Even the Password

The password of the wifi network in the business class lounge at Gdansk was Lech Walesa pronounced Walenza. This is the type of the iconic status if not divine, that erstwhile Nobel Laureate Mr Walesa enjoys in this sleepy port town of Gdansk in the extreme north of Poland from where he hails, and which was the seat of command of his Solidarity Movement. He still has an office in the port which he visits.

But the port has now been hijacked by some French companies who are using the infrastructure to build luxury yachts, each selling for a million Euro or more. So very principles that fired the movement seemed to have been given a go by.

When I traveled from Gdansk ( Danzki ) to Starogard, another small town about 80 kms from Gdansk, I saw lot of development work. Not too many workers though like India, as the work was mostly mechanized, but Poland had access to significant “Accession Funds” which are being deployed in the infrastructure projects. In fact, in some these countries which were later additions to the much extolled European Union, the infrastructure created far exceeds the current need and hence capital is locked in idle assets. But regardless, since someone else had paid for the same, some decades down the line, this effort would hold the country in good stead. In fact I personally believe, at the country level, unlike corporates, country balance sheets should not be shying away from asset creation.

The Polish economy is growing around 4 – 5 pct which is good by any advanced country standards, hoping that there is no doctoring of numbers.

Culturally, these Eastern Bloc countries are closer to India. They espouse similar if not identical value systems. They respect family values, respect age and station and believe in the institution of marriage. At dinner two friends that I was dining with, had been married for 29 years and 20 years respectively and to the same woman. The years can often be matched in so called advanced countries, but may be spit between 4 different women.

Interestingly, dinner was at a restaurant called Goldwasser, literally meaning gold water. It is a brand of Vodka invented by the owner of the Restaurant, which has gold shavings. The gold is supposed to bring special flavor and properties to the Vodka, hence Goldwasser.

Russian is not a liked language though most of the older generation can speak, read and write the language. This was imposed on the people at the time of the communist regime and hence detested. Today the younger generations learn other languages, but not Russian. In India, the state did not impose Hindi and I think that was a very forward looking strategy.

The acceptability of Hindi since independence has increased many fold only for the reason that it was never imposed. All educated people have a functional knowledge of Hindi, and in times to come, this could be a unique uniting thread to the various cultures of the country. If I were in Nehru’s place, out of jingoism, I would have made Hindi compulsory for all at the time of independence, and I think that would have wrung the death knell of a language so beautiful much ahead of its fated time.