Hi all,
am back after a couple of weeks by boat all along Volga river. Visited many
places, from small villages to Moskow.
Remarkable how brainwashed and indoctrinated I've been despite TV programs,
books, films etc. I still thought that mobile phones wouldn't work
everywhere, expected rusty Ladas, slammering trams, flimmering TVs, a KBG
man following me when taking photos near a military missile area, greyish
and wrecky houses, shops with more or less empty desks, 25 year old
passenger aircrafts, rusty railway trains, stinking diesel trains,
suspicioius people when shooting around with my digi cameras etc. What a
wrong image I had in my head. All quite opposite. Mobile worked everywhere,
even hundreds of kilometers from nearest community (masts everywhere), more
new cars than what I have seen anywhere else, super modern trains, that you
will not find anywhere in the US, latest flatscreen TVs, noone interested
in my sneeking around, I could walk straight into KGBs headquarter if I
wanted, the defense ministery had no fences around the huge building, I
walked with camera lifted just outside the President's office building (the
guardsmen took no notice) , modern diesel engines, advertisments of a size
I've never seen before, e.g. a 10,000 sq meter announcement for Mercedes
Benz. More moderna cash machines than what we have, everything computerized.
American music everywhere, english menues, english announcements, american
cars,....I thought sometimes that I was in the US, but this was many a times
much better (sorry to say so, but that's what I thought). No forgotten
ghettos like in New Your or Paris or Liverpool, no people hanging around
doing nothing. No overweighted people. Everywhere a rumbling of building
machines, caterpillars and cranes. Building, repairing everywhere. Of
course, I didn't see whole Russia, but 2,400 kilometers along Volga gives at
least a good glimpse.
So, I had to readjust my idea about that country. Furthermore, maybe a very
wrong statement from my view, but I dare say : America, look up...not far
from here Russia will pass you (I don't speak of military power, which I
have nada insight in, but welfare.
This doesn't change my attitude to America, which I like very much, but
America got a competitor on my inside.
Nevertheless, noone will care about what I think or say, I'm just 1 / 6 000
000 000 of the total.
Inge
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