Have You Cleaned Your Windows Yet?

Do you know the children's song 'The Sun Has Got His Hat On' ?....Well, hip-hip-hip-hooray it has here and instead of going out to play, I got the ladder from the garage and started cleaning windows! It's quite a momentous occasion, let me explain why.

You see, Easter is a week away and as every good Polish housewife knows you have to have your spring clean done, including windows, before then. Window cleaning appears to be a very important part of the Polish tradition and high up on the list, somewhere after 'When guests come to visit it's important to put the entire contents of the fridge/larder onto the coffee table just to be sure there is something that he/she likes.' Where this originates I cannot say and welcome comments. I can only report on my own experiences, that never before moving here did I have such intense and purposeful discussions on the best way to achieve a streak-free pane. Vinegar, newspaper, windolene, fairy liquid, magic cloths - all had their supporters and detractors. Personally, I find the window liquid I put in the car works best - obviously without the anti-freeze.

So, why am I so pleased with myself, because, for the first time in 15 years, when someone asks me 'Have you cleaned your windows yet?', I'll be able to proudly answer in the affirmative.

The Home Front

I've been feeling a little guilty for the past few days. Is it because I don't blog as often as I should? Only partly. No, the main reason is that I've been taking pleasure in the knowledge that our resident mole has been wintering in my neighbour's garden. I do feel terrible when I look over the fence and see her front lawn covered in mounds of soil, but at the same time I breathe a sigh of relief. I take heart in knowing that her husband is a better mole-catcher than we are, although we have tried everything that Castorama has to offer. We've even given 'bottles on sticks' a try, but alas it's a fact that moles love our neighbourhood and pay no attention to property boundaries for last year our lawn fared worse. If there is any justice, next year we'll both be mole-free and our resident, or residents (judging by the Citadel of mole burrows) will have relocated. Just a quick heads-up (no pun intended) for any blog-reading moles out there. The lady who lives over the fence at the bottom of my garden has been spotted on mole stake-out in the early hours....wielding a shovel. You have been warned!
It's my advice not to let the little critters get you down. It's only a lawn after all. Rake over the soil and be pleased that 5 months of snow has finally melted, hence the sudden appearance of mole hillocks. Get out in the garden and play a little fetch with the dogs.


Facts you never wanted to know about moles - unless you do a lot of pub quizzes.

• Males are called boars and females are called sows. Apart from mating season they are solitary.

• 'Citadel' is the name for a collection of mole hillocks or tunnels. Each tunnel is owned by different moles who mark their territory.

• The most famous mole I know is Kenneth Grahame's from "The Wind in the Willows" - dear friend of Toad and Ratty.

Royal Visit Sparks Discussion

HRH Prince Charles has just spent 3 days in Poland as part of a 9-day trip which includes Hungary and the Czech Republic. Originally, my plan was to talk about his visit, tell you where he went and who he met, but as I started to do my research I was struck by the vitriol his visit has sparked among the expats. For the past 4 days I've been following a heated discussion on-line.
It started on day 1 of the visit. Prince Charles, accompanied by Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, met with President Lech Kaczynski and his wife and with Prime Minister Donald Tusk and his wife. There was the usual press photo call and as you would expect Prince Charles obliged with a fixed-smile, cuff link-fiddling pose. Camilla looked more like a deer caught in headlights. Afterwards, they all moved behind closed doors to talk about environmental issues and Charles admiration for Poland's soldiers during WWII, especially with the RAF. A gala dinner followed, where, we were proudly told, EU approved goat's cheese from the mountains was served.
It all sounds pretty par for the course, so why did people get hot under the collar? First-off, the Duchess of Cornwall was called 'Camilla Parker Bowles' a couple of times. I heard it once on TVN24 and remember commenting to my husband and apparently it was in the press, too. That's where the first on-line comment began, "please note......should always be referred to as Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall," they said. So that's pretty tame isn't it? However, someone then tried to explain that their marriage (Prince Charles and Camilla) was constitutionally illegal, for if it was legal Camilla would be called Princess Camilla, Princess of Wales. This led to another comment that there was only one Princess of Wales and she died in Paris. Finally, the subject was put to bed by another comment explaining to all that "Tony Blair changed the law so the marriage of Charles/jug eared loony heir to the throne could marry Camilla/horse face so it's a constitutionally legal marriage" - I kid you not and not my words by the way!
More feathers were ruffled that first day, too. It seems that at least one opinion is that Prince Charles has no business here "except to apologize for his country not keeping it's word during and after WWII," but this was countered by another explaining that Britain was "the junior allied power, bankrupt at the end of the war" and had little to back up any protest. So much emotion and that's only after day 1.
The next day, Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall (I don't want to offend anyone), had planned a visit to the Bialowieza Primeval Forest - sounds fun doesn't it girls! No surprise to me, Camilla begged-off. The British Embassy official saying she had 'back problems'. I have absolutely no proof, but if you ask me, she woke up (probably far too early because the forest is a fair way from Warsaw), saw the weather and said ' Darling, you go alone. You'll have so much more fun without me'!! Alone he did go, to see the largest remaining herd of European Bison or Zubr and to discuss ways of preserving the areas natural environment. Prince Charles also visited an 18th century mosque in the village of Kruszyniany which is populated by descendants of Tatars who make up much of Poland's Muslim population. The Duchess of Cornwall spent the day in the capital 'lying low'. It appears this is a woman who gets what she wants, as there were plans for her to visit the newly-opened Chopin museum alone, but as far as I know this didn't happen.
On their last day, the royal couple met with Polish troops from the 1st Armoured Brigade, who are about to be deployed to Afghanistan. There was an inspection and small demonstration of the soldiers' military skills. The royal visit was seen as confirmation of the UK's appreciation of Poland's contribution to the NATO-led mission. The on-line discussion continued here. One person angrily wrote that Polish soldiers "don't belong to (the) failed empire of the UK. What is the purpose of this meeting?" The answer came back quickly that the UK and Poland were NATO allies, that there were "strong military ties" and that "at least the royal couple were taking notice of Polish sacrifices" in Afghanistan.
I wouldn't really say that this visit has been a resounding success. Perhaps such visits are simply to promote Britain's relations with ex-communist countries which are now EU members, as British newspapers have been suggesting. The final word goes to, the appropriately named 'Kamila' who wrote "these trips are quite costly (for Poland). I don't mind foreign visitors as long as they help promote the image of this country." Which ever side of the fence you sit though, I'm pretty sure that had Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall omitted Poland on their tour and chosen to go to Slovakia instead, it would have been taken as a snub and discussion on-line would have tripled.

