Category Archives: Looking Around

Okay, let’s be honest. These blog entries were written under duress as student accounts about excursions into “the field” as those experiences reflect and bring together ideas from our readings. Each blog entry should include:
1) Explicit references to readings (perhaps even a footnote);
2) Original observations about the place or phenomenon described that go behind what we read in the texts or discussed in pre-excursion classes;
3) Illustrated material (photographs, etc.) either original (preferred) or common source (not copyrighted) or, if copyrighted, linked to source;
4) Footnotes to any sources referenced in the text.
5) These entries should also be edited for accuracy in presentation of factual matter, spelling, and style.
6) Yes, these entries will be graded. Sorry.

Sweet, Sweet Honey

Posted on May 21, 2014 by kaspers

After our tour of Suzdal and learning that it is famous for its honey, I bought a half-pint for 200 rubles (just over $5). There had been other honey sellers nearby, but a friendly old man convinced me to buy his.

Part of the souvenir market in Suzdal.

He asked where I was from, and then I told him that I was studying at Moscow State University. He smiled and briefly told me about one of his relatives currently studying there. Then he continued, showing me pictures of his beehives and telling me about another delicacy he was selling – to me, it looked like a crunchy bar made of bees. Maybe it wasn’t meant to eat. I’m not sure. I managed to buy the honey that I wanted, thanking him, and then we bid farewell.
The honey is delicious. At Ashan I bought some crunchy-breads, hoping they would be like toast. They were strange. Then I realized they were lemon-flavored. To make them into a real treat, I spread honey on them and dare I say it? They were amazing! Magic honey.

Almeda agrees: they’re lip-smackin’ good!

A few days ago on Monday (May 19), Chet, Almeda, Gretchen and I visited Kolomenskoe Park (sound familiar? Read this!). We spotted a few signs for honey.

Only 50 meters! (photo: Almeda)

And then another.

Getting there!

Finally the stand!

Hurrah!

But wait – it’s closed.

The sign in the window says closed: закрыто (zakryto).

And so ends the quest to find honey. (Never fear, I still have some!)
On our way out of the park, we found a stand selling medovukha, a drink made of honey.

Medovukha – made from all that honey goodness.

Since we had tried some in Suzdal, we decided not to lug around a bottle on such a hot day.
It turns out that Kolomenskoe sells honey products because it used to have bee-keeping farms. Today, a few of the wooden beehives still stand.

The Three Little Beehives.

While planning my blog about honey, I was excited to find another place besides Suzdal that has been known for its honey. Honey tastes better when there’s a story behind it.

A Week of Spectacles

Posted on May 21, 2014 by calderong

This week must be our fancy week. On Sunday, we went to the Kremlin Palace to watch a ballet adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. Formerly the tsar’s Moscow residence, the Kremlin Theatre serves as a venue for operas, ballets, and concerts, acting as a second stage for the Bolshoi.

Our handsome group at the Kremlin Palace Theatre

It was only fitting, then, that we go to the Bolshoi Theatre as well. Located just across the street from the Kremlin, this theater is world-famous and tickets for “good seats” can be very expensive. However, if you’re willing to arrive early enough to place your name on a waiting list, you might find a place in the nosebleed section for a very good price. On Tuesday, we were able to get tickets for 100 rubles (about 3 US dollars). The opera, The Tsar’s Bride, was the first that I’d ever seen and did not disappoint, although it did require a bit of craning of the neck.

“НЕУДОБНОЕ МЕСТО” literally means uncomfortable seat. At least they’re honest.

Success!

On the highest balcony of the Bolshoi.

The Most Interesting Subway Car in the World

Posted on May 21, 2014 by aldrichc

As our group was leaving the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow after seeing a production of Царская Невеста (The Tsar’s Bride) by Rimsky-Korsakov, Лера (read: Lera) decided it might be fun to walk about for a little bit instead of going into the nearest subway station. As we walked along the city, we got a chance to see the Kremlin lit up at night, which was a pretty fantastic sight.
However, I got a bit tired, and decided to hop in the metro a little earlier than some of the group, who continued walking a bit further. As we walked into the station, a red subway car pulls up (as you can see from my metro video here, this is not their usual color).
026-060
This particular subway car was made in honor of the 75th anniversary of the Красная Стрела (Red Arrow), which is a sleeper train that has been going between Moscow and St. Petersburg since 1931. The only interruption of service for the train was from 1941 to 1943 during the Siege of Leningrad.

