Polish traditions are rich and colorful. Christmas time is especially
important to Poles because of the Jesus Christ’s birth celebrated by
all Roman Catholics. After the first star is spotted, Polish family
begins the Christmas Eve dinner with a passage from the Bible, Luke
2:1-14, The Birth of Jesus Christ. Next, everyone brakes the “oplatek”
and goes around the table with wishes for the next year. Contrary to the
Western traditions, kids open their presents after the Christmas Eve
dinner. I found a great description of the dinner here.
Typical dishes include barszcz wigilijny z uszkami (Christmas Eve borscht with mushroom uszka dumplings), carp in aspic, herring (sledze), breaded whitefish, meatless cabbage rolls (golabki), and noodles with poppyseed. Desserts might include nuts, tangerines, chocolates, makowiec (poppyseed roll), mazurek (a jam-filled flat pastry), piernik (honey-spice cake), pierniczki (gingerbread cookies), kompot (fruit compote), cognac, liqueurs, mead and krupnik (a honey-spiced vodka). Kutia, a kind of gruel with cracked wheat and honey, is also eaten in some parts of Poland on Christmas Eve.
Take a look at couple of sample pictures of this year’s dinner. The
Christmas Eve borscht with mushroom dumplings was so delicious that I
haven’t had a chance to take a picture before it was gone. Merry
Christmas.
cabbage stuffed croquettes – krokiety
dumplings – pierogi
rice with fruit – ryz z owocami
herring with onions in oil – sledzie z cebula w oleju
The town square Christmas Eve celebration intended for the less fortunate residents of Radom, turned into a shameless freeloading frenzy. It took about 30 seconds for the grabby people to clear the tables. One liter bottles of soft drinks and loaves of bread disappeared before anyone had a chance to taste anything. The spread was to accompany traditional hot Christmas dishes: borsch with dumplings, pierogi, and bigos (cabbage and meat stew). Distribution of hot dishes went fairly smoothly with everyone enjoying the meal. View Larger Map
So why the excitement? Over 50 cent bottles of citrus flavored water? The outrage goes deeper than the monetary value of soft drinks and bread. It's the way the people behaved at the tables. Personally, the whole scene reminds me of the lines to the empty stores during the 80's when a delivery truck unloaded the goods and people would go nuts. But that was communist Poland. Today, Poland is an economic miracle country with positive growth numbers among the unlucky European countries ran down with recession and unemployment. Are people that greedy? One woman in particular, labeled, "chytra baba" or "cunning old woman", gives a black eye to all the values cherished by Poles, when she grabs not one, not two, but three bottles from the table and casually walks away with her loot. Just take a look at the YouTube video. Pay attention to a woman in a white hat. She does not look like a homeless person in need of food. The football-like bottle pass was amazing.That alone upset a lot of folks.
Not surprisingly, the "cunning old woman" is a new Internet hit in Poland. Her photo-shopped persona is plastered everywhere trying to grab all kids of items from the famous scenes. Take a look at her Facebook page. The sarcastic side of fame reminds us once again that nothing in the world can hide from a judging eye of the Skynet. Merry Christmas everyone. Don't get slapped at the table for grabbing your favorite pierogi too quick.
For millions of people who lived behind the Iron Curtain for over 40 years, Radio Free Europe was the only source of the factual and independent news. Year 2012 marks the 60th anniversary of the first broadcast on May 3rd, 1952, from Munich, Germany. Between the Polish Pope, John Paul II, Solidarity leader and Polish President, Lech Wałęsa, and the American President, Ronald Reagan, Radio Free Europe shines with its own accomplishments.
Founded by the United States, Radio Free Europe gave hope to all Eastern European countries terrorized by the communist regimes. Among the Polish broadcasters, Jan Nowak-Jeziorański(1914-2005), the Polish section leader, is the most recognizable person of his time.
As a young boy, during the 80′s, I vividly remember the family friend glued to an old radio turning the frequency knob every 10 seconds to catch the Radio Wolna Europa news. For people who realized how evil the communist regime was, listening to the station was a must. Radio Free Europe was an inspiration to portable Solidarity movement radio stations (Radio Solidarność) in several Polish cities. Reaching couple hundred meters and broadcasting from a tape recorder, those makeshift radios provided another avenue for the Solidarity movement to be heard.
The Polish-language history, photos, articles, and movies about the Radio Wolna Europa are available at www.wolnaeuropa.pl. The 1964 movie, “This is Radio Free Europe”, gives the inside glimpse of the RFE.
One would think that the collapse of the communism in the Eastern Europe would be the end of the Radio Free Europe. Not so. In 1995, the RFE headquarters were moved from Munich to Prague, Czech Republic, to continue the broadcasting work as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Some interesting facts from their website:
Countries: 21 (including Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Russia ) Languages: 28 Platforms: Radio (AM, FM, Satellite), Internet, Television Broadcast Hours: approximately 1,100 hours/week Audience: 24 million/week (radio, web, streaming audio) (FY2011) Employees: 500+ in Prague and Washington and 750 freelancers in 19 bureaus across the broadcast region. Budget: $92.7 million (FY2011)
Judging from the broadcast map, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is here to stay. At least until all the craziness in the Kreplakistan-like states finally disappears.
