Tuesday, June 3, 2014

President Obama visits Poland

President Obama is visiting Poland and all they keep showing on TV is the one lady who didn’t know anything about it and her car got towed. Riveting and hard-hitting news.
One good piece of news is that I think nobody is planning to ask Obama about the visa situation for Polish citizens travelling to the States (or maybe I am wrong, it is still early). I seems that people here are sick of feeling like second class citizens and have realized they can spend their money elsewhere. EuroDisney, anyone?
Barack Obama i Bronisław Komorowski
Obama and Komorowski

Obama, Komorowski and the one guy you can always count on.
Oh and Warsaw, sorry about the traffic.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that now a days visa is not anymore such a big issue. Casual trips or business ones are widely available for people who are really going to US with such intention. The only thing I don't like are restrictions and cost. I should not be asked to pay for only asking US to let me fly and spend my money there. And why if I get rejection once I can't try again in ... long time, I don't know exactly now how long. This are limitations which I'm expecting US to cancel. I don't mind that US controls immigration, that's normal and in fact Poland should do the same for citizens of some countries.

Ivy said...

Hi Chris,

I came across your post and thought you might be interested in checking out our story. I am a volunteer for a Polish Catholic church in Buffalo, New York. 11 years ago, the church was slated to close. However, we have kept the church open and made significant progress in restoring this landmark. It is my understanding that in Poland, as in many European countries, the government supports the exterior maintenance of many houses of worship. That is not the case in the U.S. Hope you will take a look at our video on Indiegogo.com (from the homepage just search for Corpus Christi tower restoration) and consider writing about our efforts.

My sister and her family lived in Germany for 3 years. The fact that you have lived in Poland for so long presents unique opportunities and challenges, as noted in your previous posts. Wishing you and your family success, health and happiness.

Chris said...

Anon - I agree that the red tape and the expense for just a request seems excessive. Let's hope that the situation changes for the better in the future.

Ivy - Congratulations on your efforts to save the church. You are correct that in many European countries the government supports building maintenance of houses of worship to varying degrees. I, however, do not support such financial backing of a religious institution by the government. Many buildings have historical value but I find that in many cases in Poland the level of support far outstrips the historical value of the buildings. I will happily take a look at your video. Thanks for sending it to me and thank you for your kind wishes.