Well, I guess just to clarify this a bit, I'll step in.
I've been to Poland a few times, and I can indeed say that it is as drab as you lot think. It's not as bad now since the Polish have had a bit of time to improve things from what they once were, but nevertheless, there are still a lot of places that look like they did during Russian occupation. I remember when I first went there several years ago. Almost all the cars were Fiat 126's, and a lot of the buildings had absolutely the most garish colors imaginable. Ever seen a crumbling house with vivid, purple paint? After the Russians left they got their hands on whatever they could that wasn't available to them during occupation, and paint aside from different shades of green, gray and brown was one of them.
Unfortunately, I never really have had much opportunity to really take a look at their railroad infrastructure. On the occasion I have seen it though it looks, well, Polish; and I think you chaps can guess what I mean from there.
On a slightly different note, one of Poland's neighbors, namely the Czech Republic, also looks more or less as drab, although to a somewhat lesser degree for some reason. Wherever I've gone it still looks like nothing has changed since Russian occupation, but for some inexplicable reason it's a bit more pleasant. One example of sorts can be found in the railroad station in Semily where I was on a mission trip with a youth group. The station has in effect three dispatchers, one in the middle and two at the ends. When a train comes, the two at the ends lower the level crossing barriers and set the points by hand whilst the chap at the middle of the station sets the postwar OSShD light signals. It's an interesting setup that's quite fascinating to watch.
WileeCoyote