The Red Arrow in the 1930’s

A more recent photo of the Red Arrow sleeper train

Notably, the train gained its famous color in 1962, and later, in 1965, the operators of the train began playing “The Hymn to the Great City” whenever the train leaves St. Petersburg at 23:55.

However, it gets better. There was a dog in the metro with us! I managed to pet him a bit and prevent him from getting his head stuck in the door, which I felt to be a success on my part. As we pulled into each metro station, the dog would come up to the door and sniff for a little bit, as if pondering whether that was his stop.

Man’s best friend in the Moscow Metro

Unfortunately (perhaps fortunately), as two men left at Sportivnaya (Sports) metro station, the dog left with them, which inclines me to believe that this was not one of the famous stray dogs that wanders about the Moscow metro at night. However, the combination of the dog and the subway car made for an interesting subway trip, to be sure.

And The Bells Kept Ringing…

Posted on May 21, 2014 by calderong

One afternoon after class, I went with an MGU student, Olga, to Beliy Gorod, or, White Town. This district encompasses the central region of Moscow that contains the Kremlin, Bolshoy Theatre, and other cultural giants.
We came upon a beautiful yellow church, large and filling the Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street.

The Greater Church of Christ’s Ascension was built in the beginning of the 19^th century under Prince Potemkin. It was in this church that Alexander Pushkin married Natalia Goncharova. In 1931, the church was shut down and the iconastasis burned. The church was re-opened in 1990 for worship.
We lazily walked through the courtyard. As Olga explained the history of the church, a cat lounged in the sun, old women sat on the benches and fed birds, the breeze swept through the grass—in short, it was a beautiful day. And then the bells started ringing.
We thought nothing of it and continued walking at our same leisurely pace. But the bells kept ringing… and ringing… and ringing. Confused, I checked my watch: it was about 4:23pm, an arbitrary time for the bells to be tolling. Olga wondered if she had perhaps forgotten about a holiday. We looked around for any evidence of special processions. Nothing.
We stood in front of the church and listened for a while longer. There were no signs of stopping, so we continued down the sidewalk, the sound of bells fading away behind us.

A Contrast: Victory Park Before and During May 9

Posted on May 21, 2014 by aldrichc

One day, while I was still at my home stay, I decided it might be a good idea to wander around for a bit on the metro, and then just get off somewhere. I didn’t make it far before I decided that a station called Victory Park was the place I should go.

After doing some wandering about the very empty park, I headed back home and went to sleep. I didn’t think about it at the time, but this is where a large amount of the festivities surrounding Victory Day were to take place.

The change was dramatic. The plaques that stated the years of World War II, so blank and imposing on the day that I had taken the photos in April, were covered in flowers.

Not only that, but there were so many people there. There must have been thousands of people in sight at any given time in the park, which was in stark contrast to my last visit, where there was virtually nobody there.

Eventually, I realized that Victory Park, while a fantastic park during the day, became something more than that during Victory Day. It became a symbol of Russian military might, of victory, and of the willpower of the Russian people. Nothing could have made that more clear than the thousands of people that I saw there that day. Such a presence just made me feel a part of a larger movement. In honor of that, I decided to grab a flag and join in the spirit.

Tiptoe Through the Tulips

Posted on May 21, 2014 by aldrichc

I have noticed during my travels about Moscow that there have been a strangely high amount of tulips strung about the city.

Here are a few examples:

At the Kazansky Garden at Kolomenskoye

Inside the Kremlin

Near Moscow State University

Near the Church of Christ the Saviour

I have been noticing and taking photographs of the various tulips specifically because they have been reminding me a bit of home. In my hometown, Pella, Iowa (which you can read more about here) there is a tradition of spending three days in early May celebrating the town’s Dutch heritage, just as all of the tulips are starting to bloom about the town. This holiday is simply called Tulip Time.

The bike I used to ride in the parade.

