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Information & Chat => Russian, Ukrainian & FSU Culture and Customs => Topic started by: mendeleyev on March 25, 2008, 02:22:35 AM

Title: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 25, 2008, 02:22:35 AM
This will be a thread dedicated to sharing information, asking questions, and exploring Russian culture together.  Come on in and enjoy yourself.

This thread makes these promises:

1- The tea will always be on so you can relax and stay awhile.
2- Kvas is always free while you're here.  We have cold Kvas in the fridge for westerners and warm Kvas bottles on the counter for easterners.
3- No smoking, we are a smoke free environment.
4- Tort and confetti are in plentiful supply.  Help yourself.
5- Just remember your mother doesn't live here.  If you spill something or make a mess please clean up after yourself.
6- Toilets are down the hall, on the left.

Enjoy!
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 25, 2008, 02:25:29 AM
Topical Guide to this thread:
Ancient Russia, page 1
Black Sea, page 6
Chronology of Russia, page 1
Dacha Life, page 3
Golden Ring cities, page 2
Map of Russia, page 1
Moscow History, page 2
Moscow Kremlin, pages 2,3
Napoleon's Invasion, page 1, 3
Novodevichy-New Maiden's Convent, page 2
Park Pobedy (Victory Park), page 2
Revolution of 1917, page 3
Romanov Dynasty, page 3
Russian Music, page 1
Sheremetyevo Park, page 6
Siberian Yukats, page 5
Trans Siberian Railroad, page 1-2




Russian cities:
See the link on RUA about Russian cities:




Transportation
Moscow Metro, page 2
Moscow Buses, page 2
Marshrutka Buses, page 2
Electric Trolley buses, page 2
Electric Trains, page 2
Trains (see Trans Siberian Railroad, pages 1-2)
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 26, 2008, 10:27:21 PM
Ancient Russia

The early history of Russia, like those of many countries, is one of migrating peoples and ancient kingdoms. In fact, early Russia was not exactly "Russia," but a collection of cities that gradually coalesced into an empire. I n the early part of the ninth century, as part of the same great movement that brough the Danes to England and the Norsemen to Western Europe, a Scandanavian people known as the Varangians crossed the Baltic Sea and landed in Eastern Europe. The leader of the Varangians was the semilegendary warrior Rurik, who led his people in 862 to the city of Novgorod on the Volkhov River. Whether Rurik took the city by force or was invited to rule there, he certainly invested the city. From Novgorod, Rurik's successor Oleg extended the power of the city southward. In 882, he gained control of Kiev, a Slavic city that had arisen along the Dnepr River around the 5th century. Oleg's attainment of rule over Kiev marked the first establishment of a unified, dynastic state in the region. Kiev became the center of a trade route between Scandinavia and Constantinople, and Kievan Rus', as the empire came to be known, flourished for the next three hundred years.

By 989, Oleg's great-grandson Vladimir I was ruler of a kingdom that extended to as far south as the Black Sea, the Caucasus Mountains, and the lower reaches of the Volga River. Having decided to establish a state religion, Vladimir carefully considered a number of available faiths and decided upon Greek Orthodoxy, thus allying himself with Constantinople and the West. It is said that Vladimir decided against Islam partly because of his belief that his people could not live under a religion that prohibits hard liquor. Vladimir was succeeded by Yaroslav the Wise, whose reign marked the apogee of Kievan Rus'. Yaroslav codified laws, made shrewd alliances with other states, encouraged the arts, and all the other sorts of things that wise kings do. Unfortunately, he decided in the end to act like Lear, dividing his kingdom among his children and bidding them to cooperate and flourish. Of course, they did nothing of the sort.

Within a few decades of Yaroslav's death (in 1054), Kievan Rus' was rife with internecine strife and had broken up into regional power centers. Internal divisions were made worse by the depradations of the invading Cumans (better known as the Kipchaks). It was during this time (in 1147 to be exact) that Yuri Dolgorukiy, one of the regional princes, held a feast at his hunting lodge atop a hill overlooking the confluence of the Moskva and Neglina Rivers. A chronicler recorded the party, thus providing us with the earliest mention of Moscow, the small settlement that would soon become the pre-eminent city in Russia.

Source: http://www.geographia.com/russia/rushis02.htm



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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 26, 2008, 10:28:11 PM
Napoleon's Invasion of Russia

In June of 1812, Napoleon began his fatal Russian campaign, a landmark in the history of the destructive potential of warfare. Virtually all of continental Europe was under his control, and the invasion of Russia was an attempt to force Tsar Alexander I to submit once again to the terms of a treaty that Napoleon had imposed upon him four years earlier. Having gathered nearly half a million soldiers, from France as well as all of the vassal states of Europe, Napoleon entered Russia at the head of the largest army ever seen. The Russians, under Marshal Kutuzov, could not realistically hope to defeat him in a direct confrontation. Instead, they begin a defensive campaign of strategic retreat, devastating the land as they fell back and harassing the flanks of the French. As the summer wore on, Napoleon's massive supply lines were stretched ever thinner, and his force began to decline. By September, without having engaged in a single pitched battle, the French Army had been reduced by more than two thirds from fatigue, hunger, desertion, and raids by Russian forces.

Nonetheless, it was clear that unless the Russians engaged the French Army in a major battle, Moscow would be Napoleon's in a matter of weeks. The Tsar insisted upon an engagement, and on September 7, with winter closing in and the French army only 70 miles (110 km) from the city, the two armies met at Borodino Field. By the end of the day, 108,000 men had died--but neither side had gained a decisive victory. Kutuzov realized that any further defense of the city would be senseless, and he withdrew his forces, prompting the citizens of Moscow to began a massive and panicked exodus. When Napoleon's army arrived on September 14, they found a city depopulated and bereft of supplies, a meagre comfort in the face of the oncoming winter. To make matters much, much worse, fires broke out in the city that night, and by the next day the French were lacking shelter as well.

After waiting in vain for Alexander to offer to negotiate, Napoleon ordered his troops to begin the march home. Because the route south was blocked by Kutuzov's forces (and the French were in no shape for a battle) the retreat retraced the long, devastated route of the invasion. Having waited until mid-October to depart, the exhausted French army soon found itself in the midst of winter--in fact, in the midst of an unusually early and especially cold winter. Temperatures soon dropped well below freezing, cossacks attacked stragglers and isolated units, food was almost non-existent, and the march was five hundred miles. Ten thousand men survived. The campaign ensured Napoleon's downfall and Russia's status as a leading power in post-Napoleonic Europe. Yet even as Russia emerged more powerful than ever from the Napoleonic era, its internal tensions began to increase.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 26, 2008, 10:54:47 PM
The Great Seal/Emblem of the Russian Empire

The term Czar (actually better transliterated as Tsar) means 'Caesar' and over the years evolved more to the idea of Emperor which was in line with other European kingdoms at the time.

It was Ivan III (father of Ivan IV--the Terrible) who made it the state emblem of the Russian Empire.  Ivan III adopted the golden Byzantine double-headed eagle as his seal, first documented in 1472, marking his direct claim to the Roman imperial heritage and posing as a sovereign equal and rival to the Holy Roman Empire.

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Years later the United States would adopt as it's SEAL the one-headed Eagle.  And therein lies a funny story.  In the days of the Cold War in 1946, Soviet school children presented a two foot wooden replica of the Great Seal of the United States to Ambassador Averell Harriman.

The Ambassador hung the seal in his office in Spaso House (Ambassador's residence). During George F. Kennan's ambassadorship in 1952, a routine security check discovered that the seal contained a microphone and a resonant cavity which could be stimulated from an outside radio signal.

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Russia's notoriety for eavesdropping and espionage stretches back even to the czars. James Buchanan, U.S. minister in St. Petersburg during 1832-33 and later U.S. President, recounted that 'we are continually surrounded by spies both of high and low degree. You can scarcely hire a servant who is not a secret agent of the police.'



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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 26, 2008, 11:06:17 PM
Here in the Culture and Language forum section we have a growing Russian music thread.  Sometime ago we introduced the very sexy and talented Ирина Салтыкова (Irina Saltykova), a Russian blonde bombshell who is as much fun to watch as she is to listen-to. 

You'll find her music here:  http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=1325.60

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Photos and music of Russia:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 27, 2008, 12:16:32 AM
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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Rasputin on April 02, 2008, 11:00:10 PM
The windmills in the photos above are fascinating inventions. They could be rotated to ensure the blades of the windmill were always facing the wind. Very practical.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: ScottinCrimea on April 02, 2008, 11:49:40 PM
I researched my geneology and learned that I am a direct descendent of Yaroslav the Wise,  This has sparked my interest in Ukrainian history and I'm surrently reading a few books on the subject.  There seems to be a lot of controversy regarding the genisis of Ukraine as a nation versus the "Russian' identity as well as the Polish/Lituanian Iinfluence. It all depends on who the writer identifies with.  Ultimately, though, it seems that the Rus nation was divided between the northeastern influence (present day Russia)  and the Galicians (present day Ukrainians).  It is a lot more involved than that, but my impression so far is that both originated from one source.  As much as the present day Russians hate to admit it, their beginnings were in Ukraine.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 03, 2008, 12:05:38 AM
Scott, if you don't mind I'd like to copy your comments and also post them in the Ukraine Culture thread here in the same forum section.  Readers will find Scott's comment here:
http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=3321.msg37497#msg37497

Yes, the KievanRus birth of the Russian nation in Kiev underscores what's you said.  I think you may find a book "Borderland" very interesting given your background.  We just did a post on that book about Ukraine yesterday in the Ukraine Culture thread.

Scott, again welcome to RUA!

Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: ScottinCrimea on April 03, 2008, 06:13:32 AM
I actually just finished reading Borderland and found it very informative, though I found the author's depictions of modern day Ukraine quite negative.  If her observations of Ukraine just after its independence are tru, it has definitely come a long way in a short time.

Right now I'm reading The Ukrainians, Unexpected Nation by Andrew Wilson.  It goes into much more detail on the history and origins of Ukraine and explores some of the various ideas surrounding its origin and culture.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 03, 2008, 09:31:34 AM
Moderators note:  A review and information on the above book can be found here in the Ukrainian Culture thread:
http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=3321.new#new
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 03, 2008, 11:16:07 PM
Russia's famous Trans Siberian Railway


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(http://www.russia.com/cities/moscow/trans-siberian-railway)
The Trans-Siberian Railway’s (Транссибирская магистраль, Транссиб) main line runs from Moscow to Vladivostok, and travels via Siberia. This line was constructed between 1891 and 1916, and is the third longest single line in the world, running over eight time zones, 9 288 kilometers in length and with a journey duration of approximately 7 days. The second route is named the Trans-Manchurian line. It is the oldest and shortest rail route to Vladivostok, as it coincides with the main line until Tarskaya, and then heads south east, past Harbin in the Northeastern Province of China, and rejoins the main line north of Vladivostok. The Trans-Mongolian route is the third route, coinciding with the Trans-Siberian at Ulan Ude, heading south to Ulaan-Baatar and southeast toward Beijing. The fourth route, to run further north, was completed in 1991 and is known as BAM (Baikal Amur Mainline). This line leaves the Trans-Siberian line at Taishet, runs past Lake Baikal, crosses the Amur River and then moves on to Sovetskaya Gavan. Although this route is very beautiful along the Baikal northern coast, it also covers somewhat forbidding territory.

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The construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway lines were only considered after 1880, before then, any railway projects were either ignored or rejected. The rejections were due to the weakness of the Siberian economy and the financial risk that was involved. Eventually, more and more requests for permission to build the railway lines were received to link Siberia and the Pacific. Due to the lack of interest to connect Siberia with eastern Russia, it posed great concern to the Government, and connecting Siberia with Moscow became a priority. The lines started to be electrified in 1929 and this was completed in 2002. The electrification of the lines allowed trains to be doubled in weight to 6 000 tonnes.

Here is a train schedule published for the city of Perm in 1899:

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Today the Trans-Siberian Railway is a very important traveling medium, with local residents and tourist using the line. Many tours are available on the lines, and most travel agencies can arrange and outline a route for any visitor wanting to experience this unique adventure.

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The Trans Siberian is truly Russia's super highway.  
Book your Train reservations here:  http://trains.waytorussia.net/

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 03, 2008, 11:37:57 PM
The Trans Siberian Railroad


Cities and Towns Along the Way (http://www.geographia.com/russia/trasib01.htm)
The Trans-Siberian trains stop several times a day, for periods ranging from just a few moments to almost half an hour. Even the longest stops, however, allow for little more than a quick expedition from the station to make some necessary purchases. It is possible, however, to arrange a stopover in many of the major destinations along the route, and what follows is a brief listing of some of the most popular sites.

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Yaroslavl
One of Russia's oldest cities, Yaroslavl was founded by Yaroslav the Wise of Kievan Rus' in 1010. Over the next several centuries the city prospered as a trading port on the Volga and a center of textile manufacture, becoming by the 17th century the second largest city in Russia behind Moscow. Its wealthy merchant community became notable patrons of the arts, building hundreds of churches. Fortunately, the great majority of these remain intact today, making the city one of the most beautiful destinations along the railway.

A typical 4 bunk berth.  The bottom bunks serve as seating during the day while the upper bunks are left folded to the wall by day and opened for sleeping at night.

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Ekaterinburg
The Trans-Siberian's first major stop in Asian Russia is the major industrial city and transport hub of Ekaterinburg. The town was founded in 1721 by Catherine the Great as a fort and metallurgical factory, its position having been chosen for its strategic proximity to the great mining operations of the Urals and Siberia. Although there are few tourist sites here other than the 18th-century cathedral, the city is nonetheless of great historical interest. It was here, in a house that once stood on Liebknecht ulitsa, that Tsar Nicholas II and his family were executed on the morning of July 17, 1918. Although the house no longer exists, its site is marked by a plain wooden cross. The Imperial family, like most tourists, was brought to Ekaterinburg on the Trans- Siberian. Ekaterinburg is also notable for being the hometown of Boris Yeltsin.

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Krasnoyarsk
One of the older towns in Siberia, Krasnoyarsk was founded in 1628 as a trading post along the Yenisei River. It grew rapidly when gold was discovered in the region, and eventually became a major river port and industrial center. Outside the ciy is the Stolby Reserve, an attractive preserve notable for the odd, columnar cliffs that rise from the river's edge inside its area. After one passes over the Yenesei, another of the Trans-Siberian's most significant border crossings takes place--one leaves the steppe and plunges into the taiga, the great forest that extends over most of Russia. The vast Siberian taiga is the largest remaining forest in the world.

