Impressions of Russia, a.k.a The Travels of an Irishman.

Introduction:

I first came to Russia over thirty years ago. Then, it was just emerging from being a mainly closed society with severe restrictions on travel. In the meantime, it has changed hugely. I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to live and work here for many years and I have found the country fascinating. As it is still a requirement to apply for a visa to visit Russia, tourism has been slow to develop so this is still a largely unexplored land.

Author in front of one of our shops in Pulkovo, St Petersburg's international airport.

I have had a huge variety of impressions during my time in the country, which run the full length of the scale from good to bad and a lot in between. There have been times when I have thought Russia was the greatest place on earth and then there have been days when I said, where’s my parachute? – get me out of here. Russia can astonish you, surprise you, delight you, frustrate you, dismay you, sometimes all in the one day, but it will never bore you.

After experiencing such a wealth of experiences, I felt I had to share them. In fact, people ask me all the time, “what is Russia like?”, “what are its people like?”, “is it worth a visit?”, “where should we go?”, “are there things to look out for?” Well from now on, I won’t have to answer any of these questions – I’ll just refer them to this book.

I remember the very first time I went abroad many years ago. It was a camping trip to France. I recall experiencing mild disappointment that France and French people and culture were not that different from Ireland. But if you wish to experience a land with a vastly different culture, go to Russia. That is another reason why I wrote this book. The cultural contrasts are so stark in some instances that they have to be experienced to be believed. There are also so many of them that you have to write them all down to remember. I have always been as interested in people and culture as I was in business so I was bound to find Russia fascinating. But it is a land that is not often visited or with a particular penchant for tourism, so I hope this book can go some way to introducing you to its rich culture and its people. Some people have come here and said to me, “why do they do things this way or that? It doesn’t make sense – it’s wrong”. My answer is usually, “it’s not wrong, it’s just different.”

Russia is often misunderstood, particularly by people in the west so I hope this book will go some way towards clarifying some misconceptions. This book is not a recent history of Russia, nor is it a travel book or a political commentary. What I hope to do, through my recollected experiences, is to give you an idea of how Russia is today, how it works, where it came from and how people live their everyday lives. It may not answer all your questions but I hope it will satisfy some of them and also give you some insights into what is a vast, fascinating and largely still undiscovered land. I decided to deal with each unique cultural issue separately so what I ended up with was 65 separate chapters.

Russians are different – once you accept that, you are half way to understanding them. So many western politicians and commentators do not accept this or don’t try to understand. They should, because Russians are different. They are also a proud and independent people who have no intention of changing. I have looked at the positives in this country and the things which need to be addressed. The tantalizing thing for me though is that, unlike many other nations, including my own, Russia has the resources to solve all its problems. Not only that, they also have the resources to solve many of the wider world’s problems.

The Moika Canal in St Petersburg

I hope this will give you an insight into the real Russia and that you will want to visit and explore it for yourself. This is the largest country on earth. These are just a few of my impressions of it. Come with me and I will show you…….

Note 1: I haven’t published this book yet, but if the website generates enough interest, I will.

Note 2: This book was written and completed long before Putin’s disastrous invasion of Ukraine. I have written about that elsewhere. The issues identified in this book though are still relevant today.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction 4

2. Seasons 6

3. Popular Misconceptions 10

4. Try to see it their way 13

5. Demographic Problems 16

6. Living 19

7. Education & Skills 23

8. Entertainment 26

9. Traffic 30

10. Agriculture 33

11. Public Transport 37

12. Christmas 40

13. Hidden Treasures 42

14. Dachas 44

15. The Media 46

16. Political Life 49

17. Material Responsibility 53

18. Litter 56

19. Religion 59

20. Food & Drink 63

21. Alcoholism 67

22. Sport 71

23. Interlude No 1 – A Traveller’s Tale 74

24. Geography & Infrastructure 80

25. Registration 82

26. Similarities with Ireland 85

27. Back in the U.S.S.R. 88

28. Cost of Living 90

29. The Great Terror 92

30. Drugs 95

31. Toasting 97

32. Shopping 99

33. Doing Business in Russia 102

34. The Metro 106

35. Extremes 108

36. Road Accidents 111

37. Embarrassment 117

38. The Director 119

39. Health – A Nation of Hypochondriacs? 124

40. The Irish Society 127

41. Global Warming 129

42. Interlude No 2 – The GAI. 131

43. Knowledge of Ireland 135

44. Bureaucracy 138

45. Advertising 142

46. Decay & Renewal 145

47. Language 147

48. Women 149

49. Men 154

50. Driving 157

51. Crime 159

52. Oil & Gas 161

53. Pollution 163

54. Presents 165

55. Siberia 167

56. Corruption 170

57. St Petersburg 173

58. The Military 176

59. Trust 178

60. V.I.P.’s 180

61. Wealth 182

62. Parking 185

63. The Emergency Services 186

64. And the future? 188

65. Appendix A – Russian Anecdotes. 190