The Smog the Collapse of the Soviet Empire to the Volga in a Volga Secretive Turkmenistan Wet Dreams in Moscow’S Clubland Charming Abramtsevo

MOSCOW

SEPTEMBER 2010 www.passportmagazine.ru The Smog The collapse of the Soviet Empire To the Volga in a Volga Secretive Turkmenistan Wet Dreams in Moscow’s Clubland Charming Abramtsevo

September_covers.indd 1 20.08.2010 12:42:09 September_covers.indd 2 20.08.2010 18:12:32 Contents 3. What’s On in September 5. Previews 8. Clubs Moscow’s Nightlife Swims, Miguel Francis

5 10. Music Magical but dangerous tours, Radif Kashapov 12. The Way It Was Romanian Reflections, Helen Womack The collapse of the East European Soviet empire, John Harrison Testaments: Marc Barrie, Ian Mitchell and Miguel Francis 12 18. The Way It Is Beyond the Reset, Art Franczek A Grey Shadow of Soviet Man, Part II, Elena Rubinova Understanding the sales and service culture of Russia, Luc Jones The Smog, John Harrison 27. Your Moscow Abramtsevo: colony of Russian Art Nouveau, 22 Katrina Marie Green Parts – the North, Ross Hunter 30. Real Estate Private Rental brokers: Better Safe than Sorry?, Vadim Lamin New Trends on the Real Estate Market, Ekaterina Batynkova 32. Sport 27 To the Volga in a Volga, Ian Mitchell 34. Travel Turkmenistan, Luc Jones Endless bustle in Singapore’s Chinatown, John Bonar 38. Out & About 40. My World Dare to ask Dare 32 41. Wine & Dining Listings 43. Coming Up The Trafalgar Ball 44. Family Pages Poems and quizzes compiled by Ross Hunter

38 47. Book review

September 2010 Letter from the Publisher

I used to scoff at talk of Moscow being called a hardship post. I don’t any longer. With at least 5,000 people dead as direct result of the Moscow heat wave and the smog, which many called a gas attack; living in Moscow in July and August was almost unbearable. Coupled to this was a feeling of insecu- rity due to an information black-out, something that John Harrison talks about in the cover story: The Smog. Last month we started to cover the year 1989, in our series of modern Russian history. This month, we complete the year with a brief look at collapse of the Communist parties in Eastern Europe. Helen Womak has contributed a personal eye-witness account of the collapse of the Rumanian regime under Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu. History marches on, and next year we will be covering 1990. If there is anybody who was here in that year and would like to contribute a Testimony to tyheir experi- ences then, please contact the editor. In this issue, Art Franczek follows up his article last month about a possible double-dip in the world economy, with some positive aspects of the development of the Russian economy, in particular the Skolkova high-tech development park. Elena Rubinova finishes off her sociological series on Soviet Man with a frighteningly honest appraisal of the present situation illuminated by research from the John Ortega Levada Centre. Owner and Publisher I hope there is something in this issue for everybody.

Sportland SportLand on Novy Arbat has just opened, and has already become well-frequented. With live transmission of a wide range of sports fixtures from all around the world, this sports bar is open from 12.00 noon right through to 4am daily. There is a New VIP viewing area, SPORTCAFE, with 60” wide-screen plasma and LCD TV’s. SPORTCAFE bar has a huge variety of drinks! You can watch up to 20 sporting events, in English. SPORTLAND, NOVY ARBAT 21. www.metelitsa.ru/sportcafe

cover by John H

Owner and Publisher Designer Book Reviews John Ortega, +7 (985) 784-2834 Julia Nozdracheva Ian Mitchell [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Editor Webmaster Contributors John Harrison Alexey Timokhin Alevitina Kalina, Miguel Francis, Radif Kashapov,Helen [email protected] [email protected] Womack, Marc Barrie, Art Franczek, Elena Rubinova, Sales Manager Accounting and Legal Services Luc Jones, Katrina Marie, Ross Hunter, Vadim Lamin, Valeria Astakhova Vista Foreign Business Support Ekaterina Batynkova, John Bonar, Deidre Clark [email protected] Trubnaya St. 25/1, Moscow +7 (495) 933-7822 Arts Editor Wine and Dining Editor Alevtina Kalinina Charles Borden [email protected] [email protected]

Editorial Address: Published by OOO Passport Magazine. All rights reserved. Passport occasionally uses material we believe has been 42 Volgogradsky Prospekt, Bldg. 23 This publication is registered by the Press Ministry No. placed in the public domain. Sometimes it is not possible Office 013, 1st floor 77-25758. 14.09.2006 to identify and contact the copyright owner. If you claim 109316 Moscow, Russia Printed by BlitzPrint. Moscow representative office: ownership of something we have published, we will be 127051, Moscow, Petrovsky Boulevard, Dom 10. pleased to make a proper acknowledgment. Tel. +7 (495) 640-0508 Fax +7 (495) 620-0888 www.passportmagazine.ru

September 2010 What’s On in September Thursday, 2nd went to the same school, shared the tastes. One of the surprises for this same dreams and fulfilled them togeth- year’s City Day is the Techno concert on Concert of classical music er. These are not just banal words, as is Red Square, when Russian musicians by “Vremena Goda” clear to anyone who has been to any of will play together with their French Vremena Goda was one of the most their concerts. Those guys were born in colleagues. The concert will be held memorable orchestras to appear in Mos- Soviet Latvia, and experienced a Soviet with the participation and guidance cow in the middle of 1990s. A surprisingly upbringing, and were part of the first of Laurent Garnier, the French guru of united collective of musicians interprets generation to enjoy “freedom”, some- electric sound. compositions of different epochs and thing that their songs are all about. Mostly known as a techno musician, styles with a high level of mastery and Their songs, which are in Latvian, Rus- Garnier keeps broadening the spheres art. The richness of their sound and the sian and English, reflect both the riot- of his activity. He manages his own respect that they show to the composers’ ous happiness of being young and the internet radio, Pedro’s Broadcast Base- language makes Vremena Goda stand genuine sadness of being. ment, writes music for cartoons and out. B1 maximum, 19:00 cooperates with the Louvre. His music This concert will be conducted by gradually transcends the borders of Vladislav Bulakhov who has been heading techno and his creativity leaves the the orchestra since its foundation. Today borders of music. That’s probably the orchestra unites about 20 young why he appears at the Montreux Jazz musicians committed to music and Festival and a few years ago wrote a passing on to the public their contagious book titled Electrochoc which has been energy. Now that the musicians have won translated into German and Russian. recognition for their talent, they perform Red Square, Vasilievsky Spusk, 19:00 all over the world and cooperate with eminent musicians like Rodion Schedrin and Zurab Sotkilava, which has raised Monday, 6th their level as musicians to new heights. Saturday, 4th Russian National Orchestra Archangelskoye Estate Museum, 19:00 The “Electric” night of the (classical music) City Day The founder and head of the Russian rd Friday, 3 The First Saturday of September in National Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev, Moscow is traditionally full of con- has lately drawn the attention of all, Brainstorm (pop rock Latvia) even of those not familiar with classical The story of Brainstorm is a true story certs and celebrations that can satisfy Muscovites with all sorts of varying music. Accused of sexual relations with of best friends who grew up together, a Thai minor, the famous conductor

September 2010 What’s On in September was indicted in Thailand. He has been Voskresensky Perulouk at 7pm. Newcom- Monday, 20th released on bail and will therefore be ers to Moscow are made particularly conducting the festival of Russian Na- welcome. For further information please Placebo (rock, Great Britain) tional Orchestra. write to They say what they do is music made [email protected] by outsiders and for outsiders. With Pal- Chaikovsky Concert Hall, 19:00 cebo, all misunderstood teens see their dream come true: here are freaks that Friday, 10th Wednesday, 15th became super-famous. The leader of the band, Brian Molko, applies mascara to Roxette (pop, rock Sweden) Sting (blues, pop, rock, his eyelashes, paints his nails black and The famous Swedish duet (Marie Great Britain) tells journalists about all the hardships Fredriksson and Per Gessle) were at There are few stories of truck-drivers- of his childhood and all the burdens of the peak of their musical career in the become-stars in the history of music, sex, drugs and rock’n’roll. 1980s-90s when they impressed the but Sting’s, or rather Gordon’s story Arena Moscow, 21:00 public by their lyrically pure melodies. is one of those. Before he became They drifted apart when Marie be- part of The Police, Sting, the son of came seriously ill, and Per’s solo career a hairdresser and a nurse, worked as began. Then they spent a few not very a road-digger and due to sheer luck, creative years apart until they realized met his future colleagues. After a first that their strength is in their team- flush of fame with the band, he was, work. unusually, even more successful in his The newly united duet will perform solo career. their greatest hits in Moscow. A true lucky devil in all aspects of his Sports palace Megasport, 19:00 life, Sting now lives a quiet life in a cozy suburb of London with his wife, children and pets. After travelling in the Brazilian tropical From Wednesday, 22nd to forests, Sting and his wife founded the th Rainforest Fund. For exceptional merit November, 14 in environmental protection scientists The Louvre comes to the gave Sting’s name to a kind of Brazilian Tretyakov Gallery frog. Another unprecedented exhibition Crocus City Hall, 20:00 to enjoy this year, another fruit of the year of France in Russia will open in the Tretyakov Gallery. This exhibition has th Monday, 13 been prepared in cooperation with the Ozzy Osbourne (rock, hard Louvre and Musee D’Orsay. The project rock, vodka, Great Britain) will contain 50 drawings from the Louvre section of graphics and 6 draw- 61-year old Ozzy Osbourne is without ings from Musee D’Orsay. Among the doubt a living music legend of music displayed artists are Gauguin, Signac, and debauchery. Ozzy thinks himself Monet and Pissarro. also a biological wonder. After more than 40 years of non-stop drinking, as State Tretyakov Gallery. 10:00-19:00 Osbourne admits, nothing has happened to him. The musician decided nd to bequeath his body to the London Wednesday, 22 Museum of Natural History as he thinks Figaro’s Marriage that scientists and the public will be by Comedie Francaise interested in finding out the secret of The legendary Comedie Francaise, one of his longevity. the few state theatres in France, is making Sports Palace ‘Megasport’, 19:00 a Russian tour. Starting from Moscow, actors will perform in Saint-Petersburg, th Kaliningrad and in many of the main Friday, 17 Siberian cities. Zemfira (pop, rock, Russia) One of the theatre’s missions is to For anyone who belongs to Russian promote La Comedie Francaise to the culture or takes interest in it, Zemfira’s whole world. This theatre, as the actors songs are a key to understanding the say, has an important cultural, politi- lives of the younger Russian gen- cal and social purpose, and the theatre eration and life in general. In 2004, in general is one of the best means to Zemfira was mentioned in the history find mutual understanding. Bomarche’s textbooks of Russian schoolchildren in Figaro’s Marriage was chosen for the th Tuesday 14 September. the section about cultural life. Zem- Russian tour as being one of the master- The Moscow International Choir is fira has already written her name in pieces of contemporary French drama. the Russian history and was called a starting rehearsals tonight for its winter Concert Hall to Be Announced season and Christmas concerts. Anyone founder of a brand new (Tatar) musical interested in joining the choir this season youth culture. More information on www.russia-france2010.ru please come to St Andrew’s Church on 8 Crocus City Hall, 20:00

September 2010 Previews Rene Lalique and His Art Alevtina Kalinina

The words “art” and “quality” were never used in one sen- The exhibition of Lalique’s works is an unprecedented tence to describe art before the Art Nouveau movement event for the Kremlin Museums. Yelena Gagarina, the Mu- at the turn of the 20th century. Reacting to the academic seum’s director commented: “In September, the Kremlin 19th century, pre-dating the disasters of the 20th century, museums will host a collection of art nouveau jewellery this style of art and decoration comprised all the beauty of designed by Rene Lalique. It’s going to be a very beautiful nature, and caught its essence in masterpieces that peo- exhibition but also a complex one. We are bringing to Mos- ple could handle. “Art as part of everyday life” became the cow many great and unique items including from places motto of the Art Nouveau movement. Live it now, value it as far afield as Portugal, Paris, Japan, and New York”. every second. Every surface you see or touch should be Lalique’s works are dispersed around the world in nu- beautiful. merous museum collections and even more numerous Rene Lalique is synonymous with the beauty and qual- private ones. Such a complete presentation of Lalique’s ity of Art Nouveau. Not only an imaginative artist, he is a masterpieces is the first show of its kind. designer who has imported into jewellery new materials, Among collections that have contributed exhibits to such as opals and semi-precious stones, moulded glass, this exhibition are the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum in horn and ivory. With nature as the major source of his in- Lisbon, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Lalique spiration, Lalique and other artists have created ornaments Museum in Hakone, Japan, and the New York Metropoli- both original and memorable, as if they are pieces of fairy- tan Museum of Art. tales. For goldsmiths of previous centuries, there used to be an emphasis on gemstones, whereas Art Nouveau was more concerned with design than arranging settings for September 17 – January 2010 diamonds. In a way, Art Nouveau re-established the Renais- Open: 10:00 – 18:00 except Thursday sance, when sculpture and enamelled gold were made by Kremlin Museums, Assumption Belfry artists not craftsmen. Lalique has managed to combine 15th century ide- als with the demands of modern city dwellers. He has brought both decorative jewels and glass to people’s everyday life, using mass-production techniques. Emile Galle, an eminent French artist working in glass and one of the principal leaders of the Art Nouveau movement in France, praised Lalique, naming him “the inventor of modern jewellery”.

September 2010 Previews Armenian art at century masterpieces of Russian and Ar- menian visual arts, from the collections of Pushkin Fine Arts the National Gallery, Martiros Saryan’s Mu- The current exhibition at the Pushkin seum and the Ervand Kochar Museum. Museum of Fine Arts is a part of a long-term This exhibition celebrates the 100th programme initiated by the museum’s anniversary of the Pushkin Fine Arts Mu- director, Irina Aleksandrovna Antonova, seum. Six years ago in the same museum dedicated to Russia’s closest neighbours— there was an exhibition called Relics of mainly CIS countries. Though the Soviet Saint Echmiadzin, which conveyed the Union no longer exists, national arts insti- spirit of the applied arts of Medieval Ar- tutions continue their cultural dialogue. menia. This time, the works of eminent For Antonova, the important issue is that Russian painters are on display: V. Boro- art should have no boundaries and that vikovsky, D. Levitsky, O. Kiprensky, V. Su- neither political nor socio-political con- rikov, I. Levitan, A. Benois, Z. Serebryako- cepts should interfere with people’s col- va, V. Borisov-Musatov, V. Kandinsky and lective spiritual and historical memory. M. Chagal. Among Armenian names we In September, the Pushkin Museum of should highlight M. Saryan, father and Fine Arts together with the National Gal- son Akop and Ovnatan Ovnatanyan, S. September 14 – November 14 lery of Armenia will display 18th to 20th Nersenyan and sculptor Ervand Kochar. Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts Open: 10:00 – 19:00 except Monday

Beehives for graphic religion, new technologies), and an exhibi- design tions of masters’ works and lectures, finish- ing with a competition and prize awards on Now that the Central House of Artists September 3. Later exhibitions by jury mem- is not going to turn into a huge orange bers will be held at the Russian Academy of pumpkin, it is to become a beehive, for the Arts, Tsereteli Art Gallery until September 20. first 20 days of September, for the biennal For Sergey Serov who has presided over the exhibition of Graphic Design, “Golden Bee” Biennale since its launch, it is easy to see what (Zolotaya Pchela in Russian). The compari- the trends are in graphic design. He says, son to a beehive is entirely accidental. The “The post-Gutenberg galaxy is still growing. number of participants prove this. Since And the internet component is one of its 1992, the Moscow Golden Bee Biennale new faces‑multi-level, with texts and hyper- has come onto a par with such professional links and images all in one.” tournaments held in Brno (Brno Bienniale), Russians say that it is better to see some- Warsaw (Warsaw International Poster Bien- thing once than hear about it seven times. nale), Lahti (International Lahti Poster Bien- The Golden Bee Biennal is worth seeing. niale) or Fort Collins (Colorado International Invitational Poster Exhibition). Unit September 20 This is an international contest with several www.goldenbee.org categories (poster, graphic design in music, Central House of Artists, Tsereteli Gallery

The phenomenon of Those three photographers partici- western photography pated in the legendary exhibition held in the Moscow House of Journalists in 1969 of the USSR after which Soviet Photography magazine The “Lithuanian school” in the con- actually introduced the term the “Lithu- text of Soviet photography from the anian School”. The Baltic exhibition, with 1960s to the 1980s had an important its close-ups, pensive looks, dramatic con- influence on Soviet photojournalism. trast of lighting, insignificant and acciden- Lithuanian photography, which had no tal fragments, all against a background of propaganda dimension, is of special the “heroic realism” of the Soviet photog- Antanas Sutkus said: “On the one hand interest to the curators of the Lumiere raphy, was revolutionary. we meant to show that we are not totally Brothers’ Center for Photography. More This should be no surprise, as Lithu- Soviet, on the other we did not want to go than two hundred and fifty works by ania always considered itself to be part extremes with ‘the national idea’. To show three classical photographers, Antanas of Europe, and the same three photog- our common Lithuanians what we were Sutkus, Aleksandras Macijauskas and raphers participated in exhibitions all doing; that was the aim”. Vitaly Butyrin, are presented in the exhi- over Europe, relying on the experience bition named The Phenomenon of the of rather European photo-reportage www.lumiere.ru Lithuanian School. Western Photogra- and the artistic traditions of the begin- Open: September 17-November 7 phy in the USSR. ning of the 20th century. 11:00 – 20:00, every day except Monday

