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Pineapple as a Gift?

October 9, 2013 by Lois Britton 4 Comments

I had lunch today with a friend from India. We got to talking about traditions – like the fact that chrysanthemums are only for the cemeteries in Poland. I remember an Australian friend buying a big pot of beautiful mums for her balcony. I don’t remember if it was her neighbors or her Polish in-laws that said you just don’t do that.

Our lunch conversation  led my friend to ask if I knew about the reason behind giving a fresh pineapple as a gift in Poland. The only thing I could offer to the conversation was that I knew in the states a pineapple was a symbol of hospitality (sometimes included in needlework), but I’ve never seen or heard of anyone giving a pineapple as a gift – maybe as part of a big fruit basket, but not on its own festooned in ribbons.
My friend said she has been on the receiving end of a ribbon wrapped pineapple four times since she arrived in Poznan. So I wanted to ask you, dear readers, what’s the story?

PS – while I’m asking questions, who is the new English speaking guy in the WBK ads. Chuck Norris I recognized, but this one, no.

Lois Britton

An accountant by trade and a food blogger since 2009, Lois Britton fell in love with Polish cuisine during the years she lived in Poznań, Poland. As the creator of PolishHousewife.com,  she loves connecting readers with traditional Polish recipes. Lois has a graduate certificate in Food Writing and Photography from the University of South Florida. She is the author of The Polish Housewife Cookbook, available on Amazon and on her website.

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Filed Under: Daily life

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Chris

    October 10, 2013 at 12:09 pm

    I received a pineapple as a birthday present my first year here in Poland. I thought it odd, odd but delicious. Maybe it has something to do with the former rarity of exotic fruit in Poland?

    And about the BZ-WBK ad – it's Kevin Spacey. From a distance on the print ads, you can't tell who it is.

    Reply
  2. Edi

    October 15, 2013 at 12:33 pm

    Very puzzling with the pineapple as a gift… I have no idea why…and have never seen it being given/received as a gift. Must be an imported idea:)

    Reply
  3. Kasia

    October 17, 2013 at 11:49 am

    My husband has just bought mums for me for our wedding anniversary – still feels awkward to me – he probably has no clue:)
    I have not heard about the pineapple as a gift. Must be a new thing.
    That said – I was just recently telling my son that when I was growing up we only had bananas and oranges for Christmas and Easter. Forgot to tell him that we could only buy pineapples (canned)

    Reply
  4. Lois B

    October 18, 2013 at 12:36 am

    I don't think I'd ever had fresh pineapple until my kids were young, so it was kind of exotic in the states too. My friend said they use pineapple plants as a hedge-like fence between yards in India.

    Reply

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