The organization of the European football championships will bring both short and long term effects for the Polish tourism industry.

Campaigns promoting Poland abroad (kampanie promujące Polskę za granicą) will have a positive effect, long term (długoterminowo), in changing the image of Poland internationally.

Over the next 2 to 3 years, the organization of Euro 2012 should bring a noticeable increase in the interest of foreign tourists to Poland.

This will contribute positively to the development of infrastructure (rozwój infrastruktury), such as airports (lotniska) and connections to city centers (połączenia do centrum miast), motorways (autostrady) and express roads (drogi ekspresowe) and public transport (transport publiczny).

But soaring hotel prices during Euro 2012 have left many with empty rooms during the championships.

In some hotels, even five-star, only 30 percent of the rooms have been reserved.

A similar situation observed in Austria four years ago [when Austria and Switzerland co-hosed the championships] but this was not taken into consideration when setting price levels.

Many Poles have put off plans to travel within Poland until after the matches are over in early July. I will be traveling in Poland during that time, so I will have my personal experience, which I will share with you in July!

And what do you think? What are pluses and minuses of Euro 2012 for Poland according to you? Please share your thoughts with us in comments below:)

Today I wanted to to give you some advice how to describe different types of hair in Polish.

Hair can be krótkie (short) or długie (long).

Man can be łysy (bold) or  łysiejący (bolding).

Some people have falowane/faliste (wavy) hair, some have proste (straight) hair and some have kręcone (curly) hair.

Some women have grzywka (bangs).

Hair can be rozpuszczone (worn down), związane w kucyk (tied in a pony tail), zaplecione w warkocz (braided), upięte w kok (worn in a bun).

Woman with blond hair is called blondynka (man – blondyn).

Woman with brown hair is called szatynka (man- szatyn).

Woman with black hair is called brunetka (man – brunet).

Woman with red hair is called ruda (man - rudy).

Hair can be suche (dry) or tłuste/przetłuszczające się (greasy).

Hair can have kolor naturalny (natural color) or can be farbowane (colored).

Perm is called trwała in Polish.

Shade of the hair can be jasne (light) or ciemne (dark).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Named one of the Best Books of 1999by the Los Angeles Times, The Pianist is a great movie directed by Roman Polański and starring Adrien Brody . The Pianist won the Cannes Film Festival’s most prestigious prize—the Palme d’Or.

On September 23, 1939, Władysław Szpilman played Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor live on the radio as shells exploded outside—so loudly that he couldn’t hear his piano. It was the last live music broadcast from Warsaw: That day, a German bomb hit the station, and Polish Radio went off the air.

Though he lost his entire family, Szpilman survived in hiding. In the end, his life was saved by a German officer who heard him play the same Chopin Nocturne on a piano found among the rubble. Written immediately after the war and suppressed for decades, The Pianist is a stunning testament to human endurance and the redemptive power of fellow feeling.

Now the widow and son of Władysław Szpilman have taken the author of a book alleging Szpilman collaborated with the Gestapo to court.

Halina Szpilman Grzecznarowska and Andrzej Szpilman want the Warsaw regional court to force an apology from Agata Tuszyńska for the accusations carried in her biography of Wiera Gran, a Jewish singer who knew Szpilman in the Warsaw ghetto.

In Roman Polanski’s 2002 film, based on Szpilman’s own account, the composer survives the liquidation of the ghetto and the war thanks in part to the intervention of a Captain Wilhelm Hosenfeld, a compassionate German army officer appalled by his country’s treatment of the Jews. Despite the dangers the German befriended the starving Szpilman, giving him food, clothes and shelter.

But in her biography, titled “The Accused: Wiera Gran”, the singer alleged Szpilman worked for the Jewish police in the ghetto, helping to organise the transport of thousands of Jews to the Treblinka death camp.

The Szpilmans claim the accusations have tarnished the composer’s name and thus warrant an apology.

“My father was never a policeman in the ghetto,” Andrzej Szpilman told the court. “These fantasies of a sick woman were presented as fact by the media.” Mr Szpilman added that Gran’s accusations may have been born out of a festering jealousy and bitterness she had for his father because she herself had never managed to escape from allegations of collaboration.

Such was the strength of the allegations that Gran was forced to leave Israel, where she had moved after the war, and settle in France. While the smear of collaborator haunted Gran till her death in 2007, Szpilman enjoyed a successful musical career in post-war Poland, and in 1998, just two years before his death, his account of his remarkable survival, also called The Pianist, brought him international recognition.

The Szpilmans’ lawyers also produced documents showing that the name of  Władysław Szpilman was never recorded as a ghetto policeman, and that no ghetto survivors other than Gran ever accused him of collaboration.

But the author has stood by her book.

