BAR, KAWIARNIA, RESTAURACJA or where you can have something to eat in Poland?

It is hard to believe that these three words: restauracja, bar and kawiarnia, raise so many questions in Polish classes. Naturally, everyone knows those are the names of eating establishments so the questions don’t usually refer to their meaning but the cultural context. They often happen to have somewhat different functions in Poland and abroad.

KAWIARNIA AND RESTAURACJA IN POLISH
Today we’re going to talk about the eating establishments you pass in the streets of Polish cities every day. We have already discussed the less common ones (oberża, karczma, zajazd) here. What are restauracja and kawiarnia then? The former is the least controversial and, the same as in other countries, restauracja (restarant) is a place where the food is served by a waiter or waitress. We go there if we want to eat (zjeść) a large meal (usually consisting of a starter, entree and main course) followed by coffee or tea, which Poles often drink while eating some dessert.
Coffee, tea and dessert can also be ordered in kawiarnie (cafes) which more and more often do not employ waiters and drinks and desserts are ordered and paid for at the counter. If such an establishment serves also sandwiches, quiches, salads or any other food typically served for luch, it is called a bistro. In large Polish cities there are plenty of establishments that are a combination of kawiarnia and bistro.

IS MILK DRUNK IN POLISH BARS?
What is the real meaning of the noun bar in the Polish language? Bar in Polish is a place where you can drink some alcohol but (unlike bars in Spain, for instance) where you don’t eat anything. The other meaning of the word, which is the source of  misunderstandings, is an estanblishment that was especially popular in the interwar Poland and PRL (Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, i.e. Polish People’s Republic) and where these days as well you can have some simple and inexpensive Polish dishes. There’s no waiter service in a bar like that and the interior resembles a canteen rather than a restaurant. The full name of such an establishment, and we can call it Polish specialite de la maison, is a bar mleczny (literally: milk bar). Where does the name come from? Well, in the past many dishes served in such places were made with milk, cottage cheese and eggs. Nowadays bary mleczne are still quite popular and they can be called a sociological phenomenon since their customers come from various social groups. A visit to a bar mleczny has become a must-do for foreigners visiting Poland.

      The legendary „Prasowy“ milk bar in Warsaw. More on the Polish language and customs on our FB page

ON PLAŻOWICZE (beachgoers), KOCE (blankets) AND PIASEK (sand), or Polish on the beach

Summer is a perfect time to learn a foreign language (e.g. Polish in one of our courses, information on which you can find here), but the truth is there’s no holiday without plaża (beach) and kąpiel (swim; bath) in the sea or lake.
Actually, plaża is also a perfect place to… learn some new vocabulary. If you are planning plażowanie (beaching), which means spending time on the beach at the Polish seaside or one of the beautiful Polish lakes, you must definitely get the equipment every plażowicz (beachgoer) needs.

Polish words which you need on the beach :)

POLISH BEACH GLOSSARY

The Baltic seaside, whether we like it or not, is often windy even on a sunny day, therefore it’s a good idea to get a parawan (beach windbreak), which will protect you against unwanted gusts of wind that might prevent you from enjoying the sun. The act of „enjoying the sun” is called kąpiele słoneczne (literally: sun baths) or you can say that someone opala się (is sunbathing).
If you need protection against the wind or rain which may unexpectedly start even in the summer and take the beachgoers by surprise, you can take shelter in a special kosz (basket), which you rent on the beach since it’s rather large and heavy
While sunbathing you should protect yourself from direct sunlight and then a parasol plażowy (parasol) might come in handy, which will give us some relieving cień (shade).
It is difficult, however, to lie (leżeć) on the sun-heated piasek (sand). It is much better and more comfortable to lie on a koc plażowy (beach blanket), mata (mat) or leżak (sunlounger). And when you get bored with sunbathing it’s a good idea to go for a swim (here’s when we have discussed swimming in and on the sea), build a zamek z piasku (sand castle) for which you need łopatka (shovel) and wiaderko (bucket), zbierać muszelki (collect seashells), karmić mewy (feed the seagulls) or to go for a spacer wzdłuż brzegu (walk along the shore).
And you can always speak Polish
Miłego wypoczynku! (Have a nice holiday!)