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Irkutsk
Irkutsk became a wealthy trading center soon after its founding in the 1660s, benefiting from its position along overland trade routes between China and Western Russia. Since then it has maintained its position as the regions most important city, though today its attraction for visitors is supplemented by its proximity to Lake Baikal. Trans Siberian Railway enthusiasts should try to make it for a visit in 1998, when the city has planned a celebration commemorating the inauguration of the rail line.

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Ulan Ude
Like most Siberian cities, Ulan Ude was founded during the 17th century. However, as the center of the Buddhist Buryat culture, it is unlike any of the other stops along the Trans-Siberian railway. Although the city's Buddhist tradition, like all other religions, suffered a sharp decline under Stalin, there has been a noticeable revival in recent years. Visitors to Ulan Ude today should not miss the opportunity to visit nearby Ivolginsk Datsan, a restored Tibetan Buddhist monastery which now serves as the center of Buddhism in Russia.

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Khabarovsk
Strategically located on the hills overlooking the Amur River, Khabarovsk was founded as a military outpost in 1651, during the first wave of Russian colonization. The town gained importance during the nineteenth century as a trading outpost, and today it is one of the most important and promising cities of the Russian Far East. Khabarovsk is a pleasant city, with wide, tree-lined boulevards, a popular beach, and an interesting museum of ethnography and local history.

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Vladivostok
Vladivostok was founded in 1860 as a military outpost, but its outstanding natural harbour soon brought it prosperity as a trading port. The city's nomination as the headquarters of the Russian Pacific fleet in the 1870s brought further growth, and by the twentieth century it had become a major center of international trade. During the Soviet era, Vladivostok's military role eclipsed its trading function, and the city was closed both to foreigners and to Soviet citizens lacking special entry permission. The city was opened once again to visitors in 1992. It is currently experiencing a rapid recovery of its historic role as a major Pacific commercial port and has also maintained its naval importance as the headquarters of the Russian Pacific Fleet. Today Vladivostok is a a lively, attractive city, with a wealth of attractions and, as always, a strikingly impressive harbour.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 04, 2008, 12:21:31 AM
Vladivostok station:

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It takes more than six days to travel along the whole Trans-Siberian, so it is recommended to make stopovers along the way — like this your trip will be much more interesting also.  After crossing Siberia (soon after Irkutsk) the Trans-Siberian route divides into three different routes:

• The Trans-Siberian Route: Moscow - Vladivostok – the original Trans-Siberian railway, which goes all along Siberia and through the Far East (to the Pacific Ocean).

• The Trans-Mongolian Route: Moscow - Ulan-Bataar - Beijing. You will see Siberian plains and forests, Mongolian steppe and even a part of Gobi desert along this route that goes through Mongolia to China.

• The Trans-Manchurian Route: Moscow - Beijing – a direct way from Russia to China that goes around the Eastern border of Mongolia, not crossing it. It can be interesting for those, who are not interested in going to Mongolia, or who can't get tickets for other trains.

Train schedule printed in 1928:

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Winding its way across the country, from large cities to small villages....

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...the Trans Siberian connects Russia to its cultural and geographic roots.

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The train travels along beautiful Lake Baikal:


American's making friends and drinking vodka on the train:


A tribute to trains of the past and to today:


The Asian side of the TSR:


A couple share their experiences on the train:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 13, 2008, 02:26:28 PM
History of the Moscow Kremlin

Note:  Kremlin = 'fort'

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Here is the story as expertly told by By Olga & Yuri Timokhin at www.ruscuisine.com

The famous Moscow Kremlin is Russia's mythic refuge, a self contained city with a multitude of palaces, armories, and churches, a medieval fortress that links the modern nation to its legendary past in the ancient state of Kievan Rus'.
As the dominance of Kiev faded and its empire fragmented under the weight of foreign invasion and internecine strife in the 11th and 12th centuries, regional princes gained power. In 1147, as Kievan Rus was experiencing its final death throes, a chronicler recorded that a feast was held at the hunting lodge of Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy, ruling prince of Rostov and Suzdal. The lodge was perfectly situated atop a hill overlooking the Moskva and Neglina rivers, prompting its development (in such troubled times) as a fortified town, or Kremlin.

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Within a century, the town had risen to become an independent principality within the Mongol empire. By the middle of the 14th century, its princes had gained such pre-eminence that Moscow was made the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church. With Ivan the Great (1462-1505) at its helm, Muscovite rule extended over all of Russia, and the Kremlin became more magnificent, befitting its role as the seat of Russian power. By 1480 the once modest hunting lodge had become an imposing fortress city. Its stone walls were graced by the magnificent Cathedral of the Assumption, where Ivan defiantly tore up the charter binding Moscow to Mongol rule. Over the next two centuries, until Peter the Great transferred the capital of Russia to St. Petersburg, the Kremlin served as the central stage for the magnificent and occasionally horrific history of the Tsars.

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With the shift of power to St. Petersburg, the city and the Kremlin declined. However, the Bolsheviks' choice of Moscow as their capital in March 1918 returned it to preeminence, and during Soviet rule the Kremlin experienced its second life as a great center of power. Although the Soviet state certainly left its mark on the Kremlin, the centuries-old citadel very much retains the aura of early Tsarist Russia. Especially in Cathedral Square, where the spirits of Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, and the early Romanovs loom much larger than those of Stalin or even Lenin himself.

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For centuries of its existence the Moscow Kremlin has been witness of many famous and tragic events of our history. Enemy guns rattled at its walls, celebrations and revolts took place. Now the Moscow Kremlin is one of the biggest museums of the world. State regalia of Russia, invaluable icons, treasures of Russian tsars are stored in the Kremlin chambers and cathedrals.

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The collections of the Kremlin museums are unsurpassable in their variety: they comprise early Russian painting, icons, 12th - 17th century frescoes; side and firearms made by Russian, Oriental and Western European masters of the 14th - 19th centuries; carriages, sl edges, coaches and ceremonial horsecloths of the 16th - 19th centuries; Oriental carpets and Western European tapestries; articles by Russian and Western European silversmiths; household articles of the 17th and 18th centuries; illuminated manuscripts, books, porcelain, carved stone, and archaeological findings.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 16, 2008, 11:49:23 PM
History of Moscow


(Source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Moscow)
The oldest evidence of humans on the territory of Moscow dates from the Stone Age (Schukinskaya Neolithic site on the Moscow River). Within the modern bounds of the city other late evidence was discovered (the burial ground of the Fatyanovskaya culture, the site of the early-Stone Age settlement of Dyakovskaya culture, on the territory of Kremlin, Sparrow Hills, Setun River, Kuntsevskiy forest park, etc.

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In the end of 1st millennium AD the territory of Moscow and the Moscow Oblast was inhabited by the Slavic tribes of Vyatichi and Krivichi. In the end of 11th century Moscow was a small town with the feudal center and trade suburb situated at the mouth of the Neglinnaya River.

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The first reference to Moscow dates from 1147 when it was an obscure town in a small province inhabited mostly by Merya, speakers of a now extinct Finnic language. In 1156, Knjaz Yury Dolgoruky built a wooden wall and a moat around the city. After the sacking of 1237-1238, when the Mongol Khanate of the Golden Horde burned the city to the ground and killed its inhabitants.

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In 1300 Moscow was ruled by Daniil Aleksandrovich, the son of Alexander Nevsky and a member of the Rurik Dynasty. Its favorable position on the headwaters of the Volga river contributed to steady expansion. Moscow was also stable and prosperous for many years and attracted a large numbers of refugees from across Russia. By 1304, Yury of Moscow contested with Mikhail of Tver for the throne of the principality of Vladimir. Ivan I eventually defeated Tver to become the capital of Vladimir-Suzdal, and the sole collector of taxes for the Mongol rulers. By paying high tribute, Ivan won an important concession from the Khan. Unlike other principalities, Moscow was not divided among his sons but was passed intact to his eldest.

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Plan of Moscow, 1917While Khan of the Golden Horde initially attempted to limit Moscow's influence, when the growth of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania began to threaten all of Russia, the Khan strengthened Moscow to counterbalance Lithuania, allowing it to become one of the most powerful cities in Russia. In 1380, prince Dmitry Donskoy of Moscow led a united Russian army to an important victory over the Mongols in the Battle of Kulikovo. After that, Moscow took the leading role in liberating Russia from Mongol domination. In 1480, Ivan III had finally broken the Russians free from Tatar control and Moscow became the capital of an empire that would eventually encompass all of Russia and Siberia, and parts of many other lands.

In 1571 the Tatars from the Crimean Khanate seized and burned Moscow. From 1610 through 1612, troops of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth occupied Moscow, as its ruler Sigismund III tried to tke the Russian throne. In 1611 Moscow suffered a great fire. In 1612, the people of Nizhny Novgorod and other Russian cities conducted by prince Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin rose against the Polish occupants,besieged the Kremlin and expelled them. In 1613, the Zemsky sobor elected Michael Romanov tsar, establishing the Romanov dynasty.

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Moscow ceased to be Russia's capital when in 1703 Peter the Great constructed St. Petersburg on the Baltic coast. When Napoleon invaded in 1812, the Moscovites burned the city and evacuated, as Napoleon's forces were approaching on September 14. Napoleon's army, plagued by hunger, cold, and poor supply lines, was forced to retreat.

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In January of 1905, the institution of the City Governor, or Mayor, was officially introduced in Moscow, and Alexander Adrianov became Moscow's first official mayor (current mayor is Yuriy Luzhkov). Following the success of the Russian Revolution of 1917, Lenin, fearing possible foreign invasion, moved the capital from St. Petersburg back to Moscow on March 5, 1918.

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In the beginning of 20th Century, several strikes and armed risings in Moscow paved the way to the October Revolution. In 1918 the Bolsheviks moved the seat of government from Saint Petersburg back to Moscow. During the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet State Committee of Defense and the General Staff of the Red Army were located in Moscow.

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In 1941 16 divisions of the national volunteers (more than 160,000 people), 25 battalions (18,000 people) and 4 engineering regiments were formed among the Muscovites. In November 1941, German Army Group Centre was stopped at the outskirts of the city and then driven off in the course of the Battle of Moscow. Many factories were evacuated, together with much of the government, and from October 20 the city was declared to be in a state of siege. Its remaining inhabitants built and manned antitank defenses, while the city was bombarded from the air. On May 1, 1944 a medal "For the defense of Moscow" and in 1947 another medal "In memory of the 800th anniversary of Moscow" were instituted. On May 8, 1965 due to the actual 20th anniversary of the victory in World War II Moscow was awarded a title of the Hero City. In 1980 it hosted the Summer Olympic Games.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 12:49:12 AM
Moscow's Golden Ring


The Golden Ring (Золото́е кольцо́) is a ring of cities northeast of Moscow, the capital of Russia. They formerly comprised the region known as Zalesye.  These ancient towns, which also played a significant role in the formation of the Russian Orthodox Church, preserve the memory of the most important and significant events in Russian history. The towns have been called "open air museums" and feature unique monuments of Russian architecture of the 12th–18th centuries, including kremlins, monasteries, cathedrals, and churches. These towns are among the most picturesque in Russia and prominently feature Russia's famous onion domes.

[attachimg=1] Pereslavl-Zalessky or Pereyaslavl-Zalessky (Пересла́вль-Зале́сский; could be translated as "Pereslavl, which is located behind the woods"), is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia. It was called Pereyaslavl until the 15th century. The town is located on the southeastern shore of the Lake Pleshcheyevo at the mouth of the Trubezh River.

Pereslavl-Zalessky was founded in 1152 by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky as a projected capital of Zalesye. In 1175–1302, the town was the center of the Principality of Pereslavl (Zalessky). In 1302, the town became a part of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Pereslavl-Zalessky had been devastated numerous times by the Mongols between the mid-13th century and the early 15th century. In 1611–1612, it suffered from the Polish invasion.

In 1688–1693, Peter the Great built his famous "funny flotilla" on Lake Pleshcheyevo for his own amusement, including the so-called Peter's little boat, which would be considered the forefather of the Russian fleet.  In 1708, Pereslavl-Zalessky became a part of Moscow Governorate.  In 1894, Vladimir Lenin came to the village of Gorki not far from Pereslavl-Zalessky.



[attachimg=2] Rostov Veliky (Росто́в) is one of the oldest towns in Russia and an important tourist centre of the so called Golden ring. It is located on the shores of Lake Nero in Yaroslavl Oblast.  While official name of the town is Rostov, it is better known to Russians as Rostov Veliky, i.e. Rostov the Great. This name is used to distinguish it from Rostov on Don, which is now a much larger city.


[attachimg=3] Rostov Yaroslavsky is the official name of its railway station (due to its position in Yaroslavl Oblast); the town itself is hardly ever called so.



[attachimg=4] Yaroslavl (Russian: Яросла́вль) is a city in Russia, the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, located 250 km north-east of Moscow at 57°37′N, 39°51′E. The historical part of the city, a World Heritage Site, is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers.  Apart from the Spaso-Preobrazhensky (Transfiguration of the Saviour) Monastery the oldest churches in the city date back to the 17th century and belong to the so called Yaroslavl type (built of red brick, with bright tiled exteriors). Those of St. Nicholas Nadein and Elijah the Prophet have some of the Golden ring's most impressive frescoes.



[attachimg=5] Ivanovo (Ива́ново) has traditionally been called the textile capital of Russia. Since most textile workers are women, it has also been known as the "City of Brides".   It is home to Ivanovo Severny, which is one of the largest military airlift bases in Russia. Civilian air service is provided at Ivanovo Yuzhny Airport. Ivanovo has got several educational institutions: Ivanovo State University, Ivanovo Medical Academy,Ivanovo Architectural Academy, Ivanovo State Power University(ISPU), an Engineering and Electrical University (pictured in photo).



[attachimg=6] Gus-Khrustalny (Гусь-Хруста́льный) is a town in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, located on the Gus River (a tributary of the Oka River) 63 km south of Vladimir. Population: 17,900 (1926), 40,000 (1939), 65,000 (1970), 67,121 (2002 Census).  The name of the town may be translated as "crystal goose", for it is known as one of the oldest centers of glass industry in Russia and stands on the Gus (Goose) River.



[attachimg=7] Suzdal (Су́здаль) is a town in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, situated northeast of Moscow, 26 km from the city of Vladimir, on the Kamenka River.  The history of the town dates back to at least the year 1024. For centuries it functioned as the capital of several Russian principalities. It forms part of the Golden Ring.



[attachimg=8] Vladimir (Влади́мир) is a city in Russia, located on the Klyazma River, 200 kilometers (124 mi) to the east of Moscow along the M7 motorway. It is the administrative center of Vladimir Oblast.  Vladimir was one of the medieval capitals of Russia, and two of its cathedrals are a World Heritage Site. I t is served by Vladimir Semyazino Airport, and during the Cold War Vladimir was host to Dobrynskoye air base.

