saving ink

This is part of my ongoing series of articles that I’ve written for Airgate magazine, one of my glamorous freelance writing gigs. This one is especially timely, considering I’m taking off for Texas in a couple of weeks, to escape the Polish winter (or at least a few months of it). Enjoy!

So, it’s your first Polish winter, you say? How hard can it really be to survive, you wonder. Or perhaps you’re a seasoned veteran of the blistering cold and are more interested in thriving rather than merely surviving? We here at Airgate care about your well-being, so whether you’d like tips for staying warm or enjoying your time out in the snow (or ideally, both!), read on.

Plan A: Get the **** out!

One might consider leaving Poland for the winter to be cheating, but I consider it as a way to maintain your sanity (and desire to live). Of course, it may be difficult or downright impossible to migrate south for months at a time due to your job, school, family responsibilities or lack of financial resources, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a more temporary escape when you need it most.

If you have a limited amount of holiday time allowed by your workplace, perhaps consider cutting that summer trip to the Baltic shorter this year (chances are it’ll rain anyway) and reserving yourself a “sanity week” come February or March or whenever you feel that spending another day looking at dirt- and dog dropping-covered snow might just drive you to consider a swan dive off the Town Hall Tower. There are plenty of warmer destinations within a few hours’ direct flight from Kraków (but you’re reading an airport magazine so you know that already), such as Rome, Italy or Alicante in Spain. You can even catch a charter flight to North African climatic paradises such as Egypt or the Canary Islands, where the average temperature in January is 17.6°C (quite nice when compared to Kraków’s January average of −2.1°C… ouch!).

Plan B: Bundle up

This may go without saying, but I have a word count to fill so I’ll say it anyway: durable, high quality winter clothes are worth their weight in gold during the cold months. Sure, your brand new trainers may be wicked right now, but come February you’ll regret sacrificing warmth for fashion when it’s -30 and you haven’t felt your toes since Christmas and are wondering if they’re still even there. A great pair of waterproof, insulated boots is indispensable come snowfall, as are the inserts (wkładki) you can buy at any shoe store for added protection. As far as jackets go, you don’t necessarily have to pay a small fortune for branded mountain trekking gear approved for -200°C with a built-in polar bear repellent (though if you plan on spending a lot of time in the Tatras, that might just come in handy), but one solid, thick jacket that’s waterproof and durable is worth shelling out a few more złoty for, particularly if you plan on spending many more winters here.

Finally, the art of layering is a good one to master. Just remember: it’s always easier to remove extra layers if you’re too warm than hope an extra layer magically materialises when you’re too cold.

Plan C: When in doubt, stay indoors

Part of Kraków’s charm is its abundance of cosy cafes, bars and restaurants, and that charm is only amplified when you’re sitting by a fire, drinking mulled wine or beer while outside snow is falling. Winter is the perfect time to explore all of those places you meant to check out during warmer days, especially if they serve hot beverages (and most do).

However, if you decide to spend most of your time in your own flat or home, be aware that your heating bills may reach astronomical proportions. There are two ways to prepare: first, put aside extra money into a “winter fund” when your bills are low in the summer, so that even a higher than expected electric or gas bill won’t put you out on the street. Some utility companies even do this automatically, by charging an averaged bill that’s identical each month and is based on your prior usage.

Second, be wise in your use of electricity or gas, both in terms of heating your flat as well as heating the water you use. Most utilities have “savings times” such as the hours between 10 pm and 6 am, and perhaps an hour or two in the afternoon, when the cost of that utility is half price (taryfy nocne). Ask your landlord or utility company when these times are, and then invest in a 12-złoty timer from Tesco or the like that will let you automatically set the heater or water heater to operate only during low cost hours.

Plan D: Embrace the cold!

The old adage “if you can’t beat them, join them” certainly applies in the case of Polish winters. While you cannot change the fact that the next few months may be unbearably cold at times and weeks may pass without you seeing the sun, you can make the best of the situation by taking up a winter sport such as skiing or snowboarding. There are several slopes within an hour or even half-hour drive of Kraków, and for longer expeditions there is the relative proximity of Zakopane, northern Slovakia or even Austria. Missing the sun? Try night skiing! Need a break from the slopes? Just about every half-decent ski lift has an adjacent diner with plenty of hot soup and mulled wine to warm you back up.

If you spend your time enjoying the cold rather than griping about it (and I suggest leaving griping in the hands of the local professionals), before you know it the sun will return and the cafes on the Market Square will be pulling their outdoor furniture back out from the cellars. And remember – when in doubt, there’s always Plan A!

As I’ve mentioned before, one of my few paid writing gigs is for Airgate Magazine, a high-brow arts publication travel rag published by the Krakow Airport. Occasionally I write quasi-interesting helpful articles for them, the newest of which you will find below.

