Christmas Message

Nadzieję, że Się spodoba polskiej Wigilii!

Zdrowych i radośnych Świąt Bożego Narodzenia oraz szczęśliwego Nowego Roku, wszystkiego najlepszego życza, Rachel XXX

View photos of the fantastic North East Polish children's Christmas party here: http://www.polnews.co.uk/index.php/fotorelacje-newcastle/1355-mikolajki-w-gateshead-2010.html

Where to take the kids at Christmas?

Kids Don’t Whine- It’s Christmas Time!

Czas na Święta! Dzieci nie marudzą

Wrapping paper ripped, ribbon in their hair, glitter glue on their clothes- it’s time to get the kids out the house for some festive fun! 2B Magazine’s Rachel Clements brings you her top six North East festive time highlights.

Papier do pakowania prezentów podarty, tasiemki zaplątane we włosach, a klej z brokatem na ciuchach – czas wreszcie zabrać dzieci z domu i podarować im odrobinę świątecznego szaleństwa! Rachel Clements wybrała dla czytelników 2B sześć, jej zdaniem najlepszych, gwiazdkowych atrakcji w północno-wschodniej Anglii.


Fenwick’s Window Display
Wystawa sklepowa w Fenwick’s

Queuing down Northumberland street to peek in the 30ft long shop front window display during the festive period is somewhat of a local pastime popular in the North East since 1971. Fenwick’s hires a German company each year to make the window display which usually features puppets, loud music and festive theme. Themes have included a depiction of Dicken’s Oliver Twist (2008), the nativity scene (2009) and this year’s ‘Santa preparing his reindeer for their big night’.
When? Mid Nov- Early Jan

Where? Fenwick’s Department Store, Northumberland Street

Price? *Free!*

Alnwick Garden Santa’s Winter Wonderland
Zimowy cudny świat św. Mikołaja w ogrodzie Alnwick

A Christmas market under the canopy of the beautiful Alnwick Garden Treehouse, with mulled wine and festive treats for the adults and lantern making workshops for the children. Children can also visit Santa hard at work in his toy workshop and receive a small gift from the man himself!
When? 11am-3pm Fri- Sun

Where? Alnwick Garden

Price? £3 for adults and £5 for children (including a visit to see Santa) - booking essential.

North East Pantomimes
Świąteczne przedstawienia

If you haven’t experienced your first British Christmas Pantomime (Panto) don’t delay. These festive theatre treats are usually about two hours in length and the local theatres sign up minor celebrities to dress in bright costumes, sing classic pantomime songs and recycle the same catchphrases and jokes. Such events require audience participation so do not sit on the end of the seating row unless you want to appear on stage yourself. This year you can see:
Puss in Boots, The Customs House, South Shields, 1st Dec – 18th Jan, tickets start at £7
Jack and the Beanstalk, The Journal Tyne Theatre, 10th Dec- 7th Jan, tickets start at £10
Robin Hood, The Theatre Royal, 30th Nov- 15th Jan, tickets start at £10
Or, see the ‘Metro Gnome’ Pantomime when shopping at the Metro Centre at various times throughout the day for *free*!

New Year’s Eve Winter Carnival
Sylwestrowy zimowy karnawał

Dress the little ones up in festive costumes (or just warm clothes) and take them down to Grey’s Monument on New Year’s Eve for the annual Newcastle winter procession. This year the Ice Queen will lead the parade which will include musicians, drummers, dancers and character actors as monkeys, pigs and skeletons. The parade will conclude at the Civic Centre finishing in a celebratory firework display.
When and Where?
New Year’s Eve (Dec 31st)
2.30pm -music and carnival around Grey’s Monument
5.15pm -parade toward Newcastle Civic Centre
6.00pm - Firework display
Price? *Free!*

Times Square Ice Rink
Lodowisko na Times Square

Well it’s not exactly Times Square in New York, but the so-called Times Square opposite The Centre for Life in Newcastle city centre does have a temporary ice rink for all that festive falling over! You can look for offers and promotions, including details about ice rink Christmas parties by visiting the website: www.life.org.uk/whats-on/skating-at-life.
When? 15th Nov 2010- 27th Feb 2011

