"Poland: a country getting to grips with being normal at last"

Commuters and shoppers near Centrum Metro station in central Warsaw Commuters and shoppers near Centrum Metro station in central Warsaw, with the Palace of Culture in the background. Photograph: David Levene for the Guardian

"Rutinoscorbin is like the sixth member of our family!" an implausibly gleaming model mother chirps from the television, in one of many American-style commercials for health products.

Outside, in the spring sunshine, BMWs and Mercedes glide past freshly painted facades and smart coffee shops. Young Poles send text messages using neo-Polish words such as trendi, seksi and kul. Half the old friends I want to meet up with are abroad: in the European parliament, in Paris, on the Canary Islands.

Being in Warsaw these days is like being in Madrid or Rome. It's normal. Except that for Poland, this normal is profoundly abnormal; the ordinary, extraordinary.

The article sounded quite patronising to me, I'm afraid.

Young Poles send text messages using neo-Polish words such as trendi, seksi and kul.

Why?

Foreigners writing about Poland forever walk into the same trap of talking about "changes" or, even worse "recent changes" in Poland

This is quite a good assessment of how things are right now:

Rest of article here.

Outside, in the spring sunshine, BMWs and Mercedes glide past freshly painted facades and smart coffee shops

"Poland: a country getting to grips with being normal at last"

trendi, seksi and kul.

Poland, please stop using my language. You sound ridiculous.

Geez, a whole new generation has grown up in the meantime!

Less than 30 years ago, I stood on what was then called Victory Square (now Pilsudski Square) and watched angry protesters from the Solidarity movement defying the communist riot police. "Why are they chanting 'Gestapo'?" exclaimed an elderly bystander. "It should be 'SS'!"

especially the one about the Baniak family. I know so many people like that

They are a typical, successful Polish family

is that the typical family with most of the under 30s in England then?

l[quote] that the typical family with most of the under 30s in England then?

This "article" really raised my hackles. I especially admire the accompanying photo of "people eating soup". Wow.

Why can't a journalist ever come to Poland and describe it as it is? Without always comparing it to the "West" or digging around in the past, especially that their knowledge of Poland's past consists of factoids and half-truths?

the living standard of most it's citizens

I wouldn't be too harsh in this department either. I have seen enough squalor in the UK to be totally disenchanted with the idea of "western luxury".