Impressions of Russia

For the past month we have been guests of Rotarians in Ivanovo, Vladimir, Moscow, Cherepovets, and Saint Petersburg, while Rotarians in Massachusetts and Rhode Island hosted a team of Russians. At Rotary meetings we talked about ourselves, our homes, families, and work places. Here’s a list of some of the people I’d like to thank and some of my impressions of Russia after this exchange. This was a special dream of our District Governor Steve Silverman and his wife Amy-Jo, both of whom are of Russian heritage, and who worked with Russian District Governor Vladimir Vasilkov for overcome obstacles to make this dream come true.

I remember how welcome it was to connect with Thomas Kaufman at Domodoevo Airport when we landed, who treated us to pizza, and helped with getting us off to Ivanovo.

The first place I stayed was with Viktor and Nadezhda Dormidontova’s. At their beautiful home we experienced the Russian banya for the first time, and sat for hours around a fire, eating, drinking, and enjoying the company of a circle of friends. We had a very interesting visit to the old village of Plyos where I think someone tried to marry us in an izba. Her son Alexei gave us a memorable night time tour of Ivanovo’s monuments and night clubs.

In Vladimir we toured the city and nearby Suzdal, seeing many recently restored churches and monasteries. I am especially grateful to Colonel Viktor Lebedev who made sure we got a close up view of the Victory Day celebration in the main square. The size and solemnity of the occasion reminded us the great sacrifices Russia made to defeat fascism. By restoring its monuments and remembering its dead, Russia showed me it is a nation that remembers its past to build a better future. I also will never forget a five minute visit to the cottage of Sergey Nikonorev’s aunt which turned into dinner with three shots of vodka. The vodka bottle didn’t have a label, but it was very good.

In Moscow we saw the famous Red Square and made use of its very impressive transit system. In museums I saw many ornate treasures, clothes, and coaches from a ruling class which may have taken more than its fair share of society’s resources, and was swept away. I am grateful for the two days Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar Aaron Blomme spent with us, showing us the graveyard by Novoe Dorimdetovo Monastery, where writers, composers, and artists are given equal honor to politicians and generals in death. Aaron is Russian Orthodox and he took us to Mass where we saw firsthand a spiritual revival in Russia.

In Cherepovets no effort was spared to make our trip interesting and full of activity. They were a hard working club with many members and their friends feeding, housing and entertaining us. We got to tour the Severstal steel mill, through the efforts of incoming president Svetlana Chelnokova and her husband Pavel. It is quite honestly not a particularly beautiful place, but our modern life such requires such places and those who work there. They also hosted a fishing trip at their nearby dacha. We were no threat to the fish, but again there was a circle of friends, lots of food and drink, and good conversation. At the end of our stay president Sergey Murshkin and I agreed to start a book exchange program of English and Russian books with his Rotary club and mine, because there are a lot of people there who want to improve their English language skills, and I will look for opportunities to get Russian language courses in my town.

Here in St. Petersburg we had the pleasure of meeting President D. K. Lee’s representative Dan Moores and his wife Shirley. We have been guests of the White Nights Rotary Club and the International Rotary Club. Rotarians Natalya Nikolaeva, Irina Zavolokina, and Marina Drobysheva have taken us to every major tourist attraction in the city. Igor Gorshkov arranged a very interesting tour for John and I of a business incubator for applied science affiliated with the local polytechnic university. For me, the moving thing was the opportunity to see the ballet Swan Lake in Russia. I just lost my mother last summer, and Tchaikovsky was her favorite composer. Listening to the solo violin and harp while Odette twirled by the lake brought a tear to my eye.

I really appreciate GSE chair Eugenia Lebedeva for her efforts in the overall co-ordination of the program and in Ivanovo. I hope we have been good guests. Just as this city bears the stamp of Peter the First, this country bears the stamp of the years of communism, years of obligatory collective action under central control. Americans were frightened of the USSR, because we didn’t want this system imposed on us. Today, thankfully Russia is changing and for us those fears no longer exist. Our mission is to maintain the contacts we have made this month, return to America and say that Rotary is active in Russia, and that the idea of voluntary collective action initiated by local clubs, the best way to make dreams real, is alive and well.