Where? Times Square, Science Centre

Price? £7.95 adult ticket, £5.95 child ticket

Public Carol Service and Switching on of Christmas Lights
Kolędy i świąteczne światełka na ulicach naszych miast

An excellent way to get into the Christmas spirit is to stand outside in the cold watching minor celebrities switch on street lights. Newcastle Civic Centre light switch-on is usually accompanied by a good old fashioned Christmas carol service, free to all. Do not despair, light switching on ceremonies (which are attended by large crowds of eager locals) take place in most cities and towns across the North East, so check your local newspapers for details. The temperature will no doubt be chilly but the atmosphere is guaranteed to be festive!
When? Mid Nov onwards

Where? Various towns and cities

Price? *Free!*

Tłumaczyła Joanna Lompart-Chlaściak in 2B magazine

This article appeared in the December issue of 2B magazine. To read the article in full with the full Polish translation please visit: http://www.2b.nepco.org.uk/assets/issues/49kol.pdf

My Favourite Polish Films

Since having my son I’ve sadly had less time to enjoy Polish film, but a couple of years ago I was a real addict. When I was studying Polish at the University of Glasgow I used to borrow Polish films from the language library on a weekly basis. A lovely Polish dad I met a few weeks ago reminded me how great Polish cinema can be, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to share with you a few of my Polish film favourites.
Enjoy a Krzysztof Kieślowski month by working your way through his amazing repertoire of film; most notably, No End (Bez końca, 1984), The Decalogue (Dekalog, 1988), The Double Life of Véronique (La Double vie de Véronique / Podwójne życie Weroniki, 1991) and The Three Colours Trilogy which includes, Three Colours: Blue (Trois couleurs: Bleu / Trzy kolory: Niebieski, 1993), Three Colours: White (Trois couleurs: Blanc / Trzy kolory: Biały, 1994), and Three Colours: Red (Trois couleurs: Rouge / Trzy kolory: Czerwony,1994).

The Double Life of Véronique is my favourite Kieślowski film. It follows the life of Weronika, a young woman living in Poland against the parallel life of her doppelganger Véronique, who lives in France. Both parts are played by the superb actress Irène Jacob. The film has often been translated as a metaphor for the experiences of Poland during World War II compared to that of France. This is not a great film for anyone with an aversion to fantasy, but the original film score by Zbigniew Preisner resonates through the piece masterfully.

If seriously challenging historical or political film is more your style try the film of Andrzej Wajda. Examining the lives of communist workers and the Solidarity labour union movement are the films Man of Marble (Człowiek z marmuru, 1977) and Man of Iron (Człowiek z żelaza,1981). My favourite Wajda film is his 2007 film Katyń which details the wartime atrocity of The Katyń Massacre (zbrodnia katyńska - the 'Katyń crime'), whereby Polish prisoners of war (both officers and citizens) were ordered to be executed by the Soviet authorities in 1940. The film uses documentary footage from the period and exerts of newspaper articles to highlight the propaganda prevalent in the Soviet and German press at the time.

I also like Roman Polański’s first feature-length film Knife in the Water (Nóż w wodzie, 1962) which was his first major commercial success in the West. Despite being a very eerie thriller it still makes me want to visit the Mazury Lakes, Northern Poland. I enjoyed Sylwester Chęciński’s Our Folks (Sami Swoi, 1967) but my favourite Polish comedy is Killer (Kiler, 1996) by Juliusz Machulski. In terms of directing style I like the patience and attention to detail of Krzystof Krauze, particularly his film My Nikifor (Mój Nikifor, 2004).

