Polish Blog: Language and Culture of the Polish-Speaking World

Śniadanie, Obiad, Kolacja

Posted by Kasia

Aug

2010

There are three main meals in Poland: the morning śniadanie (breakfast), the afternoon obiad (dinner), and the evening kolacja (supper). In between they may be supplemented with a lighter drugie śniadanie (second breakfast) and a podwieczorek (tea time – usually snacks).

Śniadanie

The traditional Polish breakfast are sandwiches called kanapki, which consist of just one slice of bread (usually fresh and crispy) or toast with butter (masło) and toppings such as cold cuts (generally called wędlina), meat spreads, the Polish sausage (kiełbasa), tomatoes (pomidory) and sliced pickles (ogórki). Twaróg, a Polish farmer’s cheese (ser), is the breakfast classic and comes in many forms. Twaróg can be eaten plain, with salt (sól), sugar (cukier), or honey (miód). It can also be mixed with chives. Eggs (jajka) are served often as the main breakfast item, mostly soft-boiled (gotowane na miękko) or scrambled (jajecznica). You will also see hot dogs (parówki) on the plates without rolls. Hot oatmeal, muesli or breakfast cereal with milk (mleko) are very common, especially for kids. Jam (dżem) spreads are popular for a quick breakfast, including plum, raspberry, strawberry and black or red currant spreads. Breakfast drinks include coffee (kawa), milk (some areas may serve fresh milk from their own cows), hot cocoa (kakao), or tea (herbata). Traditionally, the Poles avoid heavy-cooked foods for breakfast. For the most part, one will not see fried meats or potatoes in a classic Polish breakfast. Emphasis is placed on a large variety of foods to satisfy everyone at the breakfast table.

Obiad

Since most people work till 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. they usually have their dinner right after they are done working. On weekends it is customary to have dinner earlier, usually anywhere between noon and 2 p.m. Typically obiad is a two-course meal, where a soup precedes a meat (or fish) dish with potatoes or rice. Soup usually starts off the meal, such as Barszcz a red beet soup, served with stuffed dumplings or a fermented rye soup called Żurek. Also chłodnik, a cold vegetable soup in sour milk, is usually served in the summer. Some other soups are popular and these include grzybowa (wild mushroom), ogórkowa (pickle) and kapuśniak (cabbage). Favorite appetizers include smoked salmon (łosoś wędzony), smoked eel (węgorz wędzony), herring (śledź) in various forms, salmon, caviar and the authentic Polish cold cuts and sausages.

The authentic Polish salad is the surówka, which consists of grated vegetables like cabbage (kapusta), red cabbage (czerwona kapusta), carrots (marchewka), leeks (pory) and apples (jabłka). A tasty but simple salad is mizeria, sliced raw cucumbers in sour cream or yogurt. Tomatoes in Poland are among the best in the world so any salad should taste exceptional!

The main meal in Poland nearly always consists of some type of meat. Pork (wieprzowina) is the national meat of Poland and many main course dishes will have it. Pork can appear as a boneless chop (kotlet schabowy) or pork loin (pieczeń), which is usually served with some type of sauce. This sauce can be sos myśliwski which is usually a sweet sauce with raisins and honey among other ingredients. Another sauce is sos grzybowy, a wild mushroom delicacy. Traditional Polish poultry is (kurczak) a Polish style chicken and duck (kaczka) filled with apples. The chicken is filled with a stuffing of liver, rye bread, egg, butter, spices and parsley springs roasted in the oven. The duck is rubbed with marjoram, filled with apple sections and also roasted in the oven, often basted with water and red wine.

Polish fish dishes are very tasty. They feature a variety of types of fish: eel, pike, perch, sturgeon, sea fish, and many others. The fish can be cooked many different ways: boiled, fried, roasted, fried in breadcrumbs, and served with delicious stuffing and sauces. Karp is especially popular and it is served in different varieties, such as fried or in grey Polish sauce with raisins and almonds. Karp is also a very traditional Christmas dish.

Desserts consist of either cake or ice cream. Apple cake (szarlotka), which my mom makes very well, is extremely popular. Cheesecake (sernik), which tends to be way fluffier than you would find in the US and poppy seed rolls (makowiec), which are a favorite with the adults. There are also layer cakes, apple tarts, eastern cakes, cream cakes and doughnuts which you can find at any bakery. My mother is an exceptional baker and makes all of these desserts right in her own kitchen!

