August 08, 2019

Missing Lakes, Concert Mistakes, and Séances with Darwin


Missing Lakes, Concert Mistakes, and Séances with Darwin
A reservoir of photo ops. smoke316 via Instagram

Quote of the Week

“The [Moscow] police’s actions, I think, have been pretty lenient…”

— An opponent of the Moscow protests, moments before his arrest

Free Food for Moscow, Free Advice for Darwin

1. Welcome to Dead Sea, St. Petersburg. Normally, Lazurnoye Lake is right what it says on the tin: an azure lake. However, this summer the lake has evaporated, and along with it some Petersburgers’ hopes for a picturesque weekend getaway. Still, one man’s missing lake is another man’s sea of opportunities. Instagrammers are flocking to the former lake, posing with clever captions like “At the bottom of the lake.” And plenty of visitors come to admire the sky, which, unlike the nonexistent lake, is still very much azure.

The priest who got Darwin to repent (allegedly)
On the origins of bad jokes. / Telekanal “SPAS”

2. Charles Darwin repents! While in London, a Russian priest visited Darwin’s grave. He asked Darwin’s tombstone if he still believed in evolution. To the priest’s shock, Darwin replied: “Father, do not be tempted by my theory… I put forward this hypothesis, which I now repent.” If this were true, Darwin would have joined the ranks of those spiritually reborn after talking to Russian priests. But as it happens, this is not true. The priest drew raised eyebrows and eventually had to clarify that he was joking. Can jokes win Darwin Awards?

Shashlyk Live promo pic
Shashlyki and rock: the new bread and circuses? / Medialeaks

3. Where there’s (barbeque) smoke… August 3 and 4 saw the “Shashlyk Live” rock festival in Moscow’s Gorky Park. Attendees heard legendary rockstars for free, while local restaurants served up a whopping 12,500 portions of shashlyki. But despite the meat, there was something fishy about it all. None of the headliners knew they were invited. The city claimed afterwards it had more attendees than Coachella. Most importantly, “Shashlik Live” was announced just two days before a planned protest, eliciting suspicion it was grilled up to lure away potential protestors. As they say, there’s no such thing as a free lunch.


In Odder News

  • A dedicated fisherman caught a 4-foot-long pike (that’s 130 cm for you non-Americans) in the Ob River. This 30-pound (13.5 kilo) fish isn’t fishing for compliments.
Big pike fish
We like pike. / Dmitri Giss
  • The saddest cat in Moscow needs a home! He sure has a home in our hearts.
Filya, the saddest cat in Moscow
Mood after a long day at work. / zverikivdar
  • Tank man, meet Olga. Meduza profiles the 17-year-old girl who made headlines reading the Russian constitution to riot police in Moscow. (Headline credits to David Edwards.)
Olga Misik
Olga Misik in the now-iconic photo. / Alexei Abanin

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Some of Our Books

Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
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 at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

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.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

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