While the summer is a time of travel and enjoying the weather (when it isn’t perpetually cold and rainy like this summer, anyway), now that autumn approaches it’s time to get back to work. But what kind of job can an expat expect in a country where he or she might not know the language, or be lacking a residency card? This month we’ll explore the available options as we look at the expat job market in Kraków.

Be the cliché

I admit that it would be pretty impossible to write an article about expat trades without starting with the most popular (or at least visible): English teacher. Contrary to popular belief, having knowledge of the language is not enough, at least in a competitive market like Kraków. Most schools today require a certificate showing your competence not only in British or US English, but also in communicating effectively to students. This is commonly met with a CELTA (Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults), TEFL Certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), or TESOL Certificate (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) or similar. A Bachelor degree helps, but is not always necessary depending on the school, and proof of experience can often substitute a specific degree.

If you’re an aspiring language teacher, there are two places to earn teaching certificates in Kraków: the British Council or the Tischner European University. The average salary for English teachers tends to hover around PLN 3000 per month, though hours tend to be shorter and more flexible than traditional office work (which might be the greatest appeal of the teaching profession), allowing for extra income to be earned from private lessons. As an added bonus, while the recession has hurt many other lines of work, it has also shown the importance of language skills in an increasingly competitive job market, thus paradoxically increasing the demand for language schools and teachers.

Selling out

If you’d like to work for a multinational company with offices in Kraków – perhaps one based in your home country – the good news is there’s plenty of choice, and the pay tends to be well above the average. Examples of international companies with offices/headquarters in Kraków include IBM, Indesit, Bayer, Motorola, Lufthansa, International Paper, BP, Orlen, Shell, UBS, Google, ABB, ComArch, Sabre, Linde Industrial Gases, Mittal Steel Company, and, if your soul is also on the market, Philip Morris has a Polish branch located in Kraków as well.

The bad news is, anecdotal evidence suggests that securing a position in these companies is more often than not based on the same system at work in most hiring decisions in Poland – connections. Though that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t send in a CV when you spot a job you’re clearly qualified for, an easier way might be to be hired in the national branch of the company in your home country and then request a transfer.

In recent years, Kraków has also become a business process outsourcing (BPO) and shared service centre (SSC) hot spot. These jobs usually pay less but are more abundant, and include positions in human resources, finance and accounting, and call centres for companies based in other countries. Examples of these types of firms include Capgemini, AFS, Ahold, Communication Factory, and others.

Going it alone

If the thought of spending eight or more hours in an office each day defeats the purpose of living in a beautiful city like Kraków for you, you’re not alone. Another way to find work in Kraków is to simply create it, by starting a business. There are two ways to do this, and your personality, skill set and interests will determine what kind of business you start. I won’t go into the specifics of actually registering a company in Poland as that’s been covered by our financial guru Tej Panesar in a previous issue of Airgate.

If your skills generally require you to sit in front of a computer to make money (i.e. programming, graphic design, writing, translating, photo editing, etc.), freelancing is a good option. There are plenty of expats in Kraków and around Poland supporting themselves this way by running a one-person company (jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza), yours truly included. Start-up costs are low, and generally include the cost of registration of the company, including accounting help if necessary (and if you don’t speak Polish, that’s definitely a necessity), website design, and marketing in order to secure clients. The downside: as with freelancing anywhere in the world, there are alternating times of feast and famine, and you may have to rely on one of the two previously mentioned sources of employment in downtimes. Note that non-EU citizens can establish a sole proprietorship only if they have a permit of settlement or asylum.

The second option is opening a brick and mortar shop or business. The start-up costs here are much higher and generally require investors as well as extensive accounting and legal help, but the rewards can be much higher as well. Here, residency issues can get quite tricky, and it’s not uncommon for non-Poles to have Polish business partners, as their native knowledge is often invaluable to the success of the company. If you’re interested in starting a business in Kraków, a helpful resource is the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency website.

Anything else?

While the above-mentioned livelihoods are certainly the most common, there are some other options. If you’re highly skilled in a technical field that’s in demand (such as electronics, engineering, some programming or AutoCAD), you may be able to work for a Polish company regardless of your Polish language skills. There’s also the possibility of working for film companies as an English-speaking actor or doing voice-overs – a long shot, sure, but it pays well and is probably more fun than most other options.

Most importantly, don’t be discouraged if you can’t land your dream job the second you arrive in Kraków. If you’re determined to make this city your home, all you need is the perseverance to build your network of contacts, improve and diversify your skills and language abilities and eventually you’ll find the right career for you.