Kolacja

The Polish evening meal usually resembles a morning breakfast but when there is a formal event such as a birthday or a name day it usually turns into a dinner party. Pierogi (dumplings stuffed with meat, sauerkraut, mushroom, cheese or fruit) is a very popular dish served at dinner time. Another dish (one of my favorites) is crepes stuffed with farmer’s cheese called (naleśniki) is cheese mixed with eggs and sugar to make a sweet filling which tastes like a desert but is just as good for dinner.

I hope you are ready to try some Polish cuisine. Enjoy and let me know if you need any recipes – I will be happy to share them with you.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Culture, Polish Language, cooking

1 Comment | Post a Comment

Body Parts

Posted by Kasia

Aug

2010

I have an 8 month old daughter. She is so aware now – I like to point everything out to her and name it. I talked to her in Polish – so she can learn my native language. She likes when I touch my nose and say “nos“, when I close my eyes and open them again and say “oczy“… So I decided to draw a little picture for you. When I was learning English – pictures helped me to remember words. I’m not an artist, but hopefully this drawing will help you learn how to name części ciała.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Polish Language, Vocabulary

0 Comments | Post a Comment

Warsaw Uprising Museum

Posted by Kasia

Aug

2010

When my husband and I visited Poland in September 2004 – this museum had just opened. Every time we are in Poland we make it a point to visit Warsaw. And every time we try to do and see something new. During this visit we really wanted to see the new museum. We new it will be very interesting; at the same time very sad…If you like European history, you should definitely put it on your list of places to see if you ever are in Warsaw.

The Warsaw Uprising Museum (Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego, officially translated into English as the Warsaw Rising Museum), located in the district of Wola in Warsaw, Poland, is a museum dedicated to the Warsaw Uprising of 1944.

The institution of the Museum was established in 1983, but no construction work took place for many years, and the museum finally opened on July 31, 2004, marking the 60th anniversary of the Uprising.

The Museum sponsors research into the history of the Uprising, and the history and possessions of the Polish Underground State. It collects and maintains hundreds of artifacts, ranging from weapons used by the insurgents to love letters, in order to present a full picture of the people involved. The Museum’s stated goals include the creation of an archive of historical information on the Uprising and the recording of the stories and memories of the still living Uprising participants.

The Museum is a tribute of Warsaw’s residents to those who fought and died for independent Poland and its free capital. The exhibition depicts fighting and everyday life during the Rising, keeping occupation terror in the background. Complexity of the international situation at the time of the Rising is portrayed, including the post-war years of the Communist regime and the fate of Insurgents in the People’s Republic of Poland (PRL). With the total area of more than 3000 m2, 800 exhibition items, approximately 1500 photographs, films and sound recordings, history of the days preceding the Rising is told. Visitors are guided through the subsequent stages of the Rising until the time when the Insurgents left Warsaw.

You walk through and everything seems so real that you shiver…One of the highlights is a wall, separate from the main building, known as the heart of the museum and including sounds of battle and heart beats emanating from it.

More things to see there:

A 1:1 replica of a B-24 Liberator;
A replica of the Kubuś armored car;
Contemporary themed cantina;
Interactive displays with footage and video, creating a high level of immersion;
A replica of the Palladium Cinema, playing footage taken by the Polish insurgents’ own cameramen and originally shown at the original Palladium Cinema in Warsaw during the Uprising;
A scale model of the Warsaw sewer system;
A memorial wall with all the casualties of the Uprising.

The museum is dedicated to all facets of the Warsaw Uprising. Exhibits are full of photographs, written accounts and other testimonies of how life was during 1944. Some sections include:

Children’s section: insurgent uniforms, activities, models;
Hangar; B-24 Liberator: Warsaw airdrops, information videos;
Nazi section: German-occupied Poland, sewers;
Communist section: Communist-occupied Poland, puppet government;
Multi-cultural opposition and “Western hesitation“: accounts of many ethnicities fighting the Nazis and words of protest from George Orwell over the Western hesitation.

In one of the buildings there is a book store where you can find very interesting books for adults and kids as well.

