March 16, 2017

Medical tourism, space tourism, imaginary tourism


Medical tourism, space tourism, imaginary tourism

Morality, the Moon, and Meds

1. American Idol. The Apprentice. Ramzan Kadyrov’s version of The Apprentice. And now, the competition to become Russia’s first cosmonauts on the moon. Roscosmos, Russia’s state-owned space agency, has announced a recruitment drive for wannabe cosmonauts to join Russia’s first manned Moon landing in 2031. Candidates will be evaluated based on technical, physical, and psychological ability to win the honor of representing Russia’s next big step in space. Unfortunately, they’re not actually making it a reality TV show.

2. With May’s Eurovision Song Contest around the corner, scandal’s already a-brewing. Russia’s nomination of Yulia Samoilova, a singer who happens to be in a wheelchair, is seen by some as a Russian bid to take the moral high ground by spotlighting the disabled. A timely tactic, too, with Kiev – which is hosting this year’s event – threatening to ban Samoilova from Ukraine because she performed in Russia-annexed Crimea. Ukrainian Security Services call it a provocation, but in the Kremlin’s view, “everyone has been to Crimea.”

3. Forget architecture, history, nature and art: more tourists are now visiting Russia to get pregnant or have bad teeth pulled. Thanks to lower costs and fewer restrictions, medical tourism is on the rise in Russia, especially from countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States. With instances as varied as Chinese tour groups dropping by the dentist between museums and Iranians getting experimental cancer treatment, there’s even talk of instituting a medical visa. Whether you love Fabergé eggs or just want to get your varicose veins treated, it’s yet another reason to visit Russia.

In Odder News

  • To take a tour of what Moscow doesn’t look like, explore these blueprints of Soviet-era architecture that never got built.
theguardian.com
  • Tourism in the taiga is as much about staying alive as seeing the sights.
  • Endangered, elusive, and ghostly, snow leopards are good at not being spotted. Except for by these cameras.

Quote of the Week

"There is no one who hasn't been to Crimea."
—Dmitri Peskov, President Vladimir Putin's press secretary, on the claim by Ukrainian politicians that Yulia Samoilova, Russia’s Eurovision pick, shouldn’t be allowed into Ukraine because of a visit to Crimea.

Cover image: themoscowtimes.com

Want more where this comes from? Give your inbox the gift of TWERF, our Thursday newsletter on the quirkiest, obscurest, and Russianest of Russian happenings of the week.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Little Humpbacked Horse

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
22 Russian Crosswords

22 Russian Crosswords

Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955