Boleslawiec: Find the best in Polish pottery
I have just returned from a pottery shopping trip in Boleslawiec, Poland, for the fifth time in five years, and this was one of the most enjoyable trips I have ever been on.
A friend and I organized this grand adventure for the women of the NATO base at Geilenkirchen, Germany, booking the bus and hotel and creating the itinerary, and it was a blast. Among the shoppers (all women), we had 20 Canadians and one American (me), plus one Dutch and one German bus driver.
Peter the Dutch driver was a gentleman flirt. He loved talking to the ladies and telling jokes. Michael was our German driver, in his late 30s and very handsome and quiet. We discovered that he had many girlfriends and each one had a different ring on his cell phone. We had ourselves in stitches teasing him about that. (For the safety-minded out there, please note that he never answered the phone while driving.)
We sat at the Polish border for an excruciating two and a half hours. The border guards are very polite, but very wary. We were going through during the World Cup games, so everyone was being scrutinized more closely than usual.
One of the big problems was caused by — if you can believe this — me! My passport had expired and I didn’t realize it. The border guard said it would cost 25 euros to get into the country, but by the time all was said and done it cost me 50. Thank goodness for bus driver Peter, who argued with the policeman fervently on my behalf, because the police wanted us to drive somewhere, get a passport photo, come back, and pay for the passport before being allowed into Poland.
Luckily they copied my old passport photo, took my money and let me go. I don’t recommend this form of excitement; it took a few years off of my life wondering whether I was going to Poland or wait many hours for my husband to come and get me while the rest of the women went off to shop!
We then went to the tax office to pay our head tax, which is required if you bring a bus into the country. Again, they decided we hadn’t paid enough and charged us 100 euros more than what we had planned. They really got us on this trip!
Finally, off we went to Boleslawiec, a little lighter in the pockets but happy to be away from the border. We stopped at our hotel first, the Protea. If you haven’t been there, you are missing out. I have yet to find a cuter hotel in Poland. You feel as if you are going back in time to a quaint little hunting lodge, and you cannot beat the quality of the food or the price. It costs less than $10 for a great meal, which could be perogis (potato stuffed noodles), fried potatoes, soda and a dessert. The rooms cost about 45 dollars a night.
After dropping off our bags at the hotel, we headed out to let the serious shopping begin at the 14 stores located within a five- to 10-minute walk. Unfortunately, because of the strength of the euro, prices have gone up considerably from my early days of pottery shopping. It’s good from the Polish point of view; the shops are thriving, but I miss my cheap pottery! Oh well, it is still much cheaper than going online or buying it in the States.
We had many first-time Polish pottery shoppers, so we made up a booklet of tips. It gave information such as what “Gat” is. All Boleslawiec pottery is clearly marked with stickers that give a “Gat” rating. “Gat” is short for gatunek, which means quality category, ranging from one through five. Gat one is the best quality, with no defects; two may have a stray brush stroke; three may have cracks or holes in the glaze; four may have a chip; and five cannot be used in the oven. This is good to know, because if you are anything like me, you want to use your pottery, not just sit it on a shelf.
Here are a few other tips that we passed along to the shoppers:
• If this is your first time shopping for Polish pottery, you are likely to be overwhelmed by the choices of patterns, types of dishes and the size of the stores. Prices vary, but not enough that you should compare from store to store. Look at the Web sites I have supplied and get a feel for what pattern(s) and the types of dishes and accessories you want. Keep in mind that what you see on the Web may not be available in the stores, so don’t set your heart on only one pattern. Many people like to have a number of patterns. It all looks fabulous, regardless of whether it matches.
• If you see it and you like it, buy it! Don’t wait to find it at the next shop. You may never see that item again and you may not be able to go back to the shop where you saw it, if you can even remember which one it was. Also, some other shopper might snap it up before you can get back to it.
• If the shopkeepers give you change in zlotych, the Polish currency, spend it! Most banks won’t give you euros for the change. (You can exchange the paper money, but you might want to keep some as souvenirs. Poland is going to euros, so the paper money will soon be out of print.)
• Bring a black felt marker and mark your boxes clearly so your purchases are not confused with those of others on your tour.
• Do not try to barter with Polish merchants. They will be offended and will walk away.
• Bring lots of dollars or euros (they take both); ATMs are few and far between and they only give out zlotych (after the first of the year that may change).
There is so much to see in this little border town that I could fill up all of Stars and Stripes and still have more to tell you.
But my other main piece of advice is to be courageous and try the great variety of food while you are there. You will not believe the treasures of taste and smell you will find in their small restaurants.
I do not have much time left in Europe, and I can honestly say that some of my best memories will be of shopping in Poland.
I will leave you with this quote, from St. Augustine: “The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.”
Konya Bloomquist, who refers to herself as a “hausfrau extraordinaire," lives in Tuddern, Germany. E-mail her at kjbloomquist@onlinehome.de.
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