Scores of Russian, German, and Georgian masons worked on Vladimir's white stone cathedrals, towers, and palaces. Unlike any other northern buildings, their exterior was elaborately carved with the high relief stone sculptures. Only three of these edifices stand today: the Assumption Cathedral, the Cathedral of St. Demetrios, and the Golden Gate. During Andrei's reign, a royal palace in Bogolyubovo was built, as well as the world-famous Intercession Church on the Nerl, now considered one of the jewels of ancient Russian architecture. Andrei was assassinated at his palace at Bogolyubovo in 1175.

[attachimg=9] Vladimir on a winter night.

Video of Vladimir Monastery Vespers service with Orthodox music:

[attachimg=10] Family friend Sasha in quiet contemplation while waiting for us to catch up.


City of Vladimir website: http://www.vladimir-russia.info/index.htm
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 01:08:24 AM
Moscow's Golden Ring, continued



[attachimg=1] Rybinsk (Ры́бинск) is one of the oldest Slavic settlements on the Volga River. The place was first noticed by chroniclers in 1071 as Ust-Sheksna, i.e. "the mouth of the Sheksna". For the next four centuries, the settlement was referred to alternatively as Ust-Sheksna or Rybansk. Since 1504, it was mentioned in documents as Rybnaya Sloboda (literally: "the fishing village"). The name is explained by the fact that the settlement supplied the Muscovite court with choice sturgeons and sterlets.

In the 17th century, when the sloboda was capitalizing on the trade of the Muscovy Company with Western Europe, it was rich enough to build several stone churches, of which only one survives to the present. More old architecture may be found in the neighbourhood, including the very last of Muscovite three-tented churches (in the Alexandrov Hermitage) and the Ushakov family shrine (on the Epiphany Island).



[attachimg=2] Uglich (У́глич, pronounced [ˈuglʲiʨ]) is a historic town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, on the Volga River.  A local tradition dates the town's origin back to 937. It was first documented in 1148 as Ugliche Pole (Corner Field).

Uglich had been the seat of a small princedom from 1218 until 1328 when the local princes sold their rights to the great prince of Moscow. As a border town of Muscovy, it was burnt several times by Lithuanians, Tatars and the grand prince of Tver.  Grand Duke Ivan III of Moscow gave the town to his younger brother Andrei Bolshoi in 1462. During Andrei's reign the town was expanded and first stone buildings were constructed. Particularly notable were the cathedral (rebuilt in 1713), the Intercession Monastery (destroyed by the Bolsheviks) and the red-brick palace of the prince (completed in 1481 and still standing).


[attachimg=3] During the reign of Ivan the Terrible the town passed to his only brother, Yuriy. Local inhabitants helped the tsar to capture Kazan by building a wooden fortress which was transported by the Volga all the way to Kazan. Throughout the 16th century Uglich prospered both politically and economically, but thereafter its fortunes began to decline.

After Ivan's death, his youngest son Dmitry Ivanovich was banished to Uglich in 1584. The most famous event in the town's history took place on May 15, 1591 when the 10-year old boy was found dead with his throat cut in the palace courtyard. Suspicion immediately fell on the tsar's chief advisor, Boris Godunov. Official investigators concluded however that Dimitriy's death was an accident.

 

[attachimg=4] Alexandrov (Алекса́ндров) is a town in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, 120 km north-east of Moscow.  The town of Alexandrov served as the capital of Russia for three months (December 1564 to February 1565) under tsar Ivan the Terrible until he agreed to return his court and the relics of Moscow which he had taken with him. Ivan agreed to return after the church gave him permission to found the Oprichnina.



[attachimg=5]Sergiev Posad (Се́ргиев Поса́д) is a city and the administrative center of Sergiyevo-Posadsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia. It grew up in the 15th century around one of the greatest of Russian monasteries, the Troitse-Sergiyeva (Trinity) Lavra established by St. Sergius of Radonezh. The town became incorporated in 1742. As the town's name, alluding to St. Sergius, had strong religious connotations, the Soviet authorities changed first to just Sergiyev in 1919, and then to Zagorsk in 1930, in memory of the revolutionary Vladimir Zagorsky. The original name came back into official use in 1991.


[attachimg=6] Website of the Monastery: http://www.stsl.ru/


(Source for this article: Wikipedia.com)

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 01:08:52 AM
The mighty Moscow Metro

Moscow Metro (Московский метрополитен), which spans almost the entire Russian capital, is the world's most heavily used metro system.  The Metro is famous for the ornate design of its stations, most of which contain outstanding examples of socialist realist art.

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The famous "M" adorns every station, calling passengers to come inside and ride the Metro.

The First Line, built in the early `1930's, possesses an invigorating modernism that is a high-water mark of the Soviet avant-garde. With the Second Line, built in the late 1930's, a program of monumental sculpture and art was introduced that signaled Stalin's stranglehold on the ideological goals of the Soviet state.

[attachimg=2] Old Metro token

The Third Line, built during the "Great Patriotic War" from 1939 - 1944, became a symbol of Soviet tenacity and ultimately a memorial to the people's resistance during this devastating period. The Fourth Line, completed in 1954 shortly after the death of Stalin, is perhaps the most flamboyantly ideological and represents the epitome of the leader's vision for the Metro. With the demise of Stalin, the expression of the system reverted to its rationalist origins.

Although constructed by a tyrant for a people living in terror, this subterranean proletarian paradise offers an ironically humane vision of public social space, both beautiful and functional. Today, with construction continuing, the Moscow Metro covers over 200 kilometers of track and serves 9 million people each day.

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In total, the Moscow Metro has 292.2 km of route length, 12 lines and 176 stations; on a normal weekday it carries over 7 million passengers. Passenger traffic is considerably lower on weekends bringing the average daily passenger traffic during the year to 6.8 million passengers per day. The Moscow Metro is a state-owned enterprise.

Each line is identified by an alphanumeric index, a name, and a colour. The voice announcements refer to lines by name, while in colloquial usage they are mostly referred to by colour, except the Lyublinskaya Line (number 10) and the Kakhovskaya Line (number 11) which have been assigned shades of green similar to that of the Zamoskvoretskaya Line (number 2).

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Most lines run radially through the city, except the Koltsevaya Line (number 5), which is a 20-km-long ring connecting all the radial lines and a few smaller lines outside. On all lines, travellers can determine the direction of the train by the gender of the announcer: on the ring line, a male voice indicates clockwise travel, and a female voice counter-clockwise. On the radial lines, travellers heading toward the centre of Moscow will hear male-voiced announcements, and travellers heading away will hear female-voiced announcements. In addition, there is an abundance of signs showing all the stations that can be reached in a given direction.

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Mayakovskaya Metro station is truly considered to be the main architectural masterpiece of the Moscow's Metro. This is a station, which lays deep underground, it belongs to the first, the oldest line of the Moscow's Metro. The station was opened in 1938. The station mock-up was successfully displayed the same year at the International exhibition in New-York. Marble of two types was used to decorate the walls and columns of the station.  The vaulting of the central hall of "Mayakovskaya" station has 33 mosaics executed to cartoons by famous Russian artist Alexander Deineka. The design is accented by the sparkling bends of stainless steel is shaded by red and pink shades of rodonite, a fine semi-precious stone.

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The metro is the fastest and cheapest way to reach many points in Moscow with 10 radial lines and one circular (more are being constructed) and over 200 kilometers of track. It operates from 5:30 A.M. to 1:00 A.M. Metro stations are identified by the red (M) signs. Trains run at intervals of 2-4 minutes, 1-2 minutes during rush hours. The loud speakers announce (in Russian of course) the next coming stop and the stop you are on. The doors open and close automatically. Every station has a police post, a first-aid station and telephones - local and international. Metro (magnetic) cards are available at all stations.


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The first plans for a rapid transit system in Moscow date back in the times of the Russian Empire, but they were postponed by the World War I, the October Revolution and the Russian Civil War. It was not until June 1931 that the decision to start construction of the Moscow Metro was taken by the Central Committee of the USSR Communist Party.


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Moscow residents are proud of the new and modern Metro stations.  The Moscow government has approved additions to the Metro construction & modernization program until 2010 which plans the building of the following stations and parts of the Metro lines:

-Tchkalovskaya - Marina Rosha in 2008
-Marino - Zyablikovo in 2008
-Victory Park - Kuntsevskaya in 2009
-Krylatskoe - Strogino in 2009
-Strogino - Mitino in 2009
-Novogireevo - Gorodetskaya in 2009
-Vykhino - Pronskaya (Zulebino) in 2009
-Krasnogvardeiskaya - Brateevo in 2010

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(Sources:  Wikipedia, Moscowmetro.ru)



Rail from SVO airport to downtown Moscow has arrived!
Sheremetyevo express train travels at 75+ miles an hour, takes 25-35 minutes, and costs only $10.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 01:09:20 AM
How to ride The Moscow Metro


The days of German warplanes flying overhead and citizens crowding deep underground in the Moscow Metros for shelter during air-raids are thankfully over and for most only a distant memory.  So in this part of the series we'll learn how to use the Metro.

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Where to buy a ticket and how.  Well you have several options.  The Moscow Metro uses magnetic cards (contact cards) for tickets with a fixed number of journeys (up to 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 60 and 70 journeys for 30 days from the day of the first journey). Currently (Jan, 2008) the cost of 1 ride is 19 roubles (78 US cents), starting with 5 ride cards there are small discounts.  As long as you stay inside the Metro you may transfer to as many trains as necessary but once you leave the Metro then your card must be re-entered.

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Magnetic cards were introduced in 1993 as a test and were used as unlimited tickets between 1996 and 1998. The sale of magnetic cards stopped in 2008. In January 2007, Moscow Metropolitan began replacing magnetic cards with fixed number of journeys by contactless cards. Since January 20, 2007 contactless cards are available for 10, 20 and 60 journeys versions. Smartcards are being used in Moscow Metro since 1998 and are called Transport Cards. Transport Cards are available as 'unlimited' and 'social' tickets. The unlimited card can be programmed for 30, 90, and 365 days. The social cards are free for elderly people (who are officially registered as residents of Moscow city or Moscow area) and some privileged categories of citizens; they are available to school pupils and students at a heavily reduced price. Transport Cards were introduced in 1998 along with a new type of magnetic card.

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In most cases an unlimited card is good for both buses or the Metro but not in every case so feel free to ask someone.  The open hours are from 5.20 a.m. to 1.00 a.m. Usually the last train starts its way at 00.50 from the last station at any line; the passes between stations are closed at 1.00 am. When there're rush hours (8.00-9.00, 17.00-19.00) the metro is overcrowded, so it's better to avoid it.  Trains typically run in 2 to 4 minute cycles so if you missed one, don't worry the next one will arrive before you know it.
 
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Most lines run deep underground but crossing the Moscow River going south several stations are above ground, such as Station Studencheskaya (Студенческая) shown here.

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The old turnstiles relied on you to feed your card into the machine and then it would rapidly spit the card back up at you while opening the turnstile.  Ticket control staff stood nearby to make certain only one person entered per ticket.  Today in many stations 'smart cards' open the turnstile electronically.

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Some of the old cards even had handy instructions labeled on the back of the card.

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Modernization includes turnstiles of a new model have been installed in many stations. These turnstiles made of stainless steel and use the new Smart Card technology.  Security is still important in the metro and when someone trys to enter the Metro turnstile without paying the turnstiles play "Polonaise" by Oginsky to alert Metro staff.

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Tips for a good Metro experience
Learn some of the Cyrillic alphabet and language before you leave for Moscow. Although this isn't a definite requirement to learn how to navigate the Moscow metro, it will certainly be a help.  Signs inside the Metro stations are generally only in Cyrillic.

Buy a ticket which is good for several days. 
 
At older turnstiles feed the ticket into the entry gate. The ticket should be arrow side down when you put it into the slot. You put it in and pull it out and a green light should come on until you pass through.

Print a map (see below) to take with you so that you can navigate the various levels inside each station with the overhead signs to find the correct Moscow metro line. Once you find the one you want, take the escalator down to the metro lines. When you arrive at the bottom, you will need to check the overhead signs again to find out which side of the platform you need to be on for your train.

Transfer to other lines. If you need to connect to other lines, you should follow the overhead signs. Everything is clearly marked and should be easy to find if you have your map and have written down the train names in advance in Russian Cyrillic.

Having successfully navigated the exceptionally fast escalator (stop admiring the decor - this is serious) get ready to contend with the choice between the left or right side of the open platform, aided only by the Cyrillic-inscribed signs hanging from the ceiling or the walls. There are no full-scale maps down here, so if you have problems with the Cyrillic alphabet or you don't know the network, well, it is important to carry your own map and/or have a clear mental photograph of your destination name and any changes you need to make on the way. 

Plan your trip
Here is an interactive Metro map, with stations in both English and Russian, on which you can calculate times between stations, route a trip, or just find interesting facts about a station by clicking on the station name: http://engl.mosmetro.ru/flash/scheme01.html  Download this map for your trip.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 01:49:57 AM
Moscow metro map:

(Click on map to display full size.  To print the latest version of the map complete with new stations included, follow this link:  http://engl.mosmetro.ru/flash/scheme01.html

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 17, 2008, 01:55:24 AM
Moscow buses

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Riding a bus in Russia is fairly much the same no matter which city.  This is also true for Ukraine.  So what you learn about Moscow is pretty much transferrable.

Moscow's bus network is a complex mixture of private and state-owned vehicles, with little co-ordinated information about routes and schedules available. Tickets for state-run buses, which are usually (though not always) shabbier and more crowded, can be bought, like tram and trolleybus tickets, in booklets of ten from kiosks and metro stations. Privately-owned buses, which are identified by the letters 'K' or 'E' before their route number, usually have a conductor on board. Some newer Moscow buses now have a turnstile system which prevents you from boarding without a valid ticket.

Bus stops are designated by a sign marked with an 'A' (for avtobus), and buses are supposed to run from 06.00 to 01.00. Riding the bus can be both economical and fun!  You won't have to wait long either--public transportation in Russia is an important part of life and another bus is not far behind.

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How to find a bus
Okay, we go to all that trouble having you look for a sign with a big A, then show a bus stop without an A!  It's Russia, go figure.  So if you can't recognize a bus stop, or don't see one, what should you do?  Ask someone! 

In Russian you make wish to keep it simple and say, где - автобус? -- as in 'Gdye AfTO-boos?'  (It's an 'f' instead of a 'v' sound, a grammer rule not important here so just say it like you see it above.) And don't say 'bus' at the end, say 'boos' and it will sound more authentic.