September 2010 Previews

Mathematical prototypes of objects Whilst waiting for the Moscow House of Photography to reopen its reconstructed space in Ostozhenka street, one should not miss an exhibition it is holding at the Ekaterina Foundation gallery. Within the framework of the Year of France in Russia, French artist Fabrice Hyber presents his works: “Immortalité”. Hyber’s genre has been quite difficult to identify over the Prince Dolgorukov‑Master of Moscow past twenty years. It combines drawing, painting, sculpture, To celebrate Moscow’s 863rd anniversary, the State Historical video installations and video films. After obtaining a degree Museum has put together an exhibition dedicated to Prince Vlad- in mathematics, Hyber successfully entered and graduated imir Andreyevich Dolgorukov, the governor general of Moscow from the Nantes School of Fine Arts. He gained popularity from 1865 to 1891. through these “unidentified genres”. Prince Dolgorukov’s career started in the Army, where he saw At home in France, he is a well-known and popular cre- military action in the Caucuses and in Poland. But it is in the so- ative personality, with special missions representing France cial and political spheres that he excelled. The second half of the to his credit at the Bienale di Venezia, where in 1997 he won nineteenth century was a time of progress in Moscow. Gas light- the Il Leone d’Oro prize for his installation Eau d’or, eau ing was installed; railways were constructed which connected dort, odor. Moscow to Central Russia towns; academies and the Moscow Conservatory were built—and Prince Dolgorukov was appointed September 7 – October 3 governor-general. Ekaterina Foundation , In those decades Moscow hosted the Ethnographic Exhibi- 5 Bolshaya Lubyanka Street tion, the Polytechnical Exhibition, the All-Russia Industrial and Open: 11:00 – 20:00, Art Exhibition, and horse-breeding exhibitions. All these ex- every daily except Monday hibitions brought in funds that were put towards construct- www.ekaterina-fondation.ru ing what would become the present Historical Museum. Dol- www.mdf.ru gorukov is also accredited with the construction of Christ the Saviour Cathedral, which would become one of Moscow’s best-known symbols and later, in the 1990s, when the cathedral was rebuilt, a symbol of Russia’s post-Soviet revival. A major section of the exhibition is dedicated to all the presents that Prince Dolgorukov received. They include rarities like architects Vladimir Sherwood’s and Fyodor Schechtel’s sketches, a unique 16th century bible presented to the governor-general by the Mos- cow Jewish community, statuettes by Eugene Lanceret. The Bolshoi Theatre museum and the State Bakhrushin Theatre museum have provided other exhibits from their collections to il- lustrate Prince Dolgorukov’s other passion for the theatre. “Moscow school” painters; V. Perov, A. Savrasov, I. Levitan are on display, too.

State Historical Museum September 1 – October 31 Open: 10:00 – 18:00, every day except Tuesday www.shm.ru

September 2010 Clubs

alcohol and music, and a filtered portion of the Moscow river that I personally took a swim in and survived! It’s located near Wet Dreams Metro Polezhaevskaya, at Beach #2 and #3. The easier way to get there is by car, or just take a taxi from the Metro. This one is a free-entry beach, unlike some beaches in Moscow which require you to pay between 500-1000 rubles to get in ($25-35 USD)—and I really don’t see much differ- ence. Here you can rent a jet-ski and enjoy riding the Moscow River, or try water -skiing. Even better you could rent a yacht and enjoy a more secluded tanning party. By the way most of the beach attendees, especially the female ones, won’t even think twice when you ask them to join you on your yacht. I suppose that is the beauty of the Russian beach! And now for a quick update on the nightlife happenings in case it ever gets so hot Miguel Francis and smoggy again. Summer season keeps and beautiful women. Awesome elec- sending people to fly outside of Moscow This summer, Moscow has been bom- tronic music, from lounge to house, with with the Clubs., as seen in the July issue barded by some strange weather. The a live DJ keeps you moving in the water. with “We Are Family”, one of Moscow’s su- only remedy for such a summer is a pool Besides, some of the more prominent per clubs that took most of their dedicated and a beach party, and let me tell you, event producers are there almost daily, clients to Kemer in Turkey. Moscow’s pool and beach parties are like Arkadiy Doncov, and of course Gior- August marked the return of another unlike anything you’re used to. Without gio Paolucci with his ex-pat crew that super club, Rai, which just returned from a holding back, lets dive in. guarantees to keep the atmosphere ig- visit to Ibiza in Spain! I had the pleasure to The place to be for an awesome wet nited. Located at the 65th kilometer of work with the creative directors of Rai and afternoon, which now developed into a MKAD at the Crocus City Mall (the home Russia’s superstar DJs Vengerov & Fedoroff daily all-day pool party is “Shorehouse”! of the annual Billionaire fair) the place of- on two house tracks! What a place! Initially a restaurant, this fers an almost outside of Moscow experi- The Russian track “Katyusha” was turned is a beautiful pool overlooking the vast ence. into a house remix with my vocals, and outskirts of Moscow. All luxuries are in- Another interesting wet adventure you I got the honor to lay down my voice for cluded: towels, pool chairs, exotic drinks can embark on is called the Sky Club Sum- the official English version of the Kazantip mer Terrace. This isn’t simply a club-like hymn 2010. Kazantip went great. It’s basi- club, it’s actually a sports club! Just when cally a Russian Ibiza festival that is hosted you thought I was kidding, right? An im- in the warm part of Kipr, Ukraine, with all portant aspect for any clubber is to shake the craziness and musical freedom you will off that excess alcohol and recover from find in Ibiza, Spain. the night before. This place would be the Paul Oakenfold held the premiere of his perfect bridge to rest on between your Fri- new album, Pop Killer, at Imperia Lounge day and Saturday nights. in August, playing an awesome set for the Located on the roof of the Zolotie Klu- guests. In short and in my honest opinion, chi 2 Complex, Ul. Minskaya 1. It’s the first the best places in Moscow with the best roof-top beach in Moscow I’ve seen! The ACs, foreign DJs and a fun international place has a full protein and alcohol bar (the crowd are the super clubs We Are Family, only one in Russia) and a live DJ. The 21st of Rai, Soho Rooms and Imperia Lounge. May marked the club’s birthday and their As September settles in and hopefully opening of the new summer season called the summer turns into a pleasant fall you “Fitness Summer Miami-style” which lasts will notice the coming back of the magi- through September. With the weather cal force behind Moscow’s nightlife, which holding hot and firm, a rooftop Miami- truly could only be experienced to the style beach in Moscow with protein and fullest during the cold months, simply be- alcohol? Sounds like a good place to start cause that’s what keeps the city warm dur- a Saturday! ing the winter. Next up are the actual beaches in Mos- Stay tuned, there are new realms, clubs cow. Yes, they’re mostly lakes, mostly and nightlife activities that you don’t know filtered. I prefer the Serebreniy Bor, its about, coming at you in the October issue! lively, fun, lots of sand, beautiful people, Stay safe and keep it fun. P

10 September 2010

Music

but dangerous tours

Radif Kashapov had some travel experience there. “Last time he went there The first ever U2 concert in Russia, on August 25, is going he got cornered by some Russian guy who was out of his to be not only a major musical event but also something of a mind on vodka for the whole trip. And you’re stuck there. political event since U2’s Bono and other band members are I mean, you’re on that train. And he said: ‘I am a vegetar- involved in humanitarian work, tackling poverty and lack of ian’, but they served only sausages”. So Tom has got the freedom in developing countries. The fact that U2 is finally idea of what this country like. Also, rumours have it that playing a gig in a country with certain freedom issues simply all band members believe Russia is a deeply unfair society cannot go unnoticed. controlled by mafia. Until this year the Irish four-piece band have never played in These are only the most well-known cases, and many Russia, which has led to some speculation among local fans about more can be added. For example, Andrey Makarevich, the humanitarian problems in Chechnya and terrorist attacks. Among lead singer and guitarist of Mashina Vremeni, one of the other possible explanations is Bono’s famously complex person- oldest and most famous Russian bands, wrote in his mem- ality. There is also the high costs of U2 shows, which is out of kilter oirs that in the 1990s, Mick Jagger agreed to play with with the band’s not-so-high popularity among Russian speakers, them in Red Square but then changed his mind, allegedly a fact which local concert agencies like to point out. because of the war in Chechnya. But this didn’t stop the But U2 are a long way from being alone on Russia’s list of Stones from playing a gig in Moscow just a few years later long-awaited acts. Although it is true that the number of in 1997, did it? foreign artists coming to play in Moscow has been growing, Bizarre it may seem, but some examples can be found even that nearly every weekend there are plenty of gigs around among native Russian musicians. The famous cello player Ms- to choose from, with local promoters being able to bring all tislav Rostropovich declared in 1998 that he would never play sorts of music from around the world to the Russian capital, in Russia again, following a particularly unfriendly review by and even to other cities, there is still a category of musicians the local media of one of his performances in Moscow. who, it seems, will never come to Russia. As you have seen from these few examples, different art- The American singer Tom Waits has rejected offers to play in ists may have different reasons for not touring in Russia. Russia many times. While some promoters point out that he is Those are mostly based upon real facts, not rumours and still attracted to the idea, others say that he has been very dis- prejudices. These issues are only too well known to Russians appointed with the way minorities are treated in the country themselves who, as far as showbiz is concerned, remain and that he is scared of Russians. Also, the singer does not al- post-soviet at best. low any sponsor ads at his concerts, which makes the chances Look what happened in the 1980s when a lot of artists of Moscow hearing the maestro’s trademark growl rather slim. said they wouldn’t play in South Africa. You might remem- Thom Yorke of Radiohead, in an interview with the BBC, ber a song named Sun City. It was recorded in 1985 and spoke of his brother Andy who studied in Russia and had performed by a large group of famous artists such as Bob

12 September 2010 Music

In certain aspects, Russia still remains a half-closed country. This means that, for example, a local promoter might not be able to get visas issued for members of an indie band, or a truck with equipment can be held up indefinite- ly at the border. It is very likely that REM, who were unable to play in St. Petersburg for the latter reason, won’t come here again in the near future. In April, a concert of the Italian singer Eros Ramazzotti was cancelled in St. Petersburg. Again, the cancellation was caused by the late arrival of the artist’s equipment due to a long customs inspection procedure. In 2008 Nightwish and Pain both had to cancel their concerts, as local promoters failed to fulfil all parts of their agreement. Tokyo Hotel flew over to Moscow but their fans never saw the band play because of an argument between the tour management and the local promoters, which happened just when the first of the two scheduled concerts was about to start. One of Rammstein’s tour legs, which included gigs in Russia, was postponed due to unrest among football fans. In August 2006 a concert by Eric Clapton in Red Square was being negotiated, but when the location had to be changed to an adjacent area some 100 metres off the Dylan, Herbie Hancock, Ringo Starr, Lou Reed, Run DMC, square, the legendary guitarist also changed his mind Peter Gabriel and others, who sang that they would not about playing. come to the popular South African resort of that name be- So, can we say that the South African story is repeating cause of the country’s policy of apartheid. Today, Sun City itself in Russia? Certainly not. And yet all those rumours has become the symbol of equality and hope for a better about Russia are probably not without substance. P future for the entire continent. Recently another country has been declared a similar kind of cultural pariah, Israel. Along with many other artists, the Brit- ish singer Elvis Costello has cancelled a planned tour earlier this year. The Jewish newspaper Forward wrote: “In a lengthy explanation he provided, the rock musician said that merely having his name added to those appearing in Israel this summer may be interpreted as a political act that resonates more than anything that might be sung and it may be assumed that one has no mind for the suffering of the innocent”. These days, it looks like many of the world’s rock stars are once again separated from their Russian fans by a sort of iron curtain. And to be honest, the western media is not doing much to help bring these two sides together. In 2008, British music journalists were discussing the prospect of emo being made illegal throughout Russia because as a “dangerous teen trend encouraging depression and suicide”. This hasn’t happened so far and probably won’t, though it is true that the followers of certain subcultures might not feel safe in Russia. But that discussion caused further specu- lations among My Chemical Romance fans that their heroes, being one of the most prominent emo bands, were going to be banned in Russia too. Can you imagine anything like that ever happen in any other country? A trip to Russia can still be a slightly hazardous and mys- terious experience. While in the 1980s many Western artists would choose to come to the USSR as an act of good- will, today it’s more often the prospect of high profits that brings them to Russia. A lot of venues across the country host yesterday’s rock stars which now are making their living touring obscure places. In Moscow touring musicians often get paid really high fees, even when compared with most of European cities.

September 2010 13 The Way It Was Romanian Reflections

Nicolae Ceauşescu The Presidential couple is received by Queen Elisabeth II at Buckingham Palace in June 1978 Helen Womack erick” of the East bloc, implying some in- wife, Elena, fresh orchids were flown in dependence from Moscow, but it turned regularly from Singapore. Christmas 1989 was one of the holi- out his regime was the most brutal of all. What struck me most was the juxtapo- days I managed to spend at home in I had been working in the Soviet sition of priceless items, such as Chinese Yorkshire. My job as a journalist often Union, where Perestroika was in full vases, with cheap plastic souvenirs. I took me away and my family valued it swing, so I was used to dealing with particularly remember a tasteless toy if I was with them for the decorating of confident, talkative Russians. It came as hedgehog on Ceauşescu’s desk. the tree, the opening of the presents. a shock to see how cowed and fearful At one point, I realised the guides had On Christmas Day, we switched on the Romanians were. In addition, there gone on ahead, leaving me alone in the the TV and heard the news that Nicolae was the language barrier. bedroom of the dictator’s daughter, and Elena Ceauşescu had been tried Luckily, I found a family of ethnic Ger- Zoia. In her wardrobe, I saw rows of silk by a military court in Romania, put up mans who took me under their wing. The shirts and bell-bottomed trousers. I rifled against a wall and shot. The Securitate, eldest daughter and her brother helped through her drawers, finding letters, con- Ceaucescu’s vicious secret police, were with contacts and showed me round Bu- traceptive pills and another hedgehog. still sniping from the sewers and there charest, speaking to me in German. The temptation to pocket something were gun battles at the airport. The girl gave me a gift of a hand-knit- was almost overwhelming but I resist- “I hope to goodness you don’t have to ted dress. I believe some months after- ed, which was lucky because we were go to Bucharest,” said my Dad. wards the family moved to Germany, searched on the way out. “I might have to,” I replied. which was the dream of most ethnic I was having the time of my life when I’d recently joined The Independent as Germans in Romania at that time. word came through from London that one of their specialists on Eastern Eu- I went out news gathering each day Andreas Whittam Smith, co-founder rope. But I was still at home on Boxing —demonstrations, student meetings and and editor of The Independent, was so Day for Mum’s mince pies. the like—and in the evening filed a report transfixed by the Romanian story that A day or two later, a call did come to London. All foreign journalists had to he was coming out to Bucharest to see from the office and I flew to Budapest, share one telex machine and there was things for himself. This is the last thing from where I took a train to Bucharest. I always a long queue to use it. Mindful of a working journalist usually needs, a was frightened. It was good not to have the queue, I typed as fast as I could, barely “state visit” by the editor, who gets in to land and go straight into action but noticing that there was no key cap over the way and requires entertaining. to have a slower entry into the coun- the letter T, just a metal spike. The letter T But the boss was great. He mucked in try, enabling me to judge the situation crops up rather often in texts. By the time and worked with me. Together, we got somewhat through the train window. I’d finished typing, my left index finger was an interview with the new Romanian By the time I arrived, the shooting had ripped to shreds and bleeding, an occupa- Prime Minister, Petre Roman. And when stopped. Other colleagues had been tional hazard of covering revolutions. he left, Andreas kindly found a seat for heroic; I was mopping up. The highlight of my assignment me on the plane too. The editors now wanted the human to Bucharest was gaining access to My stint in Romania was a short inter- interest stories—the accounts of poor Ceauşescu’s residence. This was not the lude. By April 1990, I was back in Mos- Romanians queuing for their ration of giant, ugly, white House of the Republic, cow, where I would stay for a decade. chickens’ feet; the shocking revelations but a smaller villa where he lived. Guides The East bloc satellites had spun off into coming out of the country’s orphanages. told us he had 365 pairs of curtains, a their own space. The collapsing Soviet The West had called Ceauşescu the “mav- set for every day of the year. And for his Union remained the big story. P

