Moscow Times

Hi, everyone. Me, Claudia and Ross are sitting in a hostel in Moscow, making the most of the free internet. It’s snowing here, so it’s properly Russian.

We left Voronezh last night, after three months. In these three months we met so many amazing people, had so many amazing experiences and saw so many amazing things. Despite all the bad things about Russia, and Voronezh in particular, it was so hard to leave. A lot of our friends were at the station to see us off and there were a lot of hugs and tears and the whole thing was so sad. We’ll all keep in touch, definitely, and I hope to come back to Russia sometime in the near future. So, that’s it. Voronezh is over, let the three days in Moscow begin…

We'll miss you! - Catherine, Kersti, Nena

Kiev – an international city…

Germany, UK, USA, Russia

So, Kiev’s been and gone and we’re now back in Voronezh, until we leave again in a week and a half. There were four of us who went: me, Claudia, Anna and Richard, all foreigners in Ukraine. I’m from the UK, Claudia’s from Germany, Anna’s from Russia and Richard is from the USA. Whenever anyone asked us ‘Ot kuda?’ (‘Where are you from?’) we had to reel off the list of countries. It was quite funny. The concierge on the train to Kiev didn’t find it funny though and when I asked to go to the toilet she tutted and said ‘Ach, innostrantsy (foreigners)!’ I took it as a compliment. Sometimes it feels like Russians like to use the term ‘foreigner’ as an insult and it really annoys me. Never mind. At least borders don’t matter when it comes to making friends and when we leave soon we’ll have a lot of goodbyes…

Claudia, Me (Joe), Richard, Anna

Kiev in Pictures

This is our last day in Kiev so here are some pictures of what is a beautiful city…

A nice building

A Square

Independence Square

A building on Andrew

The University

Nato Go Home!

Ok, it’s a grey, wet Monday morning and we’re in Kiev, on a short trip away from Voronezh. Although the weather’s a bit rubbish the city is still amazingly beautiful and our hostel is right in the city centre. However, the hostel owner is from Norway and seriously anti Russian, and by default pro NATO and EU.

The Protest

Anyway, this morning we went for a short walk and by chance we went past the Polish Embassy and there was a small protest. An old lady was there giving out bags and we got one thinking it was nothing, but then we looked closer… Inside was a lighter, a fridge magnet, a city map and a metro map, plastered with the slogan ‘Nato, go home!’ When we got back to the hostel the owner showed his political side again with the remark ‘Communist motherf***ers.’

Nato...

So that’s Kiev so far. Cool, huh?

At the Dacha

A couple of weeks ago some Russian friends of ours invited us to their dacha, about 40 minutes south of Voronezh. We met at Lenin Square at 6 in the evening, spent the whole night there and got back to Voronezh at 3 the next day. We talked (a mixture of English and Russian) and had a barbeque. Then we talked some more. I woke up earlier than the others the next day and it was nice just to sit on the porch and breathe clean air and listen to the birds. It was cold though. When everyone woke up we had cake for breakfast and went down to the beach.

The Dacha

Almost every Russian has a dacha and it’s part of their culture. I guess if you live in a big city like Voronezh or Moscow you’d want to get away every once in a while. And they definitely have the space for it.

Voronezh Nights

After my last post which was kind of negative I thought I’d balance it out with some pictures of Voronezh at night.

A New Conference Centre

The Cathedral near my House

The Entrance to the Park

Lenin Square with the State Theatre

 

A Series of Unfortunate Events

Today was just one of those days, a series of unfortunate events, which seem to happen in Russia quite regularly. I went to lessons, like I usually do, and it was fun. There were only three of us because the others were off travelling. Afterwards we went to a little restaurant and that’s when the troubles began. I ordered lasagne and chips and the lasagne was cold and the chips were soaked in oil. I couldn’t be bothered to say anything.

Anyways, I had to leave earlier to meet my landlady. She teaches English and she wanted me to give a talk about Norwich, the nearest big town to me, and about the differences between the UK and Russia. I spent the whole night before working on my presentation (there’s a lot of differences, ok) and I was prepared. I was waiting near the statue of Peter the Great and it was absolutely freezing. I waited and waited, while the babushkas around me were looking for food in the bins. Half an hour passed, then an hour. By then my feet were about to drop off from the cold and I thought: another 15 minutes and no more. She never came, so I just before I died from pneumonia I went.

I decided to go somewhere warm, and there’s a museum round the corner. Guess what, though? It was closed. I didnt want to go home so I decided to walk down Prospect Revolution and find somewhere to go. The next thing that happened to me to make me want to scream was when this women dressed in shiny knee high boots and a fur coat came up to me and asked me for money. She looked rich. I just said ‘I’m not Russian, I don’t understand’ and walked off.

So, eventually I ended up somewhere normal, and more importantly, warm: Cao Kakao. It’s a really cool cafe in Voronezh, there’s two, and the one I was in opened just a couple of weeks ago. It’s our favourite hang out spot here (after MacDonalds, of course) and it’s good. I ordered the usual, hot chocolate. It’s not just any old hot chocolate, it’s actually pure melted chocolate, so thick. On a cold day it is heaven. So anyway I stayed there for a bit, read some of my book and thought about Kiev… (we’re going there this Friday, by the way).

Cao Kakao

The Story of Platonov

Andrei Platnov, 1899-1951

The picture above, a memorial to the Voronezh writer Andrei Platonov, is one of the most interesting and unusual sights in this city, taking pride and place on Prospect Revolution, the main street. It opened ten years ago, after a period of obscurity during Soviet times. Nowadays in the city of his birth he is not just recognised but celebrated, the monument being just one of the visual signs of remembering one of the greatest writers of 20th century Russia. It is predicted that the 1920s and 30s will, in time, be remembered not as the age of Lenin and Stalin, but as the age of Platonov.

But why did Platonov fall out of favour with the Soviet authorities? At the beginning, shortly after the 1917 Revolution, he was writing for various Communist newspapers in Voronezh and was an active supporter of the Communist Party. However his views changed in the wake of a devastating drought and famine in 1921 and he quit the party. He produced his two major works, the novels ‘Chevengur’ and ‘The Foundation Pit’, between 1926 and 1930. In ‘The Foundation Pit’ a group of workers are attempting to dig a huge pit, the future site of a gigantic House for the Proletariat. They dig daily, but they begin to lose meaning in their work; the enormous pit sucks all their energy. I’m starting to read it in Russian but it’s not an easy book.

By 1931, his work came under sustained attack as anti-communist, and publication became increasingly difficult. He died in 1951. At the time of his death he was a relative unknown. But Voronezh is leading the way in his rehabilitation and has realised his place in the history of Russia and the USSR.

Platonov Street

SNOW!!!

I woke up today to find the first proper snow in Voronezh!

Road to Moscow

This is a road sign near Lenin Square, the centre of Voronezh – go left for Moscow. Only another 300 miles to go…