Museum is opened every day, but Tuesday. Tickets are between 3-7 Zl (about $1-2). On Sundays admission is free.

If you are in Warsaw – this could be a very interesting place to see. It took us about 4 hours to see everything there, so make sure and plan your day.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Geography, History, travel

1 Comment | Post a Comment

Polish weddings – Part 2

Posted by Kasia

Aug

2010

I hope you enjoyed reading Polish Weddings – Part 1 , and that you learned something about the Polish culture! We ended with getting to the church…

In the church, the bride and the groom walk up the aisle together preceded by their groomsmen and bridesmaids. Usually though, there is only one Best Man (Starszy – which literally means “older” or Świadek – means “witness”) and one Maid of Honor (Starsza – means “older” or Świadkowa – means “witness”). Large wedding parties are not popular (although I have been to a few weddings with more then one groomsmen and bridesmaid). The parents and other guests are usually already seated when the couple enters the church. Whether the ceremony takes place in a church or at a local magistrate, there must be two witnesses of the marriage.They endorse the documents alongside of the bride and groom.

One thing that my family and friends from the States noticed is that Bride, Groom, Best Man and Maid of Honor all sit down during the ceremony. Again – it is not a rule and there are weddings where the whole wedding party is standing.

Our wedding was really beautiful and the priest actually spoke English very well. He kept saying a lot of words in English and I think it really made my husband’s family feel much more comfortable. I said my vows in Polish and my husband said his in English – that’s how we wanted to do it and the priest was fine with that. You must know that a lot of polish priests are very strict.

Before the end of the ceremony, the bride switches her bouquet with maid of honor’s bouquet and leaves it in the church. Sometimes they will bring a third bouquet of flowers and leave that one instead– so they can keep theirs. And yes – there was a kiss after we were pronounced husband and wife!

After the happy newlyweds exit the building, they are taken by storm with congratulations, best wishes and flowers. But before that – we were showered with coins – this is supposed to bring a good luck to the couple. We had to pick all of them up from the ground and save them….forever.

Once every attending guest has kissed and hugged the couple (it took about an hour after our wedding), everyone leaves for the reception, which is usually held at a restaurant or a banquet hall.

The wedding reception starts once the married couple arrives and is traditionally welcomed at the entrance with bread and salt. The bread and salt are symbols of future prosperity so that the couple never goes about hungry in their lives. Then they drink either glasses of champagne or shots of vodka (both tied with the ribbon) or throw the glass down behind them hard – so it brakes. Again – this is a symbol for good luck. After this is done the Groom then carries his Bride through the door.

The reception lasts as long as the guests want to stay, in most cases into the early morning (I will not share a picture of us at 6am…). Polish weddings are known for an unbelievable abundance of all kinds of foods and alcohol.

Guests, who arrive from distant places, are usually welcome to stay at the newlyweds’ parents or other family members’ houses. Suggesting a stay at a hotel would be considered very impolite. So, no matter how crowded the houses get, it is all about family. After all, the saying goes: the more the merrier. Those guests, who have been invited but can not attend, are still expected to send a congratulation card.

In Poland, weddings in the countryside are usually much bigger than weddings in the city. The reason for that is simple; in the countryside all people know each other, so most get invited to the wedding unless there is some conflict between the families. Thus, weddings in the country are longer and more extravagant because more people attend. Many guests return on the following day to celebrate, eat, drink, and dance some more.

Next time I will tell you a little more about the food, dancing and different games during the reception. Also – about the second day of the wedding, called “poprawiny”. And remember – these are traditions in a lot of places in Poland. However, there are weddings that are different and you may not see as many old traditions incorporated into them. A lot of weddings in big cities are similar to the weddings in the States.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Culture

2 Comments | Post a Comment

Starry-eyed Surprise

Posted by Katarzyna

Aug

2010

I was listening to one of my favorite songs the other night with the boys. The song is “Starry-eyed Surprise” and it’s by Paul Oakenfold. Well, after a little dancing in their car seats, my boys wanted to lay out and look at some stars. So when we got home, we grabbed a blanket, my trusty Droid loaded with Google Sky Map and headed to the open field behind our house. Little did I know that I was about to get a Polish lesson of my own.