14 September 2010

The Way It Was 1989

John Harrison part II ‑ the collapse of the Soviet Empire

16 September 2010 The Way It Was

The political map of the world shifted munists were defeated in June elections, East Germany in 1989 in almost as radical a way as after and in August meekly joined a coali- Just as this exodus was at its peak, Er- the end of the Second World War. By the tion under the anti-communist Tadeusz ich Honecker who still thought he was end of the year, the only country east of Mazowiecki. The Solidarity leaders, most in control of events in East Germany, the Elbe still loyal to the socialist cause of whom had no real understanding of managed to arrange for the southern was Albania, and Albania had been economics, were plunged into manag- Czech border to Hungary to be closed, hostile to the USSR since Khrushchev’s ing a country in crisis, something the blocking his citizens’ exit route through period in office. As central communist re-cast, reformed Communist Party was Hungary and on to the West. Thousands authorities began to crumble within soon to take advantage of, yet the com- were trapped in Czechoslovakia, and Russia, the Soviet satellite states in East- munists never came back to power. most descended on the West German ern Europe imploded, quickly. Suddenly embassy in Prague for help. the Berlin Wall was down and dictators Hungary As disease threatened the over- who had been feared were ridiculed or Hungary had always been a reluctant stretched colony inside the embassy, even shot. member of the Soviet camp. Sensing the Honecker announced his “solution” of In December 1988, Gorbachev made change from Moscow, the Hungarian special boarded-up trains which would a speech at the UN in which he repudi- government felt confident enough on transfer them straight through to West ated the Brezhnev Doctrine, which lay at the 2nd of May to switch off the power Germany. This lunatic decision, which the core of the Soviet Union’s hold over in the electrified security barrier running likened escapees from East Germany to Eastern Europe. He kept his word when the length of its western border with Aus- Jews being transported to extermina- he said he would not interfere in other tria. Hundreds of East Germans drove to tion camps during Hitler’s “final solu- country’s affairs. His non-interference was Hungary, ditched their cars and hiked tion”, put petrol on the fire of discontent enough to seal the fate of the pro-Soviet across the border to Austria, then on to within East Germany and also fostered regimes in Poland, East Germany, Czecho- West Germany. the seeds of rebellion in Czechoslovakia. slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. This signalled the beginning of the end On October 7th , Gorbachev met the If he had tried to preserve the old system, of “Honecker’s wall”. Miklos Nemeth, the East German politburo. He realised that he would have forfeited western support new Prime Minister had already ensured a Honecker was unreformable. Gorbachev for Perestroika. Any wavering in his liberal visa-free passage through Austria for the made it quite clear to the leadership and stance would have been exploited by escapees, and had made an agreement the people as a whole that he had dis- Gorbachev’s emerging opposition inside with Chancellor Helmut Kohl that they tanced himself from Honecker. Russia: Boris Yeltsin. would be accepted. Gorbachev had in Demonstrations, unheard of in East turn assured Kohl that under no circum- Germany, broke out across the country. Poland stances would Moscow intervene. Police retaliated viciously, and foreign The first domino to fall was Poland, Nemeth saw this as Hungary’s and his journalists were expelled. Demonstra- which was in a pitiful economic condi- chance to make Hungary the first East- tors who at first demanded to be able tion. General Jaruzelski, the leader of the ern bloc nation to re-join the West. In to travel freely soon shouted out for the Polish communist party, who had dis- September 11th the border was officially end of the Communist Party. In a final played no mercy in crushing Solidarity in opened and tens of thousands mostly showdown Honecker backed down, it 1981, agreed to parliamentary elections East Germans rushed across. Not every- was all over. in 1989, after prolonged strikes. Fully one in West Germany welcomed the new On the 20th of October, the day that understanding the implications of what citizens. The leadership expected up to his successor, Egon Krenz took office, was happening in Russia, Jaruzelski an- 1.2 million people, and jobs and housing 50,000 people marched in Dresden denounced a “brave turnaround”. The Com- were scarce in West Berlin. manding free elections. On November 4,

Soviet stars coming down in Budapest

September 2010 17 The Way it Was half a million Berliners demonstrated in resigned. The next day, the Communist Germany Embassy in Prague that gave Berlin. On November 1, Krenz re-opened Party gave up its political monopoly. Czech reformers the courage they need- the border with Czechoslovakia and pro- ed. Here was solidarity, the writing was on posed to allow East Germans to visit the Czechoslovakia the wall. The Hungarian Socialist Workers West from there. But this and other com- The Czechoslovak government was also Party was abolished on October the 11th. promises weren’t enough. replaced. In December, President Gustav At 11.17 on the 9th of November, bor- Husak resigned and the dissenting dra- Romania der guards at Checkpoint Charlie, hear- matist Vaclav Havel was elected by par- Events took a dramatic turn in De- ing that the Bornholmerstrasse crossing liament to take his place, while the com- cember 1989 in Romania, when Nicolae further north had opened up, shouted munist leader of the 1968 Prague Spring, Ceausescu appeared on his palace bal- “Alles Auf” (all open). Only minutes be- Alexander Dubcek, returned to head the cony to address a Bucharest crowd. The fore, top officials gave up trying to reach federal Assembly. There was no Solidarity unthinkable happened. He was heck- members of the Politburo. They had sud- movement in Czechoslovakia, no political led. When he failed to intimidate the denly become unavailable. A few hours reformers who dismantled communism crowd, he tried to flee the country, but after the wall fell, Bulgaria’s communist from above. It was the thousands of East was captured, summarily tried, and ex- leader of thirty-five years, Todor Zhikov Germans camped in and around the West ecuted on the 24th of December. P

ed to get in trying to find Americans Marc Barrie at the other clubs to follow over, or usually just hanging out at the secu- (in Moscow) rity hut at the Embassy while the ma- rines made trips back and forth from I first arrived in Russia in 1989. Prior the bar to escort people in. Every now to that I had lived here on and off from and then entire crews of stewardesses 1979 to 1981, when my father was a mili- from Pan Am would arrive. tary attache with the US Embassy. Traffic was non-existent. Late at night He retired from the Army in the mid- you would see maybe one or two cars 80s and came back in 1988 to open the on the Garden Ring. The main reason, AlphaGraphics franchise on Gorky/Tver- other than the fact that very few people skaya St. owned a car, was that there was nothing By the time I arrived, he had moved open at night to drive to. In 1990 there on to work with a company called Satra, was a cooperative state store opened which amongst other things was the ex- most part I didn’t hang out too much near Taganka that sold simple stuff like clusive exporter of Lada brand cars to with the ex-pat community at that bread, eggs, meat and some snacks at the West. He eventually was in charge of time, preferring a group of Russian night. If you ran out of alcohol there was a division called Satra Aerospace which friends who spoke practically no Eng- one place to go however: taxi parks. The worked in the Soviet/Russian aviation lish—thereby giving me a crash course one we usually went to was located un- industry, and specifically with a sports in Russian. At the time there wasn’t der the bridge near the white house. You plane they called the Sukhoi 26, which anything (officially) open at night ex- would pull up, get someone’s attention, was considered to be the best aerobatic cept for a few hotel bars such as the and they would open up the trunk of a plane in the world at that time. infamous “Snake Pit” Heineken bar in taxi to reveal cases of vodka, cognac, and We lived in an apartment on Mal. Ni- the basement of the Intourist (now re- champagne. Of course they never had all kitskaya (ul. Kachalova at the time) that placed by the Ritz) hotel on Tverskaya. three but always something or other. belonged to some Soviet folk singers that What ex-pats did for fun was the em- Buying gas was a real problem due to my father knew through some friends. bassy bar circuit. shortages. Lines at gas stations were I drove a series of Zhiguli cars and then Tuesday night was the German Em- several hours long during the day, and Volgas that I rented from a cooperative bassy club and when the bar closed maybe an hour long in the middle of the venture based in the Moscow hotel for $4 a group would end up in the kitchen night. I used to go late at night and fill a day including insurance. drinking with the Embassy guards. I re- up jerry-cans which were then stored One of the clearest memories of member later printing some “Kitchen on the balcony. Once in a while I would that time when I first arrived was at- Party” T-shirts for them. Wednesday get some diplomatic gas coupons which tending the November 7th parade on and Saturday were at the British club on could be redeemed at special gas sta- Red Square. Dad got us passes for the Kutuzovksy, Friday was the best of all tions. The only problem with that was bleachers dead centre on the square in with the Canadian, Australian, and US not having a diplomatic or foreign plat- front of GUM, and I remember us hav- Embassy bars open, and finally the New ed car to pump the gas into. This wasn’t ing to clear at least seven police check- Zealand Kiwi club on Sunday night. a difficulty when driving my dad’s com- points to get that far. That may have All of these places simply required a pany Mercedes, but a bit more of a been the last time that all those tanks, Western passport, but the US embassy problem with my Russian Zhiguli rental rockets, etc. were part of the event. required that you be escorted in by a car. In the latter case I would park a cou- We had an associate membership at US citizen, and later by someone who ple blocks away and show up with a the US Embassy AECA, and ate break- actually worked there such as the ma- jerry-can saying the car ran out down fast there most Saturdays. For the rines. This resulted in folks who want- the street. P

18 September 2010 The Way it Was Ian Mitchell (all at sea)

I spent the month of August 1989 as the guest lecturer aboard a small but luxurious cruise ship, the Illyria, which sailed round the Baltic, giving me a fascinating insight into Eastern Europe as it stood three months before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The ship carried only a hundred passengers, mostly US citizens, with varying degrees of interest in their surroundings. The entrepreneur behind the trip was a tall, white-haired Swede, Lars-Eric Lindblad, who was determined that his customers should be educated in the realities of the emerging Europe. We sailed from Copenhagen to Rostock in East Ger- many, then on to Gdansk, Riga, Tallinn, Leningrad (as it was then called), Viborg and Helsinki. stroyed the building but not the Fuehrer. Today the foundations Rostock was the only depressing place we visited. It was are reverently preserved as a memento of desperate times. obvious that, just as the Germans do freedom in an impres- The rest of the tour was just as interesting to me, though not sively ordered way, they also did slavery in an impressively to all the passengers. A successful young lawyer from Los An- disciplined way. Grey hopelessness was efficiently quality- geles complained to Lars-Eric after the city tour of Riga: “We controlled by the Stasi. could have got round that town in 15 minutes if Ian Mitchell But the sun came out, both metaphorically and literally, when had not asked so many questions.” we reached Gdansk. We saw the memorial to the Solidarity strik- Perhaps the nicest place we visited, where the dark shadow of ers who had caused the first crack in the Communist façade in Communism seemed lightest, was Tallinn in tiny but beautiful 1980. I even saw their leader, Lech Walensa, hosing down the Estonia. On the Toompea, the inner heart of the Hanseatic Old family microbus in his garden early one summer morning as I Town, the Estonian flag was flying proudly. Guards wearing -Es sat in the back of a Mercedes taxi with some of the more curious tonian arm-bands were patrolling the main square outside the Americans on our way out to look at Hitler’s Bunker, the famous baroque building where the Estonian Supreme Soviet sat twice Wolfsschanze, at Rastenburg in East Prussia (as then was). a year. Clearly the Wall, as it were, was crumbling from within. The genial trade union leader, with the trade-mark moustache, Leningrad was much as it is today, but that was unusual. seemed as happy as the crowds of tourists we later saw camping Everywhere else the sense of change was palpable. We in the birch and pine forests surrounding the place from where were the first foreign passenger ship to dock in Viborg Hitler and his henchmen guided the war on the Eastern Front. since Stalin took over Viipuri (as it was until 1940) after the He had done this from one of half a dozen single-storey bun- Winter War and gave it back its Swedish name. We were re- kers which had twenty feet of reinforced concrete above them. ceived courteously, if cautiously, by the authorities, who This made them almost indestructible, which is why they are negotiated for perhaps half an hour before Lars-Eric was still there. What is not there is the hut in which the Officers’ Plot allowed to step from the bottom of the gangway onto the reached its sadly unsuccessful climax in July 1944, when Count cobblestones of the quayside. We were all aware that it was von Stauffenberg tried to kill Hitler with a suitcase bomb. It de- a historic moment. P

Miguel Francis (on his potty)

I remember 1989 as a tough year. I was 3 years old back then, my Mom tells me it was a year of rough turbulence for us. Financially most of Russia was struggling. My Mother remembers standing at a long line near the Metro with me, waiting for our loaf of bread. I clearly remember my great Grandmother making money by recy- cling glass bottles. I helped her scout them sometimes. 1989 was one of those transition years between the Soviet Union and the Russia that we see today. My uncle went to Switzerland and made a connection through the Red Cross that was able to ship food boxes to Moscow. Salami, cheese, The lifestyle in Russia was generally a marketplace way of bread and various spreads were included. These boxes living. Chickens, fish, veggies would be laid out on long tables helped me and family through the tough times, and boy practically anywhere in the street and sold to hungry people. were they delicious. Some vendors even managed to get Western porn magazines I remember when they started selling coconuts in elite su- into Moscow, and sold them the same way. permarkets, I bought one and brought it over to my kinder- I spent most of my days playing my small guitar, sometimes I garten. Everybody was thrilled, including my teacher. I was played together with my Dad, who had a proper, big guitar. That treated like a celebrity the whole day, and of course the Soviet was until he went back to his home in Santiago, Chile, and bought thinking “you must share” kicked in and I had to let the whole two computers which helped us buy two apartments later that of my kindergarten group demolish my the coconut. year in Moscow. It was a magical time of opportunity. P

September 2010 19 The Way It Is

50% reflecting the re-nationalization of such companies as Yukos and Sibneft. State control of oil companies is normal practice in such countries as Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, particularly when the price is rising. While Russia was on the ascendancy as an Oil Power, the United States was encouraging democratic movements in Georgia and the Ukraine, and inviting these countries to join NATO. Also, the US announced that it would build Missile Defence Systems in Poland and the Czech Republic; these systems seemed to be di- rected at Russia. These US actions were perceived as a threat to Russia and pro- voked what has been called the “Chilly War”. During this period trade relation between the US and Russia were tense and the “neo-cons” in the Bush Administration Beyond the disregarded Russia’s interests. The Obama administration’s “Reset“ Reset, the Trend toward policy quickly transformed the Russian/ US relationship. In March of 2009 the US determined that the missile systems were a New Russian expensive and did not provide real security. Georgia and Ukraine’s membership Investment Climate of NATO was no longer considered a priority. Russia responded by providing the US with some assistance in Afghanistan, Art Franczek signing the SALT renewal and supporting In Petrostate, Marshall Goldman tells the US in enforcing sanctions against Iran. the story of the oil industry in Russia and The fact that the Reset Strategy is working how the country became and energy su- on the diplomatic front set the stage for perpower. In 1898 Russia was the world’s enhanced economic relations between leading producer of oil. Throughout the the US and Russia. Soviet period, oil exports were the pri- Russia’s 17-year WTO (World trade Or- mary source of the hard currency that ganisation) accession process has been was so vital to the Soviet state. Gold- beset with vicissitudes. In the early years man even speculates that in the 1980s of this century WTO entry was a priority the CIA conspired with Saudi Arabia to and many reforms such as the Customs reduce the price of oil to sabotage the Code and IPR reform were enacted. In Soviet Union. Coincidently, the price of 2006 the accession process was almost oil, which was $35 per barrel in 1980, fell completed in time for Putin’s G8 Sum- to $15 by the late 1980s. The 1998 finan- mit in St. Petersburg. cial crash was precipitated by a decline In 2008 the chances for WTO acces- to $10 per barrel. The most recent Rus- sion suddenly looked much worse be- sian crisis was largely the result of the cause of the Georgia conflict. In 2009 fall in the price of oil from $147 to $35 the accession process seemed to die per barrel. Russia’s economy has always instances these agreements were not when it was announced that Russia been dependent on oil exports and this favourable to Russia. would apply to the WTO as part of a is its core problem. Putin’s accession to the presidency customs union with Kazakhstan and Be- In the 1990s, control of many of Rus- coincided with the rise of oil prices and larus. After the July Summit, Medvedev sia’s natural resource enterprises was a subsequent economic boom that saw announced that Russia would apply to handed over to a group of oligarchs Russian GDP grow annually by 7%. Putin’s WTO as a separate country (not with the in the Loans for Shares program, un- governing philosophy was largely based customs union) and he thought the pro- der which ownership of Yukos, Sibneft, on his 1997 PhD thesis “Strategic Plan- cess could be completed by September Norlisk and other companies was given ning of the Renewal of Mineral Raw Ma- 30, 2010. for loans provided to the government. terials in the Growth Strategy of the Rus- The World Bank estimates that Russia’s In addition, Profit Sharing Agreements sian Economy”. During the next 8 years accession to the WTO could increase GDP were entered into with Exxon, Shell and the share of oil production controlled by by 3% in the medium term and as much as other Western oil companies. In many the government increased from 16% to 11% in the long term. Russian businesses