In preparation for Agnieszka Holland’s visit to the University of Glasgow in 2007 I made my way through her entire film catalogue. Some of her films I found really sensitive and touching, A Woman Alone (Kobieta samotna, 1981) and an Angry Harvest (Bittere Ernte, 1985) for example, but some were not so gripping, The Healer (2004) for example. Nevertheless I was really inspired by Agnieszka Holland; she captivated her student audience when she told us about getting into the film industry. She spoke with great honesty and pride about her work. Although the temptation is to criticise Holland for moving away from her country and her independent filmmaking traditions, she has succeeded relatively well as a Hollywood blockbuster director, and this is great achievement in an industry ashamedly dominated by men, moreover, the very fact she took time to visit our Polish language class, shows she still holds her language and country true.

As for my favourite Polish film of all time, this, without a doubt is The Passenger (Pasażerka, 1963) directed by Andrzej Munk and Witold Lesiewicz. It was sadly to be Andrzej Munk’s last production as he died suddenly toward the end of filming. The narrative is patchy as a consequence, as sections were left unfinished to reflect the loss of the director. The film draws on the recollections of a German woman as she comes face to face with a woman she last met in Auschwitz. An amazing performance is given by actress Anna Ciepielewska and hence, według mnie, ten film trzeba zobaczyć!

For more resources on Polish cinema visit the archive at the film journal Kinoeye: http://www.kinoeye.org/archive/country_poland.php

For a general overview on Polish film follow this link:

http://www.warsaw-life.com/poland/polish-cinema

To purchase any of the films mentioned in this blog try the website http://www.merlin.pl/ (it's the Polish version of Amazon).

**Lastly, I’ve found a North East England connection to Polish cinema! Cul-de-sac, the 1966 thriller directed by Roman Polanski was shot on location in Northumberland, on Lindisfarne (the Holy Island). The National Trust runs tours of the very castle featured in the film.

Pada śnieg! It’s snowing…

It’s been snowing in the North East of England; schools are closed, there’s traffic chaos and the children want to play!

Here’s a few ideas of where to buy wellington boots and a sledge because I really struggled to find these essential snow weather items.

Wellington boots (kalosze)

Where to buy? gdzie kupić...?

Costcos
Fenwicks
Halfords
Sports Soccer
Outdoor Superstore


Sledge (sanki)

Where to buy? gdzie kupić...?

John Lewis
Asda
Mothercare

Gołąbki: Made in Newcastle

This week we’ve been cooking up some Polish treats at home, making ‘gołąbki’- Polish cabbage parcels. British cooking generally places cabbage as a lowly side dish boiled up or steamed and left to go cold on the side of the plate, but something I really like about Polish cooking is that cabbage gets the status of main feature.
So when a cabbage came in our vegbox delivery this week, my partner (the resident cook) turned to ‘The Polish Kitchen’ by Mary Pinińska, for some trusty ideas. Here’s our variation on her recipe for gołąbki and some photos of the resulting ‘little pigeons’ made by us here in Newcastle.

Ingredients:
1 large Savoy cabbage
175 grams of long-grain rice
2 large brown onions (chopped)
450 grams of flat mushrooms (diced)
85 grams of butter
1 litre of tomato juice
25 grams of flour
½ litre of vegetable stock
And we added: a pinch of cinnamon and two handfuls of sultanas.

Method:
Select some nice juicy cabbage leaves, boil for a minute, set aside. Meanwhile boil the rice until tender and set aside. Fry the onions in butter, add the diced mushrooms and fry, then mix with the rice. Season to taste and add a pinch of cinnamon. Add two handfuls of sultanas (removing any stalks).
Place a spoonful of the rice mixture in each cabbage leaf and wrap. Fold the ends of the leaf under like a parcel.
Grease a roasting tin and preheat the oven to 200oc. Place the parcels neatly in the tin and pour over the tomato juice and stock.
Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 10 minutes. Cabbage parcels should go slightly brown (ours were a little too over-baked!) Add the flour and remaining butter to the juices to make a tasty accompanying sauce.


We served with extra vegatables - here's a photo of the outcome:

Smacznego!