Because there’s a holiday this week (at least for those of us who live in countries with archaic Catholic traditions), I’m feeling somewhat refreshed and jovial, so I’m going to write about something a bit more fun for a change. Namely, the relatively new tradition of the Great Cracovian Pillow Fight*.

It starts out innocently enough. Students from the city’s universities gather at a set date in various corners of the Market Square, armed with pillows and dressed in t-shirt colors corresponding to their academic institution as designated on the event invitation. At the first note of the trumpeter from St. Mary’s marking the hour, they go running, pillows at the ready, towards the designated meeting point. The battle has begun.

At first it’s mild: gentle hits, lots of laughter.

But soon enough, the feathers start flying.

And shit gets intense.

Of course, it’s all in good fun.

Until your expensive lens gets slammed with a stray pillow, anyway.

Or until the cops start arresting people.

Because here’s a not-so-funny detail: the pillow fight was denied a permit by the city, probably on account of the mess that tends to get left behind (see below). So technically, kids can (and did) get citations for participating in an illegal demonstration - 15 tickets and 17 warnings were issued by the municipal authorities, namely for littering and disturbing the peace. Nonetheless, that didn’t spoil the fun for most participants, and there was a clean-up effort afterwards to rid the square of its non-pigeon feathers.

However, it looks like the right to bear pillows is still lacking in Poland.

*It’s not actually called that. But it should be.

I’ve been trying to write this for eight days.

I found out about the plane crash that killed the president of one of my countries on Saturday morning, eight days ago, by means of a text message I was convinced was a cruel joke being played on me by a coworker. I was on vacation thousands of miles away, sleeping in the warm land where I had spent most of my life, purposefully cut off from all things related to Polish news. The actual cruel joke was that the biggest event in recent Polish history would become the predominant headline worldwide, right in the middle of the ten days I’d spend out of the country this year.

So after scrambling to catch up on the news that had swept Poland hours before I awoke, I set myself the task of writing an editorial: a personal statement, as the Editor in Chief of a Polish paper and all, stating something deep and significant about the Polish nation amidst this tragedy. And I discovered that I couldn’t write a thing.

In the following days, when people in America would ask me what I felt, I’d answer that I was in shock. That wasn’t exactly true; I was definitely surprised, but what I felt was nothing. I was distracted by a completely different reality that surrounded me. I was disconnected, geographically and emotionally. Whether the former was the cause of the latter, I can’t know, but the lack of feeling rendered me with a tremendous case of writer’s block.

Not until I breathed Polish air on Wednesday could I begin to slowly form ideas about what I could write, and even then the process was far more painful that usual. I expected to feel the gravity of the plane crash the second my own plane landed on Polish soil, but instead I saw life going on around me more or less the way it had when I left, with the exception of everyone now hanging up Polish flags from every building.

I really wanted to be in Poland this weekend. I hoped that being here for the funeral, for the chaos and the communal sense of tragedy, would force me to feel something. I was scheduled to fly out on Friday morning, on a work-related trip to the Netherlands that was booked ages ago, back when no one imagined this could happen. To my great relief, my flight was grounded thanks to the Icelandic ash cloud wrecking havoc to Europe’s flight plans, the very same one that would keep the president of my other country away.

So I’m here today, not even as a member of the press (I didn’t bother to apply for a press pass as I thought I’d be out of the country), but as an ordinary Pole, drawn to this place of mourning. Don’t get me wrong, a big part of me realizes that this is a reporter’s wet dream, and I would lie if I said I didn’t feel any excitement. But mostly I wanted to use this day to understand what others are feeling, what the nation is feeling, so that maybe I could feel it too.

A little before the mass at St. Mary’s was to begin, I left the office near the Market Square and began to wander around the streets leading to the square, where I could go without a pass. The crowds were already substantial, and even walking down the street was difficult. I could hold my camera above my head and shoot the multitude, Polish and black mourning flags in their hands. But it wasn’t until right at 2 pm that something happened. I was walking back towards the office. A church bell rang out, signalling the hour, and then an air raid siren started its alarming wail (yes, we still have those - you never know when you’ll need one in Poland). And at the moment the air raid siren sang out, everyone stopped. A few clueless tourists kept walking, but quickly came to a halt, probably puzzled. And as I looked around I realized that I had stopped about ten seconds ago, along with everyone else.

The siren howled for a full minute, and the air was otherwise still. Few people moved, no one spoke. And the minute finally passed, the siren let out a dying cry and then faded, and everyone returned to their trajectories and conversations, as if some god had just pressed the play button on a divine TiVo.

It might seem strange to an outsider, but this is exactly what took place this week. For eight days, the nation stopped, and the people stood as one. Before and after, its citizens would inevitably follow their individual paths. But for that moment, for this week of mourning, as the world kept walking, Poland stopped its normal course and stood silent and proud, coming to terms with its loss.