20 September 2010 The Way It Is

of Apple, John Chambers of Cisco, Sergey Brin of Google and others to experience innovation for himself. These activities set the stage for the big announcement of Russia’s Silicon Valley. Over the next three years, the government will build offices, apartments and laboratories at the Skolkova Innovation Centre. Victor Vekselsberg the Centre’s Director invites innovators to “Come, live, create and do good for yourself, Russia and the whole of civilization.” So far Cisco Systems is planning to invest a billion dollars there, and Nokia has promised to invest in this project. Businesses that set up at Skolkova will receive cheap rents, a 10-year exemp- tion from income tax, lower social security payments, reduced customs duties and minimal bureaucracy. In exchange, An aerial view of the Skolkova development area tenants will be expected to develop new technologies for the country and will have improved access to services of the customs union between Kazakh- to sell to the rest of the world. multinational service providers in telecom- stan, Belararus and Russia came into It is hoped that the Skolkova innovators munications, banking, insurance, trans- effect, establishing an area in which takes a look at India and its development portation and other business services. This free movement is provided for goods of techno-austerity. They have developed should lower the cost of doing business either originating from its territory or the Nano, a car that sells for $2,200, and and increase productivity. In addition the imported from third countries that have a $70 fridge among other innovations investment climate for foreign investment entered into free circulation. The first aimed at the frugal. It is my hope that will be greatly enhanced. stage of the customs union harmonizes Skolkova understands the wisdom: “Fru- Once in the WTO Russian industries will tariffs on over 11500 goods among the gality is the mother of Invention.” have to modernize quickly or face the con- participating countries. The Customs Recently, Russia announced it would sequences. Overall, tariffs will come down Union Customs Code was implemented sell non-controlling shares in some state from 10.1% on average to 7.1% seven years on July 1, 2010. companies to raise $29 billion. Aleksei Ku- after joining. Liberals on Medvedev’s team This is the first stage what will be- drin strongly emphasized that these as- see WTO membership as critical to eco- come a Common Economic Space by set sales would be transparent and at fair nomic modernization. Statists like Sachem, 2012. The CES will be comparable to the value, in contrast to the Loans for Shares along with Deripaska and other oligarchs European Union and will allow for free giveaway in the mid-1990s. Companies who benefit from lack of foreign competi- movement of goods, services, capital such as Rosneft, Sberbank, VTB and oth- tion, generally oppose Russia’s global inte- and labour. The process of economic ers will offer shares to foreign investors. gration. integration will be complex and has al- This “re-privatization” reverses the Russia is very close to completing the ready resulted in delays of goods at the trend toward state ownership that oc- WTO accession process but a number new borders. curred in the first part of this century. of issues must be completed before it However, after 5 years the GDP of this These asset sales may provide an in- becomes a WTO member some of the region is expected to increase by 15% and centive for the Russian government to open issues are: many investment opportunities in manu- improve property rights and corporate Protectionist Tariffs: Russia must re- facturing, assembly and other areas will governance so that these assets can be duce its tariffs on automobiles and emerge for multinational companies. It is sold to investors. heavy equipment likely that other countries such as Ukraine Doing business in Russia is not easy. Agree on Sanitary and Phytosanitary may be invited to join what has been re- Russia ranks 120th out of 180 countries Standards: this is important for US ex- ferred to as the “Soviet Reunion”. in the World Bank Survey for ease of porters of chicken and pork Innovation and Modernization have commercial operation and many critics Protecting Pharmaceutical Test Data: become buzzwords for the Medvedev/ claim that it will never improve. I have legislation must protect this data for 6 Putin administration. This is no surprise just described a few of the concrete years because Russia spends about 1.5% of its steps Russia is taking to integrate itself State Run Companies: Russia must GDP on Information Technology while into the world economy and move away guarantee that they will be treated the the US spends about 3% of its much from its dependence on oil. Medvedev same as commercial firms larger GDP. In March, Arkady Dvorkov- referred to recent events between Rus- Pass ex-officio legislation: this will pro- ich and other leading Russians attended sia, US as a “paradigm shift” in which vide customs official with the power to a seminar at MIT on innovation. In June, common goals could be pursued and stop fake goods President Medvedev and his entourage Russia could fulfil its need for “modern- On January 1 2010, the first stage of visited Silicon Valley and met Steve Jobs ization alliances”. P

September 2010 21 The Way it is

The study “Soviet Man, 1989-2009”, as discussed in the August 2010 issue of PASSPORT, was conducted by the Levada Analytical Centre and painted a broad sociological picture of post-Soviet social reality. Along with revealing Soviet-era personality traits that have made it possible to resurrect archaic political mechanisms, the study also noted a growth in professed religion. This second article explores whether the population of Russia really has become as religious as figures from the Levada study say, and explains why those young people who never lived in the USSR often demonstrate standards and stereotypes inherited from their parents, who did.

Elena Rubinova they were Orthodox. But in fact this re- education has become a mandatory ligious belonging is a symptom of a dif- discipline in the secondary school Orthodoxy in post-Soviet ferent social phenomenon. When other curriculum. The most recent initiative times symbols of Russianness are not clear, by Patriarch Kyrill to set up a system A major factor that determined the Orthodoxy tends to substitute for oth- of special secular “Общая лексика” social and psychological evolution of er ways of national self–identification,” coaches who will be responsible for post-Soviet society was a cognitive says Boris Dubin, the Head of Social moulding religious and patriotic vacuum. One of the few parameters and Political Research at the Levada young souls in parishes is reminiscent that radically changed in the course of Analytical Center. of measures taken in the Chinese Cul- the Levada Centre study “Soviet Man, This, according to Dubin, has very tural Revolution. 1989-2009” was people’s faith and reli- little in common with faith. Only 3% gious identification. However, quanti- of those who claim to be Orthodox How different are the young? tative statistics are not the same thing are regular church-goers and only 8% The Levada report stresses that new as qualitative changes in mass con- occasionally participate in parish life. conditions in which young people are sciousness. Thus self-identification as Orthodox growing up, emphasize individual sur- “In 1988-89 approximately 65% of becomes closely linked to the mythol- vival. Young people have had to adapt those polled openly said that they were ogy of “a special way for Russia”, [as to the post-socialist world. The result atheists, only 20-23% called themselves discussed in the August article], which is, apparently, that many refused to believers, and the rest hesitated in an- has been actively resurrected in the conform to the norms of the older gen- swering. In 2008 the pyramid turned past decade. Fully in compliance with erations. For the majority of young Rus- upside down, with 70% claiming that this State-supported trend, religious sians aged 18-25, it is vitally important

22 September 2010 The Way it is How to… to realise their aspirations for a prosper- conviction that individual freedom is a ous life and established patterns of so- priority, practically in the same breath, get by at the gym. cial success. young people supported the idea of Something you might need from “Young people are pragmatic, but “restoring order” used a lot in govern- reception: at the same time have high levels of ment rhetoric of the past decade. Very Дайте, пожалуйста, полотенце. anxiety and conformism,” says psy- few young Russians comprehend and Can I have a towel please? chologist Olga Makhovskaya, Senior support freedom as understood in Дайте, пожалуйста, халат. Research Fellow of the Institute of Western culture where it is not only a Can I have a robe please? Psychology at the Russian Academy of value, but also an institutionalized phe- Я потерял(а) ключ от шкафчика! Science. “They live day-to-day without nomenon. I’ve lost the key to my locker. high ideas or convictions, they val- Deep-seated authoritarian tendencies, Я не могу открыть/закрыть мой ue education mostly judging by the which are hallmarks of Russia’s post-Soviet шкафчик. I can’t open/close my locker. dividends it can bring, they are very rulers, quite naturally spread their influ- individualistic and this defines their ence on youth. Elena Volkova, a professor Something you might need while lifestyle. It’s a kind of short-term type of comparative literature and culture at working out: of consciousness and suits rather shal- Moscow State University, is convinced that Мне не хватает коврикa. low and small-scale personality types. “…in the last 20 years we have been trying There aren’t enough mats for me. In former times, this kind of person to revive different historical patterns, but Мне не хватает степ платформы. would be called a Philistine.” have been able to restore only communist There aren’t enough steps for me. It goes without saying that young ac- ones. Whatever we try to restore takes the Мне не хватает весов / скакалки. tive people exhibit more courage, busi- shape and the sense of communist Russia. There aren’t enough weights/ropes. ness initiative and adventurism than was They [political leaders] can only copy old Позовите врача, пожалуйста! usual with Homo Sovieticus. However, patterns which are dear to them, but can- Please call a doctor! they are more like Soviets than perhaps not create anything new.” meets the eye. Very often, young peo- No wonder that even those who were Personal training ple’s individualism is geared towards born after the USSR imploded have Я хочу записаться на персональную adaptive and asocial individualism of become easy targets for pro-Kremlin тренировку. I’d like to arrange a per- the late Soviet times, mainly oriented political movements like “Nashi” rather sonal training session. towards a quest for an optimal niche in than joining anti-globalization organi- Покажите, пожалуйста, как работает the system of statuses supported by the zations, ecological movements or other этот тренажёр. Can you show me to use bureaucratic state. youth organizations that have very lim- this workout machine? Sociologists notice another trait in ited support amongst Russian youth. Какие упражнения вы мне the young generation of Russians. Un- посоветуете? What exercises do you like other categories of the population, Conclusion recommend? young Russians are open to social con- When I was writing this article, an in- Я хочу… I want to… tacts and intensive networking, they scription appeared overnight in the lift … подкачать мышцы. … are more cosmopolitan, but only if the of our apartment house in the very cen- develop my muscles situation is stable. If something extraor- tre of Moscow. It said: “Other countries … накачать кубики на животе! … dinary happens, the compensatory are created for those who are not strong get a six-pack! mechanism that justifies the special enough to be Russian.” Besides the ob- ... сбросить 10 килограмм. … “Russian way” kicks in, even with young- vious nationalistic connotations of this lose 10 kgs. er people. notion, it implies that being Russian still … подготовиться к соревнованиям. “Despite the fact that young people exists in people’s minds as something …prepare for a competition. are heavy consumers of Western cul- very special, and perhaps has the un- Разработайте для меня программу… ture and products, once it becomes intentional effect of glorifying Russian Can you prepare a program for me… necessary, the young join up with the suffering and hardship as a unifying …с маленькой / средней / большой standards and stereotypes of the ma- national trait and source of pride. How нагрузкой. … with a light/medium/high jority,” explains Boris Dubin. “In a very long will this continue to be an excuse intensity. simple situation, for example when a for justifying everything that does not Посоветуйте мне диету, пожалуйста. Russian team is winning or defeated at fit into the general perception of univer- Can you recommend an eating plan for me? some sports competition, young peo- sal human existence? ple are just as intolerant or even xeno- Not all changes in the young genera- After all that exertion, phobic as the rest of the population. tion are negative. The growth of indi- what you’ll really need to ask is: The majority of young people share vidualism and self-sufficiency may be a Где сауна? Where is the sauna? views on the exclusiveness of Russia step in the development of interperson- Когда работает спа-центр? and Russians and general animosity to al trust and social solidarity. Maybe the When is the spa open? the outer world.” next generation of Russians will eventu- Courtesy of RUSLINGUA For them, freedom has become syn- ally part with the myth of “a special way” www.ruslingua.com onymous with living securely and sta- and the conceit associated with it. Only bly, to have a lot of free time and to if they do so will they become simply consume as much as possible. In nu- people, and citizens of their own civi- merous surveys, after expressing their lized country. P

September 2010 23 The Way It Is Understanding the sales and service culture of Russia: is work a place to go or a thing to do?

Text by Luc Jones, summed up the entrepreneurial climate illustration by Sonya Hallett in the Soviet Union—simply put, there American technology giants such as wasn’t one. Microsoft, Google and DELL are proud Countries which had embraced the free of their humble origins, many begin- market continued to boom (and occa- ning as a one-man show in someone’s sionally bust) as the Soviet economy stag- garage. In fact you can even visit the nated under Brezhnev, and despite an garage where Hewlett-Packard was attempted revival with the appearance of founded back in 1935, before it grew to Gorbachev, the economy eventually col- become one of the largest IT companies lapsed under the weight of its own inef- in the world. When asked why there are ficiency. The USSR splintered into 15 inde- so few such examples in Russia, a local pendent republics. A population which businessman cynically replied that Rus- used to be fairly certain of what tomor- sian garages are far too cold! row would bring were suddenly plunged Joking aside, it is worth taking an in- into a chaotic uncertainty. Brought up to depth look at the entrepreneurialism, believe that private business and making Luc Jones, partner, IT/Telecoms, service and sales culture of Russia (or money was what the evil capitalists did Antal Russia as some might say, a lack of it) to gain suddenly became not only the norm, but other shoppers, but not for me”?! a better understanding of what drives a necessity as guaranteed employment The easiest solution was to buy the the world’s largest country and what disappeared overnight. 20 allowed and to send someone else opportunities there are to be had. As a student in Russia in the early down afterwards to buy more. But I Whilst throughout the 20th century 1990s, I witnessed the empty shelves couldn’t help thinking to myself why business flourished in Western econo- gradually filling up with food. But that this should be? Surely this lady should mies, particularly in the 1950s and 60s, didn’t necessarily mean they would sell be delighted that I want to buy lots of any entrepreneurial spirit that existed it to you. In a “Produkty” shop on the her goods. Growing up in the UK they in the pre-revolutionary Tsarist Russia outskirts of Yaroslavl I recall a conversa- would be positively delighted at your was brutally wiped out. All private com- tion with a shopkeeper when wanting purchase and would probably offer you panies had been nationalized and their to buy some beer for a party. a discount for a bulk purchase. And on former owners had either fled abroad or “Can we have 40 bottles of beer regular trips to Canada and the USA to been sent to the Gulag branded as “en- please?” visit family, I would marvel at the fact emies of the people”. “I can only sell you twenty” that someone would not only pack All economic activity in the USSR was “Why? Don’t you have 40 bottles?” up your groceries into (free) bags, but completely under state control and any “Yes, I have more than 40 bottles but if would then carry them out to your car attempts at private enterprise were met I sell you 40 bottles then there won’t be for you! with a swift and severe response from enough left for other shoppers.” Many employees who deal with the the authorities. The expression of the My Russian wasn’t as good back then, public wonder on a daily basis what sin day was “Initsiativa nakazuema” (Initia- and I was less argumentative so I neglect- they had committed that resulted in their tive is punishable) which pretty much ed to comment: “So there are bottles for having to deal with the public. Their atti-

