Originally posted by Frank Krawczyk:
[qb]I keep hearing how wonderful Poland is. But. then why is every one leaving.. [/qb]
Frank, IMO, when you hear Polish-Americans say that Poland is wonderful, we (I) mean that it is a beautiful country (landscape, flowers, etc) with friendly attractive people and good food. In the old Communist days, as when I visited in 1976, it was very drab, especially in Warsaw (gray concrete everywhere). Now there is freedom from the Russians and people are happier. The arts and crafts are flourishing, cities are becoming cosmopolitan but still retain most of their Old World charm.
If Poles still want to leave, it is because of that 20% unemployment rate!
My friend/correspondent in Poland is a very smart, well educated young (30-ish) fellow, and he sees the changing political and economic landscape as holding tremendous opportunities. He is willing to work hard, use his skills and learn new skills if necessary. I think he is in an enviable position - getting in on the ground floor, so to speak.
Most Poles cannot speak anything other than Polish, so your friend's knowledge of French gives her an advantage. She needs to figure out how to put that to good use and maybe learn some new skills (as Carl implied). There are many large companies now exporting and importing the pottery so I would think it would be hard to make a living doing that on her own.
Of course, I wish her all the best and hope she succeeds.
Nancy