Or you can look for signs.  Just as the Metro system has the big red M posted, look for a large letter A on a yellow street sign.  If you start looking you'll find one quickly.


How to read the signs:

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Remember that Russians post times in 2400 hour incruments so 6:00 in 6am and 6pm will be 1800 on such a sign.  Often on a bus sign the times you see are not hours but rather the number of minutes between bus arrivals.  The buses generally keep a similiar schedule as the Metro trains, 5:30am to 12:30am (Metros run 5am to 1am).

Most buses start at a point and travel to a Metro station, then double back on a return route.  The Metro stations also serve as 'hubs' for the bus system.  So having a good Moscow Metro map will make it easier to understand the bus routes.  If visiting someone its common to ask for their Metro stop and bus numbers.  Usually there will be several buses which make the trip from Metro station to their street so write down each number given.  And after exiting the Metro station just go outside and look at the buses to find the one(s) you need.  Numbers are posted near side and rear windows.

Buses and trolley-buses normally have a turnstile (see a picture). Board a bus / trolley-bus through the first door, buy your ticket from a driver, insert it into the turnstile’s slit (arrow first, facing you), then take it from the slit. When the green light flashes, go through. Tickets are also available in the booths located near bus and trolley-bus stops.

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The upcoming stops are usually announced loudly and there is always an itinerary scheme.  Tickets are available in strips or booklets from people outside all metro stations or from bus drivers directly.  Heavy routes will have a cashier on board and she will sell you a ticket.  Don't forget to punch the bus tickets inside the bus. If the bus is crowded and you can't reach, pass your money (if you want to buy tickets) or ticket to someone else who will pass it to the driver or the punching machine.


How to punch your bus ticket
Newer buses will have a turnstile and you can't get on the bus without a ticket first (a great reason to buy them in a packet of 10 at a time!) so this won't be an issue very often.  However a few of the older buses still use the old fashioned punch method.  With the punch tickets you stick your ticket inside the jaws of a small apparakt found on every other inside window.  Then using the palm of your hand slam that baby together!  That punches out a piece of your ticket, proof that you're riding legally. 

Moscow is now experimenting with "electronic conductors," transport with a turnstile at the front where you must slide your ticket, then walk through. These are identifiable by a big "No Rabbit" logo.  A "rabbit," by the way, is slang in Russian for a passenger who has not paid fare.  If you see this logo, make sure to get on at the front of the bus.

Exception: Sometimes, especially in smaller Russian towns, you will be given a very small slip of paper, torn from a roll. In this case, you do not need to punch the ticket. "Normal" tickets are tag board and about the size of a credit card.  If you are uncertain what to do, just watch everyone else and follow suit. 


Ticket Control Officers
Yes, each bus using the old punch blocks have a unique punch pattern so if "ticket control" officers compare your punch to another ticket they can instantly if you have a valid ticket.

If you do not have a valid ticket you are subject to a shtraff (fine) if the ticket controllers catch you. Ticket controllers enter bus, trolleys, and trams randomly at different stops.  Currently the fine is only something like $3.00, but it is sufficiently embarrassing and inconvenient, since they take you off the bus and make you wait for another, perhaps in really cold weather.

However you, a Westerner, will get a 'special fine' price.  The controllers know you're a foreigner. Learn how to buy and use the tickets correctly.  Don’t get "shtraffed."


Good manners on the bus
Especially in rush hour it may be necessary to push and shove your way onto the bus otherwise you'll be waiting for a very long time.  However once on the bus you should offer a seat (if lucky enough to find one empty) to a lady, and elderly person, or a handicapped person.

Buses will stop at most scheduled stops since the buses are so busy.  However if you approach your stop and don't see any activity it's okay to yell "stop" and they'll--stop! 


Plan in advance
Moscow Transport has recently unveiled a new interactive trip plan tool to help get you around the city.  It uses a starting point and ending point (like mapquest) and then integrates a schedule of Metro trains and Autobuses to get you from point A to B.  Try it here:  http://msk.rusavtobus.ru/en
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 18, 2008, 01:23:03 AM
More Moscow transportation:


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Marshrutka
Running the very same route as buses are the little mini-buses known as "маршрутное такси (маршрутка)" or simply as Marshrutka.


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In most cases you'll pay this driver separately because while he has a contract with the city government for his route, in most cases the Marshrutka taxis do not accept city bus tickets.  Here the common practice is to pass your money forward after boarding to the person in front of you.  They will pass it along to the front, then change is passed back to you.  Be sure to say the number of passengers you are paying for on the trip. 

Let's say you're paying for two persons.  You'll say, "два, пожалуйста" or 'Dva puh-zhal-ah-sta' as you pass the appropiate amount of rubles forward.

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The Marshrutka generally follows the same route as the city bus--only faster.  When it's full they speed ahead to the scheduled Metro station.  If you wish to stop before the Metro then you must say "stop puh-zhal-ah-sta" at the appropiate place.  The Marshrutka simply allows you to get there a little quicker and for that convenience you pay a small price.

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Electric Trolley buses
Like the Marshrutki system, the Trolley buses may be operated by private companies in which case a Metro ticket or city bus ticket would not be accepted.  Its something you just have to learn by trial and error.  Trolleybus drivers general sell tickets without the help of an on-board cashier.

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They are connected to overhead electrical wires and you'll be amazed at how they can weave in and out of traffic while staying connected to their overhead wiring.  Do not confuse the Electric Trolley bus with an Electric Tram, they are different.  Both however are more common near the city center than in outlying areas.





Electric Trains
Elektrichki or commuter rails run from Moscow’s 9 train stations to as much as 3-4 hours away. We strongly recommend getting out of the city this way, if only for a weekend day. It gives an interesting perspective on Russian life. We have included a number of possible trips, both long and short, under the "Regions and Cities" section of our site.  At the station, look for signs saying "Prigorodnie" to find the correct kassa and timetable.  Always keep your ticket, as you need to produce it again to leave the station (this is to control freeloaders who try to make a return trip without paying).

Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 18, 2008, 01:34:49 AM
Moscow's Victory Park....a tribute to Russia's role in the Great Patriotic War


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RUA member McMann has posted some impressive Victory Park photos here: http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php/topic,5773.msg78849.html#msg78849


Victory Park was only completed in the mid-nineties, and is something of a last gasp for the Soviet tradition of monumental triumphal art. Located on and around the Poklonnaya Gora - the hill where Napoleon waited in vain to be given the keys to the city when his troops were surrounding Moscow in 1812 - the park is set in an area steeped in Russian military history.

On 9 May, Victory Day in Russia, the park becomes the center of Moscow's celebrations, and as many of the remaining veterans and survivors as can make there way here, along with scores of the younger generations. In Russia the emphasis is on celebration rather than remembrance, and this is one of the most popular public holidays.


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The central avenue is called "Years of War": It has five terraces, symbolizing the five years of conflict, and there are 1,418 fountains - one for every day. At night the fountains turn gushing water red as the Russian soul-blood, as illuminated at night, graphically demonstrating the human depth of the carnage and bravery of the Russian people during that horrifying and decimating episode in their history.


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The park includes a memorial chapel, mosque, and synagogue to the circular Victors' Place, which has a triangular obelisk soaring 150 meters and surmounted by a statue of Nike, the Goddess of Victory. Behind this lies the crescent-shaped Museum of the Great Patriotic War, which gives a detailed but staid overview of Russia's appalling loses and eventual victory.


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The Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War is filled with exhibits which tell about the key battles, the heroic deeds of rank-and-file soldiers and prominent military leaders and officers, the war effort of people in the rear and the joint activities of the Allies that brought to the unconditional surrender of the Nazi Germany in May of 1945.


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The American army developed rations for the Red army because they were about to starve in the winter of 1942.  It consisted of two daily meals of a corn mush (canned) infused with protein and vitamins. It was around 900 calories and supplemented with spam, coffee, chocolate and cigarettes. At first Red army supplier officers were ordered to try to obscure the American emblems, but as the war progressed and the soldiers were hungry, they stopped being so secretive about where the food was being supplied.

Many of the first aid kits were produced in America and had both English and Cyrillic lettering. 


RUA member McMann has posted some really nice Victory Park photos here: http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php/topic,5773.msg78849.html#msg78849
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 18, 2008, 01:39:39 AM
More of Moscow's Victory Park.

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The park is filled with Russian, German and Allied tanks, guns, etc.


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After years of silence on the amounts of American equipment, weapons, food and medical supplies, Victory Park acknowledges assistance from the Allies.


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Its easy to find--just ask anyone.  The physical location is Kuznetsovskaya Ulitsa, 25 and the closest Metro is Park Pobedy (which means Victory Park).


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The Triumphal Arch marks the entry to Victory Park.


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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 19, 2008, 10:11:02 PM
The Romanovs


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Small beginnings...Tragic endings
It began with an obscure and almost unknown boy just 16 years old.  Bitter infighting among Moscow's princes and the Polish rulers of Russia had caused former Prince Fedor Romanov, now a religious Churchman, to be thrown into a Polish prison for 8 years. 

While in prison his son, Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, was elected Tsar of Russia.  That was nice but the council convened to make the decision dispatched to tell Michael that he was Tsar had a problem:  No one knew exactly where he was.  The delegates wanted to find him and crown a new Tsar of Russia.  The Polish army still occupying Russia wanted to find him too.  They wanted to kill him before he could be crowned and gather support of the Russian people.

In February 1613, amidst the debris left by foreign invaders prince Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov was proclaimed Tsar and Autocrat of All the Russias.  He would establish a dynasty that would determine the destiny of Russia for three centuries.  His heirs would include Peter the Great with an unbeatable army and new navy would forge a new capital and "window to Europe" in Petrograd (St. Petersburg).

Later the trio of Romanov empresses, Anna, Elizabeth, and Catherine the Great, would break with the tradition of supreme male authority. Catherine would bring the ideas of the Enlightenment to Russia and create a court whose splendor equaled that of anywhere in Europe.

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And so began the Romanov family reign which would rule Russia for 300 years.  He reigned as Tsar of Russia from 1613 to his death in 1645. He was elected Tsar by the Russian nobility, the Boyars, on February 7, 1613. He was the first Romanov to be placed on the Throne of Russia.

In spring 1645, Tsar Michael contracted an illness of the stomach and kidneys and died at the age of forty-nine on 13 June, 1645. He was buried in the Archangel Cathedral in Moscow.

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Peter the Great
Peter was his father's youngest son and the child of his second wife, and it didn't look like he would rule Russia.  Tsar Alexis also had three children by his first wife: Feodor, an invalid; Sophia; and Ivan, a semi-imbecile. When Alexis died in 1676 Feodor became Tsar, but his poor constitution brought an early death in 1682. The family of Peter's mother succeeded in having him chosen over Ivan to be Tsar but no sooner was he established, however, than Ivan's family struck back. Gaining the support of the Kremlin Guard, they launched a coup d'etat, and Peter was forced to endure the horrible sight of his supporters and family members being thrown from the top of the grand Red Stair of the Faceted Palace onto the raised pikes of the Guard. The outcome of the coup was a joint Tsar-ship, with both Peter and Ivan placed under the regency of Ivan's elder and not exactly impartial sister Sophia. Peter had not enjoyed his stay in Moscow, a city he would dislike for the rest of his life.

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In 1698, still on tour, Peter received news of yet another rebellion by the Kremlin Guard, instigated by Sophia despite her confinement to Novodevichiy. He returned without any sense of humor, decisively defeating the guard with his own European-drilled units, ordering a mass execution of the surviving rebels, and then hanging the bodies outside Sophia's convent window. She apparently went mad. The following day Peter began his program to recreate Russia in the image of Western Europe by personally clipping off the beards of his nobles.

Peter's return to Russia and assumption of personal rule hit the country like a hurricane. He banned traditional Muscovite dress for all men, introduced military conscription, established technical schools, replaced the church patriarchy with a holy synod answerable to himself, simplified the alphabet, tried to improve the manners of the court, changed the calendar, changed his title from Tsar to Emperor, and introduced a hundred other reforms, restrictions, and novelties (all of which convinced the conservative clergy that he was the antichrist). In 1703 he embarked on the most dramatic of his reforms--the decision to transfer the capital from Moscow to a new city to be built from scratch on the Gulf of Finland. Over the next nine years, at tremendous human and material cost, St. Petersburg was created.

Peter died in 1725 and after which Russia went through a great number of rulers in a distressingly short time, none of whom had much of an opportunity to leave a lasting impression. Many of Peter's reforms failed to take root in Russia, and it was not until the reign of Catherine the Great that his desire to make Russia into a great European power was in fact achieved.   
(Source: http://www.geographia.com/russia/rushis04.htm)


Catherine (II) the Great
On December 25, 1761, Peter III, a grandson of Peter the Great, was crowned Tsar. Peter was thirty-four, dissolute, and imperceptive. He was not accompanied by his wife Catherine, a year younger but far more mature, not dissolute but also no puritan. Born German (in a city which today is part of Poland) Catherine was a member of European royalty.  The couple had been married for eighteen years. Both had been newcomers to the Russian court as teens, and for a few years after their marriage they had been on friendly terms. By 1762, however, their relationship had long since been in name only. Peter had grown into a fool, while Catherine had become a complete success, respected as much for her intellect as for her winning personality.  Politics was as always a deadly serious pursuit--and everyone knew that Catherine was the more capable politician.

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By the following summer the conflict between Peter and Catherine had become quite serious. In only six months of rule, he had managed to offend and outrage virtually the entire court by diplomatic bumblings and large segments of the population through his hostility to the church and his evident disdain for Russia. Support for Catherine was widespread, and Peter was suspicious. Early on the morning of June 28, Catherine left her estate at Peterhof, outside of St. Petersburg, and departed for the city. Everything had been prepared in advance, and when she arrived she was greeted with cheers by both the troops of her factional supporters and the populace. By the next morning, Peter was confronted with a fait accompli--and a prepared declaration of his abdication. A week later, he was dead.

Catherine went on to become the most powerful sovereign in Europe. She continued Peter the Great's reforms of the Russian state, further increasing central control over the provinces. Her skill as a diplomat, in an era that produced many extraordinary diplomats, was remarkable. Russia's influence in European affairs, as well as its territory in Eastern and Central Europe, were increased and expanded. Catherine was also an enthusiastic patron of the arts. She built and founded the Hermitage Museum, commissioned buildings all over Russia, founded academies, journals, and libraries, and corresponded with the French Encyclopedists, including Voltaire, Diderot, and d'Alembert. 