P.S. I do have an inkling that HRH just wanted to see the zubr.

Do I need to speak Polish to work here?

The phone rang yesterday afternoon and an unrecognisable male voice said "Dzien dobry" (hello). I hesitated as the caller didn't identify himself and there was silence on the line "Yes, hello?" I said in Polish and then I heard snickering "It's me, Dad. I've decided to learn Polish as it seems to be the only way to get a job here in England!"
What's that, I hear some of you asking, is my septuagenarian father looking for work? No, he was simply referring to an article in the Mail On Sunday about a cooked meat manufacturer who advertised for Polish speaking shift-workers because all the training and safety instructions would be in Polish. Adverts in local shops were in Polish only and stated that knowledge of English was not necessary. Naturally, a furor followed - complaints of discrimination against the British worker and of Eastern Europeans stealing jobs, but can we blame British employers for hiring the most hard-working, efficient job applicant?
I saw recently a BBC documentary The Day the Immigrants Left, where Brits took over migrant workers low paid jobs. Three different employers, the owner of an Indian restaurant, an asparagus grower (supplier to England's well-known supermarkets) and a potato-packing factory. The result was embarrassing beyond belief. After saying on camera how desperate they were to work and how grateful they were to be given this opportunity, three of the unemployed didn't even bother to show up for the first day. One 20 year old even thought it was acceptable to text his manager explaining that he wouldn't be coming in because he had had a late night. Only one person turned up at the restaurant to work as a waiter, but deemed it so 'stressful' that he couldn't continue. Ali, the restaurant owner appeared to possess great foresight however, for he had told his permanent staff that they had the day off but that they must be on stand-by. One phone call and they were all back to work. At the asparagus grower's it was slightly better. Here they did turn up for work, but that's where the improvement ends. The workers were payed by the ton of asparagus picked, but our English bunch didn't even manage to pick a ton between them. The Lithuanian foreman tried to impress on them the importance of speed (the asparagus season only lasts 8 weeks) but they were slow and wasteful, leaving half the vegetable still in the soil. The potato-packing plant scenario was similar. They were slow and where there should have been 12 bags in a crate, many only had 10. All of their work had to be recounted.
After seeing the program I'm not surprised Eastern Europeans are being hired over the English and if that means the first language at a factory in East Anglia is Polish then so be it. Many of today's unemployed don't know what a hard days work is but they are the first to tell you about labour law and their 'rights'. It's not just the UK who are suffering from this malaise though. In Germany, Arno Duebel has become notorious. He proudly admits that at the age of 54 he has been claiming benefits for 36 years!

Are we getting a good service from film distributors?

Another year and another batch of Oscars handed out. I find myself, however, ever so slightly disappointed and not because my favourites didn't win.

Firstly and I say this every year, couldn't they hold the ceremony on Saturday so those of us on this side of the pond could watch guilt-free instead of worrying about how we are going to function at work or school the next day.