Polish Shops in the North East of England

Here are names, addresses and opening hours of Polish shops in the North East of England:

Groszek: Polskie Delikatesy
85 Clayton Street,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE1 5PY

Opening Hours: 7 days a week, Mon - Sat 9.30am - 6.30pm, and Sun 11am- 4pm

Małgosia’s Shop: Polish, Czech and Lithuanian Food
Unit 23,
Newgate Shopping Centre,
Newcastle,
NE15RE

Opening Hours: Open 5 days a week, Mon - Wed 10am - 4pm, and Fri - Sat 10am - 5.30pm

Polskie Smakołyki: Polish Delicious
199 High Street,
Town Centre
Sunderland,
SR1 1UB

Opening Hours: Open 7 days a week, Mon - Sat 10am - 8pm, and Sun 12noon - 8pm

European Foods: Polski Mini Supermarket
7 Borough Road,
Middlesborough,
TS1 4AA

Opening Hours: Open 7 days a week, Mon - Fri 10am - 6.30pm, Sat 9am - 5pm, and Sun 11am - 4pm
(No picture available as yet)

**** Newly added material with thanks to Irena, Tadek and Olga! ****

European Foods
67 Middle Street,
Consett,
County Durham

Opening Hours: Open 7 days a week, Mon, Tues, Thurs 10am - 7pm, Wed 10am - 6pm, Fri 9am -7pm, Sat 9am - 6pm, Sun 12noon - 4pm
(No picture available as yet)

And, not forgetting our neighbouring Poles in the North East of England, here's details of a shop I came across in Cumbria:

Krakow Polish Shop
4A,
Corney Square,
Penrith,
CA11 7PX

Opening Hours: Open 6 days a week, Mon - Thurs 12noon - 7pm, Fri 12noon - 8pm, and Sat 11am - 6pm

For a more comprehensive list of Polish Shops in the UK follow this link:

http://www.uksimple.info/UKInfo/Links/PolishShopsintheUK/tabid/414/language/cs-CZ/Default.aspx?udt_1311_param_page=9&udt_1311_param_search

To find out more about Cumbria's thriving Polish community visit: http://www.cumbria.pl

Polish Resettlement Camp, Morpeth

With remembrance day approaching, here's an extract from my article about the Polish Resettlement Camp in Morpeth, published in 2B Magazine this October.

The Common Camp in Morpeth was one of about 50 resettlement camps which provided accommodation for exiled Polish families following World War II. These camps were designated to members of the Polish Resettlement Corps (PRC), which was established in 1946 as a direct response to debate about how to organise the 160,000 Polish soldiers who wished to remain temporarily in Britain while their homeland was under Soviet control. These men and women had fought valiantly alongside their British counterparts during wartime, and the British government eventually (and rightfully) agreed responsibility for their welfare. A shortage of housing in post-war Britain meant that members of the PRC, together with their spouses and dependents (around 200,000 Polish exiles in total) were accommodated in former military camps in the UK.

Obóz Common Camp w Morpeth był jednym z 50 obozów przesiedleńczych, które zapewniały dach nad głową polskim rodzinom po drugiej wojnie światowej. Przeznaczone one były dla członków Polskiego Korpusu Przysposobienia i Rozmieszczenia, który został założony w 1946 roku jako bezpośrednia odpowiedź na debatę, co zrobić z 160 tysiącami polskich żołnierzy, którzy chcieli tymczasowo pozostać w Wielkiej Brytanii, w czasie gdy ich ojczyzna była pod sowiecką kontrolą. Ci ludzie walczyli mężnie u boku brytyjskich sił podczas wojny i brytyjski rząd ostatecznie (i słusznie) wziął na siebie odpowiedzialność za opiekę nad nimi. Ze względu na niedobór budynków mieszkalnych w powojennej Wielkiej Brytanii członkowie PKPR razem ze swoimi małżonkami i dziećmi (razem około 200 tysięcy polskich uchodźców) zostali umieszczeni w byłych obozach wojskowych na terenie Zjednoczonego Królestwa.
(Polish translation by the 2B team)

To read this article in full please visit: http://www.2b.nepco.org.uk/assets/issues/47_kolor.pdf

**Please note that there will be a short remembrance service at the War Graves Section of St Mary's Churchyard, Morpeth this Saturday 6th November at 2.00pm, performed by Newcastle's Polish Chaplain, Father Waclaw.**

Driving Me Crazy

What a week! This week I’m doing an intensive driving course, and I’m hopeless.
Co tydzień! Uczę się jeździć i to tak trudne!