When Catherine the Great died in 1796, she was succeeded by her son Paul I. Paul's reign lasted only five years and was by all accounts a complete disaster. His most notable legacy is the remarkable and tragic Engineer's Castle in St. Petersburg. Paul was succeeded by his son Alexander I, who is remembered mostly for having been the ruler of Russia during Napoleon Bonaparte's epic Russian Campaign. 
(Source: http://www.geographia.com/russia/rushis04.htm)

Towards the end of her life, Catherine was often ill. Her legs swelled up and she died of a brain aneurysm on 6 November, 1796. She was buried in the St. Peter and St. Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg near the tomb of Peter the Great.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 19, 2008, 11:29:24 PM
Napoleon's Invasion


In June of 1812, Napoleon began his fatal Russian campaign, a landmark in the history of the destructive potential of warfare. Virtually all of continental Europe was under his control, and the invasion of Russia was an attempt to force Tsar Alexander I to submit once again to the terms of a treaty that Napoleon had imposed upon him four years earlier. Having gathered nearly half a million soldiers, from France as well as all of the vassal states of Europe, Napoleon entered Russia at the head of the largest army ever seen.

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The Russians, under Marshal Kutuzov, could not realistically hope to defeat him in a direct confrontation. Instead, they begin a defensive campaign of strategic retreat, devastating the land as they fell back and harassing the flanks of the French. As the summer wore on, Napoleon's massive supply lines were stretched ever thinner, and his force began to decline. By September, without having engaged in a single pitched battle, the French Army had been reduced by more than two thirds from fatigue, hunger, desertion, and raids by Russian forces.

Nonetheless, it was clear that unless the Russians engaged the French Army in a major battle, Moscow would be Napoleon's in a matter of weeks. The Tsar insisted upon an engagement, and on September 7, with winter closing in and the French army only 70 miles (110 km) from the city, the two armies met at Borodino Field. By the end of the day, 108,000 men had died--but neither side had gained a decisive victory. Kutuzov realized that any further defense of the city would be senseless, and he withdrew his forces, prompting the citizens of Moscow to began a massive and panicked exodus. When Napoleon's army arrived on September 14, they found a city depopulated and bereft of supplies, a meagre comfort in the face of the oncoming winter. To make matters much, much worse, fires broke out in the city that night, and by the next day the French were lacking shelter as well.

After waiting in vain for Alexander to offer to negotiate, Napoleon ordered his troops to begin the march home. Because the route south was blocked by Kutuzov's forces (and the French were in no shape for a battle) the retreat retraced the long, devastated route of the invasion. Having waited until mid-October to depart, the exhausted French army soon found itself in the midst of winter--in fact, in the midst of an unusually early and especially cold winter. Temperatures soon dropped well below freezing, cossacks attacked stragglers and isolated units, food was almost non-existent, and the march was five hundred miles. Ten thousand men survived. The campaign ensured Napoleon's downfall and Russia's status as a leading power in post-Napoleonic Europe. Yet even as Russia emerged more powerful than ever from the Napoleonic era, its internal tensions began to increase.
(Source: http://www.geographia.com/russia/rushis05.htm)

Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 19, 2008, 11:49:19 PM
Revolution


By the nineteenth century, the Russian form of rule was under attack. In the Decembrist revolt in 1825, a group of young, reformist military officers attempted to force the adoption of a constitutional monarchy by preventing the accession of Nicholas I. They failed utterly, and Nicholas became the most reactionary leader in Europe. Nicholas' successor, Alexander II, seemed by contrast to be amenable to reform. In 1861, he abolished serfdom, though the emancipation didn't in fact bring on any significant change in the condition of the peasants. Attempts by the lower classes to gain more freedom provoked fears of anarchy, and the government remained extremely conservative. As Russia became more industrialized, larger, and far more complicated, the inadequacies of autocratic Tsarist rule became increasingly apparent and by the twentieth century conditions were ripe for a serious convulsion.

At the same time, Russia had expanded its territory and its power considerably over the nineteenth century. Its borders extended to Afghanistan and China, and it had acquired extensive territory on the Pacific coast. The foundation of the port cities of Vladivostok and Port Arthur there had opened up profitable avenues for commerce, and the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway (constructed from 1891-1905) linked the European Russia with its new eastern territories.

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In 1894 Nicholas II acceded to the throne. He was not the most competent of political leaders, and his ministers were almost uniformly reactionaries. To make matters worse, the increasing Russian presence in the far east provoked the hostility of Japan. In January of 1905, the Japanese attacked, and Russia experienced a series of defeats that dissolved the tenuous support held by Nicholas' already unpopular government. Nicholas was forced to grant concessions to the reformers, including most notably a constitution and a parliament, or Duma. The power of the reform movement was founded on a new and powerful force entered Russian politics. The industrialization of the major western cities and the development of the Batu oil fields had brought together large concentrations of Russian workers, and they soon began to organize into local political councils, or soviets. It was in large part the power of the soviets, united under the Social Democratic party, that had forced Nicholas to accept reforms in 1905.

After the war with Japan was brought to a close, Nicholas attempted to reverse the new freedoms, and his government became more reactionary than ever. Popular discontent gained strength, and Nicholas countered it with increased repression, maintaining control but worsening relations with the population. In 1912, the Social Democrats split into two camps--the radical Bolsheviks and the comparatively moderate Menshiviks.

In 1914, another disastrous war once again brought on a crisis. If the Russo-Japanese war had been costly and unpopular, it was at least remote. The First World War, however, took place right on Russia's western doorstep. Unprepared militarily or industrially, the country suffered demoralizing defeats, suffered severe food shortages, and soon suffered an economic collapse. By February of 1917, the workers and soldiers had had enough. Riots broke out in St. Petersburg, then called Petrograd, and the garrison there mutinied. Workers soviets were set up, and the Duma approved the establishment of a Provisional Government to attempt to restore order in the capital. It was soon clear that Nicholas possessed no support, and on March 2 he abdicated the throne in favor of his brother Michael. No fool, Michael renounced his claim the next day.

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The Provisional Government set up by the Duma attempted to pursue a moderate policy, calling for a return to order and promising reform of worker's rights. However, it was unwilling to endorse the most pressing demand of the soviets--an immediate end to the war. For the next 9 months, the Provisional Government, first under Prince Lvov and then under Alexandr Kerensky, unsuccessfully attempted to establish its authority. In the meanwhile, the Bolsheviks gained increasing support from the ever more frustrated soviets. On October 25, led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, they stormed the Winter Palace and deposed the Kerensky government.

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Although the Bolsheviks enjoyed substantial support in St. Petersburg and Moscow, they were by no means in control of the country as a whole. They succeeded in taking Russia out of the war (though on very unfavorable terms), but within months civil war broke out throughout Russia. For the next three years the country was devastated by civil strife, until by 1920 the Bolsheviks had finally emerged victorious.
(Source: http://www.geographia.com/russia/rushis06.htm)


Video Presentations:


Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 20, 2008, 12:38:32 AM
Tragic Endings


At its height in the mid-nineteenth century, the empire of the Romanovs comprised more than one sixth of the earth's surface. It has been declared as a "whole world, self-sufficient, independent, and absolute."  Russia's rich and vibrant culture would continue to shine decades after the fall of the Romanov family.  It was this fantastic and wealthy world that ended with the unexpected murder of the last ruling members of the Romanov family. 

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In October 1917, Lenin took over the reins of power. The advent of Communism sealed the family's doom. In 1918, they moved to Ekaterinburg in the Urals. When the anti-Bolshevik White Army approached the area, the local Communists were ordered to prevent a rescue.

The decision was made to execute the royal family and to destroy all evidence of the deed. Nicholas suspected that a change of plan was in the air. Although Alexandra had been tired and ill, he and the children had remained in relatively good spirits. Now Nicholas grew tense and watchful.


Романов До свидания (The Romanov's Goodbye)

On the evening of 16 July 1918, the leader of the secret police guarding the Imperial family, Jacob Yurovsky, told his men, "Tonight we will shoot the whole family, everybody." The family went to bed as usual. At midnight, Yurovsky wakened them, explaining that the White Army were approaching and that they must be moved at once. Innocent of the fate that awaited them, the family dressed and went downstairs, where Yurovsky led them to a basement room and told them to wait for their cars to arrive.

"We must shoot them all tonight."  Pavel Medvedev was a member of the squad of soldiers guarding the royal family. He describes what happened:

"In the evening of 16 July, between seven and eight p.m., when the time or my duty 'had just begun; Commandant Yurovsky, [the head of the execution squad] ordered me to take all the Nagan revolvers from the guards and to bring them to him. I took twelve revolvers from the sentries as well as from some other of the guards and brought them to the commandant's office.

Yurovsky said to me, 'We must shoot them all tonight; so notify the guards not to be alarmed if they hear shots.' I understood, therefore, that Yurovsky had it in his mind to shoot the whole of the Tsar's family, as well as the doctor and the servants who lived with them, but I did not ask him where or by whom the decision had been made...At about ten o'clock in the evening in accordance with Yurovsky's order I informed the guards not to be alarmed if they should hear firing.

[attachimg=2] Final burial at Peter & Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg


Into this small room crowded Nicholas and Alexandra and their five children, and four members of their domestic household, including Alexandra's maid, Demidova, who carried some Imperial jewels hidden in the feathers of a pillow. As they settled down to wait, Yurovsky burst into the room waving his revolver, followed by his armed secret policemen. "Your relatives have tried to save you. They have failed and we must now shoot you," Yurovsky declared to the terrified group.


The final moments
Nicholas hardly had time to throw a protective arm round his wife before Yurovsky pointed his revolver at the Tsar's head and fired. Nicholas died instantly. The armed men then opened fire, and the small room rang with shots and screams. Alexandra was making the sign of the cross when she fell dead, hit by a single bullet. The Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana and Marie also fell in the hail of bullets. The sickly Tsarevich was finished off by two bullets through the ear.

The Grand Duchess Anastasia, who had fainted when the firing started, now regained consciousness, and was set upon by bayonets and rifle butts. The Romanov dynasty--and with it, Tsarism--was at an end.

That hideous murder of a father and mother, four young girls and a sick boy on a July night in 1918 was far from being the worst of the crimes committed in the name of Communism, either before or since; yet, with the possible exception of Katyn, it is the one which has caused the most horror and disgust.


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Prologue
Nicholas II, Tsar of Russia, 1872-1918

Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress of Russia, 1872-1918

Olga Nicholovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, 1895-1918

Tatiana Nicholovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, 1897-1918

Marie Nicholovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, 1899-1918

Anastasia Nicholovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, 1901-1918

Alexis Nicolaievich, Tsarevich, 1904-1918


[attachimg=5]   The coronation ceremony portrait of Nicholas II.


In 1978, as the sixtieth anniversary of the execution approached, the Politburo, concerned with the number of Russian pilgrims visiting the historic Ipatiev house each year declared that the house was not of 'sufficient historical significance', and ordered its demolition.  The task was passed to Boris Yeltsin, Chair of the local party, who had the house demolished in September 1977.  He later wrote in his memoirs, published in 1990, that "sooner or later we will be ashamed of this piece of barbarism."


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Nicholas II of Russia born Nikolay Alexandrovich Romanov (Russian: Никола́й II, Никола́й Алекса́ндрович Рома́нов) (18 May 1868 – 17 July 1918) was the last Tsar of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland. His official title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is currently regarded as Saint Nicholas The Passion Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.


[attachimg=6]   Yekaterinburg's "Church on the Blood", built on the spot where the Ipatiev House once stood.


Sources: 
-Paul Gilbert's forthcoming book (2009) "Born in the Purple, The Private World of the Children of Tsar Nicholas II."
-www.Eyewitnesstohistory.com
-www.wikipedia.com
-Special thanks to the Ipatiev House Memorial project and the Romanov Historical Memorial.  Check out their website at: http://www.romanov-memorial.com/Historical.htm
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mirror on April 20, 2008, 01:39:59 AM
Quote
   Yekaterinburg's "Church on the Blood", built on the spot where the Ipatiev House once stood.


I visited this church when I was in Yekaterinburg this winter. But I could not visit a shaft in  wood of outside of Yekaterinburg where Romanov's bones were found.

Romanov's family was killed in Ipatiev house and then their bodies were transported and thrown away in a shaft.


Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 08, 2008, 11:21:11 PM
The history of thе Moscow Kremlin goes back to the earliest days of Russia. The first written record of Moscow dates back to 1147, to the reign of Great PrinceYuri of Kiev, Vladimir Monomakh's son.  Yuri Dolgoruky is considered to be the founder of Moscow and in commemoration of this an equestrian statue by the sculptor S.V. Orlov was erected in Tverskaya Street in 1954.

One of the most remarkable exhibits of the Kremlin museums linked to the genealogy of Russian princes is the Cap of Monomakh, the Russian Tsars' inherited crown. It even became proverbial. There is a saying: "How heavy you are, the Cap of Monomakh!" meaning the heavy burden of responsibility.

Since time immemorial the Moscow Kremlin has been the centre of Russian statehood, the residence of Russian tsars and hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church.


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The Kremlin has been the residence of the President of the Russian Federation and his Administration since 1992.

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It was only in 1955 that the Moscow Kremlin's (KREM-eL) unique museums have again become accessible to everyone. Church services have recently been resumed in the old cathedrals and the Kremlin bells which have been silent for over 70 years have come to life.


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Video Presentation:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 08, 2008, 11:59:39 PM
Czar Bell: At the foot of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, rests a monument to the grand days of the Romanov Dynasty. The Czar's Bell. It was Czarina Anna I, who commissioned the bell in 1734, a fulfillment of the dream of her grandfather, Czar Alexei. The huge bronze bell was to be the biggest and clearest sounding bell in the world. Unfortunately, before the bell was raised, it cracked in a fire in 1737. Two hundred tons of silence are all that remain.

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The Kremlin is very beautiful at night!

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 09, 2008, 12:52:08 AM
да́ча, or as we say in English, 'dacha.'  This is the Russian summer home or cottage and the envy of any family not fortunate enough to have one.  Many Russian families, of all econcomic backgrounds, do have a dacha. 

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Many urban Russians own a second home in the outlying country areas.  In the Soviet period, many of these summer homes were relatively spartan with no heating, etc.  Some however, are on an acre or two of land and can be used as year-a-round homes. 

[attachimg=2]   Shown here is the restored dacha of the late Russian writter Pasternak.

With the new economic boom in Moscow, the "New Russians" are building huge, sprawling compounds (often many acres in size) that costs millions of U.S. dollars to construct. 

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Many of the New Russians live in these home year around, commuting into the city.  This includes many of the country's politicians, as well as members of the Russian mafia.  Their homes are guarded by heavily armed guards, and caravans of black SUVs and BMW's form motorcades that take these people into the city center during the week, causing the already nightmarish Moscow traffic to grind to a halt.   

