I was looking through some of my old papers the other day, and I came across a journal I kept when I went to Russia (seven years ago). I was part of my university's chamber orchestra, and we went there on tour for three weeks. It was great fun. We stayed on a boat for the first week or so, and we floated from one city to another along the Volga. We went from Samara to Saratov to Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad), then by train to Rostov and on to Moscow. What I call a journal is actually a list of stuff I had done or seen, and I thought I would share a couple of choice tidbits.
"Seen a real Russian parade, complete with tanks and soldiers." We happened to be there for a national holiday. Here in the US, our parades usually involve huge balloons and cotton candy. They like to march soldiers around city squares and put military hardware on display.
"Saw real Cossacks doing real Cossack dancing." We went to a performance in one of the cities we stopped in, and they were pretty amazing. I've never seen anything quite like it.
"Was bothered by a drunk who yelled, 'Saratov! Saratov! It's land! It's land! The Volga! The Volga!" One of the Russian people who helped us organize things translated for me. As an American, one tends to stick out (especially wearing the regulation orchestra blazer).
"Got a standing ovation and played two encores after our concert in the Rostov Philharmonic Hall." This is a very good feeling. Standing ovations are great, and encores are even better.
Russia is a very fascinating country, but I have to admit to being a little intimidated by it still. It fit my Cold War preconceptions pretty closely. I felt like I was in Rocky IV when we stepped off the plane in Samara in the middle of an empty field. But overall it was a great experience, and it taught me a lot. Perhaps some day I'll go back. . . .
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