24 September 2010 The Way It Is tude is “I get paid a pittance so therefore Welcome to the world of customer are helpful but not everything. It’s a big I don’t care”. Trying to explain that in fact service, Soviet style. This is gonna take country and you can’t know everyone. “you get paid a pittance BECAUSE you longer than we thought, no doubt pon- My guess is that Russia will need over don’t care” seems to have little notable dered the McDonald’s executive. And three generations to shake off what the effect! yet, with hard work and perseverance, Soviets ingrained into the population’s On the one hand, it is easy to justify the McDonald’s empire has become is mind-set, and we still haven’t passed the or explain the situation by the fact that a massive success story in Russia, with first one. Initially employees expected given the persistent shortages that the around 250 outlets, which tend to be to be paid for showing up at work and country faced, coupled with the total much fuller than their western counter- saw little or no connection between the lack of competition, there was absolute- parts. However, not all Russians warm to “work” that they did, and the salary that ly no incentive whatsoever to try sell (or the obligatory “have a nice day” said with they received. But this is now changing, produce) more. The concept of P&L was a forced smile. One teenager grumbled especially in Moscow and some larger, non-existent and every enterprise, from that when the staff say this to you, they more progressive cities, albeit mostly small shop to large factory was state don’t actually mean it. “Eto nie iskrenno.” among those not old enough to remem- run so there was never any possibility (it’s fake, not sincere) His friend replied, ber the old days. of going out of business, regardless of “Zato v rossii iskrenno posilayut”! (But My general advice to foreign manag- performance. then in Russia people will genuinely tell ers here is that although Russians value Although Pepsi originally set up a joint- you to get stuffed)! freedom in a job, they will nevertheless venture in the USSR way back in 1959, But there has to be a bit more to expect you to tell them what to do, espe- one of the first global corporations to re- it than simply blaming Russia’s cus- cially in the beginning. Flying in, hiring ally make its mark on the landscape was tomer service failings on communism. someone and saying to them “here are McDonald’s during the Perestroika years. Even twenty years after the arrival of our products, go out and sell them” is un- A common misconception in the west a free market economy and the huge likely to be the most successful strategy. was that a Big Mac cost a week’s salary (in choice of products on offer, many Rus- Although it is true of the whole world but fact the Golden Arches’ trademark burger sians genuinely believe that if a product especially the case in Russia, far too many retailed at 3 roubles and 75 kopeks when or service is good then everyone will people equate “being busy” with “doing the average salary at the time was round want to buy it. a good job” and assume that “work” is 100 roubles) but in all honesty they prob- Consequently, this is reflected in my a place you go to, rather than what you ably could have charged a week’s wag- day job when recruiting staff for multina- do. A clear system of achievable Key Per- es given the demand in January 1990, tional corporations in Russia/CIS. Around formance Indicators (KPIs) shouldn’t be when McDonald’s opened its first outlet half of all the requests for personnel here seen as condescending, but a structured in Pushkin Square, replacing Cafe Lira are in some kind of sales role, whereas in and necessary approach to the task(s) in and making it the company’s largest food our London office it is a tiny proportion. order to achieve certain goals. outlet in the world. Perhaps in the West we were all born as The upside of this situation is that it is The long lines broadcast to the world expert bullshitters, but continuously in much less likely your competitors are not gave a clue as to how the first customers Russia I struggle to find strong salespeo- speaking to, or dealing with, your target would be treated. In flew the North Amer- ple for my clients. audience. I laugh when Russians tell me ican seagulls from corporate HQ with a Most commonly when I enquire about about excessive competition in Moscow. plan to make McDonald’s as successful someone’s day-to-day tasks, the response I tell them to visit New York or Frankfurt and ubiquitous in the new free Russia as is “when a customer makes an enquiry or and try to do business there. everywhere else in the world where they places an order, we react”. “OK”, I interject, In my line of business, at the last count, operate. One of the first induction ses- “but last week how many outgoing calls Moscow had approximately 300 recruit- sions for the new staff began as follows: did YOU make to prospective buyers last ment agencies. There are more such McDonald’s senior executive, stand- week? How many clients did YOU visit? agencies within the vicinity of tube sta- ing in front of a room of glum-looking, How many presentations/demonstration near our head office in London than newly hired Russian staff with the hope tions did YOU arrange? How many of in the whole of Moscow, and most of them of ridding them of their Soviet-era ways: these did YOU then follow up on? All too are bigger! London has around 10,000 re- “We’re now gonna train you to be polite often I am met with bemused looks. cruitment companies alone, some with to the customer”. Granted, it is probably quite a good many branches throughout the city. Now Young guy sticks his hand up “zach- thing that we are unable to help with that’s competition for you! em?” (why?) requests from across the pond demand- So next time you walk into an emp- McDonald’s bigwig, who has probably ing “someone’s who’s gonna break that ty hotel and a bored-looking woman never faced such a seemingly obviously door down and will that deal” as not only looks up from her magazine and barks question, replies “erm, well‑so that the do such people not exist, but if they did “Miest nyet” (“We’re full”) at you, you customer feels welcomed, satisfied and they wouldn’t sell anything in this man- may now understand her logic! will want to come back again in future ner anyway. I have explained countless Luc Jones is a Parter with Antal Russia, and buy more.” times to first-timers to the former East- an British executive recruitment company Same young guy who had asked ern bloc that it’s not about having the operating in Russia/CIS since 1994 and “zachem?” asks with genuine sincerity: flashiest presentation; rather sales in employs 100 staff in Moscow and has a “It’s -10C outside, there’s a three hour Russia are based much more on relation- branch office in Almaty (Kazakhstan). P wait to be served— and we’ve got the ships and Russians like to talk technol- [email protected] burgers.” !! ogy, product and process. Connections www.antalrussia.com

September 2010 25 The Way It Is

Text by John Harrison Illustration by Julia Nozdracheva tioners at work, well at most places. Official news channels said the weather will cool down in a few days. For those returning or having just returned from holidays abroad, reports about the smog in which Moscow was Tuesday 27th July shrouded for a couple of weeks may seem exaggerated. But I begin to dig in the internet and find reports, to my hor- for those in Moscow the opposite seemed true, and the way it ror, from Mosekomonitoring, that the amount of harmful was handled by the authorities reminded me of a tragi-com- substances in Moscow’s air exceeds the norm by many times. edy. I was unfortunate enough to return to Russia from holi- What the norm is and what all this means in respect to the day on the 29th of July, just before the worst of the smog hit future of our physical bodies, and how to protect ourselves is Moscow. The following are a few notes and impressions of the not very clear, but it is now crystal clear that this is a very seri- couple of weeks that followed. ous situation and we have been fooled into thinking that it is a just a normal summer forest fire situation. Monday 26th of July Newspaper reports of peat fires in the Moscow region Thursday 29th July started to appear in the Russian press from about the 14th Yesterday, Russia’s chief lung doctor, Alexndera Chuchalin, of July onwards. It wasn’t until about the 26th of July when warned that walking the streets of Moscow is like smoking two smog covered most of the city, and pollution levels started packets of cigarettes every few hours because of large concen- to go off the scale of acceptability that we finally realised that trations of toxins in the air. Mosekomonitoring says that pollu- something was seriously wrong. tion levels of carbon monoxide and micro-suspended particles To ward off the heat—it was 35C, making it impossible to in the air have reached 10 times the norm, but again, no detailed sleep at night—we tried in vain to buy a ventilation fan, and explanation has been given of the permanent damage the par- eventually had to pay 6,000 roubles for a fan that would nor- ticles can cause to your health. A doctor friend has told me that mally have cost 3,000 roubles, and that through a friend as these particles are so small they never leave the body. Other tox- there were none in the shops. Most people carried on work- ins, whose names are too complex for me even to transliterate ing normal hours. Despite what they say on TV, the economic and which we have been breathing for the past few days, cause crisis has not ended in Moscow, and most are still terrified of cancer. Why aren’t we being told this? Respirators capable of losing their jobs, but more importantly: there are air-condi- blocking the gasses should be being given out.

26 September 2010 The Way It Is

Monday 2nd August ing officials. What about sacking Yury Luzhkov, still on holiday, Temperatures yesterday hit an all-time high of 37.7 C accord- for failing to save my lungs, I ask my friends. They shake their ing to the Forbos weather forecasting centre. Today is even heads and smirk at me wondering how many more decades I hotter. With 2,000 made homeless from forest fires across do I need to live in Russia to understand. About 667,460 hect- Russia, a state of emergency has been declared in seven re- ares of forest have been ravaged since April 1st, the Emergen- gions across Russia, including the Moscow region. Pedestrians cy Situations Ministry reported. The smog is everywhere. We walk slowly as their city turns into a grey abstract painting of wake up in the middle of the night with stomach pains. The shapes which are buildings. Moving quickly causes the eyes bathroom is like a banya, as hot water pipes can’t be turned to sting. Cars have their headlights on as visibility is down to off. The smoke has begun to pong badly. 100 metres in places. The official death toll from the fires in Russia is 34. Fire-fighters have been sent to Sarov to guard a Friday August 6th nuclear power station from the fires. Where is Sarov? As temperatures rise to 40C in some parts of the city, news People start wearing masks today. Days later did we find out begins to come in of the possibility of fires in the Chernobyl ac- that only 8-ply masks would be thick enough to keep out the cident fallout-area lifting up radiated particles into the atmo- micro-particles. Vladimir Gaidalenok of the Lor-Asthma clinic sphere. This was quickly denounced by the authorities. Things told Interfax today that ideally it would be better to leave the must be getting bad, the History Museum on Red Square as well city altogether. If Muscovites should fall ill, they were advised as the Lenin Library have been temporarily closed. to go into hospital, advice which few of our friends took, as few TV news has enjoyed a tremendous come-back through- Moscow general hospitals have air conditioning. Official advice out the country—even I watch it! But a feel of disillusionment is to sit at home with closed windows, which is hard to do if you soon sets in. It is most disconcerting. Russian victories in the don’t have air-conditioning and it is 40C. We decide to send our European track and field championships are more important, daughter to the seaside for a week. as are the floods in Pakistan.

Tuesday 3rd of August Saturday 8th August My anger and distrust in the powers-that-be heightens. I I was happy to hear that our mayor has returned from holi- find out at work that Alexei Yaroshenko, a forestry represen- day in the Tyrolean Alps where the air was considerably bet- tative at Greenpeace Russia, mentioned that the 2007 Forest ter than that in Moscow, and where his wife’s company Inteko Code, signed by the then president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has opened a luxury 5-star Grand Tyrolia Gold & Ski resort. resulted in the dismissal of 75% of the foresters and other For the second day the blogosphere is full of complaints that personnel involved in monitoring and protecting the forests. Fire-fighting efforts have now been privatised. It is impossible to verify all the information I am reading. Commercial fire-fighting organisations have been hired according to their price, not their abilities. Blogs are full of speculation about the real reason behind the Forest Code, which made it easier for local administrations to sell forests for development. There is no official reaction at all to these kind of allegations. Instead, Putin today orders more money to be poured into the fire- fighting program, and calls on all forces, including volunteers to “extinguish everything” (including life?!). Meanwhile, fires rage across at least 120,000 hectares of Russia. The government has pledged to pay 3 million roubles ($100,000) to people whose houses have burned down in the wildfires, and said it would pay up to 200,000 roubles ($3,600) as compensation for those who lost any other property. Echo Moskvy reported that some rural visitors in Voronezh and Vlad- imir regions let their houses burn down in the hope of getting the compensation. Over 1,800 houses have burned down by August 3rd, according to regional development minister Vik- tor Basargin. www.lifenews.ru reported a shortage of fuel for fire-fighting helicopters and the Russian Orthodox Church Pa- triarch, Kirill, said Russians should seek to stop sinning in order to end a record drought that has stoked the fires, the Moscow Times reported. Vladimir Putin said he would watch the houses being rebuilt himself via the internet! Wow!

Thursday August 5th GZT.RU report that not one of the 270 forestry areas around Moscow was prepared for the fires, and had not been following obligatory anti-fire fighting regulations. As the temperature hit 38C, President Dmitry Medvedev, who only returned from holiday on the 4th of August, made himself busy by sack-

September 2010 27 The Way It Is

Luzhkov’s press secretary, Sergei Tsoi, commented that the www.GZT.RU reports that the smoke cloud over Russia has situation in Moscow is not critical enough for the Mayor to attained the size of France. shorten his holiday. “What problems?, what, we have a crisis situation in Moscow? No, other regions have a critical situa- Tusday August 10th tion on their hands, not Moscow.” Today my facebook page is full of other faces saying that Nikolai Svanidze, a journalist at Kommersant FM, made the it is raining, and yet others asking: “where?” In fact it rained point that as governors and the Moscow Mayor are no longer for 15-20 minutes on the west side of the city, then stopped. elected, they are not so worried about their popularity. The smog seems to be easing due to the wind direction Meanwhile, ordinary Muscovites wondered why the magic slightly changing rather than a major reduction in the num- rain-man couldn’t make it rain. “At least he could supply us all ber of wildfires still burning. The Kremlin (Medvedev) accuses with free respirators and shorten the working day,” my work the Mayor of returning from his holiday too late, while Putin colleagues grumble. congratulates him on his timely return. The grapevine has it that ambulances are working round the clock, but crews have Sunday 9th August been briefed only to pick up the most serious cases, as there Muscovites, me included, are experiencing real fear regard- are not nearly enough vehicles to cover all call-outs. ing our safety; especially when reports began to filter in, again Today the awful news circulates that meteorologists con- via internet publications about the rise of the average daily sider it possible that the anti-cyclone which has held tem- death toll from 380 per day to over 700 per day in Moscow. peratures at their unnaturally high level will not shift from its Over 5,000 people have died in Moscow alone so far as direct holding pattern until the middle of September. result of the smog and heat-wave. This has not been corrobo- rated by the authorities. Corpses, according to one report in Wednesday 11th August www.gzt.ru are being piled up in the cellars of hospitals, be- The smog continues to ease slightly today. Despite Presi- cause all the fridges are full. dent Medvedev’s warning against engaging in political PR In response to earlier criticism, civic authorities have opened yesterday, Putin earler today took the co-pilot’s seat of a Rus- 123 air-conditioned “smog centres” in government buildings. Air- sian-built Be-200 amphibious aircraft, although he has no conditioning isn’t working in the one on Tverskaya. known pilot training. He held the throttle, as carefully placed cameras showed, and dumped 24 tons of water on forest Monday August 9th fires about 200 southeast of Moscow. Channel One showed Andrei Setsovsky, head of the city’s health department con- a clip of him asking: “Did I hit the target?” to which the pilot ceded that the daily death rate has doubled, but that statement answered: “A direct hit”. Both Medvedev’s and Putin’s ratings was not endorsed by Tatiana Golikova, Russia’s health minister, are apparently dropping quite seriously, but this is now irrel- the Guardian reported. Activity on the Russian stock exchange is evant. Meanwhile, Muscovites were given free admission to way down, and a top Russian doctor implored foreigners not to select cinemas, where free water is provided! be scared off by the thick fog, even as embassies evacuate some of their staff. Thursday 12th August Masks are being rationed to no more than 10 per person @ 5- Moscow’s skies are relatively smog free, and temperatures 8 roubles per item, to put a halt to stockpiling and re-selling for have dropped as the anticyclone seems to be budging. Cost 50 roubles per piece. Portable air-conditioners, reports Obskaya so far, according to Business FM on the 16th of July is about Gazeta, are retailing for 30-35,000 roubles, up from 15-20,000 in $30 billion. It would have been cheaper to keep the original the winter. However finding a fan or air-conditioner in Moscow forest service intact. has become completely impossible. I have had the impression throughout this period that the gov- Sorry about not being very green, but I was truly joyous to ernment was only able to react to situations as they occurred. It had get my car back from the garage so I can drive to work, avoid- no strategy. The internet made many of us feel like we have been ing the 2 kilometre walk from the Metro which has been kill- treated like idiots, because it showed the shallowness of the official ing me, literally. I was able to de-frost my fridge in record time news channels. Parallels were drawn to the way that the Chernobyl this evening. disaster was reported on, or not reported on in 1986. P

28 September 2010 Your Moscow

Abramtsevo: Colony of Russian Art Nouveau Text and photos by Russian kottedzh with an ornate fret- Katrina Marie work roof. Across the threshold, the Whether fleeing from Moscow’s chok- aesthetics of Mother Russia are ex- ing smog, or simply in need of a quick pressed in shining ceramic. Writhing salve for the pounding head, consider a intertwined, are layers of color as lush day trip to the peaceful 19th century art- as the tangled ivy dripping from the ists’ colony and estate at Abramtsevo, lo- studio’s exterior. cated just south of Sergeyev Posad. The The love of the natural world with a winding country road off the M-8 is a mystical dream-like twist draws heavily tranquil omen, with rolling hills of white from Russian fairytales. Vruble’s work is birch, fields speckled with wildflowers dominant, from the brilliantly tiled fire- and, yes, a river running through it. places to gleaming decorations. One Established in the 1870s, the artists’ can see much of the style he later incor- colony gave rise to Russia’s rich art porated into the Metropol Hotel. The nouveau and modernist periods. It was vivid metallic sheen captured produced home to such well-known talents as pieces so freshly modern, they’d be at Vruble, Repin, Serov and the Vasnetsov home in any gallery today. brothers. The expansive estate, made A reverence for peasant or folk art is up of several architectural delights, also also prevalent. No less intricate, remark- contains parks and gardens perfect for able examples of hand-carved house- picnicking—but mind the bees. wares, including primitive irons and Art Nouveau frescoes and icons, and The estate’s main house, built by utensils, are a must-see in the neigh- again, lustrous tiling perfectly convey writer and Russian traditionalist Sergey boring Museum of Folk Art, particularly the period. Aksakov (1791-1859), later passed to in- with its fanciful purple and green check- The whimsical House on Chicken Legs, dustrial entrepreneur Savva Mamontov erboard roof. built by the Vasnetsov brothers for the (1841-1918), who founded the artists’ Artistic periods of Russia’s past con- colony’s children, sadly now appears to colony and had a taste for the modern. tinue to converge with the splendid be missing its clawed feet, but its charm The house was the model for the manor Church of the Savior, built in 1882. The still lingers. Inspired by the fairytale of in Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, and it church curtsies to medieval Russia, but Baba Yaga, the Russian equivalent to the also briefly accommodated Gogol, who guides her into the modern era with witch in Hansel and Gretel, the diminu- wrote part of Dead Souls here. what many consider to be Russia’s first tive cottage pays homage to Baba Yaga’s The real gem, however, is the sepa- monument to the Art Nouveau style. sinister threats to gobble up little kiddies rate studio, placed in a quintessential The elegant flowering mosaic flooring, who come too close. P

September 2010 29 Your Moscow

Green Parts – the North

Text and photos by views. The pond, the conifer collection and the ornamental Ross Hunter bushes all add to the ambience. Spoiled for choice this month. Moscow boasts a wide variety The Japanese garden is tidily done, neat and about believ- of green spaces on its northern side, all closer to the Third Ring able. It requires an additional entrance fee, which may explain than the MKAD, and all handy by car or Metro. From The Botan- its higher standard of upkeep. The Orangery is a magnificent ical Gardens via VDNKh to Sokolniki there is plenty of variety, greenhouse, a vast glazed hangar that somehow combines in- and is very easy to find: the TV tower is not pretty, but it helps dustrial and Russian heritages. It is the repository of the exotic navigation being Europe’s tallest structure. tropical plants, including the finest orchids. Opening hours are limited, and only for pre-booked groups, so plan ahead. The Botanical Gardens If these areas are compact, the heart of the park is the vast, Starting at the north, the huge, rambling, spacious parks rambling interior. Managing a botanical garden is a hugely and forests of the Botanical Gardens of the Academy of Sci- skilled and time consuming job. The entrance fees clearly ences are without doubt the most cultured and upmarket of come nowhere near covering costs, and the gardens are on all Moscow’s great parks. Uniquely free of commercialisation, a fragile cusp between a planned and manicured exhibition they offer more space per visitor than any other. At a bargain of managed nature, and reverting rapidly into living proof of 50 roubles (and again for a bike) its emptiness can hardly be nature’s chaotic exuberance. Odd corners are precise and con- caused by price. Once inside, choose your landscape. The cise and well tended, other tracts are going feral fast. This mix- most popular areas are by the entrances: by the main building ture affords endless quiet corners for picnics, and is pretty in (NW), the Japanese Garden (NE) and the Orangery (SW). dappled sunlight. With a spot of imagination, one can delve The palatial classical styled HQ and laboratory is a pre- into oak forest fit for Robin Hood, dense pine stands for shield- revolutionary stately home, with stories to tell. The facade is ing gingerbread houses, and even enough birches for a Baba imposing, unless you get too close, in which case the poor Yaga. The oaks look brilliant. The pines’ perfume is enveloping, quality square bricks of the main house suggest the invest- so you cannot smell the bears, bats, Ents, wolves and witches ment was not as lavish as hoped. Worse is to stand further which must be in there somewhere. Great for adventures, but back as the perfect setting, view and panorama are graced by you won’t find me there on a dark moonlit night. a Soviet-era electricity pylon and power station chimney. Not even symmetrical! Communist aesthetics both ask and an- VDNKh swer troubling questions. Do not be put off: this is a gloriously Out of the woods, the busy chaos of the All Russia Exhibi- accessible and pleasant place, and a favourite with Moscow’s tion grounds is a total contrast. All the fun of the fair, popular newly-weds doing their rounds, toasting each other and the culture at its densest. Very commercial and very noisy with

30 September 2010 Your Moscow

all manner of curious sights, from ethnic pavilions rockets to of those already covered in in this series. P Soviet showpieces to gilded fountains. The last named are [email protected] packed with impromptu bathers in the summer heat. There is no dress code. It doesn’t resemble water, but the occupants don’t care.