By the Polish seaside you can not only lie on the beach, you can also look for seashells.

DZIAŁKA (allotment) and DACZA (dacha), or where else do Poles spend their holiday?

That’s right, we have already discussed the topic of where to spend a holiday in Poland on several occasions. In Warmia and Masuria, in the Bieszczady Mountains  or in the north of Poland . It’s hard to believe, though, that we have overlooked one important aspect, one really important Polish word known very well by virtually all participants of our summer Polish courses.

DZIAŁKA. WHAT IS IT AND HOW IMPORTANT IS IT IN POLISH LIFESTYLE?
Działka is not only a piece of land with a summer, holiday house located ouside of town, somewhere in the country and the further from civilisation the better. It is also a specific style of life and spending leisure time of people who normally live in blocks of flats. When asked what they do at the weekend or on holiday the Poles often answer Jadę na działkę/ Spędzam weekend na działce/ Dostałem zaproszenie do znajomych na działkę (I’m going to the allotment/I’m spending the weekend on the allotment/I’ve been invited to my friends‘ allotment). What's funny, foreigners who have a Polish family or friends, often, even speaking in their own language, do not translate the word and use the Polish form (I'm going to działka). On the plot/allotment, in addition to a small garden (ogród) or orchard (sad) - more on these words here - first of all there is a dom letniskowy (summer/holiday house), which is usually very simple, made of wood and without any luxuries (although there are exceptions).

                                                   More on Poland and the Polish language you can find on our FB page

WHAT DO POLES DO ON A DZIAŁKA? SOME POLISH VERBS
Poles are very happy to invite friends to działka to have a barbecue together (grillować/robić grilla – to barbecue/have a barbecue), swim (pływać), read books (czytać książki) in a deckchair or hammock, make food together, go mushroom and blueberry picking (chodzić na grzyby i jagody) to a nearby forest, do crosswords (rozwiązywać krzyżówki), play scrabble, cards or chess (grać w scrabble, karty lub szachy). And simply to rest in the bossom of nature (odpoczywać na łonie natury).

                                                          Check here  for conjugation of the verb ODPOCZYWAĆ

Those who don’t leave the city associate działka with a plot where a new building may be constructed (that is another meaning of the word, known to foreigners working for property development companies) or with ... ogródki działkowe (allotment gardens). The latter is a characteristic feature of landscape of many Polish cities. On such a działka in the middle of the city people grow vegetables, fruit or flowers. This is a favourite pastime among pensioners, but not only... Recently more and more young people are starting to appear in allotment gardens.

DACZA AND DZIAŁKA. POLISH IRONY.
The word dacza (dacha) was borrowed from Russian and means the same as a ... działka. This word used to be more popular before the political transformation. These days it’s rather archaic and Poles use it in an ironic or humorous way especially when referring to a very well-equipped summer house (O, masz daczę za miastem?! – oh, you have a dacha outside the city? ; Ale dacza! – what a dacha! ; Dobra, przyjedziemy do ciebie na daczę – all right, we’ll come to your dacha).

At the end we have some advice for all learners of Polish. If you are ever invited to a działka by a Pole, do not decline. Działka experience is an essential element of socialising in Poland. Have fun!

ON SWIMMING AND CASES IN POLISH

DREAMING OF SWIMMING... IN A LANGUAGE COURSE?

In warm weather, probably more than one participant of a course in Polish as a foreign language wishes the classroom, the teacher and the colleagues found themselves nad brzegiem (on the banks/at the seaside; after the preposition nad we use the instrumental case) of a river, sea or another water pool. And what do we do in the water if we want to cool down? Naturally, we go in and pływamy (we swim; should you not remember how to conjugate the verb, check here). We can pływać w morzu, w jeziorze, w basenie, w rzece etc. (swim in the sea, lake, swiming pool, river: the locative case needs to be used after the preposition w).