The subject of driving comes up many times in interviews with Polish parents. Many participants mention how easy it is to drive in Britain compared to Poland, due to the better quality of roads in and around the North East. Some participants however, say that although they have a Polish driving licence they’ve a fear of driving in the UK as we drive on the left, some mention the busy roads here, and whether British or Polish drivers are more courteous is also a frequent point of discussion.

I thought it might be helpful to post some driving test information on my blog, given that what’s I’ve been looking for today.

In Britain the Driving Standards Agency is the government body responsible for setting standards and conducting theory and practical driving tests. As this is a public service you can find out more about driving in Britain at the multi-purpose website: http://www.direct.gov.uk/

Oto kilka filmów, które pomogą Pan/ Pani uczyć się o prawa jazdy w Wielkiej Brytanii:
The DSA have produced a clear video detailing what to expect from a UK practical driving test here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hweCy5vJ1yk&feature=channel

Also, as from the beginning of this month a new element to the UK practical driving test was introduced, called ‘independent driving’. Details about this can be found here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQRl3zkkOgg&feature=related

The British School of Motoring (BSM) have put a really helpful series of ‘driving lessons’ on You Tube. Their experienced instructor conducts a series of manoeuvres and car safety checks appropriate to the practical driving test, and a clear voiceover explains the process. Here’s a selection of the best lessons:
Filmy o prawo jazdy w języku angielskim

Car basics and safety checks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nNMu_ceG2M
Learning to drive roundabouts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8n9Fw4gInM
Reversing round a corner:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKd0GXZ39U8
A turn in the road:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMfe7hM2YkE
Learning to drive- a hill start:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpeVOl0H7Eo
What to do at a junction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjdYoRAHPHw

Finally, after a dreadful day of driving, I found this Polish video online showing a driver just as hopeless as me. Poor Asia in the video; her instructor makes some patronising remarks about her being blonde, well Asia, I salute you, as at least you remained calm, unlike me!

Zabwny polski film w którym Asia uczy się jeździć:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTzLL3xt5r0&feature=related

'Kup Dom' Information Session

Ever thought about stepping onto the property ladder?

Below is a message I'm passing on from my friends at 2B Magazine. It's about an information session being held in Newcastle to give Polish migrants advice on how to go about investing in property. The session concentrates on those wanting to buy flats or houses through local council initiatives.

„Kup dom”

Myślisz o kupnie domu? Masz możliwość wykupu domu lub mieszkania z councilu?