Sokolniki Something of a mixture of the previous two, with the advantage of being very handy from central and eastern Moscow, So- kolniki was once the Tsar’s falconry centre. It does not feel like a royal hunting ground today. Large and eerie woods hide a variety of incongruous public buildings, some bathing ponds, a few stagnant weedy swamps and footpaths. All roads lead to the central circles, where refreshments come in the form of fountains, cold drinks, donkey rides, bikes for hire and more besides.

Timiryazevsky Park I have run out of space. It looks good on the map, and if you know this park, I’d love to hear from you. Or your views on any

Sokolniki bathing pond

September 2010 31 Real Estate

to pay a rather small fee (4-5 thousand Private Rental Brokers: rubles) in advance. For this amount, dis- honest agents provide a list of addresses Better Safe than Sorry? and phone numbers of apartment owners based on the client’s requirements. There is not a single chance to rent an poor performance. These specialists apartment with the help of this list. usually provide minimum rental-related Another variation goes even further. services, but at a reasonable price. A potential tenant will talk to the owner The third type includes people who from the realtor’s office and arrange for have moved to Moscow from other re- an appointment to see the apartment gions. They believe that they can success- later that day. However, the “owner” on fully work in the real estate market with- the other end of the line is on the same out adequate training. There is always a scamming team. And when the time for risk associated with these brokers, as a the appointment comes, the “owner” client may encounter non-professional- would either cancel it under some ex- ism, incompetent paperwork, poor famil- cuse or just vanish. iarity with Moscow district specifics, inad- Probably the worst scam of all is an equate knowledge of average prices, etc. outright fraud. Owners lease their apart- Such specialists work for a minimum fee, ments through a private broker for an but even this fee does not correspond to extended period of time. Having rented the poor quality of services. an apartment, let’s say for the summer, Vadim Lamin, Elite rentals Finally, the fourth type is represented scammers forge powers of attorney and Director, Penny Lane Realty by scammers, whose real objective is quickly compile a package of documents The recent crisis in the rental market to simply rob clients. This may include required to sell the property. When the brought more private real estate brokers everything from common robbery to owners come back home, they find new to the playing field. Some of them are document forgery. “owners” living in their own apartment. employees who lost their jobs during the Situations like this can be settled only in economic instability in Russia and later So, private brokers cannot be trusted? court, but the problem here is to locate became independent brokers; others are That’s not always so. If a specialist can the brokers, because, as a rule, after re- new players who decided to start a busi- produce references, if he or she has con- ceiving the money, they change residence ness in a profitable segment of the mar- siderable work experience in this field, and cut all ties that may lead to them. ket. There are certainly a number of trust- you can use his services. But, if a client ed professionals operating in the private wants a secure deal not involving any How can people can protect themselves? segment, but it is easy to come across a legal risks, he or she should turn to a What would you recommend? “scammer”. So, can you trust a private bro- professional company. One of the reli- My advice is to go for an established ker? Or is it best to always stay away from ability factors of the real estate agen- real estate agency. A large company is a them? Vadim Lamin from Penny Lane Re- cies is that they have corporate clients. guarantee in itself. It is not able to vanish alty shares his opinion in this interview. No corporation will attempt to use a pri- overnight unlike a private broker. If you vate specialist for finding accommoda- are a tenant or a leaseholder and have Vadim, how does one become a private tion for its employees. Large agencies decided to use the services of a private broker? will provide a tenant with an immense specialist anyway, you should try to gath- There are several ways to become a pri- database of apartments for rent and a er as much information about this spe- vate broker. I would say there are four basic leaseholder‑with exclusive rental condi- cialist as possible: check his/her refer- types of people who follow these paths. tions. Moreover, these agencies usually ences, ask him/her for telephone The first type includes people who offer legal support, and some, like our numbers of former clients, call these cli- pioneered a profession of broker work- company, provide real estate insurance. ents and ask for their account of working ing as an independent player. Gener- with this specialist. In the event that this ally, they have an extensive expertise in What are the common tactics that scam- broker is a former employee of a real es- rentals and are able to do quality work. mers use? tate agency, call this agency as well and However, they do not provide addition- Scamming scenarios vary. Some scam- find out, if he/she is competent and if he/ al services like apartment insurance and mers take the realtor’s fee from a client and she left the company in good standing. legal support. It should be noted that disappear, changing their phone number. Always check related documents, like the services of such specialists are ex- In other cases, a tenant would move into an passport and certificate of title, when en- pensive. Most of their clients come from apartment, only to find the locks changed tering a deal. Never pay realtor’s fee in referrals from friends or acquaintances. the next day or worse, meeting the real advance, only after the deal is approved. The second type is comprised of for- owner, who is not aware of this. Avoid paying rent too far in advance (like sponsored article mer real estate company employees. One of the most common scams is to six months or a year in advance). Always Some of these brokers left their position provide so-called “information services” sign lease agreement and before signing thinking they had gained enough expe- by realtors. This scheme works best with it, examine carefully every item in this rience in this field to set out on their own, non-Muscovites, who are looking to save agreement. And finally, be cautious and while others were asked to leave due to money on realtor’s fee. A client is asked aware of possible risks. P

32 September 2010 Real Estate

of new business-centres, large business Tenants New parks, have been built in these areas, and alongside the main roads which pass through them, which is making these areas attractive for people who don’t want building Moving to spend all day in cars. It’s worth mentioning that over 10% of By Ekaterina Batynkova, those who rent residential real estate consider the possibility of buying a flat Director of the Elite Realty and then leasing it out. Today, real estate department of Est-a-Tet is considered by our investors to be one The extremely hot summer has made of the most stable types of investment. its mark on the leasing side of the real The profit from leasing apartments is ac- estate market. Demand among ten- tually not that big, in relation to their cost ants for class A apartments has recom- (particularly in the case of re-sale after a menced with the autumn coming. Some new building is commissioned), but if the new tendencies are being observed. goal of keeping an apartment as an asset Rents are rising, as are tenants’ require- is set, it is undoubtedly profitable to lease ments caused by the present climatic it. In average, the payback period of a conditions. A shift of demand from the class A apartment is from 7 to 15 years. city centre to the new prestigious neigh- Obviously the cost of the apartment is bourhoods, which are situated near the the most important factor, but renova- big business centres and business parks, tion and furnishing quality, a competent is expected. approach for the lease rate generation are Rental costs have been fairly stable over the past few all equally important. Working with a professional realtor even months. Large clients with sizeable budgets were active on at construction stage (if you are investing in a from-scratch the market at the beginning of the summer; around 40% of project) is desirable. He, as a professional in this field, can pro- the most expensive flats have now been taken. The holidays vide a consultation of what is the most sought-after type of also mean things calm down slightly, and the market has also building on the lease market. P been dampened by the unusual weather conditions. We expect the next surge of demand to be in September, and this will be accompanied with a rise in rentals for class A flats. To- day, prices start from 120,000 roubles per month. The most popular buildings are modern apartments with areas from 120-180 square meters, and which cost from $5,000-$12,000 per month, with modern style renovation and a large amount of natural light. Such tenants value facilities such as profes- sionally developed ventilation systems, mechanical and chemical water clearing systems to be extremely important, particularly after the recent ecological problems, the shock of which will be with us for some time. In the past, the major tenants for class A apartments were foreign citizens. For some years now, there has been a stable correlation between Russian and foreign clients. The crisis has resulted in some staff being transferred to other countries, and the accommodation allowance for many ex-pats has been reduced. But during the second half of 2009 and first half of 2010, demand from ex-pats has picked up again, both in the number of ex-pats seeking flats and in the quality of the flats they sought, tipping the class A market towards a renters’ market again. However, such a situation is typical for the West, in particular the London market where it is always possible to talk about a deficit, because each client’s demands are so spe- cific that even if the allowance is adequate, finding the right apartment, in the right area, with the right decoration and facilities, means searching for several months. In Moscow, centrally-located neighbourhoods still remain the most asked‑for, because that is where most of the office complexes and leisure areas are located. But it is necessary to mention the rising demand for certain neighbourhoods beyond the Third Ring, such as Leninsky Prospect, Olympic

sponsored article sponsored village, Krylatsky and the University areas. A huge amount

September 2010 33 Sport

To the Volga in a Volga

Ian Mitchell of the spectators who pointed cameras at back-roads north-east of Moscow in an old The heat belted out of the uninsu- the cars—and there were many of them— Volga than I had in twenty years of study- lated engine compartment; the steer- bothered to photograph my friend Ilya ing the ineffectiveness of anti-consumer- ing wheel had about 20 degrees of free and I in our GAZ Mk 3. For some reason ist propaganda. When young boys laugh play making straight-line progress more their preference was for the Lincolns and at your car, then you know it is time to a matter of luck than judgement, and the Buicks, the Mercedes sports models, change political systems. corners an adventure; the brakes did not the two Rolls-Royces, the Covette Sting- But still, my two days in the Volga were work until you exerted your full strength ray, the pink Dodge and even, most hu- one of the most enjoyable I have spent pushing the pedal down, and then they miliatingly of all, an MG Midget. in four years in Russia. There were many pulled savagely to the right; the gear-box For the first time in a long life of not reasons for this, starting with my compan- lacked syncromesh; the oil consumption bothering to be cool, I learned what special ion Ilya and the others on the rally—tour was fierce; the indicators did not work; level of coruscating uncoolness must have would be a better word—and going on and there were no seatbelts. But that was been suffered by those who were forced with the amazing hospitality of the au- not the worst part of going rallying in a by Soviet reality not just to ignore cool but thorities in the various towns, where the 1962 Volga with Старое Время, or the to have to choose between being uncool police stopped the traffic so that we could Old-Time Car Club, of Moscow. in the serious Soviet meaning of the word, parade in like visiting celebrities. I suppose The serious fact was that amongst the or walking. No wonder Communism col- that, as pink Dodges and Rolls-Royce Silver crowds that lined our routes into Uglich, lapsed. I learned more about political his- Ghosts are rare in Uglich, we were some- Rostov and Pereslavl-Zalesky, hardly any tory in two days of bouncing around the thing like that.

34 September 2010 Sport

But the nicest aspect of the event was Suzdal, Vladimir, Bogolyubovo, Veles and www.old-time.ru discovering that rare thing in Moscow, an Kirzhach—a total distance of just over 900 www.oiltrade.ru association of Russians devoted purely kms. Last year they all went to Kaliningrad to quiet enjoyment, in this case cruising oblast. Next year will be somewhere else. around country roads in ancient cars un- For readers interested in going touring til evening falls and the party starts. The in this area independently, I should say members of the Old-Time Car Club are that you will not be disappointed. The straight-forward lovers of old time cars, roads were better than I had expected— nothing more or less. most of the time. All the towns had ho- The moving spirit behind this wonder- tels where you could spend the night. At ful organisation is Alexander (“Sasha”) Rostov, the recently-restored Kremlin was Smirnov, who runs a small restoration and one of the most magnificent I have seen. repair business for classic cars in an unpre- But Uglich on the Volga, where Ivan the tentious garage near Tushinskaya Metro Terrible’s son was murdered, and Perslavl- station. He came with his wife and two Zalesky, where Peter the Great learned to children in a Lincoln that used to belong sail, were also fascinating. I would happily to the Governor of Delaware, and which have put up with searing heat, the sloppy had in its boot two boxes for high-tech steering, weird brakes and other discom- communication devices and another for forts to have seen all the other towns the automatic weapons storage. He said to Rally visited. From a tourist point of view, me, “This is not sport, it is for socialising.” central Russia is one of the least-known How unusual is that in modern Russia! jewels in Europe. Unfortunately, I could stay only for two of The event was sponsored by the Oil- the four days of the trip, which went on to Trade company and Old Time. P

September 2010 35 Travel

Turkmenistan Luc Jones menistan. But the good news is that there voted President of Turkmenistan in 1991 Articles on Ashgabat, the Turkmen are a handful of accredited tour firms who (he was the only candidate) and shortly capital, usually churn out the well-worn can ease your passage of entry. The only afterwards declared himself both Presi- quote “Dubai meets the Soviet Union”, catch is that they will organize the entire dent for Life, and Turkmenbashi (Father which may suit lazy hacks who couldn’t trip for you. There’s no wondering around of all the Turkmen). Niyazov’s eccentrici- be bothered to actually visit Turkmeni- on your own here; you’ll be chaperoned ties have been well documented, such as stan. But those who do venture into throughout the day by a local guide, lest building gold statues of himself in Ash- what must to this day be one of the most you poison innocent Turkmen minds with gabat, and changing the months of the secretive and bizarre regimes outside of your evil, foreign ideas! year to sound like the names of the par- North Korea, and they will certainly be Turkmenistan was born out of the col- ents he never knew, his father dying in left curiously surprised. lapse of the USSR, being one of the last of WW2 and mother and the brothers and Getting in is the tricky part. Everyone the republics to declare independence sisters perishing during a massive earth- needs a visa; yes, even other CIS citizens, and although it joined the Common- quake which flattened the city in 1948. and it’s not simply a case of rocking up wealth of Independent States (basically Post-USSR Ashgabat is largely a testa- at your local Turkmen Embassy (of which the old USSR minus the Baltic States), ment to the promotion of Turkmen culture, there are not a vast quantity), smiling nice- the newly formed country showed little fronted of course by Niyazov himself and a ly, filling in a form and walking out with a appetite for openness, change or de- personality cult which comes close to rival- shiny sticker in your passport. Oh no, you’ll mocracy. Saparmurat Niyazov, the Turk- ing that of Kim il Sung. Massive funds have need official state approval to enter Turk- men Republic’s leader since 1985 was been lavished on marble-fronted palaces,

