The West seems to be losing its way in the world, while in Estonia the will to live is stronger than ever, digital technology leading the way.
How long does it take to set up a company in Estonia, I ask a consular official while applying for my passport. “About 10 minutes,” she says, typing away furiously. “Five is the record, I think.”
Various websites can help people do that, including Estonian government sites. Non-citizens can gain e-residency in Estonia, a bank account, and set up a company without even having to live in Estonia. As long as they have a local representative.
A young man sits down opposite me on the ferry from Hiiumaa to Saaremaa, addressing his little boy in Estonian, while finishing a phone call in my language. Remarking on his excellent English, he tells me his life story.
Karl was born in 1984. Soviet times were no fun, he recalls. He remembers queuing 2 hours at a shop as a small child, to find all it sold was “polished bones” and lemonade. He resolved to escape poverty. By 16 he was creating and writing websites, which he had to give up, aged 20, to go to law school. Six years later he became the youngest legal partner at PwC in Estonia.
Ten years at PwC he cashed up and quit. Karl now has a small family, does a range of technical work for clients, and enjoys skiing every winter in Italy. “I am not alone,” he says, “that’s why I am telling you this.”
We connect on Linked-In. “I don’t have any business cards,” Karl says; no one of his generation uses them. I say “e-Stonia”, and he laughs, asking if I have heard of the Wise card, a cost-effective currency transfer service. I show him mine, and he says he provided legal advice to the two young Estonians who created the business.
We talk, including on cycle touring in Estonia. I remark on the lack of water at campsites. “You need to remember,” Karl says, “for 5 months in Estonia, it’s very dark, and for 9 months, it’s very cold. Estonia is not geared up for summer, but it’s coming.”
Inspired by Karl’s enthusiasm for life and his country, Greg and I walk our bikes off the ferry on arrival in Saaremaa, and ride to a village, Leisi, for food, where folk dancers in traditional costume are competing. We watch and listen in front of an outdoor soundshell while eating salami and cucumber, rye-bread sandwiches. Prizes are given out at the end to the dancers; their last names include the easily recognisable Kuusk, Rand and Kull, spruce, beach and hawk.
Estonia has embraced the e-world while simultaneously retaining its identity, culture and language at the edge of free Europe, a feat worth celebrating.
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