Zapraszamy do udziału w spotkaniu poświęconym zakupowi nieruchomości, które odbędzie się w sobotę 30 października w Bibliotece Głównej w Newcastle (Newcastle City Library) o godzinie 15:00 w Bewick Hall (Room 1). Spotkanie jest organizowane w ramach projektu „Kup dom”. W trakcie spotkania przedstawione zostaną naświeższe informacje dotyczące sytuacji na rynku nieruchomości w Wielkiej Brytanii oraz w Polsce. Zaprezentowana zostanie także kompleksowa opcja dla osób przebywających w Polsce, zainteresowanych zakupem nieruchomości w Wielkiej Brytanii w celach inwestycyjnych. Na spotkaniu poruszone zostaną również kwestie wykupu mieszkań / domów komunalnych.
Kryzys, spowolnienie gospodarki światowej oraz załamanie się rynków finansowych może wydawać się niezbyt szczęśliwym momentem na zakup własnego M. Wbrew pozorom jest to jednak najlepszy moment na kupno domu czy mieszkania, ponieważ ceny nieruchomości spadają, a popyt maleje – jest więc w czym wybierać.
Zakup własnego mieszkania wydaje się skomplikowanym wyzwaniem, ale przy pomocy profesjonalistów staje się to o wiele prostsze. Agencje nieruchomości lub doradcy świadczący usługi prawne i finansowe, jak na przykład firma The Caesar & Howie realizująca projekt „Kup Dom”, posiadają bogatą wiedzę na temat rynku nieruchomości i mogą pomóc w zakupie domu, tak, aby inwestycja zakończyła się sukcesem.
Eksperci są w stanie szybko stwierdzić, czy nieruchomość nie znajduje się w niepożądanym sąsiedztwie, znanym na przykład z problemów narkotykowych lub młodocianej przestępczości. Osoby zajmujące się profesjonalną pomocą w sprzedaży i zakupie nieruchomości potrafią też skutecznie ocenić, czy dana transakcja jest dobrą inwestycją. Zgodnie ze złotą zasadą sukcesu, na rynku nieruchomości najważniejsze jest wybranie położenia a nie budynku. W praktyce może to oznaczać, że dostaniemy mniej cegieł i cementu za swoje pieniądze, ale za to lepiej je zainwestujemy.
Adres: City Library, Charles Avison Building, 33 New Bridge Street West, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 8AX
Organizacja: Magazyn 2B North East i Marcin Przylepa

Please see http://nepco.org.uk/ for more details.


*Read our latest edition of 2B Magazine North East (including an article written by me!) following the link: http://www.2b.nepco.org.uk/ *

Using Twitter in Research

As ‘PolishNewcastle’ I’ve just posted my 100th ‘tweet’ on Twitter. To celebrate I’m posting 10 examples of my information tweets here:

*Article about Geordie bus driver who moved to Zywiec in Poland: 'Taking Poles to Newcastle http://t.co/Khgb6fC @ The Evening Chronicle.

*PRI news article about how Polish parenting patterns are changing: http://www.theworld.org/2010/10/05/rethinking-parenting-in-poland

*Financial advice for enterprising Poles based in the UK: www.thisismoney.co.uk/savings-and-banking/polski/article.html (articles in Polish).

*Article about Geordie bus driver who moved to Zywiec in Poland: 'Taking Poles to Newcastle'- http://t.co/Khgb6fC @ The Evening Chronicle.

*Found this excellent site where you can source English-Polish children's books: http://www.little-linguist.co.uk/polish-for-children.html

*Good online article considering the outcomes of EU enlargement on Poland: http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=800

*North East pupil talks about her trip to Poland in the world's biggest storytelling project: http://www.cultureshock.org.uk/stories/poland

*Download a free reading and writing wall chart specially designed to help Polish children: http://www.thrass-downloads.com/ccdemo/Polish.swf

*This may be of use to all UK Polish parents considering sending a child to University: http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/brochure/prospar/polishparents

*Tesco have a dedicated website to promote the 250 Polish products they sell. Go to http://www.tesco.com/polski

*Online article from Emilia Lewandowska,Warsaw University, about Polish British identity: http://ebooks.iaccp.org/xian/PDFs/4_5Lewandowska.pdf

I use Twitter as a public space in which to share my research findings, interests and readings. It is also a way to promote my project, my work, and hopefully increase participation in my study. My research interviews are highlighting a lack of access points to specific information for Polish parents; information about child care vouchers or Polish-English language provision for example, so recently I have been using Twitter as means of passing on links to information I come across.
University-led research has long been criticised for failing to challenge issues of knowledge transfer. Poor knowledge management fails to address how information can cross from the private to the public domain. I hope to show that embracing social networking and microblogging such as Twitter allows researchers to be actively engaged players in the knowledge transfer process.

Jeśli chodzi o Twitterze: na Twitterze mam na imię ‘Polish Newcastle’. Używam Twitter jako miejsce do wymiany informacji i promować moją pracę.