Pole-ish

Football, history, bureaucracy, seafood, bicycles and a lot of affection for Poland - it can only be Pole-ish!

In this episode, Peter and John welcome Mike Giammattei, an American former Army Reservist who came to Poland on deployment, met the woman who would become his wife, and ended up building a life in Gniezno, Poland's historic first capital.

Along the way, Mike shares his experiences of bristling at Polish bureaucracy, working in logistics and his frankly bizarre love of Ipswich Town - not exactly one of English football's most glamorous clubs.

Elsewhere, Peter reports from the Baltic coast with some surprisingly salty facts, John reflects on a seafood extravaganza in Kraków, and the pair discuss cycling culture in Poland and the Netherlands.

This week's Pole of the Week is the extraordinary Irena Sendler, the Polish social worker who helped save around 2,500 Jewish children during the Second World War.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

RJ’s Goals – in memory of Mike’s brother: https://www.instagram.com/rjs.goals?igsh=NXJrb3VwZ2dmY2dw

Kapitan Konrad: https://en.kapitankonrad.pl/

Dutch Reach Project: https://www.dutchreach.org/

Polish National Anthem (Mazurek Dąbrowskiego): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BWvhox662o

Ipswich Town Football Club: www.itfc.co.uk

New Haven Pizza: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Haven-style_pizza

Delta Dawn – Tanya Tucker: https://open.spotify.com/track/7GH8qNOm2gEKryVUyVzkmt?si=5bdd431f9c1c491f

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

In Episode 19 of Pole-ish, we ask what makes someone leave Britain behind to build a new life in Poland.

Communications consultant Tom Lane swapped the drizzle of West Midlands for the sunlit uplands of Poznań after falling in love during the Covid years. He shares the story of moving to Poland, navigating the post-Brexit maze of paperwork, getting married across two countries, and launching his own communications business in a foreign language and culture. Along the way, the conversation explores Polish bureaucracy, learning the language (obvs), football, community spirit, quality of life, and how Poland for Tom increasingly feels more like home than the UK.

Elsewhere, Peter and John discuss Czechia, Nashville, amber, Żabka, churches, and the welcome return of the legendary 666 bus to Hel.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Return of the 666 bus to Hel: https://notesfrompoland.com/2026/05/31/polands-666-bus-to-hel-returns-in-new-form/

Polish amber: https://culture.pl/en/article/amber-poland-a-history-crafted-in-resin

UNESCO Heritage Sites in Poland: http://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/pl

Polish National Anthem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland_Is_Not_Yet_Lost

Myslovitz - Długość dźwięku samotności: https://open.spotify.com/track/0DqRsfmMvauRib1AsgpOP2?si=de6e5c9309ae4c01

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

For Episode 18 of Pole-ish, we’re joined by internationally minded Polish career coach, recruitment expert and intercultural communication specialist Lucy Bolin.

After living in six countries across Europe and North America - including the US, UK, Germany, Spain and France - Lucy shares what two decades abroad taught her about identity, ambition, language, belonging and the emotional reality of expat life.

We explore reverse culture shock, why some people never truly feel “at home”, how moving abroad changes your personality, and why learning the local language matters far more than many people realise.

Lucy also opens up about returning to Poland during COVID, raising a multilingual family, the emotional pull of home, and why she believes Polish people are uniquely adaptable abroad.

Along the way, we discuss confidence, self-awareness, recruitment culture, British food, Polish seriousness, beaches on the Baltic coast and the psychology behind starting over.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Puszcza Białowieska: https://bpn.gov.pl/

Lucyna Bolin Coaching: https://www.lucynabolin.com/

Sviatoslav Kondrativ: https://www.youtube.com/@NaSkrzypcachGraSviatoslav

Marcin Wyrostek: https://www.youtube.com/user/wyrostekmarcin

Maciej Tubis – Into The Night: https://open.spotify.com/track/1wJq8P1gSQzp9fReVlsMOU?si=ecfa96e49abe476c

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

In Episode 17 of Pole-ish podcast, Peter and John are joined by Nigerian-born content creator Raphael Obi, whose hilarious and sharply observed videos about life in Poland have built a huge online following.

Raphael talks about why he moved from Nigeria to Warsaw, the culture shocks of arriving in Poland, learning the Polish language (or attempting to), and what it’s like being a Black foreigner in one of Europe’s most homogenous countries.

The conversation dives into identity, belonging, bureaucracy, Polish food, viral content creation, and why rosół apparently solves every problem in life.

