Polish Language Blog

Today Adam explains what to do and what to expect if you’re going to visit a Polish person in his/her natural habitat. Read on:

Continuing the topic of advice for travelers and the occasional foreigner living in Poland, this time I decided to follow your suggestions and cover visiting someone at home (iść w gości).

Rule number one is that there are (unfortunately) no rules. What I mean by that, is, that contrary to some cultures where some customs need to be observed, in Poland there is no strict code to follow. Things vary from region to region, from city to city and from home to home. You are on your own, and moving in the savoir vivre mist. The general trend is the change from a warm and hospitable “country of the East” into the cold and stiff “country of the North”.

For instance: you would like to visit someone, should you announce yourself in advance? First of all, contrary to popular stereotypes about hospitable Poles, some people would rather not receive guests at home. Going out is becoming increasingly popular in Poland, and causes less hassle. I am one of those who usually don’t receive guests, and therefore I seldom visit anyone else at home. I would rather wait for someone’s invitation. I can imagine asking someone if I could pop round, but that would have to be someone close. Many people, especially in central and eastern parts of the country, Warsaw, and rural areas would, on the other hand, be more likely to happily receive unannounced guests. It is therefore worth to know your friends’ preferences.

When you are visiting someone, should you bring anything with you? Generally you don’t have to, however it would be a nice touch if you did. Flowers and wine? These would apply to some rather formal dinner parties, and even then I wouldn’t really advise them. A good idea, unless your hosts are on a diet, would be a box of chocolates. And among all kinds of chocolates, I would advise to avoid the cheapest and the most expensive (and tiniest).

The best idea of all times is a box of Ptasie Mleczko (literally “bird’s milk”), chocolate covered milk souffle, a Polish favorite. A great idea would be to bring a small gift (also food or drink) connected with the place of your origin or residence.

Some people, again looking at stereotypes, would think about bringing wódka (vodka). If you do know your hosts well, and you are sure they will not take such a gift in wrong way, and you know you will be drinking hard liquor, you may consider it. Among people I know it is rather rare to entertain with alcohol, other than wine – and that still seldom.

What may surprise you is that some people may ask you to take your shoes off and wear guest slippers (kapcie dla gości). And people visiting you also may feel obliged to take shoes off and wear slippers. Think about it in advance. If you have no problem with it, than everyone is happy.

I never take my shoes off in someone’s house. But I do have a few of “emergency” disposable beauty-salon slippers, just in case. I just don’t like the idea of sharing footwear. I would take it with me when visiting someone who I know expects guests to take shoes off and is uncompromising. I would also offer it to those visiting me, who cannot be convinced it is alright for them to wear their shoes on my carpets. Consider getting a pair.

What can you expect during your visit? Some people, regardless if this was what was scheduled, will offer you a rich meal of many dishes, including cakes. This is the old-style hospitality that is becoming more and more rare. Sometimes, especially when there was no mention of a meal in the invitation, you can expect tea/coffee and cookies.

During a meal, you do not have to eat everything. It would be a good idea to at least try everything you are given, even if you anticipate it might not be to your taste. A note to Americans: people will be surprised to see you cut your meats before eating, but you can go ahead with it, it might begin an interesting conversation.

Try to leave when your hosts are still hungry for your presence. It is always better than to leave them feeling you stayed too long.

Anna’s comment – all of my Polish relatives cut their meat before eating, they say it’s easier that way. I never thought it was anything unusual until it was pointed out to me by an American (of all people)!

Today, our resident guest blogger – Adam – tells us all sorts of useful stuff about healthcare in Poland.

Let’s face it, things usually go very wrong in the least appropriate moments. This post will try to explain the basics of Polish healthcare system (just in case), and feed you some useful vocabulary along the way.

If you experience a sudden and serious health problem, when in Poland, you should call 112 (the Europe-wide emergency number), or the old number for health emergencies 999 (both work). Whether you will be charged for health services following an emergency will depend on a number of factors. One of which is health insurance (ubezpieczenie zdrowotne).

Assuming you are a citizen of a country other than Poland, there are three possibilities that may apply:
− if you are employed in Poland (osoba zatrudniona w Polsce), you are entitled to free state healthcare
− if you hold European Union citizenship (osoba posiadająca obywatelstwo UE), or are a citizen of Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein or Switzerland, you are also entitled to free state healthcare, however for treatment (leczenie) beyond emergencies you should complete the E101 form, provided by state health insurer in the country of your residence
− if none of the above applies, you are not entitled to free state healthcare, excluding some emergencies.

If you are not in sudden and serious health danger, but you need/want doctor’s advice or treatment, there are many options available to you.

First of all, you have the choice to either use the state system or go private, as both systems work in parallel. NFZ, the national health service, issues quotas for doctors on number of free state procedures. Sometimes, therefore, free treatments/advice may mean that you have to stay on the waiting list for some time – from a week up to a few months. Usually, the same practices also offer private services, which typically won’t include any waiting, but you will have to get your wallet out.

