Windows to Russia

It took us awhile but we got the paper work taken care of and we now run LPG (Propane) in our Volga wagon. It had propane that ran OK when we bought it, but to get paperwork done I had to remove the part of the system that dealt with propane. The Russian government did not like the paperwork that came with the car about propane. It was not official enough…

So I removed the LPG system one slow and careful step at a time. I wanted to be able to put it back if we were allowed. I then stored all the pieces in a box. After the Russian government was happy that the car was OK and properly set up on benzine (Gasoline). We got our tags…

Now I had the choice to leave propane off or put it back on and start the tedious process of getting the paperwork changed to a dual fuel car. My choice was to go dual fuel – What other choice is there? 🙂

**Lets regress a minute: Why would I care about propane? The biggest reason is the cost. Propane runs about 11 to 12 rubles a liter in Moscow. So 92 octane gasoline runs about 22 to 24 rubles. Half the cost! Several other factors are: cleaner burning fuel and higher octane.**

I did a lot of studying on removal and reinstalling the propane systems on a car. I had some issue before I removed the system that I wanted to fix. Propane should run as well as gasoline if properly installed and should produce as much horsepower due to timing adjustments. Propane also will get nearly the same fuel mileage as gasoline. In our case the original system was not installed correctly so we did not have the above conditions in our favor.

I spent a whole day installing the system back onto our Volga wagon. I replaced everything according to specs and instructions. I installed a electronic timing adjuster that fits under the dash for manual adjustment of the spark timing. (Now the car will run on 76 octane and up to 98 octane, with no pinging)

After checking to see if there were any leaks anywhere, we went to fill up the propane tank at the nearest station. We crossed our fingers and switched to propane – After a few adjustments in airflow we had the sweetest running Volga wagon you ever did hear. 🙂

It really does run as strong now as gasoline and has virtually no bad smell from the tail pipe. It does exactly the same mileage as gasoline and that combined with a 60 liter propane tank, means we can go about 600 km before filling up. Add to that the 55 liter gasoline tank and we can travel over a 1000 km before filling up.

The engine can be switched from one fuel to the other by a simple manual switch that is also mounted under the dash next to my ignition key…

Svet loves our dual fuel Volga wagon!

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Three new stations and wheelchair access in Moscow metro:
Three new metro stations are scheduled to open in Moscow in 2011. They will have access for wheelchairs.

Militant killed in shootout in Chechnya:
A militant has been killed in a shootout in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, a police source said on Friday.

Missing Russian tourists in China out of danger:
The seven Russian tourists reported missing in China’s mountainous northwestern region are out of danger, an unidentified Chinese security official said on Friday.

Russian monetary base up $2 bln in week to $152 bln:
The Central Bank said on Friday that Russia’s narrowly defined money supply (M1) was 4.47 trillion rubles ($152 billion at the current exchange rate) as of October 12, up 58.7 billion rubles ($2 billion) in the week since October.

Four new swine flu cases reported in Russia:
Another four people have been confirmed as having the H1N1 virus in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russian consumer watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said on Friday.

Russian suspected of brutally killing 3-year-old crying nephew:
A Russian man is suspected of brutally killing his 3-year-old nephew in the town of Reutov near Moscow, investigators said on Friday.

Drunk driver crashes into police officer in Siberia:
The driver of a Lada car in Siberia has been charged with drunk driving after crashing into a policeman standing at the side of the road, Krasnoyarsk Territory police said on Friday.

Sultan of Brunei to meet with Russian PM Putin in Moscow:
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will meet for talks with the sultan of Brunei, who is currently on an official visit to Moscow, the government press service said.

Russia’s Medvedev to attend CSTO military drills in Kazakhstan:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev along with other leaders of the CSTO member states will attend on Friday the final stage of a post-Soviet rapid reaction force exercise in Kazakhstan.

French hypermarket chain Carrefour leaves Russian market:
The French hypermarket chain, Carrefour, the world’s second largest retailer, has pulled out of Russia, the company said on Thursday.

Russia concerned by U.S. missile shield talks with non-NATO states:
Russia is concerned by U.S. missile defense talks with countries outside NATO, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Thursday.