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Because most people live in big, overcrowded cities, they keep small plots of land, called dachas, on the outskirts of the cities. There they keep lovely gardens where they grow fruit and vegetables as well as flowers. They usually have some kind of shelter on the land as well. This can be anything from a little shed to a huge, comfortable house.

[attachimg=3]  Old school house not far from the Mendeleyev family dacha.

Most dachas are somewhere in between, a small cottage suitable for one or two people to spend a night. The dacha is a relaxing and very important place, and spending time at a dacha can help you understand the Russian people.

[attachimg=8]   This one has electricity, a rarity in many older dachas.

It is where most Russians believe they can find peace and beauty.  As you can see from the spread on the table, they usually eat very well in the summer!

[attachimg=4]  Friends dacha, and like most Russians, the dacha vegetable garden is very important.

Dachas come in every size, shape and can be found from the very basic with no indoor plumbing to the ornate summer mansion.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 09, 2008, 01:31:42 AM
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The first dachas in Russia began to appear during the reign of Peter the Great. Initially they were small estates in the country, which were given to loyal vassals by the Tsar. In archaic Russian, the word dacha means something given and is a cognate with Latin data.

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Anyone who occupies a dacha for the time being is called dachnik (дачник).

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One favourite activity is to go fishing, and swimming, in a nearby river or lake.

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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Jared2151 on May 09, 2008, 07:17:15 AM
Mendeleyev,

   You never cease to amaze me with your educational / informative posts, keep up the excellent work.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 09, 2008, 10:04:46 AM
Thanks Jared!  I'm glad it can be of service and enjoyment!
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on May 21, 2008, 12:52:59 AM
St Petersburg: Amber Room:


One of the Summer Palace attractions in St Petersburg is the famous Amber room.


[attachimg=1]  (The original Amber Room)


The original Amber Room (Янтарная комната, German: Bernsteinzimmer) in the Catherine Palace of Tsarskoye Selo near Saint Petersburg was a complete chamber decoration of amber panels backed with gold leaf and mirrors. Due to its singular beauty, it was sometimes dubbed the "Eighth Wonder of the World".

The Amber Room was created from 1701 to 1709 in Prussia and remained at Charlottenburg Palace until 1716 when it was given by Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm I to his then ally, Tsar Peter the Great of the Russian Empire. The Amber Room was looted during World War II by Nazi Germany and brought to Königsberg. Knowledge of its whereabouts was lost in the chaos at the end of the war.

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A reconstructed Amber Room was inaugurated in 2003 in the Catherine Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia.  The latest discovery, as reported in February 2008, is of a 20-metre pit in Deutschneudorf, a small town near the German-Czech border. The site reportedly matches intelligence from survivors who helped loot the fabled room, and initial probe reports are said to indicate the presence of a large quantity of gold or silver.

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On 20th Feb 2008, German treasure hunters claimed to have found the Amber room.  The discovery of an estimated two tons of gold or silver was made in a cavern 20 meters underground near the village of Deutschneudorf on Germany's border with the Czech Republic.  The mystery of the Amber Room has been the basis for the plot of several films, books and art exhibitions. 



Links:
-Follow this web link for more on the modern day hunt to find out what happened to the original Amber Room:
http://www.amberroom.org/index-english.htm

-History of the Amber Room:  http://www.geo.uw.edu.pl/HOBBY/AMBER/amberroom.htm
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Chris on May 21, 2008, 02:05:58 AM
Fantastic Jim, I don't know how you come up with all this great information and wonderful pictures.

Chris
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Markje on July 21, 2008, 06:32:38 AM
Question about russian / ukraine culture :

Someone special told me, that her babushka prepared a whole day for my visit and it was part of russian folklore.
There was also an abundance of food and the amount left over was sickening.

I have no idea what to google for or what the significance of this is.

Does anyone know ?
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: lindochka on July 21, 2008, 08:51:01 AM
Question about russian / ukraine culture :

Someone special told me, that her babushka prepared a whole day for my visit and it was part of russian folklore.
There was also an abundance of food and the amount left over was sickening.

I have no idea what to google for or what the significance of this is.

Does anyone know ?


Markje, I started to respond in more detail, but I gave up because my reply was starting to seem like some sort of lecture on cultural anthropology. I don't know enough about Dutch culture to be certain, but I suspect you had a Close Encounter with Cultural Differences!

Perhaps "someone special" meant that such preparations are part of Russian culture/tradition? That's certainly true. Guests are a very big deal and all the stops are pulled out. During my first visit to meet my family back in 2000 I was so amazed at the spread of food at my welcome dinner -- not just the quantity, but the variety and the artistry of the presentation -- that I photographed the table. I knew my visit was a big deal to my cousins (as it was to me), but Eastern European friends back in the US commented admiringly on this evidence of how my visit was regarded.

Of course there was an abundance of food at Babushka's -- guests are a gift from God! Nothing is too good for them, everything must be the best one can offer, and in large quantity. I can understand how what you saw might have seemed excessive to you, but it was evidence of the regard for you and the importance of your visit.

I would also imagine that nothing went to waste. DM and I indulged our wedding guests in a manner considered fairly lavish in DM's hometown. We served buffet-style and I promise you that I made so much food and so many different dishes that there was literally no room on the buffet table for our cake. (I had to set it on the window sill behind the table until it was time for dessert.)

We ourselves enjoyed party food for the better part of the week that followed our Big Day and we threw away nothing!

The way in which Babushka entertained you is evidence of the importance of you and your visit to her and her family. No matter how good a cook she is, I doubt she goes to that kind of trouble on a daily basis. It is also evidence of Babushka's skills in the Russian art of being mistress of a household. Keeping in mind the traditionally very close relationship between women and their grandchildren in that part of the world (which long predates the beginnings of the USSR), it would be reasonable to conclude that "someone special" has had a fine example set for her.

IMO, you have much about which you should be pleased, not to mention deeply honored. Personally I'm delighted for you!

HTH.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Olga_Mouse on July 21, 2008, 11:35:00 AM

I have no idea what to google for or what the significance of this is.

Does anyone know ?


Ever seen the movie "My big Greek wedding" - with American parents bringing "a cake with a hole" to the "small" party arranged by Greek parents?  :chuckle:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Markje on July 22, 2008, 01:35:45 AM

IMO, you have much about which you should be pleased, not to mention deeply honored. Personally I'm delighted for you!

HTH.

hi Linda,

Thanks a bunch for the long reply :) I felt very honoured, thats for sure. :) :) I only regretted not speaking more Russian as Lena was too busy and happy chatting with her family to do translations for me :)

Mark
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: froid on July 30, 2008, 06:45:33 AM
I saw the padlock thing in Moscow as well.  On one bridge they poles running down the middle of it that had space for putting locks on.  People would put locks near the top of the poles and keep adding and adding onto the other locks until it looked like it had "trees" of locks running down the middle of it.  Very interesting to see.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on October 05, 2008, 09:23:34 PM
Sheremetyevo the airport, Sheremetiev the family:



You've flown into Moscow and your ticket said SVO-2.  That funny looking name Sheremetyevo, Шереметьево, just looked weird on the terminal from out on the tarmac. And when the captain came on the speaker to welcome you to Moscow did he say "SHITTY mate-vi-ah" or was that "SHADDY met-ye-vah?"  Dang, you wish he'd say it again, cause you're not sure if you heard it right.

Then as the plane taxied closer you could see the signs.  Heck, how do they speak such a language? 

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Unless Moscow is where you depart you're likely off to either Шереметьево-1, which although it's susposedly the first terminal of one airport and shares runways with terminal 2, it might as well be on the other side of the world.  And it will take you that long to get there too.  Or, if this is just an short layover, you may be headed off to another Moscow airport.  There are several and in fact 3 of them are international airports. The other 2 international facilities are DME - Domodedovo (аэропорт Домодедово) and VNU - Vnukovo (аэропорт Внуково).

This morning the church choir, of which it has been reported that I make feeble attempts to sing bass, sang an Orthodox anthem by Sheremeteiv, the composer.  Standing there in the choir loft when my thoughts should have been centered on more heavenly realms, I was preoccupied with thoughts of the good (but very inexpensive) meals served in the airport employee cafeteria upstairs in terminal 2.

You might be interested to know that at one time the Sheremetev family was the largest landowner (excepting the Tsars) in all of Russia.  Count Boris Sheremetev was a general in the Russian army who helped Peter the Great build Russia into a full European power.  In addition to his duties as a general, he also helped Peter build the Russian Navy.

Count Alexander Dmitrievitch Sheremetiev, whose name is transliterated a variety of ways was born in 1859 and was the last fully noble Russian Count of the Sheremetiev bloodline. Sheremetiev was a direct descendant of Boris Sheremetev, who fought alongside Peter the Great in the Great Northern War, and Sheremetiev's father served as chamberlain to Tsar Alexander II.

On the occasion of his marriage in 1883, Sheremetiev purchased a building located at No. 4 Kutuzova Embankment in St. Petersburg. Sheremetiev was a Major General to the Tsar in peacetime and used his position and privilege to mount the first firefighting companies in Russia. It was the Sheremetiev family that at one point owned the famous Moscow palace and grounds known as the Ostankino Park.


[attachimg=1] Sheremetiev Palace park, a St Petersburg landmark.

Alexandr Sheremetiev was also a very talented composer and choral director, who served as the leader of the chorus attached to the Russian Court. He ultimately formed his own private orchestra and chorus, which played public concerts at his estate in St. Petersburg; the quality of the orchestra is said to have been superior to that belonging to the Conservatory of St. Petersburg itself, although many of its musicians played in both orchestras. Tickets to concerts at Sheremetiev's palace were kept at low cost, and Sheremetiev viewed his musical activities as a kind of public service, donating the proceeds from concerts to churches and folk music groups. After decades of operation, Sheremetiev's music-making came to an abrupt end in 1917 when the Russian Revolution forced him and his family to flee to Paris. He died in 1931.

Very little of Sheremetiev's music is accounted for, but it is of such high quality that the little of it that has survived suggests the technical refinement of a composer who wrote music often and well. His chorus "Rejoice Now Heavenly Powers" is a standard piece among Russian Orthodox choirs, and a recording of the work by Chorovaya Akademia became a low-level public radio "hit" when included on the popular BMG compilation Ancient Voices in 1995. After his departure from Russia, his estate housed various political operations belonging to the Soviet state until 1932 when it was established as the headquarters of the Leningrad Writer's Union. Fire broke out in the palace in 1993 and it became the subject of an international restoration effort, the baseline work being completed over the next decade.


[attachimg=2] Sheremetiev Palace park.


One of Sheremetiev's descendants, Pierre Cheremetieff, serves as head of the Russian Rachmaninoff Conservatory in Paris, and it was he who opened the door to the gallery of Sheremetiev Palace in 2003 for the first public concert held there in more than 85 years.


The music of Sheremetiev lives on.  Listen to this contemporary rendition set to the background of an all-male Sheremetiev chorus.


PS....when saying Шереметьево, although this can be a tongue-twister at first, here are a couple of hints:
1) The letter "e" is a soft vowel and so it softens those hard consonants to the left.
2) The letter "e" is "yeh" (not e) and if you'll allow the "ye" to come out and play you will find it easier to say this word.

If you've struggled with this word then "Shay-tye-may-tyeva" is probably closer to sounding more like a natural Russian.



Finally, (Gasp!) the Sheremetiev family were not "ethnic Russians!"  OH NO!  They were descendants of the Tatars, again proving the phrase, "scratch and Russian and underneath is a Tatar."
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on October 14, 2008, 10:53:44 PM
Russia the beautiful!



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She takes up one sixth of the world's surface.


She spans 11 time zones today.  When it is evening in Moscow it's already tomorrow morning in Vladivostok.


She sits on half the European continent.


She spans half the Asian continent.


Her native people range from Eskimos and Indians in the far East. Tatars in the Siberian mountains and flatlands, Asians along her southern borders, and ethnic Europeans in the West.


She is home to over 100 languages.


Her history is over 1,000 years old.


She is rich in culture.


She is Russia.


She is beautiful.


Just watch:


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And there is more:


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She is the heart of the Slavic people:


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The center of Slavic culture:


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While all major religions are represented within her borders, Russia is the centre of Christian Orthodoxy:



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She is Russia! 


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Title: FSUW Archtypes
Post by: iheartrw on January 07, 2009, 05:21:33 PM
For fun, what do you think of this article?

http://russianwomenspeak.wordpress.com/2008/02/29/big-city-girls-and-their-dream-men-russian-classification/#more-85

http://russianwomenspeak.wordpress.com/2008/02/20/virgin-village-smalltown-vs-babylon-city-russian-brides-background-effect/
Title: Re: FSUW Archtypes
Post by: Manny on January 07, 2009, 05:55:42 PM
Leave a few comments over there with http://ruadventures.com in the URL line as per this topic (http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=5344.0) folks - we might cop for a few members.  ;D

I am not familiar with that blog, I am off there reading now.............
Title: Re: FSUW Archtypes
Post by: mendeleyev on January 07, 2009, 08:10:18 PM
Skimmed over and found some nice things but that was just a brief visit.  I'd certainly agree with the article "Adapting your English to her Russian (or Ukrainian)."
Title: Life in Russia's Far East
Post by: mendeleyev on February 17, 2009, 11:48:54 AM
Top 20 indicators you might be in the Russian Far East:
1. Toilet paper is non-absorbent.
2. It takes 5 minutes to pull your shorts up because it is so humid.
3. There are no rules but they still can be broken.
4. The people who are paid to protect the wildlife also poach it.
5. You get whipped with oak branches while bathing.
6. The gold teeth in a Russian’s mouth are worth more
than what’s in their pocket.
7. Power poles are made of concrete because people
were stealing the wooden poles to build houses.
8. Awards are given for having the nicest yard in town.
9. You hear bugs buzzing in your ear when you are
doing laundry, brushing teeth, bathing, eating,
sleeping, walking, teaching, etc.
10. Everyone wears clothing with English brand names
but they are misspelled because they are Chinese
rip-offs. (Example: Fox Racing is Fox Rncinging)
11. Instead of saying "Super Duper" the Russian kids
say "Super Pooper"
12. Everyone wants your autograph because when they
tell their friends they met an American they won’t be
believed unless they have proof.
13. You’re the top news story the day after you visit
a city.
14. The women have more hair on their legs than they
do on their heads.
15. You put a fence around your house and garden to
keep the animals OUT.
16. You have strong thighs from squatting to go to the
bathroom.
17. It is considered bad luck to sleep with your
window open.
18. You are not allowed to touch anything in the
grocery store. Everything is behind a counter and you
have to tell the cashier what you want.
19. Wild marijuana is growing in every other field.
20. A heavy rain makes it hard to get to town.
Title: Re: Life in Russia's Far East
Post by: Jared2151 on February 17, 2009, 12:47:43 PM
LOL @ #7

Just wait, they'll find out what a handsome bunker those cement poles make.
Title: Re: Life in Russia's Far East
Post by: Manny on February 17, 2009, 02:42:56 PM

Top 20 indicators you might be in the Russian Far East Florida:
2. It takes 5 minutes to pull your shorts up because it is so humid.
3. There are no rules but they still can be broken.
4. The people who are paid to protect the wildlife also poach it. (alligator tail anyone?)
8. Awards are given for having the nicest yard in town.
9. You hear bugs buzzing in your ear when you are
doing laundry, brushing teeth, bathing, eating,
sleeping, walking, teaching, etc.
14. The women have more hair on their legs than they
do on their heads.
15. You put a fence around your house and garden to
keep the animals OUT. (Thats the Alligators again)
16. You have strong thighs from squatting to go to the
bathroom.
17. It is considered bad luck to sleep with your
window open.
20. A heavy rain makes it hard to get to town.