For general advice, or for being referred to an appropriate specialist, you should go to internista (general practitioner), also called lekarz ogólny or lekarz rodzinny (family doctor). A person under the age of 18 would go to a pediatra (pediatrician). You may find them in a separate practice (gabinet, praktyka) or in a larger institution (gabinet, poradnia, przychodnia, or zakład opieki zdrowotnej).

Unless you are admitted to a hospital (szpital), you will have to buy prescribed medicines (przepisane lekarstwa, leki) yourself in a pharmacy (apteka). However, some drugs (for serious or long-term illnesses, like asthma, depression, heart disease, diabetes etc.) are funded in part by the state – for those who are insured.

If your health issue is more complicated, you will be referred to a specialist. For instance, endokrynolog – for hormonal problems, kardiolog – for heart problems, pulmunolog – for problems with the respiratory tract, etc. Unlike in some countries, in Poland they are widely available outside of hospitals – in their own practices, or in larger institutions (przychodnia, poradnia, gabinet, zakład opieki zdrowotnej). To see some of the specialists, if you prefer the state-funded option, you will need a written referral from your general doctor. This does not apply to okulista (for eye problems), dermatolog (for skin problems), ginekolog (gynecologist) or psychiatra (psychiatrist).

Any doctor could refer you for further diagnosis – medical analysis (analiza) of blood (krew), urine (mocz) or poo (stolec) and/or with the use of medical machinery (MRA, X-ray, etc.). Here, if you intend to use your state insurance, you need a written referral for any diagnostic procedure. Otherwise, you may have any diagnostic procedure you want.

Simple treatments are available both in private and state healthcare, however the more advanced or complicated the case, the more likely it is that there is no private option. For instance, most cases of cancer can only be treated using the state health service.

Vocabulary

• mieć ból (to have pain), boli mnie (I have pain)
• mieć ból głowy (to have headache), boli mnie głowa (my head aches)
• mieć ból brzucha (to have stomachache), boli mnie brzuch (my stomach aches)
• czuć się źle (to feel bad)
• mieć gorączkę (to have fever)
• mieć rozwolnienie (to have diarrhea)
• mieć ból serca (to have a pain in the heart, chest pain), boli mnie serce (I have a pain in my heart, chest pain)
• potrzebuję pomocy (I need help)
• wezwijcie lekarza (call a doctor, imperative form)
• wezwijcie pogotowie (call emergency, imperative form)

I hope you will not find this post useful

One of our American readers was bragging in the comments section not so long ago that “i can honestly say polish is one of the easiest languages ive learned so far. its not harder than any other language” (punctuation and spelling his, not mine).

And then he went on to say that:
“people that tell you its hard is just jelous and are pissed that a foreigner can learn their language.” (again, punctuation and spelling his, not mine).

And finally, he suggested that “if those pollacks give you trouble than just tell them “palic w piekle k***a” to them haha”. (I removed the expletive from the quote, but again, punctuation and spelling is his, not mine).

Well, haha indeed.

I don’t know what other languages Mike (he gave his name as Mike) has been learning so far, but it must have been either Hungarian or Finnish. Or perhaps Chinese. In comparison to those, Polish is indeed a piece of cake.

And how convenient for us that Mike decided to demonstrate just how easy Polish is by attempting to curse.
I will leave out the final k-expletive from the quote, but let’s take a look at the first three words he suggests as a suitable way to tell people off.
“Palic w piekle”… Hmmm.

It’s “palić” not “palic”, but that’s besides the point.
I think what he meant was to tell someone “burn in hell”, but since he has learned at least a couple of languages, I am sure he knows that direct translations of such phrases very often (if not always) make the speaker look like a total idiot.

Also, if he was directing this particular phrase at one person, I am sure he is aware that he should have said “Pal w piekle” (imperative, instead of infinitive), or if to more than one person – then “Palcie w piekle”.

But what exactly are we supposed to palić in hell? Cigarettes? Weed? Old newspapers? Not sure.
If Mike wanted us to physically burn in hell, I’m sure he knows (since Polish is so easy, as he says) that he should have used the reflexive form – palić się – to burn oneself.

And then, of course, it would be:
“Pal się w piekle” to one person, or “palcie się w piekle” to more than one.
Of course anyone who’s spent more than just a couple of hours studying Polish knows how silly this sounds. Nobody in their right mind would use this phrase to tell someone off.
So, how would we do it?
There’s a variety of emotionally charged expressions to use in this situation. The mildest of the bunch would be “Odwal się”. Stick the k-expletive at the end, and there you go. Your message will definitely get through.

And Mike, it’s back to Professor Swan’s grammar book for you. Show off in the comments section again in a few months after you master a couple of chapters, OK?
Good luck!