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AN was barely at primary school when he first heard about Kizhi Pogost. It was the mid 1960’s and the reputation of this outstanding monument had long been established as the pride of Karelia, with its significance spoken highly of by his enthusiastic teachers. The site’s...

This final episode of the series features (a lot of) snow and the supernatural entities that AM (my interviewee) senses among the flakes. In fact, this is where we’ll begin. Positive vs Negative “You may see some big, ordinary flakes of snow. These sticky, wet flakes come with...

Last week we started examining AM’s spiritual views on the “Elemental” spirits of winter. Here she reveals more about her relationship with them through her sensitive, psychic nature. Elementals To classify such entities as “Elementals” is to acknowledge their relationship and...

“I always felt these beings before reading about them in fairy tales.” AM is talking to me about her lifelong experience of the “other”, a world hidden from most of us who are wrapped up in the immediacy of modern, mundane existence. She lives in the greater Moscow region, but...

In this final exploration of J’s experience in Russia, we leave her uncomfortable classroom experiences behind and head for freedom outside the academy’s boundaries. Day trippers “We went to St.Petersburg,” J reveals, “and it was a breath of fresh air. It seemed more European...

This episode becomes something of a horror story and a cautionary tale, so proceed at your discretion. Over the past two episodes, J has been sharing some of her experiences whilst on placement at a Moscow based theatrical academy. So far, we have largely examined dramas that...

It’s been a pleasure to interview J and to be regaled with her recollections of the nightmare-comedy she experienced whilst studying drama on her Moscow placement. It’s all funny now of course, but to live through it was an entirely different matter. Last week we ended with some...

In 2012, J’s pursuit of an acting career led her to the prestigious halls of a renowned Moscow theatre academy. The Russian culture shock was a jolt of awakening after classical acting studies at her familiar London-based drama school. Enrolling there had committed her to a...

Here, in the final part of this mini series we’ll examine some components of the Russian language and their functions, learn what questions not to ask (unless you really must) and attempt a conclusion. It may not be what you expect. It certainly wasn’t what I imagined from the...

This is the second part of a brief assessment of factors that make the Russian language so hard for English-speaking westerners to learn. There’s a few suggestions too (from my own experience) on how some progress (as opposed to no progress) can be made. Yes, it’s quite...