Elsewhere in the episode:

• Peter discovers the wonderfully Polish tradition of the parapetówka
• John takes us deep underground into Poland’s legendary salt mines
• We visit the ancient settlement of Biskupin - the “Polish Pompeii”
• And Peter somehow survives another round of Three in Ten Seconds

Expect observations, laughter, honesty, and at least one attempt at Disco Polo singing.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Follow Raphael Obi / DarkMagikCA

• Instagram: @darkmagikca
• TikTok: DarkMagikCA Live
• Linktree: DarkMagikCA

Wieliczka Salt Mine: www.kopalnia.pl

Biskupin Archaeological Site: https://biskupin.pl/

Bałkanica – Piersi (Będzie zabawa!): https://open.spotify.com/track/3bsxKpPB1rv80N8edDIZz8?si=6daa91481db549cb

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

We boldly go where no podcast has gone before... well, at least no podcast which also features ptasie mleczko, pétanque and the coconut song.

Our special guest is Dr Tomasz Zajkowski - President of the Polish Astrobiology Society, and researcher at AGH University’s new Faculty of Space Technologies in Kraków. Tomasz talks to us about the search for extraterrestrial life, whether we might all secretly be Martians, the challenges of science in Poland and the US, and why understanding alien life can actually teach us more about ourselves.

Along the way, we discuss Polish student festivals, Stanisław Barańczak’s linguistic madness, veganism, California culture shocks, Mazurian lakes, and the possibility that Poland may soon play a much bigger role in space exploration.

Also featuring:

• Rugby & cricket in Warsaw parks
• why Americans sit facing restaurant entrances
• which Polish delicacy is much in demand at NASA
• and a scientifically questionable amount of discussion about bird’s milk.

We urge you to listen to this episode – it’s out of this world!

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook. 

Stanisław Baranczak: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanis%C5%82aw_Bara%C5%84czak

Polish Astrobiological Society: https://astrobio.pl/

Project Hail Mary (film): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12042730/

The Coconut Nut (The Coconut Song) - The San Miguel Master Chorale: https://open.spotify.com/track/1XHeQupI4MWPA7UrU6EKEu?si=f7ee483235a94ac6

In Episode 15 of Pole-ish, Peter and John kick off with Benny Hill’s grammatically and politically incorrect legacy, Warsaw’s striking new Museum of Modern Art, and a wild-animal challenge featuring bison, boar and beavers (naturally).

Then they’re joined by British journalist and author Jo Harper for one of their most honest and revealing conversations yet.

Jo reflects on arriving in Poland in the 1990s, building a life here through marriage, journalism and fatherhood, and the personal upheavals that shaped his writing. From Polish politics and media narratives to divorce, identity, homesickness and the strange psychology of borders, this is a raw conversation about what it means to belong somewhere, and what happens when that feeling starts to slip away.

Plus: Polish dark humour, bureaucratic frustration, flaki, and why Kazik Staszewski still hits the right note.

A funny, thoughtful, and unexpectedly moving episode about Poland and the stories we tell ourselves about home.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Jo Harper: https://harpersediting.pl/

Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw: https://artmuseum.pl/

Julie Mehretu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Mehretu

Architect Thomas Phifer: https://www.thomasphifer.com/office/role/director/thomas-phifer

Benny Hill: https://bennyhill.co.uk/

Flaki: https://aniagotuje.pl/przepis/flaki

12 Groszy by Kazik: https://open.spotify.com/track/6wevlxn0kTHe6rievB13VI?si=730695c8e1974ae8

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

This week on Pole-ish, Peter and John welcome Oleg Tyshchenko, a Ukrainian developer behind Polish Heritage: Quiz Explorer - an app designed to help people discover Poland through quizzes, recipes, history and culture.

Along the way, we get into Polish vs Ukrainian borscht, the truth about pierogi ruskie, why philosophy still matters in tech, and how Polish heritage can survive across borders and generations.

Plus: ChatGPT takes our Five Big Questions, John talks Kraków Marathon dinosaurs, and Peter finds perhaps the least subtle bit of graffiti in Warsaw and is embarrassed about how “naughty” it is.