Secondly and most definitely the reason for my disappointment, is because I haven't yet seen the films that were nominated for awards. What's going on with the film distributors in Poland? In Gdynia we've got one multi-screen complex (another planned for Rumia), in Sopot there is one and in Gdansk there are three(!), so why is it that we are so far behind? Poles love going to the cinema, so much so that for big film releases here it is best to reserve tickets in advance. Nevertheless, Best Film winner 'The Hurt Locker' didn't come to our theatres at all. In fact it's already available on DVD and Canal + are showing it on TV now. 'An Education', with Bafta winner Carey Mulligan, is another example of a nominated film which soon will be out on DVD but which hasn't been shown here. Jeff Bridges won for 'Crazy Heart', Sandra Bullock won for 'The Blind Side', Mo'Nique won for 'Precious' and none of these films have reached Poland yet!

I truly hope that film distributors are made aware of how they have failed us this year. We are waiting for something good to see and are offered mediocre films from 2009. This weekend, those of us in the Tri-City will be treated to Jackie Chan's 'The Spy Next Door' (2009) whilst films like 'A Single Man' with Colin Firth or 'Invictus' with Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon have come and gone elsewhere.

P.S. My apologies to Jackie Chan fans, my intention was not to offend, in fact I will probably be seeing that film on Friday as my husband is one of you!

Does winning an Olympic Medal really change your life?

Did you know that the International Olympic Committee doesn't award cash prizes to winners, however, many countries do or at least incentives to medalists and some Olympians get a performance bonus from sponsors?

Amy Williams became the first British individual gold medalist at a Winter Olympics for 30 years with her victory in the women's skeleton event. After the bitter disappointment of failing to qualify 4 years ago, she was understandably over-the-moon to have won gold at her first Olympics. All of her hard work had paid off. But has it really? Doesn't this triumph have a short shelf-life? Amy Williams returned to her home town of Bath to receive a hero's welcome. She rode in an open-top double-decker bus down the high street whilst hundreds of well-wishers clapped and cheered. She paid a visit to her former school, where over a thousand pupils waved flags and chanted 'Amy'. The sad fact is that our memories are short and her fame will be shorter. How many names do we remember from the last Olympics where Britain came away with a clutch of medals. Perhaps being the only British medalist in Vancouver and gold to boot, we will remember her for longer. One thing is for sure though, Amy Williams will not forget the last few weeks or the next few months as quickly as we will and in that sense her life will never be the same. She will remember that bus ride, being a hero to thousands of pupils at her school and the interviews and promotions which she will embark on during the next few months. Inevitably the time will come though, when she will have to either hang up her sled (and end on a high note) or return to training where there is always a risk of never reaching her top form again. If she does return I hope that the new poster girl for British sport has some sponsors calling.

Here in Poland, life is slightly better for Olympians.

Vancouver 2010 was Poland's best ever Winter Games with 6 medals, 1 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze. Nordic Cross Country golden girl Justyna Kowalczyk won a medal of every colour and here life will certainly change as a result of her success. She has earned 500,000 zloty (127,000 euro). The Polish Olympic Committee award their medalists 250,000 zloty for gold, 150,000 zloty for silver and 100,000 zloty for bronze medals. On top of that add a large sum from sponsors. Kowalczyk will probably be remembered for longer than Williams too, because the southern city of Katowice wants to name one of it's streets after her!
Adam Malysz, silver and bronze medalist from the Salt Lake City Games in 2002, came away from Vancouver with 2 silver medals in the Ski Jump. His success story is an example of the fickle nature of sports fans and his story could be a lesson for Amy and Justyna. He was a hero of Salt Lake, World Champion multiple times and then he had a slump. He was practically writtten-off. Headlines were full of lines like 'Malysz Flops' or 'Malysz Fails Again'. He must indeed feel a great personal satisfaction this time round to have proved his detractors wrong and he shouldn't feel too bad about the elusive Olympic gold. Congratulations too, to the Polish women's speed-skating team Katarzyna Bachleda-Curus, Katarzyna Wozniak and Luiza Zlotkowska who won bronze in the 3000m relay. Well done to them all. I hope it does change their lives, for the better.

English Football's Sporting Heroes

Yesterday we saw English football fans in a predicament. Moral indignation versus seeing their team stomp to victory. From the start of last nights friendly international between England and Egypt at Wembley, fans booed John Terry. Whenever he touched the ball they jeered. At half-time England were down 1-0. Manager Fabio Capello could be seen on the side-line pulling his hair out, however, with second-half substitutions England managed to turn the game around to win 3-1. Now, I'm not a football fan by any means, but anyone living in Europe can't have failed to miss the catalist for this behaviour. Why were England fans booing one of their own?

