This is Roberto Galea, and this week’s letter from Poland will start with a question – a rhetorical question.
When was the last time you were complimented for a job well done? I’m not talking about a pat on the back from a supervisor, or a handshake for just about doing your job according to the job description. No, I’m referring to an all-out applause congratulating you for simply doing your job.
On a recent trip abroad, I was reminded of the fact that it seems to be a Polish trait for plane passengers to applaud en masse when the aircraft touches the ground. We assume this is when the plane touches safely, because luckily, I have not experienced any other kind of landing other than a controlled descent on the runway of all the craft’s massive wheels.
So perhaps I cannot fathom the relief that is actually landing safely after spending a few hours in the air – I don’t know the alternative. What I do know is that when I fly into or out of Poland, the cabin immediately fills with cheers and claps. Are these people glad that they are still alive?
Fair enough, the captain did a formidable job of getting us all safe to our destination. We’re all in one piece. But isn’t he (or she) just doing his (or her) job? Do we clap when an accountant helps us with our yearly tax returns? Do we applaud when a bus driver manages to get us to our destination? In the case of the latter we rarely even walk past and say “thanks”.
Well then, how is the situation different in the case of airline pilots?
Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that flying is not natural to humans, and the very idea of fling from point A to point B fills many of us (me included) with dread. Is it not natural therefore to express this heartfelt thanks with a good clap! Just like asking for an encore at a classical concert. Take us up in the air one more time, Pilot, we want to relive it all again.
Polish friends I have asked about this say that things have “improved” and Poles don’t always applaud with the same gusto as they did a couple of decades ago. Perhaps they are more getting used to flying, being in planes and the concept of soaring through the skies. So the novelty of it all is starting to wear thin.
Perhaps it’s because few Poles could afford to fly during the dark days of the Communist People’s Republic of Poland. Now the concept is more widespread.
Nonetheless, it is human nature to clap when we are happy, or relieved. We do it when we are babies, and the habit stays with us until adulthood. If you think about it the very nature of clapping to show gratitude is a strange one. How does the fact that I am hitting my palms together show you that you have done a great job?
One better way of showing gratitude is TIPPING. Yet this custom has not gathered track in Polish society. No. Poles are not big tippers like, say, their American counterparts. The fact that a waiter’s attentive service resulted in your excellent experience at that particular restaurant, in the eye of many Poles, is not worth a ten-percent tip.
I have had this discussion with many friends. “Waiters are just doing their job,” they say. They are getting handsomely paid for serving us food and taking it away when we are done. So why should we tip?,” they argue.
Now I have to admit that I am a very selective tipper, and I don’t tip waiters who didn’t provide a stellar service, but when I do, that is a sign that I am fully satisfied with the meal – service and all. After all what difference will a few złotys make the cost of a meal?
Perhaps we should all applaud our waiter then next time they have done their job well. What a strange dining experience that would be!