Welcome to the revised website of Poland Explorer about the central European country of Poland. We are aiming to be a voice of Poland, a place of discovery about the people and the country of this fascinating nation, also known as Polska or Polonia.
The full title of the country is the Republic of Poland or in Polish, Rzeczpospolita Polska. Over time Poland Explorer will be populated with information about travel, tourism, geography, history, culture, aviation, the economy and many other fascinating details about the cities, towns and villages across Poland.
Poland is an ancient nation that was created in the middle of the 10th century. Foreign agreements between 1772 and 1795 by Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. Although Poland regained its independence in 1918 it found itself overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II and became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was comparatively tolerant and progressive.
Problems with the labour force in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union “Solidarity” that eventually turned into a major political force and by 1990 had held parliamentary and presidential elections. Reforms carried out in the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe. This process continues to-day. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. With its transformation to a democratic, market-oriented country, Poland is actively involved in many Euro-Atlantic organizations.
Polish history goes back over a 1000 years with many battles fought over territory during this period. Many of the towns and cities date back to the beginning of the nation. The current population is about 38.1 million. Four out of the ten transport trans-european network corridors run through the nation.
Located between Germany to the west and the Baltic Sea and Russia to the north with Belarus and Ukraine in the east, the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south. It covers about the same physical area as the United Kingdom and Ireland, somewhere around 312,677 km, (120,727 sqm) is about 680km at its widest point and about 650km from north to south. It is about 1000 miles from the UK.
Many of the towns and cities in the Republic were destroyed during World War II, Krakow being the exception. The polish are putting a lot of energy into rebuilding their towns and cities. When I went there in October 2008, June 2009 and again in March 2010, it was very evident that construction work throughout the nation is a top priority. Clearly, the country of Polska and the polish people wish to become a great nation in Europe once again.
This European country of Poland has always been a bridge between the East and West and is cosmopolitan in its make up, due to its ever-changing borders. It’s people come from Lithuanians, Ukrainians, Belarusian’s and Germans and they love to travel around the world. The Polish can be found in almost every country but are proud of their heritage and traditions. In the past Jews also have played their part in its history.
Its architectural heritage includes Teutonic castles, Italian Renaissance palaces, French Baroque mansions and Eastern Orthodox churches.
Jeśli jesteś Polakiem lub masz wspomnienia z Polski, zapraszamy do przysłania artykułu na naszą stronę. Bardzo chciałbym otrzymywać artykuły na temat polskiej gospodarki, kultury, geografii, historii i walorów turystycznych Polski. I nie zapomnij dołączyć zdjęcia swojej miejscowości, miasta czy regionu.
Witamy na Poland Explorer, w odniesieniu do Polski i kraju Polska w sercu Europy.
The Economy of Poland
Poland has pursued a policy of economic recovery since 1990 and now stands out as a success story among the former communist economies. Before 2009, GDP growth was about 5% annually, based on rising private consumption, a rise in corporate investment, and funds from the EU. GDP per capita is still below the EU average, but is similar to other Baltic states. Since 2004, EU membership and access to the EU funds have provided a major boost to trade and the economy. Unemployment fell to 6.4% in October 2008 but has since climbed back to 8.9% by January 2010, but still remains below the EU average. In 2008 inflation reached 4.3%, greater than the upper limit of the National Bank of Poland’s target, but has since fallen to 3.5% by January 2010 partly due to the global economic slowdown.
Poland’s economic performance should improve over the medium to longer term providing the country addresses deficiencies in its transport, road and rail infrastructure and associated business environments. Other areas of concern are: an inefficient commercial court system, a rigid labour code, too much bureaucratic red tape, a heavy burdensome tax system, and the ever persistent low-level corruption which keeps the private sector from performing to its full potential.
With increasing demands on central funds to fund health care, education, and the state pension system Poland faces a challenge to hold the public sector budget deficit to under 3.0% of GDP, a target which was achieved in the period 2007-09. The PO/PSL coalition government, which came to power in November 2007, would like to reduce the budget deficit in 2010 and has also announced its intention to press ahead with business-friendly reforms, its aims are to increase the workforce participation, reduce the growth in public sector spending, decrease taxes, and accelerate the growth in privatization, at a time when the rest of Europe is in deep financial problems.
In reality the government has moved little on major reforms and meanwhile the legislature has passed a law significantly limiting early retirement benefits. A Health care reform bill also passed through the legislature, but then failed to overturn a presidential veto.
About Poland Explorer
Poland Explorer will develop into a large site and is a personal exploration and educational project that will expand over time. The aim is to provide a clear, easy to use site with useful information on many subjects about Polska. There will be regional and town guides on travel within Poland, tourism, history and geography, economy and culture. The first stage in its development will be articles on the cities, towns and villages of Poland.
If you are Polish or you have an association with the country I would be delighted to receive your own articles about Polska. Especially articles about where you live or about the local economy, travel, culture, geography, history or tourism, and don’t forget to include photographs of your village, town, or city.
Created in July 2009 originally under the name of WebPoland, Poland Explorer is administered from the United Kingdom and Poland. In addition to a Business Directory an Accommodation Directory will also be included in due course. You are welcome to advertise your products and services 365 days a year as the Poland Explorer website provides Polish organisations and businesses with a simple but quality and effective media platform. With clear and easily accessed advertising by the viewer, the service is designed to be both cost effective and informative.
Poland Explorer is run and administered by David Smith, an Englishman currently living in Hampshire in the United Kingdom, who has a keen interest in the country of Poland and visits Polska at least two or three time a year to explore and obtain information. Having previously been involved in commerce and industry, I have gained useful experience to be able to look after this type of website.
If you wish to find out about something specific on Poland Explorer use the search link in the main menu. Type in a word or a phrase if you would like to narrow the search.
Poland Explorer sometimes keep information about your visit to make our website easier for you to use. We also need to tell our partner sites you came via our site as we may be rewarded if you become their customer. None of this information contains anything personally identifiable to you. You can remove any information already stored on your computer, but this may prevent you from using parts of our site.
So Why Poland?
It is strange how our course in life can be changed by someone else but that is what has happened to me and so I have now embarked upon researching and learning about Poland Polska and the Polish and have created Poland Explorer. As for my Polish friend, I wish you and your family all the best for the future and will always remember you all and be grateful for giving me an interest in your country. Take care of each other and may God bless you and your family where ever you go.
Provinces of Poland
Poland or should I say Polska, has 16 provinces or regions (wojewodztwa, singular – wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie (Lower Silesia), Kujawsko-Pomorskie (Kuyavia-Pomerania), Lodzkie, Lubelskie (Lublin), Lubuskie (Lubusz), Malopolskie (Lesser Poland), Mazowieckie (Masovia), Opolskie, Podkarpackie (Subcarpathia), Podlaskie, Pomorskie (Pomerania), Slaskie (Silesia), Swietokrzyskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie (Warmia-Masuria), Wielkopolskie (Greater Poland), Zachodniopomorskie (West Pomerania).
I hope you enjoy this site on exploring the country of Poland, please do contact us with your articles and photographs to enable us to make it even more interesting for all our viewers.
David Smith
Poland Explorer