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Travels in Russia

KLM Rocks Across Europe!
Santa Claus in Moscow
Television Is a Time Suck
The Reality of Irrelevance
Salute Mayor Luzhkov
Impeachment Happens
I Am Not The Only One...
I'm Back! Did Ya Miss Me?
Chechnya Burning
Weddings in Winter
The Jews Are Here!
Gailyn Goes to Town
Is There a Central Bank?
Santa Barbara is Real
Nick's Thanksgiving in Russia
Den' Rozhdeniya = Birthdays
Those Crazy Expats
It's Just a Few Drops of Vodka...
Elections Are Always Rigged
The Blind Leading the Blind
Good Russian Grooms
You Say 'Boris Berezovskiy' Fast
Too Cold to Care!
Russian Oil Towns
Sneaky Siberian Tigers
Which Way is St Peterburg?
Where am I again? Oh, yeah...
I Love Me Some Vodka
It's a Gosorg Halloween
Hunger Comes to Us All
Why Don't They Just Learn English?!
Post-Crisis, Life Goes On
Is Yeltsin 'The Man'?
Murmansk - Brrrr!
Taganka Hides Her Secrects
These are Communists
It's a Power Vaccum
The Commies are Back
Propaganda is Good for You
You Better Buy Russian!
Sex Ed Soviet Style
Party over, oops outta time!
Russian Healthcare in Moscow
What Russian Financial Crisis?
YE Prices in Russia
The Hungry Duck
Russian Caviar Mafia
Magical Mushrooms
Shhhh! We're Bear Hunting
Soviet Street Scams
Bez Dollarov
A Koshka Konspiracy
On The Dacha
The Banking Implosion
Surviving Army Life
Shashleek is Steak on Steroids
Dacha Thinking
Beach Weekend
Dos Vedanya
Hello from Vladivostok
Equality Means Only She Works
Jogging is an Extreme Sport
Russians Have Reunions Too
My Folks in Massive Moscow
Better than Fireworks
Miners Are Real Men
The Russian Mafia is the Roof
No One Smiles in the CIS
One Year Anniversary
Russian Brides Rock
Laura is My St Pete Connection
Change is in the Wind
Chuck Norris' Beverly Hills Casino
The Expat Woman's Predicament
Street Food is Yummy!
Spring Flowers Make June Leavers
The Provinces Are Provincial
Ever Take an Elektrichka?
The English Invasion
Nuttin Like New Money
Rules Are Made to Break
All Black is Russian Fashion
Easter Memories = Easter Dinner
Politics, Russian Style
Theresa Tries to Russify
I Go to Gay Clubs Worldwide
I Hide on Women's Day
New & Shiny: Nizhny Novgorod
Psst! Wanna job in Moscow?
Fili Park Has All the Bootlegs
Web Page Reactions
Take a Break at Dom Odaha
Why Are You Remonting?
They Look Like Telephones...
In Need of a Decent Hairstylist
Smashing Bottles in Red Square

Readership

Russia, February 2, 1998

Expat Living in Moscow is Swank

We sure had the good life living like kings in Moscow

Ain't my hood krasevie!
A fine Spring Day
The king of cholesterol, but damn good too!
Oh, I love D&D!
You know you'll be stopping by!

I know you can read this

Expat living, there ain't nuttin like it! Now that I am willing to spend most of my paycheck on housing, I am living like a king. I am here, chilling in my new apartment, eating Cheez Balls, watching the neighbourhood on closed circuit TV, listening to the hip freshest tunes, enjoying life.

I am literally chilling in my new apartment. At 18-20C, (65-70F) it is chilly inside, of course not like the -15C street, but still not 75F. The landlord cannot fix the heat right now because Moscow has a central heating system for the entire city. The pinicale of state planning brought us an entire city on the same hot water and heating system. There are no thermostats in Russia, you get whatcha get because a central plant pumps the steam to all the buildings in a given area, regardless if you want it or not.

Usually the city goes through a cold spell in the fall where everyone is freezing because the heat isn't on yet. Then, in spring, the reverse happens, with a warm spell where the heat is still on. In some apartments, usually in the northern cities, like St Peterburg, people have to open their windows in the dead of winter because the heat is on so strongly. That, unfortunately, is not the case with my apartment.

Now, if I am going to be fat and happy in my place, I have to add a bit of Americana, that is where the cheez balls come into play. You can find real Planters Cheez Balls in random kiosks here, like the one at the end of my street. I felt there was no better way to relax, expat style, than with pure American junk food.

Yes, I have closed circuit TV. I know it sounds strange, but here it is more practical that luxurious. I am living a bit above the norm, and here, as anywhere, there are people who would want what I have. The TV is fun to watch. One camera shows the main door to the building, the other shows the entrance to my apartment. Both are in black & white, but it adds to the view. I can see most of the block with the main camera, and I enjoy watching the comings and goings of my neighbours. The camera in my keyhole is kinda boring. The scene doesn't change.

One of the things that Arthur (my housemate) and I bargained for in our lease was a new stereo system. Now I have a hip Moscow station on that plays a wide mix of music. Unlike America, where each station has a specific format, country, rock, classical, etc, each station in Russia plays many different kinds of music. There were only three radio stations in Russia for a long time, so they had to be diverse in their programming.

Now there are so many in Moscow, that specific formats are starting to emerge. I have the radio set to one of the last, non-formatted stations, so I might hear jazz, blues, Russian folk, African, or Arabic music over the course of a week. If I get tired of the radio, there is always a CD from the CD market here. All the newest releases, some even before the states, for only $3 a pop. Match that Tower records!

Life is good... today.

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