Today I feature a guest post by:
Sheila Callahan at Help! I'm Blogging. Sheila is a self described "Jersey Girl" currently based in Warsaw, Poland. I will have a guest post on Sheila's blog today, also.
For today’s guest post I've been struggling
to put together some witty and interesting facts about my life in Poland, but
unfortunately I keep running into a brick wall. So I'll quit trying to be
fascinating and just tell you a few things I've noticed about Polish
superstitions and customs.
Back in America, I never thought
twice about embracing someone while standing on the threshold of the house.
When guests came and went, we always greeted people and said goodbyes at the
doorway. Not done in Poland. Embracing anyone over the threshold is considered
bad luck.
In Poland it's also bad luck to buy
an even number of flowers for a bouquet, unless it's for a funeral.
As far as everyday customs, what
I’ve noticed here is that Poles do not wave hello or goodbye like we Americans
do. People tend to bow slightly when greeting friends. Oh, and if you're on the
street, you do not smile and say hello to strangers, like you would often do in
America.
This last reality has taken a lot
of getting used to. I grew up saying hello to people, even those I didn't know,
when I passed someone walking in my neighborhood, for example.
Here, it's simply not done. On the
rare times that I forget myself and smile at someone or say hello to an elderly
person, they just look at me and appear puzzled.
I love this glimpse into the Polish culture! I wonder what the history behind odd numbers of flowers being lucky is. I remember when I lived in Peru it was odd to kiss people on the cheek when saying hello; that really took me out of my comfort zone at first.
ReplyDeleteIN Bermuda, you can insult someone, especially a slightly older generation, if you pass them on the street and do NOT say "good morning" or "good afternoon." And if you just start talking to the cashier, launching into a question for example, the cashier might level a laser-like stare at you and just say, "GOOD MORNING." And pause, ignoring any question and waiting, pointedly, for you to say good morning back.
ReplyDelete