My oldest exclaimed right away, “Mom, I see a lot of gwiazdas.” Seeing my opportunity, I replied, “Mama, widzę dużo gwiazd.” “Yeah, right, that’s what I said.” LOL. So far, so good. I did finally get him to repeat it, and it was a lot easier breaking out vocabulary words to get him going. For example, star is gwiazda.

Unfortunately, we did not have much of a księżyc (moon) to go off of, as it was in półksiężyc (crescent) phase, and very thin at that. So I was left to find constellations. I have never been great at recognizing them, and to get the Polish name for them was really putting me to the challenge. It’s a good thing Mamusia is only a phone call away.

While I loaded Google Sky Map, I did go over the planets of the Układ Słoneczny (Solar System) with my boys. We started with the closest to the słońce (sun), the planeta (planet) Merkury (Mercury). The sky map showed us where Merkury was, however, it was too far too see with the naked eye. Next we practiced Wenus (Venus) and my oldest did well recognizing the pronunciation difference from English to Polish (Veh-noos vs Vee-nuhs). Ziemia (Earth) was a little strange for him because it is the same as ground. Mars and Saturn are spelled the same for both with just a slight pronunciation difference. Of course we know Saturn is famous for its many pierścienie (rings), and for my little Polish linguists, they made the easy relation to the same thing that Mom wears on her fingers. Jupiter is Jowisz, and Uran (Uranus), Neptun (Neptune) and Pluton (Pluto) follow after Saturn. Interestingly enough, Pluton sparked a conversation as to why it was considered a planeta when I was young but is coming into question in recent years. We never reached a conclusion.

Going over the planets seemed to get me off the hook for identifying konstelacje (constellations), or so I thought. So I went with what I knew and found Polaris or Tramontana (the North Star) and was able to identify and show them Mała Niedźwiedzica (Little Dipper or Ursa Minor). Surprisingly, I was able to identify Wielki Wóz (Big Dipper) as well. I tried to find Rak (Cancer), but would have faster found a needle in a haystack. That konstelacja does NOT look like a rak (crab)!

So, in light of our outdoor adventures, I decided to find something the boys and I could share that would continue to help them learn their Polish words. I came across a very cute animated movie, Gwiazda Kopernika (Copernicus’ Star). I ordered it from a Polish DVD site and hope to have it soon! I promise to follow-up with a nice review! Here’s the trailer to spark your interest:

Do następnego czytania…

Tweet This Post

Posted under Geography, Polish Language, Vocabulary

0 Comments | Post a Comment

Czasowniki w Mojej Kuchni

Posted by Katarzyna

Aug

2010

In the summertime, especially when the heat and humidity are at their worst, the last place you want to be is slaving over a hot stove. However, it’s birthday season for my family with birthdays almost every weekend. So in preparation, there really is no alternative but to be in front of the hot stove, making the goodies to be devoured by my eager Polish friends and family. I can honestly say, I wish I had finished the basement project of creating my letnia kuchnia (summer kitchen).

Stop the presses. Basement. Summer kitchen? What? If you’re like many of my American friends, the thought of this is a little crazy. Why would you have a kitchen in the basement when you have a perfectly functional kitchen on the main floor? The answer from many Polish women is a simple one. Because it’s cooler. In Poland, my aunts have separate buildings on their property where the letnia kuchnia is located. That’s right; separate buildings. That way, they can cook up a storm without turning the whole house into a sauna. Well, as separate buildings on the same property are hard to come by here in the States, many of my Polish relatives and friends have created pseudo-letnia kuchnia in their basements. Under the same premise, it is cooler to cook down there and with the door closed, the heat stays in the basement and not wafting to the cooler living spaces in the house.

Now to get to the meat and potatoes of this post. What verbs would you use to cook the meat and potatoes? Okay, cheesy, I know, but I had to. Here are some czasowniki to impress your Polish in-laws, starting with some cooking methods:

gotować ~ boil
piec ~ bake
smażyć ~ fry
przypiekać ~ broil
gotować na parze ~ steam (literally, cook in steam)
wędzić ~ smoke

I had to add wędzić because a friend’s father gave me a wonderful cut of meat that he had smoked. The meat was a pork loin, and in Polish it is called polędwica wieprzowa. All I can say is DELICIOUS! In tribute to my late Father, I too am going to learn the lost art of how to wędzić po Polsku. Stay tuned for the post on my lesson.