36 September 2010 Travel various other government buildings, and most importantly is the Arch of Neutrality complete with a massive, golden statue of Turkmenbashi himself rotating so that he is always facing the sun‑and you can even take the elevator inside it up to the top for great views of the city. When wondering where the money came from to fund all of this, don’t forget that Turkmenistan boasts some of the world’s largest resources of natural gas, so the country certainly isn’t short of a bob or two. On the one hand, given that most Afri- can dictators would have done the square Wanna buy a Kamaz? Visit the Tolchuka root of bugger all to develop their nation whilst simultaneously siphoning off state if you’re a party animal then you’ll find eral millennia ago. funds into Swiss bank accounts, Niyazov your options somewhat limited after din- The forty minute flight from Mary back has certainly left a legacy (he died in 2006). ner. Officially there is an 11pm curfew on to the capital was on a brand new Boe- His dream to turn his country into a cen- all venues so for many it’s back to the hotel ing, yet cost only $4 for a single (and lo- tral Asian version of Qatar or Dubai is still bar, although one place that has a license cals get a 50% discount). We took a trip a long way off, and with large swathes of to stay open later is the Florida bar (worth out to Central Asia’s largest open air mar- the population living close to the poverty the trip, if only to see the Plymouth Argyle ket, where you can buy anything from line, one can’t help thinking that the cash scarf on the wall; it recently changed its a KAMAZ truck, to a carpet, to a camel. could have been better spent. Niyazov’s name to The British Pub), where foreign We took the easy route and bought nuts successor is Gurbanguly Berdymukham- business visitors gather into the early and dried fruit before a cup of green tea edov and was his personal dentist—hey, hours to drink beer and play pool. The up- and a tasty samsa in a local café which what’s wrong with a bit of cronyism, and stairs disco, called Kumush Ay, is the most looked as though it might struggle to with a name like that who knows what his kicking place in town and about the best pass a health and safety inspection back parents were smoking! chance you’ll have of pulling any local tot- home! Finally, given their love of horses, Your first grabble will be changing tie—just don’t arrange a meeting for 9am no trip to Turkmenistan would be com- money. Keeping pace with Soviet times, the following day as it doesn’t get started plete without a trip out to a local stud there is still a black market for foreign cur- until the early hours. farm for a display of how to antagonize rency, so although $1 will officially buy If you only visit Ashgabat then you’ll a horse to the point that it’s ready to bite you 5,400 Manat, you should be able to leave with a pretty lopsided view of the or kick you (well, that’s what it looked get around 3-4 times this with the assis- country, since around 70% of Turkmeni- like to us); fortunately we were quite a tance of your driver. Bring a rucksack with stan is made up desert; the mighty Kar- distance away, and these guys seemed you to be ready to carry sackfulls of the akum which translates as black sand. A to know what they were doing. stuff around with you—this might not be four hour drive along the highway par- Getting in: Forget trying to do this Germany in the 1920s but you get the pic- allel with the Iranian border, with a quick yourself, you’ll get nowhere. We used ture. stop at a micro-brewery just outside DN Tours (www.dntours.com) who were You are likely to spend your first day or Tejen, brings you to Mary (pronounced great, as well as efficient. They sorted out two being shown the city sights plus a trip ‘Mar-ree’) which is the gateway to the the visas, hotel bookings and all trans- out to the Kipchak Mosque where Niazov desert and the ancient city of Merv. port within the country, plus providing is buried, and a chance to sample the city Founded well before the birth of Christ, a super guide who actually thought that nightlife. Ashgabat itself is beautifully lit you are free to explore the ancient city five drunken English guys were funny! up in a vast array of colours after dark, but walls and you’re likely to have the place Getting there: Turkmenistan Airlines much to yourself, if you don’t count the (daily) and S7 (2-3 times a week) fly be- wild camels wandering around. tween Moscow and Ashgabat; domes- Merv may satisfy the UNESCO World tic flights cost peanuts thanks to state Heritage box tickers, and impressive it subsidies although you may need to is, but this is small beer compared to a secure the services of a travel agency to trip out to Margush several hours into actually get them. the unforgiving Karakum. A Russian Getting around: Everything will be mad professor has dedicated several taken care of by your tour company. If decades of his life to unearthing the on business, you’ll be met and shown remains of what he claims could prove around by whoever it is you are seeing. to be the world’s fifth ancient civiliza- Language: Turkmen is the official lan- tion (after Ancient Greece, China, India guage although nearly everyone speaks and Mesopotamia). Whether or not he’s Russian (perhaps not as well as in other right is hard to say, but his excavations former Soviet Republics due to the coun- cover a wide area and one can only be- try being so closed). People in tourism, gin to imagine what went on here sev- and some in business, speak English. P

September 2010 37 Travel

Endless bustle in Singapore’s Chinatown

have grown from their humble origins to become trademark By John Bonar brands attracting overseas visitors eager to experience true If you can sneak in a one-day stopover in Singapore on your Singapore culture. way to South East Asia’s beach resorts, then spend it in Chi- I dropped in on Thye Shan Medical Hall, at 201 New Bridge natown. The area was allocated to the Chinese community in Road. Its team of service staff and Chinese physicians is now 1828 by the founder of the modern city state, Sir Stamford in its third generation. Mervyn Chan, the grandson of the Raffles. It became famous as the area to find roadside food founder, having had a successful international career, has hawkers, fortune tellers, travelling medicine salesmen, story been drawn to the family tradition and is now in his final year tellers, buskers and opera singers. It is the oldest ethnic district of studying Chinese traditional medicine. He is the only one in Singapore, with over a hundred years of history, and while of the family to speak English. Chinese medicines, he told much of the district has been subject to an eclectic makeover, me, are typically made up of 80% herbs, 15% insect or animal the religious and family traditions remain unchanged. products and 5% minerals. These will be mixed in the correct Every shop in China town has its own history like no other. proportions and instructions given to the patient how to cook Many of these shops, passed from generation to generation, them and when to consume them.

38 September 2010 Travel

The best local fare, served they way it used to be by small, family-owned businesses thriving on maintaining traditional standards using ancient family recipes. Must-try dishes include Chili Crab cooked in thick gravy with a tomato and chili base, eaten with bread soaked in the gravy. This is Singapore’s signature dish. The best way to start, or finish your time in Chinatown is a visit to the Heritage Centre at 48 Pagoda Street. In three newly restored shop-houses at the Centre houses recreate memories and the history of how Singapore’s founders settled in this area. The hard life of the migrants resulted in many of them seeking solace in the four evils: opium smoking, prostitution, gam- bling and secret societies. On a brighter note, Chinatown, in its heyday, was always bustling with life and activity. Traditional festivals of the different races that make up the citizenry of Singapore were celebrated here, thus making Chinatown cul- turally vibrant and unique. From 10am until 5pm guided tours lasting 90 minutes are offered on the hour at a cost of S$8 for adults and S$4.80 for children. Of course there is much more to Singapore, the Lion City, than Chinatown. If you have the time, there is the opportunity to get up close with lions, tigers and other night animals in the world’s first and only night Zoo Safari, take a Captain Explorer DUKW tour, or ride the world’s tallest observation Wedding gifts are traditionally red wheel beside Marina Bay which will give you unobstructed views of the city and glimpses of Malaysia and the nearest Recognizing that today’s lifestyles do not always allow a pa- Indonesian islands. P tient to infuse a tea Chinese medicine now embraces what For more information and links: www.visitsingapore.com Mr. Chan calls “patent medicines” where the ingredients are ground and encased in easily taken, and transported, cap- sules. The one-stop shop, besides being a retailer, manufac- turer, supplier and distributor also offers consultation and treatment by certified Chinese physicians, acupuncturists and medical masseurs. Its reputation has spread, and Mervyn has even helped treat prominent Russians who are visiting Singapore in increasing numbers, whether to participate in the annual Russian-Singa- pore Business Forum or watch the Formula 1 Grand Prix. A consultation with a Thye Shan Medical Hall physician will cost between S$10 and S$20. Heading down Pagoda, at the centre of the reconstructed Chinatown Street Market with 161 stalls lining Pagoda, Treng- ganu and Sago streets, at No. 40 you will find Henry Ng pre- siding over the Sir Master Tailor exclusive silk and tailor shop. Within a day or two he is capable of making you a suit that would do credit to Saville Row, at a fraction of the cost. Exquisite hand-embroidered, fully-lined formal evening dresses can be made to measure for ladies. A suit costs from S$ 200 to S$ 800 while the dress I admired was only S$ 250. At No. 30 Pagoda Diana Lim or Catherine Teo will help you choose traditional Singaporean gifts ranging from Chinese year symbols to beautiful hand crafted Singapore costume dolls. Parallel to Pagoda Street, at 62 Temple Street just round the corner from South Bridge Road. Pop into Wong’s Jewellery which offers an amazing array of jade jewellery and table ornaments in an array of colours, from white to violet, and of course green, all from the mines around Mogaung in upper Myanmar. After a hectic day’s shopping, head to Smith Street, where the Chinatown Business Association in cooperation with the Singapore Tourist Board has revived Chinatown Food Street where row after row of tables fill the pedestrianised street.

September 2010 39 Out & About

Jenson Button noises up the Kremlin On Sunday 18 July, Potemkin mo- tor-racing in the shape and sound of a Formula 1 demonstration came to Mos- cow, bringing with it the current World Champion, Jenson Button of Great Brit- ain, and the number 2 Renault driver, Vi- taly Petrov, who is the only Russian ever to have competed in a Grand Prix. The streets round the Kremlin were cor- doned off for a crowd which was predict- ed to be about 300,000 but which was probably closer to a quarter of that, so that the cars could drive from the square below St Basil’s Cathedral, down onto the embankment, and round the Kremlin walls to the National Hotel, where they did an about-turn and drove back again to the Cathedral, to be greeted there by a have seen the cars being driven fast and Formula One calendar by 2012. That hysterically-waved chequered flag. elegantly. My impression from listening would be worth attending. As it was, During these runs, both drivers per- to Jenson Button talk wryly about this this event, though unusual, seemed to formed deliberate spins to make their form of showmanship in the Mobil hos- me rather sad. It was noisy, expensive, rear tyres smoke which, the organisers pitality tent between excursions was brutishly spectacular, but ultimately said, was a popular sight with Russian that he felt much the same way. as meaningless as a Kremlin election. petrol-heads. To some foreign observ- It was announced at the pre-demon- At least the location was appropri- ers, this form of destruction was less stration press conference that there is ate, I suppose. P interesting than it would have been to likely to be a Russian Grand Prix on the Ian Mitchell

38 September 2010 Out & About

The steamy Pacific comes ties were introduced by the manager of 35th anniversary of the establishment of to steamy Moscow the Swissotel, and the event opened by diplomatic relations between the Philip- the Philippine Ambassador to Russia. pines and the then USSR. It was ironic On Monday 26 July, the Embassy of the Traditional music and dancing were fea- that the temperature in Moscow on the Republic of the Philippines held a gastro- tures of the evening, as well as a lavish night was higher than that in the near nomic evening to launch Filipino Culi- selection of Philippine dishes prepared equatorial islands whence the food and nary Week, which was held in the Café by two visiting chefs from the Makati chefs came, presumably expecting con- Swiss at the Swissotel, Krasniy Holmi, Shangri-La Hotel in Manilla. The event ditions less tropical. P near Paveletskaya. The evening’s festivi- was preliminary to celebration of the Ian Mitchell My World Dare to ask Dare tion for posting such a picture is that myself “WWSD?” and take whatever ac- these chicks must be really butt ugly. tions I decide Scarlett would take if she And Russian women never are. were in my shoes. Frankly, my dear, TIAD. xxoo DD Which means, chin up! Tomorrow is another day. Dear Deidre: xxoo DD I am an expat woman and I want to fix up two people I know here in Moscow. The guy is an expat friend of mine who’s Dear Deidre: been looking for a wife and the girl a Russian I met in my building. Any advice? How are you doing in this smoke? I am thinking of leaving Moscow very quickly. Dear Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Make Me a Match: Dear General Kutuzov:

Photo by Maria Savelieva Yes. Don’t! Hopefully, by the time we go to print, I was in the middle of doing the exact the fires will be out and this question Expats and Russians alike same thing recently when I realised that will just remind us all of how lucky we ask celebrity columnist I was fixing up the man of my dreams. are that the bitter unbearable winter is I think it was all that “Oh, he’s very coming at last. Deidre Dare questions smart and kind” and the “Yes, he does I try to think of these smoky days as about life in Moscow. work out and make a lot of money” Napoleonic. In other words, I like to stuff that finally clued me in: there imagine that this is what it was like for Dear Deidre: aren’t a lot of those guys running the Grande Armee when they entered a around Moscow. burning and deserted Moscow in 1812. I do not understand why Western girls do Best we keep them to ourselves, eh? Sure, most of them died. But remem- not use attractive pictures of themselves on their Facebook profiles. Sometimes If I’ve learned anything, I’ve learned ber: it wasn’t the summer that got them. they even use photo of a flower or moun- that Russian girls can take care of them- It was the winter. tain! Why don’t they do it like Russian selves in this department. They really girls and be very sexy? don’t need a helping hand from us. xxoo DD

Dear Likes a Good Visual: xxoo DD Dear Deidre:

You’ve got me. I have absolutely no Dear Deidre: I am an American and I married a Rus- sian woman and now I realise she is idea and have often wondered about crazy. I am very unhappy – what do I do? this myself. Though I agree with you I got fired and my husband left me. I feel It is a disaster. just awful about everything and feel very that flowers and mountains are awful, I depressed. What would you do if you find the Western women who post their were me? Dear Screwed: child’s picture as their profile shot even more frightening. Dear Troubled One: It almost always is, my friend, it almost What it basically means when they do always is. that is that these women have subsumed Think of yourself as going through WWSD? their entire identity into their offspring. your own personal Russian Time of Scarlett’s unhappy marriages always They have simply disappeared as indi- Troubles. Something that happens to us ended up with her husband dying in viduals - and it seems to me that since all on occasion. some battle. But since the Grand Armee that is what is expected from mothers in In America, a lot of people get com- is gone from Moscow, that probably the West these days, they are only blind- fort from the acronym WWJD, which doesn’t help you very much. ly reflecting the society they live in. See? means “What would Jesus do?” I suggest you volunteer in Iraq and Frightening stuff. I invented a different question how- pray you die in some battle. This is one of those Western “values” ever and it might just help you. that I hope never arrives here. It would I use WWSD. Which means “What xxoo DD only oppress Russian women, who I ad- would Scarlett do?” and refers to that mire a lot for their naked individuality hell-bent-on-survival character, Scar- Do you have a question for whether they are mothers or not. lett O’Hara from GWTW (which means Deidre Dare? As for your scenes of nature ladies, I’ve “Gone with the Wind.”) If so please email her at decided that the only possible explana- In any crisis as difficult as yours, I ask [email protected].

42 September 2010 Wine & Dining Listings

Your restaurant should be here Please phone or write to PASSPORT sales manager: + 7 (495) 640-0508, [email protected]

NOTE: **Indicates Passport Magazine Top 10 tion on the Old Arbat overlooking Moscow Conservatory is a popular Russian and European food. There Restaurants 2009. the busy pedestrian mall. The daytime informal business venue. is live music most evenings, and a usual rock paraphernalia and a Open 24 hours. Several locations. warm, homely atmosphere. AMERICAN somewhat mediocre presentation 13 Ulitsa Bolshaya Nikitskaya, 775- Bol. Nikitskaya Str., 19 **CORREA'S of the HRC standard menu. 5188, 775-4310 M. Arbatska New American, non-smoking 44 Stary Arbat, 205-8335 M. Arbatskaya, Biblioteka im. Lenina environment, cool comfort food at M. Smolenskaya www.coffeemania.ru tel. (495) 691 5623, (495) 691 6513 several Moscow locations www.hardrock.com STARBUCKS 7 Ulitsa Gasheka, 789-9654 Now has 32 locations. SCANDINAVIA M. Mayakovskaya ASIAN www. starbuckscoffee.ru The summer café is one of AROMA Moscow’s main after work meeting venues. Excellent Scandinavian STARLITE DINER Indian Restaurant and continental menu. Paul O’Brien’s 50s-style American EUROPEAN Krizhizanovskovo Street 20/30, 19 Tverskaya Ulitsa, 937-5630 Starlite Diners not only have the CAFE DES ARTISTES M. Profsayousnaya M. Pushkinskaya best traditional American break- www.aromamoscow.ru Restaurant and bar offers fine European cuisine in a relaxed atmo- www.scandinavia.ru fasts, lunches, and dinners in town, +7(495) 543-54-26 they draw a daily crowd for early sphere, often with recent artwork on morning business and lunchtime the walls of the upstairs room. STEAKS 5/6 Kamergersky Pereulok, 692-4042 business meetings. Open 24 hours. ITALIAN GOODMAN Four locations. ILFORNO M. Teatralnaya Moscow’s premium steak house 16 Ul. Bolshaya Sadovaya, www.artistico.ru chain. Crisis menu added. Numer- 650-0246 Restaurant-Pizzeria 25 kinds of great tasty stone oven ous locations. M. Mayakovskaya 23 Tverskaya Ulitsa, 775-9888 9a Ul. Korovy Val, 959-8919 baked Pizza. Great choice of fresh CITY SPACE pasta and risotto. Grilled meat and fish Panoramic cocktail bar. A breath- M. Tverskaya, Pushkinskaya M. Oktyabrskaya www.goodman.ru 8/10 Build.1 Neglinnaya Ul. taking view and loads of delicious 6 Prospekt Vernadskovo, 783-4037 (495) 621-90-80, (495) 621-35-41 cocktails. Located on the 34th M. Universitet www.ilforno.ru floor of Swissôtel Krasnye Holmy BARS AND CLUBS 16/5 Bolotnaya Ploshchad, Moscow 951-5838 NIGHT FLIGHT BUDDIES CAFE M. Paveletskaya If you don’t know about Night M. Polyanka 52 bld.6, Kosmodamianskaya nab., www.starlite.ru No frills but very ex-pat friendly Flight – ask somebody. – Szechuan, Thai, or Vietnamese Moscow 115054 Open 18:00-05:00 from Singaporean Kelvin Pang. +7 (495) 221-5357 17 Tverskaya Ulitsa, 629-4165 AMERICAN BAR & GRILL Sports bar. www.nightflight.ru This veteran Moscow venue still 12/8 Tverskaya Ulitsa, 694-0229 KAI RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE M. Tverskaya M. Tverskaya, Pushkinskya does good hamburgers, steaks, ba- Some of Moscow's best contempo- con & egs and more. Open 24 hours. rary French cuisine with an Asian SPORTLAND 2/1/ 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya Ul, DARBAR touch from chef at Swisshotel SportLand on Novy Arbat offers 250-9525 With great views from the top floor Krasnye Holmy. live transmission of a wide range of the Soviet relic Sputnik Hotel, 52/6 Kosmodamianskaya Nab, of sports fixtures from all around veteran expats say it's the city's BEVERLY HILLS DINER *NEW* 221-5358 the world, this sports bar is open best Indian. In addition to the usu- M. Paveletskaya from 12.00 noon all the way to The new kind on the diner block al norrth Indian fare, Darbar has an 4.00am daily. with a full range of American extensive south Indian menu. standards. LABARDANS The newly-opened SPORTCAFE 38 Leninsky Prospekt, 930-2365 is equipped with 60” widescreen 1 Ulitsa Sretenka, M. Leninsky Prospekt The restaurant “Labardans”, is a plasma and LCD TV’s. M. Chisty Prudy cultured comfortable place in Vladimir Mayakovsky’s theatre on SPORTLAND, SPORTCAFE, NOVY COFFEE AND PASTRIES Bolshaya Nikitskaya, right in the ARBAT 21. HARD ROCK CAFÉ COFFEE MANIA heart of historic Moscow. The res- www.metelitsa.ru/sportcafe For those longing to Americana, The Coffee Mania next to the taurant has three halls, and serves HRC's main asset is its great loca-

NOTE: For restaurants with multiple locations the most popular location is given – see the website for others. All phone numbers have city code 495 unless otherwise indicated. Reservations suggested for most restaurants.