Most years I would ride a bike in the parade for Tulip Time, and ever since I have started at Carleton I began to miss the festivities a little bit. However, this can be mostly fixed by stopping and smelling the tulips every once in a while. Moscow has become a bit of a home away from home in several large aspects, but sometimes it’s the little things that make all the difference.

More tulips at Victory Park

The Lion and the Puppy

Posted on May 21, 2014 by calderong

In a side street in the center of Moscow stands a quiet, yellow house of two stories. Past the gate and through the door, you’ll find the house once belonged to the great Lev Tolstoy.

Leo Tolstoy at his summer residence in Yasnaya Polyana

Tolstoy is regarded as one of the greatest novelists of all time. Included in his repertoire are his most famous works, War and Peace and Anna Karenina, as well as numerous short stories, plays, essays and autobiographies.
His home is filled with his belongings, including his furniture, drawings, and photographs of the years he spent in Yasnaya Polyana with his 13 children. It is easy to imagine Tolstoy spending his winters here, toiling over Death of Ivan Ilyich, among other works.
As I explored the house, I came across a room filled with illustrations and children’s books. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they had all been written by Tolstoy. I then realized that I didn’t know anything about this literary giant.
Seeing a lack of schools in the country side, Tolstoy had opened a school for peasant children so that they could learn to read, write and draw. With a lack of quality schoolbooks, Tolstoy undertook the task of writing them himself. One book in particular caught my interest.

This story is about a caged lion that befriends the puppy that is intended for his meal. You can read it for yourself here. And, if you’re interested, you can read the Russian text. It is quite short and includes an introduction explaining Tolstoy’s endeavor to educate children. I highly recommend reading. You might, like myself, learn a thing or two about Tolstoy.

We Remember

Posted on May 21, 2014 by fernholzg

One of the things I’ve noticed during my time here is how much Russians care about their deceased loved ones. This was evident around Easter, when the weather started getting nice and everyone was out in the cemetery raking leaves and laying flowers on graves. I saw the same spirit again on Victory Day.
Out on the streets and especially at Park Pobedy [Victory Park], there were many people walking slowly around, carrying portraits above their heads, much like one would carry holy books and icons in a religious procession.

“Russian servicemen and cadets march with portraits of relatives who took part in World War II during a parade in Vladivostok.” –Courtesy of the Moscow Times.

Most of the pictures appeared to be armed forces enrollment photos, and there were names and little descriptions underneath. They were grandfathers, uncles, fathers, sons and brothers that had served in World War II, or as it’s called in Russian “the Great Patriotic War” or “the Great Fatherland War”. Sometimes I’d see passersby stop and ask the picture-carriers about their relatives.

A parade in St. Petersburg. Photo (c) AP/ Dmitry Lovetsky

While strolling Belyi gorod (“White City” – a district in NW Moscow) after Victory Day, Almeda, Sahree, and I encountered a board on which people were invited to post tributes to their loved ones.

Thanks to Almeda for the photo.

As you can see, many memorials were shared. Wars are often talked about in terms of numbers, but doing so is dangerous; it removes the human element from the conflict. Seeing displays like this and the pictures on Victory Day remind one of how many individual stories actually comprise an event like World War II, the size and destruction of which are beyond all sense and reason. Reflecting upon such a tragedy, as opposed to trying to push it out of the public consciousness, has brought Russians together, and their annual tribute is the most touching event I’ve ever been a part of.