A little in reverse, but before you cook you have to prep. Here are some czasowniki of prep methods used w kuchni:

kroić ~ cut
po kroić na plastry or szatkować ~ slice
mieszać ~ stir
obierać ~ peel
ubijać ~ beat
trzeć ~ grate

One of these verbs makes me smile every time – mieszać. My Ciocia Marysia would always serve us tea and jokingly add every time, “Mieszać, mieszać. Cukier stary.” This translates into, “Stir, stir. The sugar is old.” What was even funnier is I preferred my tea without sugar, so adding it and stirring vigorously for her benefit was all the more humorous for me. Ah, good times.

Hope you have had your fill of verbs in my kitchen! I am going to leave you with a bajka. I know, shocking that it’s not disco polo. Soon, I promise. But I have been spending a lot of time with my sons lately with all the to do’s, and one of our favorite things to watch are Disney’s Phineas and Ferb. Coincidentally, there is a Polish version of the cartoon, Fineasz i Ferb, which I have to say I love more. Mostly because I think the voices for the kids in Polish are ADORABLE! So share with your little ones or just enjoy for yourself! This is a bajka that both children and adults can get into, and it happens to be one of my favorite songs from the show.

Do następnego czytania…

Tweet This Post

Posted under Polish Language, Vocabulary

1 Comment | Post a Comment

Where to stay? – Warsaw

Posted by Kasia

Aug

2010

You will probably visit a lot of places in Poland, but the most popular tourist destination is Warsaw. That’s why I wanted to give you a few ideas about where to stay.

Needless to say, Warsaw’s hotel scene has undergone a drastic makeover since the fall of communism. Whereas before it may have been difficult to find accommodation that satisfied Western standards of comfort and modernity, the last two decades have seen massive investments in state of the art hotels whose unique attributes range from towering architectural attractions to renovated historical masterpieces. These days the amount of hotels aimed at providing the best quality service to tourist, business jet-setter, and backpacker alike is so abundant that the choice is sometimes difficult. The variety ranges from high-end chic to hostelling camaraderie, with several world-class hotels in between.

If money is no object, there is only one place to consider: Le Royal Meridien Bristol, an establishment in a class of its own. Considered one of the best hotels in the world, the Bristol reopened after decades of misuse to reclaim its place as Warsaw’s—and indeed Poland’s—leading deluxe hotel. Standing along the fantastic Royal Route overlooking the Presidential Palace and amidst other examples of Warsaw’s reconstructed 16th century architectural splendor, Le Royal Meridien Bristol is the epitome of classical elegance.

We have stayed at that hotel once and it was beautiful. A little more expensive – but if you will make reservations in advance – you can find a really good deal. It is within walking distance to the Old Town, beautiful shops, restaurants and bars.

There are plenty more luxury hotels in the city which pay tribute to the Warsaw’s royal history and Poland’s legendary hospitality. Among them are: Hotel Sofitel Victoria, a historical landmark in Warsaw which, following major renovations, emerged as Warsaw’s first five-star hotel. Located centrally for city exploration, the Sofitel overlooks the Saxon Gardens and is a short and pleasant walk away from the Old Town and the National Opera. The Hyatt Regency is a newer hotel, located in a quiet area, nestled between the breathtaking Lazienki Park and downtown. It offers both tourists and business travelers alike a dreamlike stay with its luxurious rooms and Club Oasis Health Centre and Spa. The Hilton Warsaw Hotel & Convention Center is the newest addition to Warsaw’s luxury lineup, where guests can experience world-class drinking and dining, as well as spectacular views of the city. A stay at the Rialto is a carefully crafted five-star experience. As Warsaw’s first boutique hotel, the hotel is designed with an Art Deco theme, with each room uniquely furnished with hand-picked antique European furniture and artwork to recreate this stylish period of early the 20th century.

One of my favorite hotels is the Jan III Sobieski Hotel. When my husband and I got married – this was the place we stayed at for few days with our family. Prices are reasonable; it is pretty close to downtown with about 10 minute cab ride to Old Town. Breakfast buffet is included and rooms are really nice.

