Polish Blog A daily dose of Polish life

Poland went down 1 set to 3 in the preliminary round of the women’s volleyball championships at the Beijing Olympics.

Poland got off to a fine start, winning the first set. But Cuba gradually pulled back to the level and then went on to win three sets in a row in match 4 of Pool A.

Top scorer for the Poles was Katarzyna Skowronska with 9 points.

Next up, Poland v Germany!

As there was quite a lot of interest in the post a few days ago showing a few pictures of the Polish Women’s Volleyball team, lets meet the squad that are competing for gold in Beijing, China.

There will be some who think I’m using this as an excuse to post pictures of pretty Polish girls in tight pants, they will of course be right.

Setters

Milena Sadurek-Mikolajczyk

Age: 23

Height: 177cm

Club: BKS Stal Bielsko-Bia?a

Hometown: Katowice

Katarzyna Skorupa

Age: 23

Height: 182cm

Club: PTPS Nafta Gaz Pi?a

Hometown: Radom

Outside Hitters

Anna Podolec

Age: 22

Height: 193cm

Club: Balakovskaia AES Balakovo

Hometown: Lancut

Malgorzata Glinka-Mogentale

Age: 29

Height: 190cm

Club: Grupo 2002 Murcia

Hometown: Warsaw

Anna Baranska

Age: 24

Height: 178cm

Club: BKS Aluprofu Bielsko-Bia?a

Hometown: Swidnicy

Milena Rosner

Age: 28

Height: 180cm

Club: Muszynianka Muszyna

Hometown: Slupsku

Opposite Hitters

Katarzyna Skowronska-Dolata

Age: 25

Height: 189cm

Club: Scavolini Pesaro

Hometown: Warsaw

Joanna Kaczor

Age: 23

Height: 188cm

Club: Impel Gwardia

Hometown: Wroclaw

Middle Blockers

Katarzyna Gajgal

Age: 26

Height: 190cm

Club: BKS Aluprof Bielsko-Bia?a

Hometown: Debica

Agnieszka Bednarek

Age: 22

Height: 187cm

Club: Farmutil Pi?a

Hometown: Zlotow

Maria Liktoras

Age: 33

Height: 187cm

Club: Nafta-Gaz Pila

Hometown: Mineralnye Vody, Soviet Union

Liberos

Mariola Zenik

Age: 26

Height: 175cm

Club: Muszynianka Fakro Muszyna

Hometown: Wegrow

Only sports minister Miroslaw Drzewiecki will be attending the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.

Whilst 238 representatives of Poland will be competing neither President Lech Kaczynski, nor Prime Minister Donald Tusk will be attending the opening ceremony or visiting China. Public opinion is somewhat devided about the appropriate level of political representation given China’s human rights record.

A recent poll found that 49 percent were of the opinion that the politicians should stay at home.

When asked whether Polish athletes should in any way protest against violation of human rights in China during the Olympics 62 percent said that the sportsmen should protest in some way, while 33 percent were against.

August is the month of massive pilgrimages in Poland. Hundreds of thousands of people travel on foot to the country’s major Marian Shrine – the Sanctuary of the Black Madonna of Czestochowa. For some, it takes weeks of exhausting walk to reach the destination by August 15th – the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Jasna Gora shrine houses an ancient portrait of the Virgin Mary. Legend has it that the work was painted by Saint Luke, the author of one of the Christian gospels.

Hundreds of thousands of ordinary Polish Catholics make this pilgrimage every year, walking for days and sometimes weeks at a time with little rest, accommodation and in some cases food. Pilgrimages attract a cross section of Polish society. villages often join businessmen, the young walk next to the old, students, clergy and even five American soldiers hoping to deepen ties with an ally:

It’s a chance “to come together and share a little bit, and hopefully develop closer bonds with foreign militaries in a non-combat type setting,” said Master Sgt. Roman Waldron, 37, from Springfield, Illinois.

Before embarking on the pilgrimage, the pilgrims attended an early morning Mass at the Field Cathedral of the Polish Army, where a priest blessed them with holy water. They were also told to set a moral example and refrain from drinking or smoking during the march.

I’ve been to Czestochowa a number of times and Jasna Gora is a place I would recommend anyone to visit, religious or not. Pilgrimages are also made at other times of the year, students often make a pilgrimage to Jasna Gora to pray for good exam results which leads me to one of the saddest and most ironic situations I’ve encountered.

In September 2005 a bus full of school children from Bialystok were on the way to Czestochowa to pray for good exam results when they collided with a lorry. The bus crashed, burst into flames killing 13 and injuring 40.

258 athletes will be representing Poland at the 2008 summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China. 101 women and 157 men led by the national flag bearer canoer Marek Twardowski.

The Polish Olympic Mission have spent over PLN 186 million over the last 4 years and hopes are high for an improvement on the 10 medals won in Athens.

Poland has competitors competing in the following events, I’ll be listing news of any medal winners on the site.

Archery

Athletics

Badminton

Boxing

Canoeing

* flatwater

* Slalom

Cycling

* Mountain Biking

* Road

* Track

Equestrian

Fencing

Gymnastics

* Artistic

* Rhythmic

Handball

* Men’s competition

Judo

Modern pentathlon

Rowing

Shooting

Swimming

Table tennis

Tennis

Triathlon

Volleyball

* Indoor

-Men’s competition

-Women’s competition

Weightlifting

Wrestling

If you ever get invited to someone’s house in Poland you will find the Poles are very hospitable people, especially when it comes to food.

Saying no is not an option and you are likely to be offered far more than is possible to eat. I did a tour of the relatives when I first arrived in Poland with my Polish girlfriend I ate more sernik (cheesecake) and drank more vodka than you can imagine.

Make sure when you get asked “Whose sernik was best?” you stay impartial and say they were all amazing (whilst winking at your girlfriend’s mother).

If you have a sernik recipe please post it in comments, then I can tell babci people on the internet can make better sernik than her, she will give me a funny look and say “Ostrzegam Cie!”

For years in Poland a meal out meant wandering down to the local milk bar – a state run canteen serviing good heart food – and as long as you didn’t want meat or alcohol, prices were cheap.

Many thought the milk bar’s days were numbered with the end of communism, but after more than a decade later, those that remain are carving out their own place in the country’s competitive catering marketplace.

In the communist years of food shortages and endless queues the milk bars provided an affordable place for most people to eat out.

They served basic traditional Polish meals – such as pierogi dumplings and cabbage – and because of state subsidies they were able to keep costs down.