“I wrote about Gran and quoted her on what she had to say about Szpilman,” said Ms Tuszyńska. “Should I have changed what she said? I was not in the ghetto where everything happened and nor was Andrzej Szpilman.” She added that her book explained that there was never any evidence to support the accusations, and that when she made them Gran was an old and frail woman.

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Named one of the Best Books of 1999by the Los Angeles Times, The Pianist is a great movie directed by Roman Polański and starring Adrien Brody . The Pianist won the Cannes Film Festival’s most prestigious prize—the Palme d’Or.

On September 23, 1939, Władysław Szpilman played Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor live on the radio as shells exploded outside—so loudly that he couldn’t hear his piano. It was the last live music broadcast from Warsaw: That day, a German bomb hit the station, and Polish Radio went off the air.

Though he lost his entire family, Szpilman survived in hiding. In the end, his life was saved by a German officer who heard him play the same Chopin Nocturne on a piano found among the rubble. Written immediately after the war and suppressed for decades, The Pianist is a stunning testament to human endurance and the redemptive power of fellow feeling.

Now the widow and son of Władysław Szpilman have taken the author of a book alleging Szpilman collaborated with the Gestapo to court.

Halina Szpilman Grzecznarowska and Andrzej Szpilman want the Warsaw regional court to force an apology from Agata Tuszyńska for the accusations carried in her biography of Wiera Gran, a Jewish singer who knew Szpilman in the Warsaw ghetto.

In Roman Polanski’s 2002 film, based on Szpilman’s own account, the composer survives the liquidation of the ghetto and the war thanks in part to the intervention of a Captain Wilhelm Hosenfeld, a compassionate German army officer appalled by his country’s treatment of the Jews. Despite the dangers the German befriended the starving Szpilman, giving him food, clothes and shelter.

But in her biography, titled “The Accused: Wiera Gran”, the singer alleged Szpilman worked for the Jewish police in the ghetto, helping to organise the transport of thousands of Jews to the Treblinka death camp.

The Szpilmans claim the accusations have tarnished the composer’s name and thus warrant an apology.

“My father was never a policeman in the ghetto,” Andrzej Szpilman told the court. “These fantasies of a sick woman were presented as fact by the media.” Mr Szpilman added that Gran’s accusations may have been born out of a festering jealousy and bitterness she had for his father because she herself had never managed to escape from allegations of collaboration.

Such was the strength of the allegations that Gran was forced to leave Israel, where she had moved after the war, and settle in France. While the smear of collaborator haunted Gran till her death in 2007, Szpilman enjoyed a successful musical career in post-war Poland, and in 1998, just two years before his death, his account of his remarkable survival, also called The Pianist, brought him international recognition.

The Szpilmans’ lawyers also produced documents showing that the name of  Władysław Szpilman was never recorded as a ghetto policeman, and that no ghetto survivors other than Gran ever accused him of collaboration.

But the author has stood by her book.

“I wrote about Gran and quoted her on what she had to say about Szpilman,” said Ms Tuszyńska. “Should I have changed what she said? I was not in the ghetto where everything happened and nor was Andrzej Szpilman.” She added that her book explained that there was never any evidence to support the accusations, and that when she made them Gran was an old and frail woman.

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Ingredients:

2 cups white, dry kidney beans

1 large onion, diced

1 garlic cloves (minced)

3,4 peeled and chopped tomatoes (can of minced tomatoes is optional)

2 medium sausages

1 cup smoked bacon (cut into ½ inch to 1 inch strips)

1 tsp sugar (optional)

Thyme, paprika, salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Clean the beans. Place in pot and add 3 times more water than beans. Cover and let stand at least one hour or overnight. Boil for about an hour in the same water.

In separate pot, caramelize the onion and sausages along with the bacon. Add tomatoes, garlic, sugar (optional) and all seasonings. Cook for about 15 minutes to blend the flavors.

Mix everything with the beans. Allow to cook for another few minutes to allow the flavors to blend.

Smacznego!

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

One of the oldest art museums in Poland, The National Museum in Warsaw, was established in 1862 as the Museum of Fine Arts. After Poland regained independence in 1918, the new country and its capital, Warsaw, had big plans for the National Museum. The modernist building which at present houses the museum on Jerozolimskie Avenue was built in 1927-1938, designed by Tadeusz Tołwiński and Antoni Dygat.

During World War II German bombs fell on the museum and part of its collection was destroyed, but most of it survived owing to determined efforts by the museum staff. Their silent struggle against the Nazis continued even after the museum was given the German name of Museum der Stadt Warschau. The staff meticulously documented items which were being shipped away to the Reich, making sure that once the war was over, they could be retrieved.