Another group of hotels, mid-priced and historically interesting, such as the Polonia Palace Hotel (my husband and I stayed here as well – downtown, nice rooms and pleasant staff), with its original pre-war façade. Next door is the Metropol Hotel, an example of late Socialist architecture, attracting people eager to have a more authentic experience. Also interesting is the MDM Hotel, situated on the side of a busy downtown square. It has also been undergoing renovations, and offers a fantastic location at a reasonable price.

Travelers will be pleased to find several pleasant options in hostelling that are inexpensive, clean, and quaint social alternatives to hotels. The staff is usually friendly and helpful for those unfamiliar with the city or the language. The Oki Doki is a funky and fun place located in the heart of downtown, putting Warsaw directly at the feet of those backpackers eager to dive into the madness of Centrum without worrying about arranging transportation. Another nice option is Nathan’s Villa Hostel, a franchise of clean and friendly hostels throughout Poland that are both inexpensive and great social hubs for those looking to meet other travelers.

Finding the appropriate type of accommodation in Warsaw is now much easier. From the deluxe Bristol to youth hostels, there is now a wide range of selection to choose from. However, it’s still wise to book ahead: while many new places are open and ready for business, Warsaw’s popularity could mean a shortage of available spaces for that perfect experience. I have noticed within last few years that it is getting harder to book a hotel in Warsaw at the last minute. I usually do it couple of months in advance.

I hope you will enjoy your future stay in Warsaw!

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Geography, travel

5 Comments | Post a Comment

Polish Weddings – Part 1

Posted by Kasia

Jul

2010

Traditional polish weddings are a lot of fun and are totally different than weddings in the States. Every time I have attended a wedding in the USA, I was very surprised that they end at midnight…Well, it may not be strange for people that grew up in the States, but for Polish people it definitely is.

Before my husband and I got married – we went to a traditional polish wedding (in Poland of course). My friend from high school was getting married while we were visiting my family. My husband had a great time – but at the same time he was very surprised how different it was from all the weddings he went to in the States. His family is actually Greek and their traditional weddings are a lot of fun. He said that Greeks know how to party – but Polish people really know how to party!

So we decided to get married in Poland and that is what we did…. Michael’s family came to the wedding and we had a blast. It was a three day party!

In Polish culture, weddings are preceded by engagement celebrations. They are usually small parties held for the closest family members of the bride and groom and are meant to get the two families to meet and get to know each other better. In some cases the parents are meeting for the very first time, so it is a show off time accompanied with a fancy dinner, luscious desserts and a variety of non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks. The engagement dinner party pretty much means that both families accept the engagement. We were not able to have a traditional engagement party, but my parents met Michael and his family during their visit to the US.

Preparations for the Polish wedding ceremony and reception start with finding a place for the wedding, organizing food, drinks, making guest-list and inviting people to the wedding. In some regions, especially in the countryside, the custom is to invite family, friends, and neighbors in person, so the future bride and groom would devote a lot of time to visiting people before the wedding day. In the modern day, although the tradition prevails in some places, open-minded Polish younger generations and celebrities copy the western examples and some Polish brides and Polish grooms like to hold bachelor and bachelorette parties shortly before the wedding day. Playing pool and throwing darts during the bachelor parties is not quite the norm yet but nonetheless, socializing and heavy drinking is usually what happens. The bachelorette parties usually involve girlish gossip with closest friends. In the Western cultures, the bachelor and bachelorette party symbolize saying goodbye to the youthful carefree life on the threshold of serious family responsibilities.

Most Polish weddings take place on Saturdays and continue through Sundays. The marriage ceremony and wedding reception for all guests are held on Saturday, while a smaller, more private party for close friends and family is continued on Sunday. There are no weddings during the 40-day Lent before Easter and during the Advent before Christmas. Those periods of year are believed to be the time dedicated for penance and preparation for the most important Christian holidays, so there is not space for public celebrations and dancing parties. Interestingly enough, there are very few weddings in May as well. This is mostly due to superstition, as many people believe that persons who marry in May are not going to be happy and won’t live together long. Although we did get married on May 31^st and we are still going strong!

The wedding starts with the groom arriving to the house of the bride before they head to the church. His parents, godparents, closest family, and the best man accompany him. In the turmoil of last preparations, light snacks, for instance sandwiches, are served to the guests and sometimes a band cheers the crowd up with lively songs. Once the couple is ready, both parents give their blessings to the kneeling couple and they all are off to church.