Come for the culture. Stay for the smalec.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Bubble Boy (trailer): https://youtu.be/jSRU48wCphI?si=-bhbfkLaFwWcLYpF

Oleg’s Polish Heritage app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.olegtyshchenko.polishheritage&pcampaignid=web_share

Chopin Nocturnes (Rubenstein): https://open.spotify.com/album/5Q5m22P7jIwdMSKXqhrpaN?si=4a1c092c5aec4e09

Mery Spolsky – Miło Było Pana Poznać: https://open.spotify.com/track/72p7CkcPgKtWJjaxsAFNDZ?si=0bc35f0ce53e4477

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

This week on Pole-ish, we prove once again that you don’t need a wild night out for things to descend into mild chaos. Fresh(-ish) from a wholesome Kraków meetup, we recap an evening that featured cherry liqueur, questionable coordination, zapiekanka incidents, and - because it’s Poland in April - a surprise midnight snowfall. Rock and roll.

There’s also a global reality check as we discover our listeners are popping up everywhere from Vietnam to Oman (still not France… awkward), plus a deep dive into the perfect hangover cure: a full English breakfast in the middle of Kraków.

Along the way, we stumble into a hidden church, accidentally unpack a deeply disturbing Greek myth, and question some life choices.

In this episode:

·       A surprisingly civilised “big night out” 🍻

·       Polish wines and why you should give them a chance 🍷

·       The unpredictable reactions to speaking Polish as a foreigner 🗣️

·       The return of 3 in 10 (with Ipswich under pressure) ⏱️

·       Oscypek appreciation hour 🧀

·       And why the Polish word “no” absolutely does not mean what you think it means 🤦‍♂️

We wrap up with a nod to Majówka and Poland’s triple celebration season - so if you’re listening with a beer in hand, you’re doing it right.

As always, we’re not Polish… We’re Pole-ish.

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Read our blog: www.pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Cherry Liqueur bar: https://pianavyshnia.com/

Scandale Royale: https://scandale.pl/

Pasaż 13: https://www.myguidekrakow.com/shopping/pasaz-13

Legend of Procne: https://www.greeklegendsandmyths.com/procne.html

Hoopoe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoopoe#

Polska Rada Winiarswa (Polish Wine Council): https://zpprw.pl/en/#

British 'champagne': https://tinyurl.com/ycd8zj64

Oscypek cheese: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscypek

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

Our two Pole-ish buddies finally record an episode in the same room. In this very special (and somewhat disorganised) episode, Peter & John record together in Kraków with no script, no plan, but absolutely no shortage of beer.

They swap stories of Poland past and present (including propeller planes into a snowy Balice), debate why Kraków might just be the perfect-sized city, and attempt to separate fact from fiction - with mixed success - on everything from wolves to bar & café density.

Along the way:

• The truth about Kraków vs Warsaw
• A near-wolf encounter in the mountains
• Museums you should visit… and one you probably shouldn’t
• The legend of the Hejnał trumpet
• A fridge inspection that gets surprisingly emotional
• And a competitive “3 in 10” that tests John’s home knowledge

It’s messy, it’s meandering, and it’s probably our most Pole-ish episode yet. Na zdrowie 🍺

PS Sorry for the dodgy sound quality in places – we’re still quite new to the game, and clearly haven’t mastered how to share a microphone. Normal service will be resumed next week.

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Read our blog: www.Pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Hejnał: https://mariacki.com/hejnal/

Rynek Underground Museum: https://muzeumkrakowa.pl/en/branches/rynek-underground

Kraków Stained Glass Museum: https://muzeumwitrazu.pl/

Kraków Wax Museum: https://www.poloniawaxmuseum.com/

Grey Wolf: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c

Something very different this week with Peter and John taking a well-earned(!) break. What happens to all the bits that don’t make the cut? They come back to life. Think of it as the Pole-ish podcast’s very own monster – slightly unhinged, oddly charming, and impossible to categorise.

This week, we bring you a selection of offcuts, bonus content and bloopers that haven’t previously been aired in previous episodes.

Listen out for:

·       John makes a mess of Three in 10 – twice!

·       David Kennedy eloquently describes the best way to brew tea (milk first?)

·       A staggering number of things in Poland named after John Paul II

·       Peter falling through ice in Warsaw

·       The fine art – and competitive strategy – of Baltic beach paravanning

·       And many more bloopers, misfires, and moments that probably should have stayed on the cutting room floor

If you’re an expat, living in Poland, a fan of the country, or simply enjoy hearing two confused guys giving professional broadcasters a bad name, then tune in!

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Read our blog: www.Pole-ish.eu

Write to us: [email protected]

Follow our socials: search for ‘Pole-ish Podcast’ on BlueSky, Xwitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Pole-ish Guest Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/68kYaLG4XYgcjRdSjzzgcW?si=de7065757241400c