September 2010 43

Coming Up The Trafalgar Ball, 23rd October

This year the Trafalgar Ball, which will be held on the 23rd of October, promises to be something special. The ball is moving to a new, larger venue, and is to be themed around flags. PASSPORT talked to Don Scott, the President of the club about the event.

Can you tell us about the concept behind the Trafalgar Ball this year? Renaissance Moscow Monarch Centre Hotel at Begovaya, Firstly, let me give you a little history. The Trafalgar Ball was where we are aiming to attract 350 people. started eleven years ago by the British Business Club’s previous incarnation: the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland Business What’s special about this year’s Ball? Club. It was Geoffrey Cox who came up with the idea of the Tra- Each year we have always tried to theme the Ball, for ex- falgar Ball; at that time, the battle of Trafalgar was the next cel- ample, lamps or cannon balls or something nautical. This year ebratory day coming up for the UK, and that was how it started. we decided to do flags. As everybody knows, one of the key We have generally tried to keep numbers limited, and made episodes of the battle was the announcement, made with the event the best quality that we could; and make some flags, which Nelson sent out to the fleet, which said: “England money for charity as well. All profits will be passed on to char- expects that every man will do his duty.” So the tickets, the ity, and in this case it is the Taganka Children’s Fund, which design inside the ballroom, and the other designs we are us- we have been supporting since we started. They are the only ing will have that flag design incorporated into it. charity that we support apart from St. Andrew’s Church. We have used the Marriott Grand Hotel for nearly all of our Who is the Ball open to, and how can tickets be obtained? time, but this year we are changing our location. The Marri- The Ball is open to absolutely everybody. We will be selling tables ott Grand has provided outstanding service and quality for of ten, and individual seating, everything will be available for online us throughout our years with them, but unfortunately, to in- registration on the British Business Club website. (www.britishclub. crease our numbers, to make it a bit bigger and better, we ru) British Business Club board members will also have tickets, and have no option but to move. So this year we will be at the new you will be able to buy directly from them. P

September 2010 45 Family Pages

Hickory Dickory Dock, The mouse ran up the clock. The clock struck one, The mouse ran down!

Hickory Dickory Dock. Hickory Dickory Dock, The bird looked at the clock, The clock struck two, Away she flew, Hickory Dickory Dock

Hickory Dickory Dock, The dog barked at the clock, The clock struck three, Fiddle-de-dee, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The bear slept by the clock, The clock struck four, He ran out the door, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The bee buzzed round the clock, The clock struck five, She went to her hive, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The hen pecked at the clock, The clock struck six, Oh, fiddle-sticks, Hickory Dickory Dock!

46 September 2010 Family Pages

Hickory Dickory Dock, The cat ran round the clock, The clock struck seven, She wanted to get ‘em, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The horse jumped over the clock, The clock struck eight, He ate some cake, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The cow danced on the clock, The clock struck nine, She felt so fine, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The pig oinked at the clock, The clock struck ten, She did it again, Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The duck quacked at the clock The clock struck eleven, The duck said ‘oh heavens!’ Hickory Dickory Dock!

Hickory Dickory Dock, The mouse ran up the clock The clock struck noon He’s here too soon! Hickory Dickory Dock!

September 2010 47 Family Pages Compiled by Ross Hunter 1 The High Life Moscow is not really a city of skyscrapers. That means the few tall buildings can be seen and enjoy great views. Here are five of the biggest and most famous, with views from them. As usual, they are shuffled. Can you pair them up?

The Swiss Hotel The Ostankino The Russian Academy The Leningradsky The Stalin Skyscraper at TV Tower of Science Hotel Kotelnicheskaya Naberezhnaya

2 Capital Holidays Where did you go for your holidays? Match up these countries to their capital cities. Naturally, they are muddled up.

Countries: Sweden Namibia Australia Bangladesh Senegal Turkey Peru Chile Denmark Laos

Capitals: Canberra Dhaka Dakar Windhoek Ankara Stockholm Copenhagen Vientiane Lima Santiago

3 A Paw Quiz Have you been tracking animals on safari? Match up these prints to the animals. They have been shuffling, of course, and they are not to scale.

Fox Cat Bear Lion Dog

4 Mini Sudoku August solutions Central Moscow quiz: 5 Bolshoi Theatre (top left) The State Historical Museum (top right) 3 4 Metropol Hotel The Kremlin GUM Kazan Cathedral 4 5 Radial roads: NW: Tverskaya, N: Prospect Mira, NE: Myasnitskaya, E: Pokrovka, 5 4 3 SE Solyanka/Marxistskaya, S: Yakimanka, SW: Ostozhenka, W: Novy Arbat 3 6 Ring roads: Kremlin Ring, Boulevard Ring, Garden Ring, 3rd Transportation Ring, MKAD 2 1 Mini Sudoku: see www.englishedmoscow.com

48 September 2010 Book review Handsome Habsburg homosexual

Ian Mitchell Austro-Hungarian Empire was the most To anyone interested in the likely fate cosmopolitan power in Europe, embrac- of the Slavic world in post-Soviet times, ing Germans, Hungarians, Czechs, Poles, especially on the east European border- Ukrainians, Romanians, Slovenians, lands, this book will make fascinating Serbs, Croats, Slovaks, Italians and Jews. reading. It tells the story of one of histo- With the exception of the Jews, most oc- ry’s forgotten figures, the charismatic but cupied discrete areas, so the pressures gay Archduke Wilhelm of Austria, who of late-nineteenth century nationalism adopted Ukraine as his country and tried made it likely that an Empire might break to become its King after the Russian Rev- up into its constituent national parts. olution. The history of the Slavic world Wilhelm’s father’s response to this would have been very different if one of was to suggest that various members its wealthiest areas had been ruled after of the Habsburg family should adopt 1917 by a sympathetic German aristocrat one or other of the nations and be- rather than a gang of murderous, pseu- come King of that. A Habsburg network do-internationalist “proletarians”. would be preserved, if only on a distrib- The Red Prince Wilhelm was born on the Adriatic in uted basis. He hoped to become King of Timothy Snyder 1895 into a family that went back to 1273 Poland. His eldest son, who shared this when his ancestor, Rudolf, became Holy ambition, married a formidable Swedish Vintage £9.99 Roman Emperor. In the fifteenth century aristocrat and became as Polish as any Austrian Emperor Karl, who had suc- the Habsburgs made marriages which Pole—being subsequently tortured by ceeded the elderly Franz Joseph in 1916, brought them control over Hungary, Bo- the Gestapo for his trouble. Wilhelm, for consulted his cousin Wilhelm personally hemia, southern Italy, the Low Countries reasons which are not discussed in de- on Ukrainian policy, which became very and Spain, the latter subsequently bring- tail, latched onto the Ukraine. important after the Bolshevik Revolu- ing with it one of the largest colonial em- The Habsburg Empire included the tion in Russian in 1917. pires in the world. In the sixteenth centu- province of Galicia, with its capital Lvov, By the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, in March ry, the family married into the Polish royal which is today the westerlimost part of 1918, the Germans occupied the north- family as well, acquiring extensive territo- Ukraine. Before the First World War, Galicia ern half of Ukraine and the Austrians the ries in Galicia and the western Ukraine. had a Polish upper class, Ukrainian peas- southern half. The latter, partly on Wil- In the eighteenth century a series of antry and a large number Jewish traders, helm’s advice, adopted a policy that was dynastic re-arrangements, starting with lawyers and townsmen. The Poles looked designed to fulfil Ukrainian aspirations to the War of Spanish Succession and end- down on the Ukrainians, who did not look nationhood, admittedly under Austrian ing with the three Partitions of Poland, up to the Poles and both were extremely supervision. By contrast, the German aim disturbed but did not destroy this in- anti-Semitic, especially the Poles. was only to fill German stomachs with credible series of international links. So Wilhelm’s romantic embrace of Ukrainian food, requisitioned from the Napoleon came close to upsetting it, Ukrainian culture when he first visited peasantry by local forces under the con- detaching several key territories, chiefly Galicia at the age of seventeen had an trol of a slightly sinister Ukrainian monar- Spain. But the centre held, not least be- element of family conflict to it. His fa- chist called Pavel Skoropadsky. cause, once again, the family married ther and elder brother were “Polish” so Wilhelm’s dream of greater power, aggressively, giving the Archduchess he, the less than favoured younger son which was shared by Emperor Karl, was Marie Louise to Napoleon himself as a (who eventually broke completely with destroyed by the German collapse in wife in 1810. his father), would become what the late 1918. Austria had to withdraw and Incidentally, she was related to Marie Poles despised: a Ukrainian. the Ukraine became a battleground be- Antoinette, who had been another Aus- As a junior officer in the Austrian tween Red and White Russians, a situa- trian Archduchess. It was of course at Army during the First World War, Wil- tion he deplored but could do nothing the Congress of Vienna, masterminded helm fought in the famous Galician about. He spent much of the rest of his by the Austrian Minister of State, Prince campaign in 1916 where many of his life engaged in Ukrainian affairs. Metternich, that Europe was reorgan- troops were Ukrainian. He thought Eventually, while living in semi-retire- ised after Napoleon’s defeat, in a settle- they were excellent soldiers and they ment in Vienna in 1947, Soviet intelligence ment which lasted until Wilhelm came returned his respect. He spoke flawless troops kidnapped him and took him to Kiev of age during the First World War. Ukrainian, enjoyed the manly camara- where he was tried for anti-Soviet activities Given such a history, it is obvious derie of the camp-fire, and wore an em- under laws which were both retrospective that a homosexual Archduke presents broidered Ukrainian shirt underneath and extra-territorial. He was sentenced to a diplomatic problem of immense dif- his field-grey battledress. He earned the twenty-five years in a forced labour camp, ficulty, especially for a country in need nick-name Василь Вишиваний (Vasyl but survived only a few months before dy- of allies. Another problem was that the Vyshyvanyi) or Embroidered Vasily. The ing of tuberculosis. P

September 2010 49 Distribution list

Restaurants & Bars Starbucks Dukat Dayev Plaza European Medical Center Academy Starbucks Tulskaya Ducat Place 2 German Dental Center Adriatico Starbucks Galereya Akter Dunaevsky 7 International SOS Adzhanta Starbucks Metropolis Business Gogolevsky 11 US Dental Care Aist Plaza Iris Business Center MedinCentre Alrosa Starbucks Zemlyanoi Val Japan House American Bar & Grill Starbucks Pokrovka Lotte Plaza Others Apshu Starbucks Chetyre Vetra Meyerkhold House American Chamber Art Bazar Starbucks on Kamergersky Morskoi Dom of Commerce Art Chaikhona Starbucks Baltchug Mosalarko Plaza American Express Australian Open Starbucks Festival Moscow Business Center Anglo-American School Baan Thai Starbucks Belaya Ploschad Mosenka 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 American Institute of Business Beavers Starbucks MDM Novinsky Passage and Economics BeerHouse Starbucks Fifth Avenue Busi- Olympic Plaza Association of European Bellezza ness center Romanov Dvor Businesses Bistrot Starbucks on Akademika Samsung Center Astravel Blooming Sakura Plekhanova Street Sodexho Aviatransagentstvo Bookafe Starbucks Schuka Business Baker Hughes Cafe des Artistes Center Embassies British International School Cafe Atlas Starbucks Zvezdochka Australia Coca Cola Cafe Courvoisier Starbucks Sokolniki Austria Citibank Cafe Cipollino Starbucks Druzhba Belgium Concept MR, ZAO Cafe Michelle Starbucks Mega Teply Stan Brazil Dr. Loder’s Cafe Mokka Starbucks Severnoye Siyaniye Canada DHL Cantinetta Antinori Starbucks Atrium China English International School Сarre Blanc Starlite Diner Cyprus Ernst & Young Che Sudar Czech Republic Evans Property Services China Dream T. G. I. Friday’s Denmark Expat Salon Cicco Pizza Talk of the Town Delegation of EC Foreign Ministry Press Center Coffee Bean Tapa de Comida Egypt General Electric Costa Coffee Tesoro Finland General Motors CIS Cutty Sark Vanilla Sky France Gold’s Gym Da Cicco Vogue Cafe Germany Halliburton International Darbar Yapona Mama Hungary Hinkson Christian Academy French Cafe Iceland Imperial Tailoring Co. Gallery of Art Hotels Indonesia Interpochta Guilly’s Akvarel Hotel Moscow India Ital-Market Hard Rock Cafe Art-Hotel Israel JAL Hotdogs Barvikha Hotel&spa Italy JCC Ichiban Boshi Belgrad Japan Jones Lang LaSalle Il Patio Courtyard by Marriott Kuwait LG Electronics Italianets Globus Luxembourg Mega/IKEA Katie O’Sheas Golden Apple Hotel Malaysia Moscow Voyage Bureau Labardans East-West Mauritius Move One Relocations Liga Pub Hilton Leningradskaya Mexico NB Gallery Louisiana Steak House Iris Hotel Netherlands Park Place Molly Gwynn’s Pub Katerina-City Hotel New Zealand PBN Company Navarros Marriott Grand Norway Penny Lane Realty Night Flight Marriot Royal Aurora Pakistan Philips Russia Pancho Villa Marriott Tverskaya Peru Pilates Yoga Papa’s Metropol Philippines Pokrovky Hills Pizza Express Mezhdunarodnaya 2 Poland PricewaterhouseCoopers Pizza Maxima Maxima Hotels Portugal Procter & Gamble Planeta Sushi National Saudi Arabia Pulford Prognoz Pogody Novotel 1, 2 Singapore Reuters Real McCoy Proton Slovenia Renaissance Capital Rendezvous Radisson Slavyanskaya South Africa Respublika R&B Cafe Renaissance South Korea Rolf Group Scandinavia Sheraton Palace Spain Ruslingua Seiji Soyuz Sweden Russo-British Chamber of Com- Shafran Sretenskaya Thailand merce Shamrock Swissotel Krasnye Holmy United Arab Emirates St. Andrew’s Anglican Church Shanti Tiflis United Kingdom Savant Silvers Irish Pub Volga United States Schwartzkopf & Henkel Simple Pleasures Zavidovo Shishkin Gallery Starbucks Mega Khimki Zolotoye Koltso Medical Centers Sport Line Club Starbucks Arbat 19 American Clinic Swiss International Airlines Starbucks Mega Belaya Dacha Business Centers American Dental Clinic Tretiakov Gallery Starbucks Moscow City Center American Center American Dental Center Unilever Starbucks Arbat 38 Business Center Degtyarny American Medical Center Uniastrum Bank Starbucks Scheremetyevo Business Center Mokhovaya European Dental Center WimmBillDann

50 September 2010 September_covers.indd 2 20.08.2010 18:12:32 MOSCOW

SEPTEMBER 2010 www.passportmagazine.ru The Smog The collapse of the Soviet Empire To the Volga in a Volga Secretive Turkmenistan Wet Dreams in Moscow’s Clubland Charming Abramtsevo

September_covers.indd 1 20.08.2010 12:42:09