The museum returned to Polish hands on May 7, 1945, and regained its Polish name. Two campaigns were then launched to rebuild the damaged collections. The museum managed to regain items plundered by the Nazis. As a result of the other campaign, aimed at enlarging the collections, within ten years the museum housed four times more items than it had before World War II. At present, The National Museum in Warsaw collections comprise around 830,000 works of art from Poland and abroad, dating from ancient times to the 21st century. They include paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, coins, applied art and industrial design.

The National Museum in Warsaw has four branches, including two in Warsaw: The Wilanów Poster Museum and The Xawery Dunikowski Museum of Sculpture in the Królikarnia Palace. The other two are The Museum of Interiors in Otwock Wielki, 30 km southeast of Warsaw, and The Museum in Nieborów and Arkadia, Łowicz county, 50 km west of Warsaw.

The National Museum in Warsaw is going through an unprecedented makeover which involves a general overhaul of the interiors and rearrangements and relocation of the museum’s permanent galleries. As part of the project, it will publish state-of-the-art multimedia guides in two languages and set up an open WiFi network on the premises.

The refurbishment project will also cover the building’s courtyards and the museum will open a new cafeteria and have its screening room renovated. The room will also serve as a venue for meetings with artists.

The museum aims to establish a visitor-friendly educational space with a number of attractions for children. It also wants to highlight its significance as a Polish and European center of culture where both individuals and families with children can spend quality time.

The first rearranged galleries will be unveiled to the public May 18, 10 a.m. They are The Gallery of Early European Painting, The Gallery of Early Polish and European Portraits and The Gallery of 19th-Century Art. The latter primarily comprises works by Polish painters and sculptors, shown alongside a selection of works by artists of other nationalities.

The Gallery of Medieval Art and The Gallery of 20th and 21st-Century Art will be reopened in the latter half of this year, while at the beginning of next year, the museum will complete work on The Gallery of Ancient Art, The Faras Gallery and exhibitions of handicrafts, coins and photographs.

Together, the new museum galleries will aim to paint a picture of the shared legacy of European civilization, but will also highlight the differences between individual regions and time periods. The result will be a narrative of the art of Poland, Europe and the world.

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Looking at the menu in different Polish restaurants may be a little confusing sometimes. Sometimes, even with the english menu, you may be surprised what you actually ordered. For example, if you order toast for breakfast…you will get something looking almost like grilled cheese with ham!

Here is a list of some typical dishes you may find on the Polish menu:

Zupy - Soups

Chłodnik Litewski: Yoghurt and beetroot soup usually with a boiled egg

Zupa Grochowa: Pea soup

Barszcz Bialy: Wheat and cream soup ((White Barscht)

Żurek: Sour potato and corn soup

Krupnik: Barley & vegetable soup

Kapuśniak: Sour cabbage soup

Zupa Ogórkowa: Sour gurkin or cucumber soup

Zupa Koperkowa: Dill soup.

Rosół: Clear chicken soup with noodles.

Zupa Pomidorowa: Tomato soup with noodles or rice.

Zupa Grzybowa: Wild mushroom soup.

Przystawki – Starters

Smalec: Lard with onion and spices served with bread and pickled gherkins.

Śledzie: Fried herring in sour cream with onion.

Boczek ze śliwką: Bacon stuffed with prunes

Tatar: Like a raw beefburger with onion

Surówki: a lot of times translated as “mixed salads”, but they are actually more like a mixture of coleslaw, finely chopped green and red cabbage, etc.

Dania główne - Main Courses

Eskalopki z cielęciny: Veal in dough.

Polęndwiczki: Serloin steak usually with sauces.

Sztuka mięsa w sosie: Boiled beef in horseradish (usually) sauce.

Zrazy zawijane: Beef rolls stuffed with bacon, gherkin, onion and res pepper in spicy sauce.

Golonka w piwie: Typical Polish food, pork knuckle in beer sauce with horseradish.

Kotlet Schabowy: Breaded pork cutlet, (ideal if you dont want to be too adventurous)

Kiełbasa: Polish sausage in many varieties

Żeberka: Spare pork ribs in different sauces

Kaczka: Roasted duck

Kurczak de volaille: Chicken in butter filled with mushrooms, sometimes there is cheese instead of mushrooms

Wątróbki drobiowe: Chicken livers

Baranina: Roast lamb

Klopsiki: Meatloaf with tomato sauce.

Bigos: Hunter stew with sour cabbage, meat and sausage

Dziczyzna: Wild meat of some kind.

Fasolka po bretońsku: Bean and sausage stew (usually with tomato sauce)

Gołąbki: Stuffed cabbage (usually with mixed ground beef and pork, rice, onions and spices)

Szaszłyk: Shishkebab

Karp w galarecie: Karp in aspic

Naleśniki: Pancakes filled with anything from cheese to strawberries.

Knedle: Potato dumpling stuffid with plums or other fruit.

