Fresh Vegetables in Russia…

Shopping for fresh veggies in Russia is different than in America. I have become very accustom to it now. Especially after all these years of living in Russia…

I grew up with farmers and Grandpa taught me that all the fruit and veggies had to be clean and washed. You never sold anything that you would not be able to just pick up from the basket and eat. Now he was talking about the items that were sold in the roadside stands that we had. But the truth is that it extended to all aspects of the farm. The milk that we delivered to the dairy had to be safe to drink right from the big tank…

So when I came to Russia. I was glad to see fresh veggies everywhere. But there is a catch in Russia. Good fresh veggies mean that they still have the dirt on them…

In Russia we spend money for a bag of potatoes that weighs 10 pounds and it has a pound of dirt in it. Now maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but it really is not far from the truth…

Example: I just bought some carrots. I had four choices to pick from. Carrots from Israel that were spotless and perfect. Carrots from Europe and they were spotless and perfect. Carrots from from a huge bag right off the local farm. Or carrots packed from the same local farm bag but with 90% of the dirt gone…

Sveta goes automatically for the big bag of carrots and wants the fresh farm carrots. As she will tell you. The dirt means that they are fresh!

I always complain and roll my eyes in disbelief at this point  because I really think that paying for enough dirt to pot all my plants every week is not the best way to buy carrots. I swear every year that Russians buy enough dirt on their veggies to make a state the size of Texas. I told Sveta that it is a way the government gets you all to move dirt from one part of Russia and deposit it in another part of Russia… (Now she rolls her eyes…)

So we compromise. I get the carrots a few rubles higher per kilo. They are packed from the huge 50 kilo bag but as they pack them they leave most of the dirt behind… (I am sure I get the best deal – As the eyes roll again!)

As you see in the picture above. That is how I usually get carrots. This is from a local supermarket this way…

It really does not matter how expensive or cheap of a supermarket that you decide to buy from. It does not matter if it is the local vendor or the huge chain store. You can always find a bin of dirt, full of carrots, potatoes, beets, radishes, etc, etc, etc and more etc. You will also find right next to these dirt filled bins of farm earth, beautiful bags of carrots from the rest of the world…

So we buy like most of the Russians do. Fresh dirt covered carrots. Or for that fact any and all veggies are fresh dirt covered. The clean and perfect are not fresh and in a sense they are correct.

Now it is your turn to stop rolling your eyes…

The clean and perfect are not fresh and in a sense they are correct. The bagged perfect carrots have come from a long way away and were packed weeks ago. The Russian carrots are right off the truck from a burlap bag that was just dragged from the farm a few days ago. Many times the poor worms and other bugs are still hanging around and find themselves in another part of the country. It just does not get fresher than that…

So I just scrub them like I use to when I grew up on the farm and put the extra soil in my potted plants… 🙂

That is why I love Russia…

Windows to Russia!

Coffee and the 5th Christmas…

This morning it was -6 below an according to the weather report it was going to get colder much colder. Moscow also has got an ice storm that has lasted for several days and still going on. The ice is around a half inch thick in many places. Needless to say, this has caused a mess here, as I see it is in Europe also. They announced last night that the trolleys and trams were going to run all night long to keep the electric lines from freezing solid…

So with the ice storm going on, the coffee was really good this morning. But to make it better, I had a new brand of coffee this morning. It was from India. My students gave it to me as a gift and I decided to open it for Christmas. What a treat this coffee is. Smooth and dark. I used some baked milk in it and had a dream cup of coffee…

While drinking that cup of coffee it dawned on me that I have spent 5 (five) Christmases here in Russia. Time just flies and never seems to hesitate.

They have without a doubt been some of the best Christmases that I have ever had. Now nothing matches the Christmases with the kids when they are little. But when the youngest is approaching 30 and they have families all their own to deal with. So that is then and this is now…

So Christmas is now just Sveta and I and of course Boza…

I have finally found that “peace on earth and goodwill to men” stuff that songs talk about…

Unless I stir it up and cause issues…

But I never stir my coffee. The cream just mixes naturally… 🙂

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Mikhail Khodorkovsky Guilty…

Former Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his partner Platon Lebedev have been found guilty of organizing a criminal group in the oil business, embezzling 218 million tons of oil from Yukos’ subsidiary companies and money laundering.

Hummm…

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Medvedev’s End of the Year Speech in TV Interview…

President Dmitry Medvedev on December 24 spoke live with the heads of three federal TV channels: Konstantin Ernst of Channel One, Oleg Dobrodeev of Rossiya, and Vladimir Kulistikov of NTV.

GENERAL DIRECTOR OF CHANNEL ONE KONSTANTIN ERNST: Good afternoon, viewers.
Today, like a year ago, we have this opportunity to look back over the year together with the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev in this conversation broadcast live on three federal channels. Good afternoon, Mr. President.

D.MEDVEDEV: Hello.