Obviously, everyone wants to shine on that day, so the young couple rent or borrow a nice car from a rental agency or family members if they do not own one. In some regions, decorated horse carriages are popular for such occasions. Depending on the families’ budget and local traditions, the richly decorated parade to the church can be quite a view especially if it involves regional costumes and horses adorned with white flowers and ribbons.

In smaller villages there is a very interesting tradition of blocking the road in which the couple is driving to the church. It is usually done by people who live in the village. I have seen a lot of different ways of stopping the procession. Workers were pretending to build a wall on the road, another was a car is supposedly broken down and taking up the whole road. They can come up with really funny ideas. On our way to the church we had a Fire truck and four fire fighters blocking the road! The best man is supposed to bribe these people – so they can clear the road and let you go. Usually a bottle of vodka is in demand – and it depends how good the best man negotiates – he may give away a few bottles of vodka or only one or sometimes just a box of chocolate.

It would be a lot to talk about, so I won’t be able to share all wedding traditions with you today, but keep an eye out for Part 2 coming soon.

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Culture, History

2 Comments | Post a Comment

Calendar of Feasts – Harvest Festival (Święto Plonów – Dożynki)

Posted by Kasia

Jul

2010

Today I wanted to write about a very important and interesting holiday, celebrated usually in Polish villages.

From time immemorial, the reaping of harvest (zebranie plonów) crowned the toils of year- long farming and the finishing of work in the fields was a significant rural holiday.

Its names included a “wreath holiday” (wieńcowem), from the major symbol of harvest – a wreath of crops and flowers, a “detouring holiday” (okrężnem), from the age-old custom (obyczaj, zwyczaj) of detouring one’s fields after having collected all crops, and the most common Polish name – dożynki.

In Poland the tradition dates back to the 16^th century or even earlier. The celebration was organized by great landowners and rich farmers (bogaci rolnicy) who hired hand laborers for harvest, for the sake of reapers when they finished their job.

The harvest ceremony began with the weaving of a harvest wreath (wieniec) from last ears of corn left to remain in the field for some time to make the current year’s good crops be repeated in the following year. Those last sheaves of cereal plants were called a beard (broda), hub (pępek), goat (koza) or partridge (przepiórka).

A harvest wreath, usually in the shape of a big crown (korona) or wheel (koło), decorated with apples, walnuts, red rowan fruit, flowers and ribbons, symbolized the entire toll taken from the earth. It was itself called plon, i.e. har-vest.

The wreath was carried by the best woman harvester, worn as a headpiece or held in her hands (sometimes with the help of a few farmhands or reapers. She was followed by a procession of reapers in Sunday clothes, who carried their tools: scythes (kosy), sickles (sierpy) and rakes (grabie) perfectly cleaned and decorated with flowers.

When the wreath was blessed in church, the procession went singing to the manor house or a farmer’s house. The reapers proceeding behind the wreath sang songs telling about their toil at the harvest. They also asked for good crops in the following year. The whole country sang:

Plon niesiemy, plon, w gospodarza dom

Aby dobrze plonowalo

Po sto korcy z ziarna dało,

Plon nisiemy plon.

Carry harvest’s yield, to squire from the field.

May the harvest give its bounty

Biggest crop yields in the county,

Carry harvest’s yield.

The host of the harvest, most often a landlord of a wealthy peasant, seized the wreath from the best harvester’s hands and carried it himself inside the house, where he put it on a table and asked the woman to dance the first dance with him. Then he led everyone to wards tables set in the court yard and invited them to a fest and dancing, which often lasted till late at night.

The harvest wreath was stored in the vestibule or in the barn (stodoła) till next year’s sowing and the grains that fell out of it were added to new grain for sowing to maintain the continuity of good crops.

The centuries old Harvest Festival is still celebrated nowadays, although its form has now changed a little. The former merrymaking arranged for servants and farm workers has been transformed into a holiday of all peasants and farmers accompanied by picnics and fairs, farming exhibitions and performances of artistic ensembles.

As in the past, contemporary Harvest Festival is celebrated with a colorful parade (barwny pochód) of people in regional costumes (regionalne kostiumy) carrying a wreath and a loaf of baked bread from the current year’s crops.