And they say there are cultural differences?  :innocent:
Title: Her Birch juice
Post by: mendeleyev on March 14, 2009, 05:42:37 PM
Birch juice is even more important to most Slavs than maple syrup to Canadians and Americans.

In Eastern Europe, however, its as if they couldn’t care less about maple trees or maple syrup. Rather, the sap the Ukrainians, Russians, and Belarusians are interested in is birch sap, which is the product of birch trees. In case you wondered the Birch is the official national tree of Russia.

Leave any city in the spring and step into most any of those birch forests so common in Eastern Europe and you’ll find birches that the locals are tapping for their clear, thin juice, which is dripping down into an old soda bottle or a tin can.

Why do Slavs love their birch juice so much? First of all, it tastes okay. It’s a thin, clear, fresh elixir that smells like birch-wood, and tastes like it too. You feel happy drinking this earthy liquor, like you’re ingesting the essence of nature and spring.

The ‘birch juice’ that’s laden with sugar syrup and additives and occasionally sold in local supermarkets as a soft drink isn’t the same thing at all. Second, it’s supposed to be good for you. It’s supposed (or so I’ve heard from various sources) to purify the kidneys and the digestive system, thin the blood, help you sleep, lower your blood pressure, improve the eyesight, tone your skin, relax your muscles, clean your gums, defend against pneumonia, tuberculosis, and other respiratory

Many Russians swear that birch juice is good for the liver, and a glass of birch juice able to counterbalance the effects of last night’s 750 grams of vodka.


Ladies, do you drink birch juice?


Gentlemen, what is your experience with it?


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Oh, you can make birch juice wine out of it, first boiling it down until it has the right sugar content and then letting it ferment, after adding wintergreen, spearmint, and other herbs. Google the Internet and you’ll find recipes in both English and Ukrainian/Russian. Birch juice wine, what a country!


Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: erudite on March 15, 2009, 12:49:09 AM
I think they sell that in the USA under the brand name of "HERBALIFE".  :laugh:
Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: BelleZeBoob on March 15, 2009, 01:35:42 AM
 Here is how they get it naturally


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Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: BelleZeBoob on March 15, 2009, 01:48:25 AM
I have tried this juice even at Soviet times. I was not that impressed, though. A sweet white water. But I guess a natural one might taste some better.

At least, if we know that some thing does good for us, this thing would taste for us better anyway, just from the mere knowledge on its usefulness :)
Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: Chris on March 15, 2009, 04:32:20 AM
I have drunk birch juice while in Ukraine, it is supposed to be good for cleansing the body and restoring balance and vitality. My wifes family drink it quite often and when they had some American university students vist a few years ago they all took gallons of the stuff home with them, in fact one of them enquired into how he could import it into the States for a small business enterprise.
Title: Re: McDonalds
Post by: fireeater on March 15, 2009, 05:57:10 AM
This birch juice is available here (along with others) and would be found in those stores that sell various natural health products. Checking on line about 15 stores alone in my part of the city. 

Belle collected by a similar method for Maple Syrup as well, since both are made from the saps of the trees here.


Made by this brand here.


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Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: BelleZeBoob on March 15, 2009, 06:03:55 AM

Mendy, I thought that may be you could slightly specify the thread is about a Russian national birch juice? otherwise the thread looks pretty intimate  :innocent:
Title: Re: Her juice
Post by: mendeleyev on March 15, 2009, 10:47:51 AM
Belle, your English is good!

I'd explain also that "juice" is an American slang term similar to the express of someone's got "game" but then we'll have to split the topic yet again!  So forget I mentioned it.  :chuckle:


McDonalds comments have been moved to the McDonalds thread: http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=6124.75


Birch juice thread stays here.   :)
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 24, 2009, 05:09:04 PM
Kizhi (Ки́жи)



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Kizhi is an island on Lake Onega in the Republic of Karelia (Medvezhyegorsky District), Russia with a beautiful ensemble of wooden churches, chapels and houses. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Russia and a World Heritage Site. The island is about 7 km long and 0.5 km wide. It is surrounded by about 5,000 other islands, most of which are very small. The world famous Kizhi Museum is one of the largest out-door museums in Russia – was founded in 1966.

A reconstructed village on Kizhi Island demonstrates traditional crafts and tasks of peasant life in the Karelia Region of Russia. Villages original to the island also exist, and some houses are still inhabited by locals. Throughout Kizhi Island are remarkable examples of wooden architecture.


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The museum collections contain 83 pieces of the wooden architecture. The core of the collection is an outstanding sample of the wooden architecture – the architectural ensemble of the Kizhi Pogost of Our Savior built on Kizhi Island in the 18 th and the 19 th centuries. In 1990 the ensemble entered the World Heritage List of UNESCO. In 1993 the Kizhi Museum was entered the List of Cultural Objects of Special Value of the Peoples of the Russian Federation by Order of the President.


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The complex of buildings original to Kizhi Island, the Pogost of Our Savior, is on UNESCO's World Heritage Site list. The famous Church of the Transfiguration, built in the 18th century, boasts 22 onion domes. More than 150 thousand people visit the museum every year. More than 5 million people have visited the museum so far. The museum has very rich collections of the items connected with the cultural history, which demonstrate the subject environment of the past and reveal interrelations of the cultural traditions of the different peoples living in Karelia.


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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on March 24, 2009, 05:26:26 PM
Kizhi is an island on Lake Onega in the Republic of Karelia (Medvezhyegorsky District), Russia with an ensemble of wooden churches, chapels and houses. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Russia and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. About 50 people live here year round through the unmerciful winter, when the temperature drops to 35 & 40 degrees below zero, but come summer, the beautiful island welcomes visitors to explore Russian life.

Smoking is strictly prohibited on Kizhi Island except in certain areas. This is due to the delicate nature of the wooden structures - fires have wreaked havoc in the past. In addition, do not expect to stay on Kizhi Island overnight, as this, too, is forbidden.


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Kizhi island is about 7 km long and 0.5 km wide. It is surrounded by about 5,000 other islands, most of which are very small—some of them just rock outcroppings (called "skerries"), though some are as big as 35 km long. Access to Kizhi is by hydrofoil across Lake Onega from Petrozavodsk (numerous trips every day in the summer), by snowcat (in the winter), or by cruise ship. There is no lodging on Kizhi for overnight guests.


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The Kizhi Pogost, as it is known in Russian, is the area inside the perimeter wall or fence and includes 2 large churches and a bell-tower. But the entire island of Kizhi is a museum with many historically significant and beautiful wooden and log structures including windmills, chapels, boat- and fish-houses, saunas, barns and graneries, and homes. There are two small villages on the island that are home to a few local fishermen. Museum staff also live in the old log homes found in these villages.


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The jewel of its architecture is the 22-domed Transfiguration Church (circa 1714)[2], with a large iconostasis—a wooden screen covered with religious portraits, featuring much gold leaf. This iconostasis is in Petrozavodsk until restoration of the Transfiguration Church is completed (scheduled completion is 2014, the 300th anniversary of this monumental church). The massive Transfiguration Church (also known as the "summer church") is about 37m tall, making it one of the tallest log structures in the world.

Visitors will also find craftsman exhibiting the different artistic accomplishments of the long winter months including detailed paintings, woodcarving, and weaving. Visiting this island shows the life of the people who were not living in the cities during the era of the Czars until now. The River Cruise Tours bring their guest here to learn about the Russian Life, the Hydrofoil Ferry boats from Petrozavodsk on the mainland also bring locals and tourist to the island.



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The smaller, nine-domed Intercession Church (also known as the "winter church") was built in 1764, and its iconostasis is intact and can be seen by visitors. The third structure inside the Pogost is the belltower which was built in 1874. The belltower is also constructed with walls of horizontally-fitted logs, though they are covered by exterior wooden planks and cannot be seen. These structures were erected without any nails or other metal, and were made of scribe-fitted horizontal logs, with interlocking corner joinery—either round notch or dovetail—cut by axes. The pine trees used for wall construction were brought to Kizhi from the mainland nearby—a notable transport feat for the 18th century.


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Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: ECR844 on June 18, 2009, 06:45:18 AM
Some Google earth resources for Russian trains:

http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Russia/blog-393062.html

Railways of Russia KMZ link and thread
http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=404687&page=1
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on June 18, 2009, 05:56:20 PM
Matryoshka dolls (Матрёшка)


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Wikipedia: A Matryoshka doll or a Russian nested doll (often incorrectly referred to as a Babushka doll - babushka means "grandmother" in Russian), is a set of dolls of decreasing sizes placed one inside the other. "Matryoshka" (Матрёшка) is a derivative of the Russian female first name "Matryona", which was a very popular name among peasants in old Russia. The name "Matryona" in turn is related to the Latin root "mater" and means "mother", so the name is closely connected with motherhood and in turn the doll has come to symbolize fertility.


How do you pronounce it? Watch and listen here:

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The first Russian nesting doll (matryoshka) was born in 1890 in the workshop "Children's Education" situated in Abramtsevo estate new Moscow. The owner of Abramtsevo was Sava Mamontov - industrialist and a patron of the arts.
The end of the 19 century in Russia was a time of great economic and cultural development. Mamontov was one of the first who patronized artist who were possessed by the idea of the creation of a new Russian style.


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How is a Matryoshka carved out of wood?
A set of matryoshka dolls consists of a wooden figure which can be pulled apart to reveal another figurine of the same sort inside. It, in turn, contains another one inside, and so on. The number of nested figures can be as few as three or as many as twenty. The dolls are typically made of linden tree (basswood), dried for at least 2 years to ensure their stability.


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Attend a class on how to make matryoshka dolls!
Matryoshka are popular souvenirs. It's possible to buy very simple matryoshka in sets of five or seven. More elaborate matryoshka may hold 20 nesting dolls or more. Typically, matryoshka are painted as cheerful, kerchief-wearing women. However, matryoshka can also depict Russian fairy tales, Russian leaders, or pop culture icons.


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A History
Matryoshka dolls, or nesting dolls, are, in the context of Russian history, a relatively new phenomenon. They first appeared around 1890 in the city of Sergiev Posad, about 50 kilometers north of Moscow. Unlike many objects of folk art, nesting dolls were not a product of hundreds of years of evolution of a particular art form. Some purists maintain that matryoshki are not real folk art at all. The generally accepted story is that they were introduced into Russia from Japan and brought in by merchants. But nesting dolls were introduced into a fertile artistic soil and, once the seeds were planted, village artists quickly adopted them.

The first matryoshki consisted of three, six, and eight pieces. For some reason, the early nesting dolls depicted what appears to be a family without a father. They include males, but those males are clearly children. After producing the first nesting doll, the Children’s Education workshop continued producing nesting dolls in Moscow until 1904. That year, all of the assets of Children’s Education were transferred to a workshop in Sergiev Posad, which became, and still is, the center of nesting doll production in Russia.


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In 1904, the workshops of Sergiev Posad received a large matryoshka order from Paris, and many of the masters of Sergiev Posad directed their talents to this new product. The order from Paris provided the stimulus for many of Sergiev Posad’s artists and lathe operators to turn their attention to the making of nesting dolls. The nesting doll thus became simpler, more folk-oriented, and less expensive—the price fell by as much as twenty times. At the same time, the main theme became the female figure, and especially the peasant figure in peasant costume. “Matryoshka” is the diminutive of “Matryona”, a common peasant name at the time.


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Matryoshka dolls were made in a variety of shapes and with a variety of themes. There were cone-shaped nesting dolls, bottle-shaped nesting dolls, and nesting dolls with pointed heads. Some dolls took on the shape of the subjects they depicted. Themes that were depicted ranged from characters in famous novels to more common fairy tale scenes. Interestingly, many of the themes that are popular on modern matryoshki—political figures, fairy tales, and peasant families—which are considered new, were in fact subjects of some of the earliest matryoshki.

As the revolution approached in Russia, there were hundreds of artists making nesting dolls in Sergiev Posad. By 1911, there were forty-one nesting doll workshops in Sergiev Posad. Most, but not all, had lathe operators who turned blanks for matryoshki as well as artists who painted them.


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Like much artistic activity, Russian matryoshka making continued strong for several years after the revolution of 1917. Toys were no longer imported, so domestic toys became more popular, and master craftsmen continued with their work. In 1918, a toy museum opened in Sergiev Posad. In 1922, a Regional Handcrafters’ Union was created. The union’s Russian name is an early example of a tongue-twisting Soviet acronym—Raikustpromsoyuz. This union coordinated the artels of the city. In 1926, it worked with six artels, combining the talents of 260 craftsmen.During this period, Russian nesting doll painting in Sergiev Posad became more uniform. What we now call the “traditional” Sergiev Posad nesting doll came into existence in the mid-1920s. It was roughly based on the first nesting doll painted by Sergei Malyutin, featuring a girl in a national costume, sometimes holding a small object in her hands—a chicken, a basket, a bundle, a scarf. The matte, dark feeling of the original was brightened up, and the wood-burned outlines were replaced with painted contours.

The activities at Sergiev Posad spawned other nesting doll-producing centers. Historically, much of Russia’s commercial activity has occurred along the Volga River. The main stimulus for the expansion of nesting doll production to other cities and villages seems to have been the centuries-old market in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, the major city on the Volga, about 300 miles east of Moscow. (Like Sergiev Posad, Nizhny Novgorod was renamed for much of the Soviet period. It was called Gorky from 1932 until the early 1990s.) Craftsmen from Merinovo, near Semyonov, about 50 miles north of Nizhny and Maidan, about 100 miles south of Nizhny, brought examples of nesting dolls from the market to their villages. These villages then began to produce matryoshki with their own distinctive features.


