Poland’s peculiarities

I think we’ve pretty much agreed that Poland is a country that provokes extreme opinions. But why?

I’ve noticed loads of little things that I haven’t come across before in the UK, Germany or Belgium. My theory is that if we start a list of random observations and gather them all together, those people outside of Poland reading this will have a better idea of what we’re dealing with.

These are in no particular order, good bad and ugly all mixed up together:

• People fall over themselves to give up their tram or bus seat to other people, especially the elderly.
• Despite the strong Catholicism and high church attendance, the busiest places on a Sunday are the shopping malls, which are everywhere.
• If you walk around the streets of Warsaw with a black person, people openly stare. With their mouths gaping.
• Polish men have manners. Doors are opened, coats are helped on and I know I should be outraged, but it’s kind of sweet.
• Polish food is a mix of mouth-wateringly delicious dishes, soup and too much offal.
• If you try and watch an English-language (or other foreign language) film on Polish television, you will have to put up with a monotonous Polish man translating everything over the original with little or no emotion.

There are more… somebody help me out.