Frytki: French fries

Kluski śląskie: Silesian dumpling made from potatoes

Placki: a cross between a potato pancake and rosti, very filling but tasty. The farmers variety is nice.

Deserts

Faworki: Pastry twists

Galaretka: Jelly/Jello.

Makowiec: Poppy seed cake.

Pączki: Doughnuts without holes.

Sernik: Cheesecake.

Szarlotka: Apple pie

Lody: ice cream

Murzynek: brownies/chocolate cake

SMACZNEGO!!!

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Residents of Zachodnio-Pomorskie were left rubbing their eyes in amazement this week when they were confronted with the peculiar sight of a car perched on top of a large tree.

The bizarre event occurred in the north western village of Lubczyna and according to daily Fakt, was the handy work of a number of fed up locals who wanted to teach the car’s owner a lesson.

24-year-old Zbigniew F. was well-known for speeding around the village like a maniac with no thought for other drivers or pedestrians, despite not actually owning a valid driving license and the action was angry residents’ way of letting him know they had had enough.

Residents say that he’s used to drive around the village in such a dangerous fashion and that they had to put up with this for 10 years. Even as a youngster the boy had no license.

In order to make their thoughts known to the perpetrator, a number of villagers decided to take direct action to show that enough was enough.

Hiring a crane, they waited till the dead of nigh and hoisted the white Ford from the ground and left it balancing rather dubiously in a nearby willow tree.

“We received a phone call from the car’s owner informing us that some of his neighbours had played a trick on him and put his vehicle in a tree,” says Marta Pierko, a spokeswoman with the local police.

However, despite having nothing to do with the strange act, Zbigniew F. was ordered by authorities to remove the vehicle before somebody was injured because of it.

“It’s certainly a punishment for me,” he says in an interview. “But it’s too difficult and I actually don’t really want to talk about it.”

According to, the police spokeswoman, Zbigniew F. was always punished by authorities when caught driving without a license in the past. He did receive fines when caught.

The white Ford has since been removed from its latest parking spot and locals are now waiting to see whether the punishment has made any difference.

And what do you think about it? What would police do here in USA in this situation? Not only about the car on a tree, but also about someone driving without driver’s license for so many years? Sometimes it really amazes me how PD works in Poland…

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

Mother’s Day (Dzień Matki) in Poland is not until May 26th, but I thought I will give you an idea for different wishes, just in case you would like to write a card for your mama in Polish.

Mother’s Day is marked with the special celebrations in schools and kindergardens. Younger children prepare so called “laurki” for their mothers. ( laurka – is a sheet of paper decorated with flowers, birds, hearts etc.,  on which children write their wishes to their mothers). Schools often carry special ceremonies or classes to commemorate Mother’s Day.

Kids with dads usually buy flowers or different gifts for their moms. I used to clean the house with my brothers and “prepare” a meal for our mom – as best as we could!

Here is a beautiful song/rhyme/wishes for this special day (it was my favorite when I was a little girl – I used to sing it to my mom every year on her day):

Dziś dla Ciebie Mamo świeci słońce złote,

Dla Ciebie na oknie usiadł barwny motyl.

Dziś dla Ciebie Mamo płyną barwne chmurki

A wiatr je układa w świąteczne laurki.

Dziś dla Ciebie Mamo śpiewa ptak na klonie

I dla Ciebie kwiaty pachną też w wazonie.

Dzisiaj droga Mamo masz twarz uśmiechniętą,

Niechaj przez rok cały trwa to wielkie święto.

Today for you the sun is shining golden Mom,

For you on the window sat a colorful butterfly.

Today for you Mom colorful clouds float

And the wind puts them in a holiday’s “laurki”.

Today for you Mom sings the bird in the clone

And for you also smell the flowers in the vase.

Today, you mom smile all day,

Make this holiday last all year!

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)

The novel was published by Archipelago Books, a small non-profit publishing house from Brooklyn specializing in the literature from the non-English speaking countries, in a translation by Bill Johnston, a professor at the University of Indiana, Bloomington, and director of its Polish Study Center.

He is one of the most prominent translators of Polish literature into English and has translated works by the Romantic poet Juliusz Słowacki, the novelists Bolesław Prus and Stefan Żeromski, the avant-garde playwright and prose writer Witold Gombrowicz as well as contemporary Polish authors, Andrzej Stasiuk and Magdalena Tulli.

Several years ago Bill Johnston received the ‘Found in Translation’ Award, sponsored jointly by the Polish Cultural Institutes in London and New York, the Kraków-based Polish Book Institute and W.A.B. Publishers of Warsaw (for New Poems by Tadeusz Różewicz).

Eighty year-old Wiesław Myśliwski is one of leading Polish novelists. Most of his works focus on the life in the countryside. “Stone upon Stone”, written in 1984, is his first novel translated into English.

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)