BOAT AND KAYAK TRIPS

And what do we do when we feel like wycieczka kajakiem or statkiem (a boat or kayak trip; literally: trip by boat or kayak)? Jedziemy? Idziemy? No! Whether it’s statkiem, kajakiem, łódką, żaglówką, or even okrętem podwodnym (by ship, kayak, boat, sailing boat or even submarine) we still pływamy (swim) and let’s not forget to use the instrumental case when talking of means of transport. The difference is that we say po morzu, po jeziorze and po rzece (literally: swim on the sea, lake and river) and need to use the locative case here.

Interesting facts on the Polish language and many useful words you can find on our FB page

The Polish pływanie statkiem (literally: swimming by boat) may sound funny to users of other languages, in which you go by boat and the verb to swim (pływać) refers only to a human or an animal floating by themselves on water.
Whether it is funny or not, on a hot summer day it’s a great idea to popływać either w jeziorze or kajakiem po jeziorze (literally: to swim either in a lake or by boat on a lake).

GOL (goal), REMIS (draw), SPALONY (offside), THE MOST POPULAR FOOTBALL TERMS IN POLISH

With Euro 2016 in progress we simply can’t ignore it and not post an entry about football. All the more so because this topic is heatedly discussed in virtually each Polish class in our school these days (more on summer Polish courses here). Let’s get you ready then for your next get-together with Polish friends at a pub. In square brackets you will find the nominative of the footbal terms used in the text.

PIŁKA NOŻNA – BASIC VOCABULARY IN POLISH 
That’s right. Piłka nożna (football)  is almost like a religion in Poland. You can grać w piłkę (play football) on boisko (pitch) or watch a mecz piłki nożnej na stadionie [stadion] (a football match at the stadium) together with other kibice (fans). During this match you should dopingować ulubioną drużynę [drużyna] (i.e. cheer for your favourite team), or kibicować (support) in other words. In this case you can ask a friend Komu kibicujesz? (who are you supporting?). A match lasts 90 minutes and is played by two teams of jedenastu zawodników/ piłkarzy/ graczy [zawodnik, piłkarz, gracz] (eleven footballers/players). One of them is the bramkarz (goalkeeper), who broni bramki [bramka] (defends the goal). The other players are napastnik (striker), whose role is to attack, obrońca (defender), who’s responsible for defending the penalty area of his team and pomocnik (midfielder), who’s playing in the central part of the field. Outside the field there is ławka rezerwowych (the substitutes‘ bench) and it’s the trener or selekcjoner (coach) who decides which of the players and when will substitute one of the playing colleagues.
The proper course of the game is monitored by a sędzia (referee), also known as the arbiter, who is assissted by assistant referees. The referee will call czas dodatkowy (extra time) if necessary.

                                   More vocabulary not only related to football you can find on our FB site

WHAT’S GOING ON ON THE PITCH? RZUTY, GOLE, KARTKI 
During a match players score goals (strzelić gola). A team may wygrać (win) or przegrać (lose): Włochy wygrały z Hiszpanią 2:0 (Italy won against Spain 2:0). When both teams score the same number of goals or don’t score any goals, the match ends in a draw (remis). And when the match is played o awans do ćwierćfinału lub półfinału (to get into quarterfinals or semifinals) and the 90-minute game ends in a goalless draw, dogrywka (overtime) is called. Should this part end in no goals scored, the players start rzuty karne [rzut karny] (penalty shoot-out). That’s what happened when Poland was playing against Switzerland.
If a player is fouled, the referee stops the game and then restarts it by letting the team that suffered take a rzut wolny (free kick). Rzut wolny is also called when the foul is committed within pole karne (penalty mark). It may also be ruled as a result of spalony (offside), i.e. a situation when a player who is on the side of the pitch of the opposite team is closer to the goal line of the rivals than the ball is and does not have at least two players of the opposite team in front of him. There is an international synonym of the word spalony – ofsajd. Another international word we can think of is korner, or, to use a Polish word, rzut rożny (corner kick).  For a foul or other unsportsmanlike conduct the referee may punish the player with a żółta or czerwona kartka (yellow or red card).