Last nights match should be seen as a warning to English Premier League footballers that even English fans have their limits. Chelsea player and former Engand team captain, John Terry, was caught-out in his private life, an extra-marital affair with a team-mate's girlfriend. I'm not here to go into details, they are easy enough to find on-line, but as with golfer Tiger Woods, fans seem to be taking the moral high-ground. We've already seen Terry forced to hand over the captain's armband and the aggrieved team-mate has refused to play along-side him. Supporters of Terry might say, isn't it enough that he plays well and that his team wins, after all that's what he's paid for? It's not just that though, is it? He's paid a fortune. He lives life in the public eye, buying flashy cars, going to swanky London nightclubs and jetting off to his second home in Dubai. I'm not even a fan and I've read all about these things, just imagine how his lifestyle impresses his most dedicated fans. They are the one's who buy the season tickets, who buy all the promotional paraphernalia. His supporters put him up on a pedestal and what he should have have learned is that it's very easy to fall.

With his fame and fortune comes responsibility and accountability. No one says that he should be perfect. Marital infidelity is not usually something that you read about on the front page of the tabloids, if it's your neighbour that is, but this isn't your neighbour. This is someone who courted celebrity, profited from celebrity and someone who young children aspire to be like.

The scoreboard showed a victory for the England team yesterday. The booing and jeering ceased for the second half, probably because the fans realized that they were affecting the whole team. Let's hope that a lesson was learned by all. Let's hope that the players and managers and sponsors have learned that their supporters do have power. They can vote with their feet, by not not showing up or as in yesterday's match, with their voices. If you are going to be a sporting hero, be one on and off the pitch.

Will Roman Polanski's private life scupper the success of 'Ghost Writer'?

The actress Kim Cattrall, a.k.a. Samantha in 'Sex in the City', was on BBC Breakfast News yesterday plugging her latest role in Noel Coward's 'Private Lives'. She was commended (slightly patronizingly I thought) for her British accent by the presenters and she acknowledged that she had had a voice coach for the role and for her role in Roman Polanski's latest film 'Ghost Writer', as well. It seemed odd to me that she added the last fact almost as an afterthought. The presenters touched lightly on the film itself and appeared to be more interested in the fact that Polanski had done most of the post-production editing whilst under house arrest in Switzerland. Is the fact that Polanski is currently awaiting extradition to the U.S. for a crime he was convicted of in 1978 going to overshadow the 'Ghost Writer'?

I saw the film in Gdansk and there wasn't a vacant seat to be found. My fellow theatre-goers sat in total silence throughout, evidently enjoying the film as much as I was. 'Ghost Writer' is an engaging film. It's full of the suspense which you would expect to find in a political thriller and your attention is grabbed from the start. Ewan McGregor's performance is very believable as the slightly naive 'ghost' who is hired by Pierce Brosnan's character, a former British Prime Minister who is accused of war crimes - quite a timely subject if we think of Tony Blair's resent public grilling over Britain's part in the Iraq war. This is a thriller laced with atmosphere, from the muted colours and tones to the musical score. Robert Harris's dialogue is sharp and all the better for it's lack of expletives and profanities.

Whatever we may think of Polanski the 'man', this film deserves to be judged on it's merits, the fine performances from it's actors and the superior script. I'm sure that it's no coincidence the 'Ghost Writer' opened in Poland before the U.K. and the U.S. and it will be interesting to see how it is received when it does open there.

When will spring be sprung?

As any Englishman can tell you, a safe subject when you are getting to know someone, is always the weather and in time honoured fashion I have started my first foray into blogging with a safe subject. When is the bl..dy snow going to melt? I began to feel hopeful at the weekend when my husband and I took a drive to Jurata, on the Peninsula. "Look there's grass!" I exclaimed, as the car temperature gauge slowly began rising. Alas, t'was false hope! Strong winds were forecast ( the kind that fells trees) and with it a sprinkling of fresh snow. Could n't it just have stayed warm enough to melt the old snow and give us a chance to clean up. For 3 months now dogs have been happily relieving themselves, outdoor smokers have been depositing their cigarette butts, beer cans and bottles have been left where they fell (or where their owner fell depending on which happened first) and grit has been spread all around. Layer upon layer of crisp white snow has been sucessfully hiding this from us, until the weekend that is, when temperatures rose to a glorious 8c. Now we face the great clean-up. I'm not asking for a full-blown season-change, just a nice gentle thaw ( too fast, any Pole will tell you eagerly, there is a danger of flooding). Perhaps a night frost, no more, followed by about 10c. That would be nice.

As a post script, we must always remember that it can stay cold all the way through April and we shouldn't plant anything in the garden until after May 15, Dzien Zofi of course. But that's for another blog!