Dear CCI Friends,
One near disaster after another has hit my small world since arriving back from Russia. I’ll explain later after first getting this “overview” emailed to you. I’ve searched all over my computer for this draft created over the ocean, and today found it lodged in “Archives” along with a number of other emails that should have been in “Sent”. Strange? Yes. I wondered if I’d dreamed that I’d written it! Here it is. Kindly read, as is. Other pieces will follow this one.
Sharon Tennison
Center for Citizen Initiatives
Dear CCI Followers,
My best intentions to send you emails during our travels throughout Russia, came to naught! Paula Day, our stalwart CCI volunteer, Volodya Shestakov, CCI’s 35-year Russian VIP, and I were kept busy day and night from September 20 to October 17.
Our first city was Moscow where we settled on which hotel to use for our large June 2022 trip ahead, and met with numerous CCI friends. There was no time to capture these happenings on computer after meetings in the evenings.
Each city brought numerous Russians who wanted to discuss why they can’t get U.S. visas, share their latest accomplishments and above all express hope that our nations’ politicians will solve their issues so we citizens can continue goodwill projects and travel between our countries. BTW, it is possible for Americans to get visas to Russia. One needs to have a PCR test for COVID 72 hours before entering Russia, nothing more.
We met with dedicated Rotarians in Moscow, Irkutsk, Krasnodar, Simferopol and St. Petersburg. We met with lots of CCI-graduate business owners, several new business owners not formerly involved with CCI, several physicians in a private orthopedic clinic/hospital, non-profit CEO’s, Russians who work with city governments, students and even a historian who is trying to vindicate Rasputin in the latter’s former apartment!
Each city brought discussions that were intelligent and heartfelt.
• In Moscow, a meeting with journalist Dimitri Babich will be remembered for his passionate views on what needs to happen between our two countries. Also we had a wonderful lunch and discussion with surgeons in their orthopedic center. They were mystified at what is happening between our governments.
• In Irkutsk, what was most revealing were the long talks in the home of Dr. Vladimir Donskoi, known as “Father of Rotary” across Russia. Special also was seeing Lake Baikal, the largest lake in the world. Soviet pulp mills had near permanently damaged the great lake by the 1990s. CCI was given a 3-year USAID grant to bring U.S. lake/river experts to create a rehabilitation plan for the lake and the Baikal basin. This trip I got to see evidences that the lake is clearly on the path to restoration. A three-floor aquarium had been built according to the plan, which is very scientifically oriented. Local workers are still carrying out the intention to build a walking trail around the whole lake which is about 395 miles long and 50 miles wide (very long, deep and narrow). Seeing evidence of this continuing rehab work on the lake and the basin was precious information for me. I remember signing checks to bring yaks and reindeer back to the Basin in the 90s. Anything eatable would have been killed many moons earlier. Today wildlife exists around the lake and rivers that feed into it.
• Krasnodar, the fastest growing city in Russia, was full of life! CCI has two great directors there. We got to meet with both sets of their CCI Fellows who trained in the United States. These entrepreneurs are now 20 or more years older than when they came to America for business training. I had hard time recognizing some of them, but soon their younger faces began to register in my mind. They all looked healthy, successful and proud of themselves. What a joy for me to take in! Most of them interned in our large PEP program.
• Leaving Krasnodar we embarked for the newest and longest bridge in Europe recently completed at the behest of President Putin. It is assumed it was paid for by one of Russia’s oligarchs, Arkady Rotenburg … at a cost of $3.7 billion USD. These oligarch’s huge businesses come in handy when major projects are needed in Russia. It appears that Putin has no hesitancy to call them into action. The Kerch bridge is a magnificent undertaking with silver beams and the latest of overhead lighting. It includes highways for cars, trucks and trains simultaneously, further it is arched in places to accommodate sea-going vessels passing under the bridge. Sleek and beautiful to travel on, it looked to be created for the next century! Suddenly off of the lengthy highway from the bridge, we found ourselves in Crimea!
• In Simferopol, the capital city of Crimea, we were immediately taken over by Rotarians some of whom earlier were also part of the local government. During a wonderful dinner they shared deep issues due to being ethnic Russians themselves, but as far as Rotary International is concerned, they are in Ukrainian territory — making it impossible to participate in ordinary Rotary functions. This, despite the fact that in an open referendum, Crimeans chose to become part of Russia again. The official result from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea was a 97 percent vote for integration of the region into the Russian Federation with an 83 percent voter turnout, and within the local government of Sevastopol there was also a 97 percent vote for integration of the region into the Russian Federation. This information is from Google.
• Yalta was the next stop. We met friends Regis Tremblay and Tatiana Bukharina who arranged a rental home for us. Yalta is a magnificent city perched on a rock above the Black Sea. Paula was taken to the palace where Roosevelt, Stalin and Churchill signed documents after WWII. Crimeans who are very fond of President Roosevelt later erected a bronze bust of him in a favorite city square. We went into a formerly closed missile delivery system that brought back haunting memories of nuclear weapons ready to fire. If any are interested, more can be said about this place.
• Sevastopol was our last stop … where Russia has had a warm-water port on the Black Sea since 1783. We were taken around the harbor in a small boat. We could see several dozens of large and smaller ships docked there. The Russian port has kept approximately 25,000 workers employed at any given time in the past. It was these workers who were circulating in “green clothing” during the 2014 referendum, which we were told were Russian soldiers. This was a natural assumption, but not an accurate one.
• After visiting the three cities and observing vineyards in every spare field, we deduced we would soon be seeing Crimean wine in our marketplaces. We drove back to Simferopol for a flight to St. Petersburg.
• St. Petersburg was a joy to behold the next day! Since our 2019 trip, so many of the cultural capital’s regal buildings have been completely restored in shades of faint pink, blue, green, yellow and light beige. It was warmer than usual for October, many hydrofoil boats were still floating down the canals. Nevsky Boulevard was lit up like Christmas season. We visited the renovated New Holland, where in the late 1600s, Peter the Great studied the marshes and decided how to drain the swamps (by building canals) to build the new St. Petersburg. Today it is a magnificent playground, performance center with many dozens of shops, eateries, book stores, etc. It is said that any ship that came to St. Petersburg during Peter’s reign had to bring chunks of granite to line the sides of the canals. So this city is full of indestructible granite.
This is a quick run through our trip in which we covered many kilometers/miles! Another comment or two: We found several things consistent everywhere we traveled. Russians are far more open about sharing their opinions than even five years ago. Russians are generally better dressed on the streets than are we on American streets. Young men have short haircuts and are consistently dressed in black fitted slacks, white or black snug T-shirts/sweaters, and mod white and black fashionable new shoes. Clearly they are aware of appearance! They buzz around on powered scooters, skates and light weight bikes on all public streets. They are careful of cars, but it’s clear that cars are also watching out for scooters, skaters and bikers. In the past Russian drivers were impatient with such modes of transport. It’s obvious that they are now respectful of each other.
Young women are smartly dressed, a few were also seen on bikes or scooters. Adult ladies are also dressed well, more so than here in the United States. There are few elderly people on the streets today compared with five years ago. I didn’t see anyone smoking … looked to find butts … and did, but very few. In any case, smoking is far less a problem in Russia today than a few years ago. I don’t see anyone drinking beer or drunk on the sidewalks, which was the norm up to the year 2000.
Paula, Krishen Mehta and Dennis Ortblad will write pieces from their perspectives. Hopefully from all of us you can get a sense of Russia today … and you will be interested in traveling with us in June 2022!