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

I have talked about this habit that Moscow has of altering the weather. Moscow does not appreciate rain during big important events in the city so Moscow just tells the rain to stay away. 🙂

Now the official word has come out that Moscow has finally decided to tell the snow to go away…

This winter Moscow municipal services will start seeding approaching snow clouds, so that they drop their load outside of the city. The move is expected to cut down on the cost of cleaning the capital’s streets.

The experiment is to start in mid-November and all through the winter till mid-March, according to Mayor Yury Luzhkov. He said that only the biggest clouds will be targeted by the air defense system.

The estimated cost of the measure is more than six million dollars, but the city hopes to save almost twice as much in street cleaning and rescue operation costs, Moscow’s public services department says. (Link)

I know they can do this and have seen it in play for weekends that should have been raining, but Moscow was beautiful and sunny. For those of you who have spent a lot of time in Moscow, you know that the normal weather picture is basically a dreary and cloudy day… (including weekends)

This plan to send the snow away started back in the year 2000. That is when the first tests of this form of technology was performed. It is now done regularly to prevent rain on national holidays like Victory Day and the Day of Russia…

Where oh where has the snow gone?
Where oh where can it be?
We will see!

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Russians love Pickles and Russians love Mushrooms. So it makes sense that they would pickle Mushrooms. The total amount of recipes for pickles and pickled mushrooms probably are in the millions and they all are different to some degree. But the one thing in common is that all the recipes are meant to create delicious food and that they all do well.

This is my recipe and one that I have used many times: I like to sterilize the jars, use new seals or lids and have them all winter long. 🙂

Pickled Mushrooms Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 to 2 kilos of small fresh mushrooms
4 to 5 cups of water
1 1/2 tb salt

Pickling Solution:
3/4 c sugar
3/4 c vinegar
1 3/4 c water
10 peppercorns
3 bay leaves

Lets Cook The Mushrooms:
Prepare mushrooms after thoroughly washing.
Boil in a saucepan over medium heat with the salt for 15-20 min.
Drain and strain very thoroughly.
Place in sterilized jars – fill to with in 1cm of top of jar.

Lets Make The Pickling Solution:
Boil the water with spices in a saucepan for 30 minutes.
Add salt and sugar.
Then stir salt and sugar until dissolved.
Then add vinegar and bring to boil again.

Lets Combine Mushrooms and Pickling Solution:
Pour the boiling pickle solution over mushrooms in the jars. (carefully)
Immediately close the jars with lids tightly sealed. (I use mason jars for this)

Keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days before serving. * For longer storage, add additional 2 to 3 tablespoons of vinegar into the marinade and expose the jars to steam or boil jar for 30 minutes before putting mushrooms into them.*

These are great by themselves or as an addition to just about any salad. They also taste fantastic as a side to fried potatoes and or rice. Easy Peasy way is just to use canned mushrooms and prepare from pickling solution step. You can also add onion and or garlic!

They are Yummy…

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Now I did not say he was being impeached as I put a question mark behind the title. What I am saying is that some Georgian press and opposition is cranking up the heat under Sassy…

From Georgia Times: Karlo Kopaliani, the MP, the representative of the pro-opposition Strong Georgia fraction and of the Republican Party today initiated the collection of signatures to declare impeachment to President Mikheil Saakashvili – the Vzglayd.

At the press conference Kopaliani said the report of the EU fact-finding mission, in which Saakashvili was accused in unleashing war in South Ossetia, allows starting the procedure.

According to the MP, the report proved that “the king is naked, and those who after that try to cover him, are fig leaves”……..

….. Previously Georgia Times reported that Levan Geachechildze’s movement [Protect Georgia] started campaign on “separation of Georgia from President Mikheil Saakashvili”.

Sassy better have a bunch of ties to chew on because it looks like the pressure is on…

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

I keep following this story and it gets better all the time. I am waiting for it to sink to the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea…

MOSCOW, October 15 (RIA Novosti) – A Moscow court on Thursday extended custody of two men charged with hijacking the Arctic Sea cargo ship in July, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported from the courtroom.

The Basmanny Court arraigned eight men on piracy and kidnapping charges over the case on August 21. On Wednesday the court remand in custody two of them, an Estonian national, Yevgeny Mironov, and a Russian citizen, Dmitry Bartnev.