In recent years, a tradition of parish harvest festival developed, as well as pilgrimages from various parishes to the renowned places of religious cult, including the greatest Sanctuary of Our Lady in Częstochowa.

Sometimes the Harvest Festival was held after the first crop of wheat on August 15^th, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Day, but normally the two feasts were celebrated separately.

In our times, on the Assumption Day, in Poland also called Our Lady of Herb’s Day (Matki Boskiej Zielnej), bouquets or bunches of flowers (bukiety kwiatów), herbs (zioła) and fruit (owoce), so plentiful in August, are continued to be taken to church for a blessing and as a thanksgiving offer to Our Lady. Formerly those bouquets were kept at home for the whole year and in case of need the herbs they contained were used to naturally cure some illnesses.

After a long brake of some fifty or so years, August 15^th became the official National Day of Polish Army and Weapons. It is celebrated in order to commemorate the victory of Poles over the Soviet Army under General Budionny in the Battle of Warsaw in 1920, when the Bolsheviks attacked Poland. It is called “the miracle on the Vistula” (cud nad Wisłą).

Do następnego razu! (Till next time…)

Tweet This Post

Posted under Culture, Geography, History, Polish Language

2 Comments | Post a Comment

Ładna pogoda!

Posted by Katarzyna

Jul

2010

I’m a summer baby. My birthday is in July, and I like it hot. The recent weather here in the states has been just that, and then some. In fact, we had two days of heat advisories that warned people to avoid prolonged periods of activity outdoors. With all this talk of heat and the storms that have followed, it made this topic an easy one to write about. How do you describe the weather?

Now, if you live in the northern hemisphere, chances are you are enjoying lato (summer). In the summer, most of the time, pogoda jest słoneczna (the weather is sunny). And if you have had weather like the midwest of the Unites States has had the last week, it is ciepło (warm). Not just warm, it’s downright gorąco (hot)! Recently, many states have seen termometr (thermometer) readings in the ninety degree range, which on the metric system converts to readings in the 33-37 stopni (degrees) range in Celsius.

With weather, however, you have to take the good with the bad. Some days, the bright słońce (sun) is hidden by chmury (clouds). Before long, those clouds fill to capacity and the deszcz (rain) must fall. To describe the weather is rainy, you can simply say, “Pogoda deszczowa.” Just something to note, the adjective will always decline to describe pogoda in this post, which is feminine. So you’ll be using the -a endings on the adjectives. So cloudy would by pochmurna. If you were to say the weather is dry, it would be sucha. However, most people would describe the air as dry, not the weather. So the statement would be, “Powietrze jest suche.”

Not being fond of zima (winter), I would prefer to avoid these adjectives entirely. However, that would not be much of a lesson, now would it? Soon the jesień (autumn) will be upon us. Chłódno jest (It’s cool) will become the more commonplace weather statement. And chłódno will turn into zimno (cold). In fact, it gets mroźno (freezing). Then pogoda jest śnieżna (weather is snowy). All this talk of mrozy (frosts) and śnieg (snow) is depressing me some, so we’ll move on to some additional words you can use to describe weather conditions.

My oldest son is fascinated by the weather. Specifically, he loves to talk about burze (storms) and the grzmoty i błyskawice (thunder and lightning) that come along with them. In stormy weather, you may also say, “Jest wietrznie” (It’s windy). One of my favorites is mglisty (foggy), which can describe the weather conditions or a long night with friends and Luksusowa (Polish potato vodka).

Hopefully this has given you a good start on your way to talking about the weather. Before long, you can avoid long awkward silences in Polish by talking about the pogoda. Unlike religion and politics, pogoda is always a safe subject to broach. That said, I am off to enjoy the summery weather before it’s gone!

Do następnego czytania…

Practice this Polish weather and seasons vocabulary on Byki.com List Central:
http://www.byki.com/lists/Polish/Weather.html
http://www.byki.com/lists/Polish/Weather-and-seasons-part-2.html

If you have Byki Deluxe or Express, click a link above, then the .b4u button on the page to download the list to your desktop. Then, launch Byki and choose List -> Import List, or practice directly in your browser via the above links.

Tweet This Post

Posted under Polish Language, Vocabulary

0 Comments | Post a Comment