Naturally, we know that this entry does not exhaust the topic, but we hope it will prepare you better for the next match you go to see together with your Polish friends and may even encourage you to play a game of football with them on a real pitch. Have fun!

TIPS FOR SUMMER DAYS or WHAT WE DRINK AND WHERE WE DRINK IT FROM IN POLISH

WHEN YOU ARE THIRSTY... (not only in Polish class)

Days are getting longer and even during the most interesting Polish classes (check here for information on summer courses of Polish) we start to feel like getting something to drink. In short, at some point each of us starts to think: Mam ochotę na coś zimnego (ewentualnie ciepłego) do picia (I feel like something cold – or hot – to drink). Many of us, especially native speakers of Polish, say: Idę po jedzenie i picie (I’m going to get something to eat and drink). We then get water (sparkling or still), juice, fizzy drink, coffee, tea, beer, wine or whatever we wish. And then the question arises: what do we drink from? Since the Polish language is precise and has a special word for each ‘vessel‘.

SZKLANKA (glass) or KUBEK (mug)? VARIETY OF NAMES OF DISHES IN POLISH

From szklanka (usually made of thin glass) we can drink juice, water, beer or other cold drinks. If we want something warm or hot, e.g. tea or coffee, we pour it into a kubek (mug) or filiżanka (cup). Experts say that drinking from the latter guarantees much better taste, aroma and ideal temperature. Kubek on the other hand is more stable and more importantly it’s biiiiiig ;-) If the evening is cold those who like sweets may feel tempted to get a cup of hot chocolate. This sweet drink is always served in filiżanka and often together with szlanka of cold water.
Beer connoisseurs claim that it should be drunk from an appropriate szklanka depending on the type of beer. The most popular type, piwo jasne (similar to pale ale) tastes best when drunk from a kufel (beer mug). Beware, some pubs serve large beer in 1-litre mugs!
Wine, champagne, vodka and liqueurs we drink from different kinds of small and large kieliszki (glasses).

If you’re looking for information and interesting facts about the Polish language, visit our FB page.

NAPOJE AND TRUNKI

There are a few words we can use to name what we drink. The word napój (anything we drink, could be cold or hot), picie (in spoken language it means anything we drink), trunek (which is only used for alcoholic drinks). With summer approaching, this vocabulary may come in handy more than once not only when foreigners want to cool down during a break between classes but also their teachers and Polish colleagues may find it useful.
So, who feels like something to drink (should you forget how to conjugate the verb „pić“, check it here)?

GOŚĆ W DOM, BÓG W DOMU (Guest at home, God at home), or how to offer something to drink in Polish?

What question do you hear when you step across the threshold of a Polish home? And what question should you ask when a Pole (and not only a Pole) comes to visit you? Most participants of courses of Polish will answer without hesitation: co słychać? (how is it going?) Indeed, it is one of the first questions we learn in Polish class but it is soon followed by the one we are going to focus on today.

COŚ DO PICIA? (Anything to drink?) or CZEGO SIĘ NAPIJESZ (What would you like to drink?)?  - TWO IMPORTANT POLISH QUESTIONS

                        And you? What would you like to drink? More Polish vocabulary on our FB page

Asking one of the two questions would seem natural. However, you need to know how important they are in the Polish culture. First of all, not asking one of them is considered most rude. Secondly, once it has been asked, you need to get ready for a mini-dialogue such as this one:

 - Coś do picia?
 - Nie, dziękuję. 
 - Jesteś pewien/ pewna? 
 - Hm... No, dobrze. Może kawę?  

- Anything to drink?
- No, thank you.
- Are you sure?
- Well... OK. Coffee then?

That is:  question – negative answer – question repeated – positive answer. Obviously, not every conversation of this kind looks exactly like that. You might hear a positive answer right away. However, it does happen that  a foreigner, after receiving a negative response, ends the conversation, leaving his Polish interlocutor in amazement and without a drink.

As you can see, it is a good idea not only to get acquainted with basic Polish structures but also to find out how and when to use them.