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Matryoshka dolls have a birthday!

Visit the Mendeleyev Journal (http://russianreport.wordpress.com/) for the companion article and videos to this post.
Title: St Basil's Cathedral
Post by: Jared2151 on June 26, 2009, 07:15:33 AM
Mendy,

  In reading your many fine articles, I have a question about something I noticed about the domes on Orthodox churches.

  Most churches have those wonderful 'onion domes' that I'm sure all of us have noticed.
I've seen them all different colors.  I've seem them with stars painted on them.  I think I even remember reading that if the domes were painted black that it meant that at one time, or currently, that this was an indication that it was a convent.

  Now, to my question.  All the domes on a church are usually uniform in that they all seem to be the same color, size, etc.  Can you explain to me why the domes on St. Basil's in Moscow has all of those different size and colored domes?

  Just call me curious.  Thanks - Jared
Title: St Basil's Cathedral
Post by: Chris on June 26, 2009, 10:39:22 AM
Jared

Mendy will give you the complete answer on this, but I think the reason dates back hundreds of years and the number can represent many things, for example three domes represent the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, five domes representing Christ and the four Evangelists, some only have one dome representing Christ or God as the head of the church and some can have thirteen domes representing Christ as the head of the Church and his twelve Apostles. The representation is different for each amount of cupolas a church may opt to use. Every cupola is topped by a three-bar cross, the symbol of salvation.

Regarding colours, Light blue used in the church to honor the Virgin Mary, Gold represents the kingdom of God. Gold being the symbol of a King. Purple is used for lent as is black representing the darkness. White is for Christ and worn by Priests on Easter. Blue represents Heaven and green represents the Pentecost and is the symbol of the Holy Spirit of Life.



Chris
Title: St Basil's Cathedral
Post by: mendeleyev on June 26, 2009, 12:47:57 PM
Jared, good question and I'll move this over to the Russian culture thread so that more can enjoy it.

Chris, awesome answer. You rock!  tiphat


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St Basil's is a place I love. My first tour was over a decade ago and then in 2005 I was allowed to go thru again as part of a group of journalists as it was closed for renovations. We managed to pass off Mrs Mendeleyeva and our oldest daughter as "press assistants" so it was very meaningful to have them with me.

St. Basil's was built to commemorate the capture of the Tatar stronghold of Kazan in 1552, which occured on the Feast of the Intercession of the Virgin. The cathedral was thus officially named Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin by the Moat (the moat being one that originally ran beside the Kremlin).

But the cathedral was popularly known as St. Basil's Cathedral, after St. Basil the Blessed (a.k.a. St. Basil Fool for Christ; 1468-1552), almost from the beginning. Basil impressed Ivan in 1547 when he foretold a fire that swept through Moscow that year. Upon his death, Basil was buried in the Trinity Cathedral that stood on this site at the time.


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The Cathedral of the Intercession a.k.a. St. Basil's Cathedral was constructed from 1555 to 1560. Legend has it that after it was completed, Ivan had the architect blinded in order to prevent him from building a more magnificent building for anyone else. (In fact, he went on to build another cathedral in Vladimir.)

In 1588, Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich added a ninth chapel added on the eastern side to house the grave of St. Basil.

In modern times, St. Basil's came very close to falling victim to Stalin, who resented that it prevented his soldiers from leaving Red Square en masse. But the architect Baranovsky stood on the cathedral's steps and threatened to cut his own throat if the masterpiece was destroyed and Stalin relented (but punished Baranovsky with five years in prison).

The vivid colours and shapes of St. Basil's Cathedral are unmatched anywhere else in the world. The French diplomat Marquis de Custine commented that it combined "the scales of a golden fish, the enamelled skin of a serpent, the changeful hues of the lizard, the glossy rose and azure of the pigeon's neck" and wondered at "the men who go to worship God in this box of confectionery work."

The powerfully eastern design of St. Basil's reflects both its location between Europe and Asia and its historical origins. Since the Kazan Qolsharif mosque had been the principal symbol of the Khanate captured by Ivan the Terrible, some elements from the mosque were incorporated into the cathedral to symbolize the victory.

Although the towers and domes appear chaotic, there is symmetry and symbolism in its design. There are eight domed chapels symbolizing the eight assaults on Kazan: four large and octagonal and four small and square. In the center is a tent-roofed spire topped with a small golden dome.

The ninth chapel on the east side added in 1588 for Basil's tomb interrupts the symmetery of design somewhat. It can be recognized on the outside by its green-and-gold dome studded with with golden pyramids.


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The interior is a maze of galleries winding from chapel to chapel and level to level via narrow stairways and low arches. The walls are painted in floral and geometric patterns. St. Basil's was designed to not have a well defined front or back. It is round and it was intended to be viewed from all sides. The observer can walk around the cathedral both on the outside as well as the inside. The structure is large and one would think the interior would be equally spacious. This is not the case. The inside is a maze of corridors with the tall pillars creating a cramped feeling. The tallest pillar rises 46 meters above the church's foundation. The interior of the Intercession of Our Lady church is 64 square meters.

After centuries of exposure to the elements, St. Basil's was restored in 1954-1955. During this process, the secret to the Russian architecture was revealed. How the architects had managed to build such a complex structure without benefit of design drawings had been a mystery. Restorers discovered that the walls of St. Basil had been outlined with thin timbers. This provided a three-dimensional image of what the completed structure would look like and a guide for the bricklayers.

St. Basil the Blessed can be visited in his chapel on the lower floor, where he lies in a silver casket in gaudy splendor. Upstairs, the Chapel of the Intercession contains the equally splendid blue and gold iconostasis. Other chapels, such as that of St. Nicholas, are more restrained and even austere in their decor.

In a garden at the front of the cathedral stands a bronze statue commemorating Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin, who rallied Russia's volunteer army against the Polish invaders during the Time of Troubles in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The statue was originally constructed in the center of Red Square, but the Soviet government felt it obstructed parades and moved the statue in front of the cathedral in 1936.

Of course one should never forget that onion domes do a wonderful job of preventing snow and ice to build up and thereby protect the strength of a structure.

An excellent video tour (http://www.offexploring.com/scottfree/videos/1785) of the interior is here.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Chris on June 26, 2009, 01:43:23 PM
I love St Basils, from the outside, but I must admit the inside was a bit of a disappointment to me.

Quote from: Jim
The interior is a maze of galleries winding from chapel to chapel and level to level via narrow stairways and low arches. The walls are painted in floral and geometric patterns. St. Basil's was designed to not have a well defined front or back. It is round and it was intended to be viewed from all sides. The observer can walk around the cathedral both on the outside as well as the inside. The structure is large and one would think the interior would be equally spacious. This is not the case. The inside is a maze of corridors with the tall pillars creating a cramped feeling. The tallest pillar rises 46 meters above the church's foundation. The interior of the Intercession of Our Lady church is 64 square meters.

I guess the small winding corridors made it feel very claustrophobic, but it probably had to be built like that to support all the domes and upper floors, ceilings and roofs.

Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on June 26, 2009, 02:07:21 PM
Chris, as you know the interior in some places can feel even cramped, especially in the halls and stairways. Also those are certainly nowhere modern and in moving from room to room and chapel to chapel you realize the antiquity with those stone floors and steps.

I had such a blast in 2005. It was September, snowing, and I was allowed to crawl out through a stone window onto two scaffolds to take some photos of the city from the Cathedral. By the time we had made it to that particular level it was dark and the lights of the city and Red Square were oh so nice. Someday I'll dig out those photos and post some of them.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Chris on June 26, 2009, 02:34:41 PM
Yes it was very cramped, but it doesn't help when you have dozens of other tourists in there with you, its not big enough to just stand still and make the most of it, is it, you just get moved along with the crowd whether you want to or not in some of the corridors and stairways.

It would be good to see those photos of yours Mendy, last time I was in St Basils was March 8th 2007, yes Womens Day, and Red Square was closed off to the public until 2pm, it was unusual to see the square with no one on it  :) but at 2pm they let everyone start walking across it again, I am still not sure why they closed it off, because there were no celebrations or anything going on, on the square.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Eduard on April 18, 2010, 05:41:35 AM
the culture is "moving forward" though and this fassion statement proves it  :laugh:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on July 06, 2012, 11:32:50 PM
Some of us can remember a Soviet Union where no English could be seen anywhere, toilet paper and sanding paper surely were made in the same factory (not really but it felt that way), and coffee was something you brought from from home in a suitcase.

Today many streets have names posted in Cyrillic and English as do some underground Metro signs. Toilet paper is no longer carried on sticks slung over a man's back and is as soft and comfortable as anyplace in the West. Nowadays I buy coffee in Russia and take it back to the USA.

To be sure, Russian's aren't the avid coffee drinkers as a typical American or Canadian, but coffee is no stranger to a Russian table and in fact has never been a total stranger. These days home grown coffee shops are sprouting up everywhere. Even Starbucks with their ill advised late entry into Eastern Europe is doing well.

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шоколадница кофейна = Chocolate Coffee/Cafe

Of course Russians still drink tea all day, dawn to dark, but when Russians want coffee, often it is to compliment dessert and that usually dictates a very strong blend something more like a Turkish coffee. That is perhaps one reason why a cup of American styled coffee at Moscow based шоколадница кофейна (Chocolate Coffee/Cafe) is only 159р (rubles) versus 199р for a cappuccino or from 199р to 249р for a specialty coffee. For the sake of comparison, the exchange rate today is 32.8745 rubles to ($1) one American dollar.

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kения = Kenya

Russians love ice cream, mayo and beets above anything else, okay so fish and salo belong in the list, but chocolate is not far behind. We're generalizing about "they" of course, but in general "they" love the deep and dark European style chocolate, having figured out that dark chocolate is good for health, wealth, love, happiness, good music, cures eyesight problems, restores youth, improves sex, heals burns, fixes teeth, cures hangovers, re-inflates flat tires and is the best medicine for that dreaded malady known in medical circles as "severe chocolate deficiency" syndrome. Therein the connection between chocolate and coffee.

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гватемала = Guatemala

Coffee drinking is becoming fashionable across Eastern Europe.

[attachimg=4]
Колумбия = C-o-l-u-m-b-i-ya (n)

Coffee from Ethiopia is another popular exotic bean sold in the former Soviet Union.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on July 07, 2012, 05:42:26 PM
(Sunday, 8 July 2012)

As reported in the Mendeleyev Journal (http://russianreport.wordpress.com), summertime weather is here.

Moscow:
The sun rose in Moscow at 4:57am this morning and finally went down last night at 10:11pm. The forecast for today (Sunday) is Sunny but rain is coming for Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday. Daytime temps are really warm, between 26/27* and lows at night around 18*. That is warm.

Saint Petersburg:
Yesterday the sun rose at 4:49am and set last night at 11:47pm. The forecast for Sunday is rain, then partly cloudy on Monday and sunny on Tuesday. Piter has the advantage of more moderate summer weather and the highs this week average 22* with the lows around 15*.

Krasnodar:
Over 100 lives have been lost so far in the flooding across the Krasnodar region. The forecast is for some sunshine today, but rain again both Monday and Tuesday. Daytime temps have been averaging 28* and nights around 18*.

Novosibirsk:
Sunrise on Saturday was at 6:02 and sunset was at 11:07pm. The forecast for today (Sunday) is partly sunny with a high of 27* and then partly cloudy Monday thru Wednesday, the low temps at night averaging 10*.

Yekaterinburg/Ekaterinburg:
Sunrise Saturday was at 5:17am and sunset was at 11:47pm. The forecast today is partly cloudy with a chance of shower, then sunny from Monday thru Wednesday. It is warm with high temperatures around 29/30* and nightly lows around 14/15*.

Arkhangelsk:
Of course it is cooler up north and the days are longer. The sun was up and ready for play at 2:59 on Saturday morning and wasn't ready to retire until 11:43pm. Temperatures in the day are averaging 18* and around 9/10* at night. It is partly sunny today but the Дождь (rain) is coming for the remainder of the week.

Volgograd:
You expect it to be hot this time of year in southern Russia and for the most part it is. The sun rose at 5:08 and set at 9:07, very tame for a Russian summer. Temperatures are in the 34/35* range by day and 19/20* by night. The forecast for Volgograd is always the same this time of year with sunny skies followed by more sunny skies.


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Notes:
- Russia uses the Celsius scale for temperatures.

- Russians most often express time in military or 24 hour terms, therefore I have transposed those for readers. Example: 11:07pm in the USA is the same as 23:07 in Russia.
                         
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: mendeleyev on April 04, 2014, 03:54:11 AM
Behind in your understanding of Russian history? Well fret no longer my friend, we're going to be treated to a crash course in Russian history by the fabulous young journalists turned history teachers from Vodka & Bears Productions.


Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: MrMann on April 04, 2014, 04:41:35 AM
I'm a little bit in love with Irina Vodka, she's pretty funny.

Some of the Bears & Vodka stuff is great although some will no doubt accuse them of being anti-Russian. They do a series of open air comedy "lectures" during the summer in Moscow.
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: AvHdB on May 31, 2017, 02:50:21 AM
On one side I understand on another side it is a form of erasing history. I suspect as often is the case the individuals citizens will be shafted.

http://theartnewspaper.com/news/conservation/moscow-s-constructivist-architecture-under-threat-by-government-demolition-plan/

Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: Volshe on May 31, 2017, 03:30:07 AM
On one side I understand on another side it is a form of erasing history. I suspect as often is the case the individuals citizens will be shafted.

http://theartnewspaper.com/news/conservation/moscow-s-constructivist-architecture-under-threat-by-government-demolition-plan/

For what i read on ru-speaking forums: most of the buildings that are planned for demolition are dangerous for the people who live in it.  They will get another housing and not in Butovo. I read cases where someone gets 20m2 in the new place (still in the center) because they lost the view on the river they had and alike. Couple of buildings are of architectural value and do not seem to be in such a bed shape. For what i read, it's not a final decision yet to take them down, and of course, many of the involved are happy with the plan and many are not, as usually  :biggrin:
You know... I recall at the time when i said to one Greek lady that i was surprised how many Greek artifacts i saw in British museums, she said: oh, we still have plenty for ourselves  :laugh:
The same with Moscow's buildings... They'll still have enough  :BLUSH:
Title: Re: Russian culture
Post by: AvHdB on May 09, 2020, 08:03:16 AM
Article in French regarding severe cuts in the Russian budget supporting museums and the arts in Russia.

https://www.lejournaldesarts.fr/actualites/musees-et-galeries-russes-face-un-deconfinement-trop-precoce-149174