GZ – Security and You

Posted on May 21, 2014 by fernholzg

One really reassuring thing about Moscow is that everywhere you go, you’ll likely encounter security. At Moscow State University (MGU), that means going past guards in every building. The Main Building (GZ), where we live, has two wings that are surrounded by fencing and guard shacks; at the other two entrances, you show documentation inside. Adjusting to this security was stressful. I always fretted about digging my dog-eared paper propusk (proof of dorm residence) out of my bag whenever we entered our dorm, and then I would get confused about which document to show which people: Is it going to be my student ID this time or my propusk? (It changes depending on the time of day.)
This confusion led to some great conversation practice though. One night, I was coming home late from an excursion, and I tried to get into the GZ with my student ID. The guard asked if I had my propusk instead. I dug it out and he studied it with perplexity.
“…What is your name??”
I explained my very German name and said that I go by Margarita in Russia. We struck up a basic conversation on topics like where our group is from, what we’re studying, some of the places we’ve already seen in Moscow, and so on. As we were chatting, another guard came out from the side room while drying a plate. He said they often cook in the guard shack but aren’t fond of doing the dishes. When I told him I was from Minnesota, he immediately knew our sports teams, namely the North Stars, whom I sadly informed him have since moved. They gave me directions through the GZ: that is, the basement route you have to take when the inside gates are locked. I wasn’t confident enough to make the trip myself, so they asked the next person, a female student from Russia, to show me the way, and the two of us set off together. I saved a lot of time by not having to take the street route, and I made it home safely.
Over the weeks, I’d have similar conversations with the guards when there weren’t too many people going through. They’d ask how things were going and where the group had been. I really appreciated their patience and willingness to talk to me in Russian, even though I’m a foreigner. I often felt like I was back at Carleton, where I really enjoy chatting with the people “behind the scenes” who become a part of your daily routine.
On Monday, the last day of their shift before we go to Siberia, one of the guards, Vladimir, gave me an охрана security patch “на память/ for memory”, and Alexander gave me his MGU keychain.

They’ll definitely be two of the coolest souvenirs I bring back to the great state of Minnesota.

Lenin's Mausoleum

Posted on May 21, 2014 by fernholzg

Okay, I admit it. I was really, really excited to see Vladimir Ilych Lenin in person. The mausoleum was one of those things my high-school-self found on Google one evening and spent the next several hours/ few days obsessively researching.
The decision to preserve Lenin was made in opposition to the wishes of his wife, Nadezhda Krupskaya. There have been different iterations of the mausoleum: at first it was wooden.

The final design was decided through a contest sponsored by the Soviet government, won by architect Aleksey Shchusev.

The longest-lived, most famous Mausoleum design.

During World War II, the German offensive pushed dangerously close to Moscow. In response, Lenin’s body was transported to Siberia in a specially customized temperature-controlled train with all of the necessary supplies. Then, in 1953, the Mausoleum gained a second inhabitant: Joseph Stalin. This was only temporary though; Khrushchev had Stalin’s body buried next to the Kremlin wall in 1961 as part of Destalinization.

The Lenin-Stalin Mausoleum.

Stalin’s resting place, next to the Kremlin wall. His grave, both times I’ve seen it, was never wanting for flowers…

The idea of preserving a body as a symbol of an ideal (that is, Lenin as a symbol of Communism) is endlessly fascinating to me, but not everyone sees it that way. When discussing our plans to visit Lenin, the reactions we encountered ranged from neutral to negative. Our professors asked us why we’d ever want to go see a mummy. The mausoleum was evaluated as scary, terrible, unnecessary. Me, I found it curious. If I could spend more time in Russia, I would try to grapple with the question, “What role does Lenin continue to play in modern-day Russia. Or, does he play a role at all?
It sure seems that way. From tourist trinkets to legitimate Communist rallies, Lenin is still very much a part of the public consciousness. And judging by the Victory Day decorations on Red Square, he’s maybe being pushed aside. Three of us strolled the square on Sunday, the day after the enormous holiday. We noticed some very conspicuous scaffolding hung with banners that entirely encased the Mausoleum. It seemed to be intentionally blocking the stark red-and-black pyramid from view; indeed, upon glancing at some pictures online, they actually built a huge stage in front of the mausoleum.

Putin delivering a Victory Day speech, May 9, 2014. Photo courtesy of the Russian Presidential Press and Information Service.

The stage’s aftermath.

My question: Why, when for so many years great celebratory speeches were delivered from ATOP the pyramid, would they instead choose to cover it up?
Lenin’s current resting place (and quite possibly not his last) is an excellent example of the struggle currently going on within Russia – that is, the battle between old and new. Time will tell how this city will continue to change under the cold stone gaze of the Mausoleum.

Carleton Moscow & Beyond 2014

Study Russian and come with us next time!

Category Archives: Looking Around

Sweet, Sweet Honey

A Week of Spectacles

The Most Interesting Subway Car in the World

And The Bells Kept Ringing…

A Contrast: Victory Park Before and During May 9

Tiptoe Through the Tulips

The Lion and the Puppy

We Remember

GZ – Security and You

Lenin's Mausoleum