to you?

Quote:
Currently I'm moving my banking there from the UK and what a rigmarole that is proving to be. Forget the zillion Poles who moved to the Uk with ease and set up accounts and mortgages and even claim benefits. First I got to register permanently there even though I'm paying close to 20k a month in the account and so on and so forth and that's just to get a visa card. My landlord, who is required by law to register me after 3 months if I so require is umming and ahing....not doubt it can all be arranged for a fee. It's backwarks and parochial.


Backwards? It's the reason why identity fraud barely exists in Poland, unlike in the UK where it's considered an entire industry. I like the way that here, they don't go throwing credit at anyone who appears to have cash - but having said this, my mortgage was approved and paperwork done within a week.

As for the landlord - the requirement is on you, not him. But the umming and ahhing is because he's almost certainly not paying tax on the rental - the easiest way to deal with this is simply to refuse to rent a flat unless you can use the address for registration purposes.

Quote:
The Liberal apologists here do my nut. If you pay good money, you should get good service. You shouldn't be told to go and buy something cos they have no change or made to wait an hour for a meal to arrive or screwed over when the remote-control helicopter exploded the first time you used it.


Honestly - if it's so bad for you, why are you bothering moving back here?

Here's a tip of the day - try Setka pub on...I think Marcinkowskiego. A wide range of beers, decent service - and although it looks like a dive bar, it's not a bad place for a few beers. And they have a hell of a selection, too.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
sharter



Joined: 25 Jun 2008
Posts: 878
Location: All over the place

PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2012 7:42 am    Post subject: erm Reply with quote

I've just been there much, much longer. I've had my card cloned twice in Poland by the way. I go there primarily because my son lives there but I also have tonnes of pals, some of whom I've known since 1995. I loved teaching there, don't get me wrong. Anyone who knows me will tell you I'm the life and soul....a bit of legend with the old timers.

I just think that Poznan serves overpriced tat and has truly dreadful service.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
delphian-domine



Joined: 11 Mar 2011
Posts: 674

PostPosted: Thu Aug 23, 2012 1:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Actually, speaking of service, I'm noticing one distinct trend. The nicer the place, the more diabolical the service seems to get. I had a rather amusing experience in that sami swoi place on the corner nearest Aleja Kebabowa - truly shockingly slow service, taking almost 10 minutes to serve up two beers and a coffee.

I think one thing we can agree on - so called "nice" places tend to have absolutely shocking service standards. I cannot figure out why some supposedly 'nice' places are employing teenagers as waitresses.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
sharter



Joined: 25 Jun 2008
Posts: 878
Location: All over the place

PostPosted: Thu Aug 23, 2012 4:48 pm    Post subject: erm Reply with quote

The best place Poz has ever had was Harry's....sadly he died and it's been closed for years (next to the Londoner Pub). He was an expat.

Poles don't do service or quality restaurant food....home cooking yes.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Master Shake



Joined: 03 Nov 2006
Posts: 1202
Location: Colorado, USA

PostPosted: Fri Aug 24, 2012 11:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

delphian-domine wrote:
Actually, speaking of service, I'm noticing one distinct trend. The nicer the place, the more diabolical the service seems to get. I had a rather amusing experience in that sami swoi place on the corner nearest Aleja Kebabowa - truly shockingly slow service, taking almost 10 minutes to serve up two beers and a coffee.

I think one thing we can agree on - so called "nice" places tend to have absolutely shocking service standards. I cannot figure out why some supposedly 'nice' places are employing teenagers as waitresses.


One reason is that the fancier places tend to put beauty over brains when hiring waitresses. A gorgeous babe who can barely carry a tray is hired over a homely pro any day of the week.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Sgt Bilko



Joined: 28 Jul 2006
Posts: 136
Location: POLAND

PostPosted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 11:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Taking this away from Poznan for a moment, I've just had a family holiday around Poland.

This is what I found.
Gniezno: Nice looking restaurant near the cathedral, service good, food OK
Torun: All you can eat place opposite the planetarium. 16zl, help yourself. Food basic but great value. Pancake place on the rynek. Food great, price cheap, service fine.
Gdynia: Very cheap place just off the main street. (Anker Pizzeria) Order at a counter like a fast food place but waitresses bring it to the table. Amazing value, big portions, waitresses efficient.
Sopot: Place on the pier. Very expensive but good service.
Gdansk: Bistro Kos on Ul. Piwna. First day brilliant. Huge portions, great service. Next day the meals were only OK and the waitress was miserable.
Malbork: Inside the castle. Good service and prices not too bad considering where we were.
On the way home - McDonalds. Kids treat. Good service, friendly and quick.

