6 scotsbarszcz

with David Laing

THE Gdansk diaries

Gdańsk, the Tri-City, is composed of three rail-linked conurbations – Gdańsk, Sopot and Gdynia – spread out along a c-shaped curve of Baltic coast line. During my three years of

teaching English as a foreign language in and around this historically significant port city, I had some rather mixed experiences with regard to accommodation. The worst by far was a small

flat on the top floor of a tower block in Gdynia. Apart from having to struggle with an obstinate communist-era washing machine – abusing it in English had

absolutely no effect whatsoever – its most

unpleasant feature was the fact that gusts of foul-smelling warm air from the flats below regularly forced their way through a vent into my living space. My teenage Polish students were very much amused to hear about the farting flat. Likewise, my young friends

were delighted when I told them that not long after my arrival, an elderly neighbour decided he ought to introduce himself. Appearing unexpectedly at my door, he said: “My name is Ted. I am normal.” To this day I wonder why on earth he felt the need to say that.

NEXT MONTH: Blok Leningradski

It was called Good Neighbours, but the community drama performed in Paisley, Renfrew and Johnstone last month showed that sometimes relations within some communities can be anything but friendly. The play was performed

by local Polish people and told the story of a family who had encountered various anti-social and racial problems since they had settled in to their new homes in Scotland. By confronting the issues,

the young actors showed that even the trickiest of problems can be tackled with the support of the appropriate authorities. The drama was written by

Liam Stewart, directed by Sam Rowe and presented by the West of Scotland Regional Equality Council as part of the Good Community Relations Project. Equality Council member

Joanna Wisniewska welcomed a cross section of the public to the three performances. Attending the premiere in Paisley was Polish Consul Tomasz Trafas who praised the Scots for their welcoming attitude to the Poles – especially helpful since 80% of the Polish immigrants (almost all of them aged under 35) have no friends of relatives in Scotland when they arrive. He also thanked the people

who worked hard towards making integration as easy as possible for newcomers.

Racists no

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