On Thursday the court issued a similar ruling concerning two other suspects – Latvian national Dmitry Savins, and Alexei Buleev, who has no citizenship. Their custody was extended for three months and 29 days, until February 18, for investigation purposes.

Savins said no investigation procedures were carried out since his arrest on August 21, and he saw no reason for extending his custody.

The court will begin hearing a similar request concerning Igor Borisov, also a stateless person, later in the day.

On Friday the court is due to announce its ruling on a request concerning two other suspects – Latvian national Vitaly Lepin and Russian citizen Andrei Lunev.

The Finnish-owned, Maltese-flagged ship manned by a Russian crew and listed as carrying lumber from Russia to Algeria, was reportedly boarded by a group of eight men on July 24. Officials later said it had disappeared in the Atlantic. It was freed off Cape Verde on August 16 by a Russian warship.

The vessel has been impounded on a court order, and is currently anchored in the open sea to the east of Gibraltar.

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.
Link Link Link Link Link Link Link

I have decided to try something today. I have lots of articles that readers suggest to me. I would love to publish them all but I would have to simply post articles 24 hours a day and I really have other things to do. 🙂 (Sometimes) So I have decided to have a post with some of the weekly articles that are sent to me from avid readers. I really get some great articles and this way I can post what people have and are interested in…

I was sent a good article by a good reader named Matt: A Moscow court has rejected a lawsuit filed by the grandson of Joseph Stalin claiming a Russian newspaper had defamed the Soviet dictator. This has been hot news all over Russia but I had just ignored it. Looks like Matt wants to make sure I see this and no longer ignore this tidbit of information. 🙂
Check the link to a BBC article.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8305759.stm

I was sent another good article from a reader (Jim): It was about a serious situation that has developed in Moscow Russia. Moscow Russia has virtually run out of space that is allocated to bury the dead. Now I realize that Russia is the largest country in the world and you would think that there would not be a problem for people to find a burial place in Russia. Moscow is a different story…
So follow the link to a interesting read!

I was sent this old article by Mary, she is a regular reader of Windows to Russia: Mary sent an article from 1950 – called – Background For War: How Strong Is Russia? – The unavoidable and awesome fact confronting the world today is that before the decade or even the year is out, the U.S. and Russia may be at war. On the U.S. estimate of Russian power depends—or should depend—the extent to which the U.S. will build up its own strength.
Check the link to a step back in time…
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,813854,00.html

One last article for today is another old time article from an old timer named WB called – FOREIGN RELATIONS: Tough Baby from Moscow: The nation’s greatest concern was far across the seas. Russia must not be allowed to fall if U.S. aid can prevent it. Russia’s fall would turn loose on Asia and Africa a terrific Nazi army, an army of millions of men, thousands of planes and thousands of tanks, an army big enough to fight on a 2,000-mile front—as it is now doing.
This link is even farther back in time…
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,790399,00.html

Thanks everyone and if you continue to send me links I will post them every week or so.

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Putin has expressed a little more of what China and Russia are working towards:

“We don’t oppose possible sales of our energy resources for rubles.” Said Putin – As he went on to explain that Russia could buy goods from China with China’s yuan and China buys goods from Russia in Rubles.

I watch and listen carefully to things that are said like this. This is how information is released to the public in Russia. Little tidbits at a time and those tidbits are really very big news…

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Just a quick video of the show Family Guy. This shows the scene where they meet Putin. I had to laugh and chuckle…

(Those are the Russia people? ….. They are all bears on unicycles…..!)

Putin said as he spoke to reporters in Beijing after a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO):

“There is no need to upset the Iranians. We need to look for a compromise. If a compromise is not found, and the discussions end in a fiasco, then we will see what will happen. So if now, before holding talks – we start announcing some form of sanctions, then we won’t be creating favorable conditions for the talks to end positively. This is why it is premature to talk about this now.”

This was a response to Hillary Clinton’s Iran sanction trip to the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia! The Western press was promoting a peace tour of extraordinary proportions and how Clinton would recoup on the missile issue as a favor from Russia… (Het!)

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

PS: By the way Medvedev has made it clear in the last few days that Russia will not accept any games with the missile issue. In fact Russia sees this new plan as not a good idea either.