Hotels:
Torun an apartment right on the main square. 320zl a night approx for a family of four. Breakfast extra (brought to the room). Gdynia - stayed with wife's cousin. Gdansk/Sopot border - Novotel (kids go free!) 310zl advance booking with huge breakfast, swimming pool etc. Near Biskupin - a palace hotel in the middle of nowhere. A bit more pricey (250zl for a double room but 440 including kids) but not considering the elegance. Arrived 9.30pm and the owner invited us to join him for sausages and a chat round a bonfire in the grounds.

Overall: Couldn't complain about anything except the second meal in Gdansk which seemed like an off day for the waitress. Everyone's entitled to those.

Add to that, getting my Karta Pobyta renewed was a dream compared to the first one ten years ago.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
hrvatski



Joined: 16 Nov 2008
Posts: 270

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 10:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Master Shake wrote:
A gorgeous babe who can barely carry a tray is hired over a homely pro any day of the week.


I'm sure the owners of Rooster employ purely based on skills and competencies.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Master Shake



Joined: 03 Nov 2006
Posts: 1202
Location: Colorado, USA

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 9:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

hrvatski wrote:
Master Shake wrote:
A gorgeous babe who can barely carry a tray is hired over a homely pro any day of the week.


I'm sure the owners of Rooster employ purely based on skills and competencies.

Yes, and Lance Armstrong won all those Tours de France's legitimately with absolutely no doping, and I'm a monkey's uncle.

Seriously tho, did you hear about the 'Rooster-esque' restaurant in the US that got sued? They not only made the waitresses wear miniskirts, they strategically placed fans in the floor blowing upwards.

Is Rooster even still around? Last I heard they closed down.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
delphian-domine



Joined: 11 Mar 2011
Posts: 674

PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2012 12:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Master Shake wrote:
Is Rooster even still around? Last I heard they closed down.


Gone from Poznan years ago, at least.

And - it's nice to see a report of a genuine holiday in Poland.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
hrvatski



Joined: 16 Nov 2008
Posts: 270

PostPosted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 8:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Master Shake wrote:
Seriously tho, did you hear about the 'Rooster-esque' restaurant in the US that got sued?


Classy. Last time I was in Krakow about two years ago, there were still two Roosters open and serviced well by the British stag party crowd (what a fine bunch of young men btw).

I get the impression Rooster is modelled on Hooters but more focused on legs and bums.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
sharter



Joined: 25 Jun 2008
Posts: 878
Location: All over the place

PostPosted: Thu Aug 30, 2012 8:36 am    Post subject: genuine indeed Reply with quote

Genuine indeed...staying with the wife's cousin, MacDonalds, big portions of crud and sloppy service. 1 week in the Red Sea can be got for that price.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
delphian-domine



Joined: 11 Mar 2011
Posts: 674

PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 9:32 pm    Post subject: Re: genuine indeed Reply with quote

sharter wrote:
Genuine indeed...staying with the wife's cousin, MacDonalds, big portions of crud and sloppy service. 1 week in the Red Sea can be got for that price.


Who the hell would want to go to the Red Sea and have to deal with the aggravation that is getting anything done in Egypt - and worse of all, the nightmare that is Hurghada Airport? Not to mention the inevitable hotels full of boorish Russians and package holiday Poles, as well as a few grumpy Brits?

Anyone who's actually been to the Red Sea knows fine well that the vast majority of it is an absolute dump.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Sgt Bilko



Joined: 28 Jul 2006
Posts: 136
Location: POLAND

PostPosted: Mon Sep 10, 2012 7:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I remember night bus trips to Dahab when I worked at IH Sahafayeen in Cairo back in the early 90's before there were any hotels. Just a hippy/traveller-filled Bedouin village. Still a dump but with a certain amount of charm.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> Poland All times are GMT
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4, 5  Next
Page 4 of 5

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.

Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group

Teaching Jobs in China
Teaching Jobs in China