K.ERNST: Mr. President, every person who remembers 2010 is bound to recall some highlights, flashpoints even, that will stay with them forever. What are your highlights of 2010? Click More (below) to read rest of transcript…

Continue reading “Medvedev’s End of the Year Speech in TV Interview…”

The French Mistral-class Assult Ship Won The Russian Tender…

According to France-Presse:  France has obtained the international tender to build at least two Mistral-class helicopter-carrying assault ships for Russia. The first ship will be built in Saint-Nazaire with 20%  of the ship being built by Russia.  On the next ship built Russia will have a higher percent of the construction…

As you know following Windows to Russia the Mistral deal has been under discussion for a year at least. The tender was called in October and involved several ships from around the world trying to get that tender to build this assault type ship…

Read More Past Articles About The Assault Ship >>>

http://windowstorussia.com/looks-like-russia-will-buy-a-mistral-class-amphibious-assault-ship-from-france.html

http://windowstorussia.com/russia-trying-to-finalizing-a-warship-deal.html

http://windowstorussia.com/russia-is-buying-4-mistral-class.html

http://windowstorussia.com/france-hugged-russia-nato-demands-to.html

http://windowstorussia.com/france-did-it-sold-mistral-helicopter.html

http://windowstorussia.com/it-is-none-of-our-beeswax-if-russia.html

Windows to Russia!

Important News From Russia (12/24/2010)

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy over the phone that France has won a tender to build amphibious assault ships for Russia. (Link)

Russian state-run TV channels should reflect real events without concealing undesirable issues, President Dmitry Medvedev said in a live interview with three of Russia’s leading TV channel general managers on Friday. (Link)

The lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma, has approved the first reading of three for the ratification bill of the new Russian-U.S. arms reduction treaty. (Link)

Overcoming the economic crisis, the summer’s wildfires, the New START strategic arms agreement, the 65th anniversary of World War II and a new focus on children’s problems were the most important issues in 2010 for Russia, President Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday. (Link)

The North is likely to stage its third nuclear test next year, according to a report made public by South Korea’s Foreign Ministry Research Center. (Link)

In case the United States retains any of the nuclear-tipped missiles to be scrapped under START for re-arming them with conventional warheads, Russia will interpret this as a clear violation of the latest strategic arms reduction agreement. Defence Minister Anatoli Serdiukov told this to the Lower House of the Russian Parliament Friday. (Link)

Windows to Russia!

US Senate’s Amendments to START: Essentially Strike Out the Document…

“What’s more, I carefully reviewed all of the Senate’s amendments. There are some that essentially strike out the document. US President Obama promised the Republicans that if they support this document, four phases of a missile defense system will be deployed, including the intention to surround Russia with ABM bases from the Black Sea to the Baltic coast. In this case, the agreement loses all sense for Russia. We need to think about ways to defend ourselves,” cautioned Zyuganov.

Listen to the podcast above or Read More of the Article:  Here >>>

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Pretty Simple: America Changed the START Treaty…

Russia said, Arms Treaty Can Not Be Changed. This was from the beginning a non negotiable treaty. It was set up by the Presidents of the two countries and was to be kept the way it was signed…

America Changed it…

Now Russia is a tiny bit upset with the diversion…

Here is what the Western press forgot to tell you: On Thursday, the US Senate finally ratified the nuclear arms reduction treaty after months of indecision. However, under pressure from the Republican Party, the Senate made some amendments to the document. These now have to be considered by the Russian side. (Link)

I remember the big “ta do” about “GOP bid to change U.S.-Russia nuclear treaty fails”…

Looks like a big fat lie from this side of the world. The changes that America made are not sitting well. Now we know why it took America so long to get a copy to Russia…

Russia said, Arms Treaty Can Not Be Changed…

But I know, you do not care…

Read More >>>

Russian FM lashes out at US amendments to New START treaty

I know Russia will work with it, but that “Reset” is very unlikely to ever get off the ground with this kind of underhandedness going on…

Windows to Russia!

Babushkas Will Teach Putin Some Martial Arts…

This will make you smile. A group of Babushkas will show Putin “Who is the Boss” in martial arts… 🙂

Windows to Russia!

Coffee and North/South Korea and “Stupid is as Stupid Does”…

I received a comment from a good reader:

Update: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/12/22/south.korea.drills/

South Korea says it will hold large land and air drills Thursday

Does their (South Korea) blood lust have any limits?

So while I was drinking my coffee and doing some thinking’s. This comment above stuck in my mind. I had other things like START issues, Medvedev talking about Democracy and countries shoving Democracy down your throat, Wikileaks escapades and what is Putin up to…

But this comment was the item that stayed in my mind, so now I am doing a little bit of research about, “Stupid is as Stupid Does!”

I came across this BBC article while checking around:

North Korea’s armed forces minister has said his country is ready for a “holy war” using the nuclear deterrent. Kim Yong-chun said live-fire exercises conducted by South Korea near the border were a preparation for war with the North. The drill is one of the largest in South Korea’s history, involving tanks, helicopters and fighter planes.

Want some more visuals? Then how about this CNN video:

So we take everything that was accomplished by Bill Richardson last week and instigate more provocation instead of using the situation to mellow the world on a brink of nuclear war…

By the way South Korean’s army acknowledges the fact on the news. That they are doing this drill to display its firepower and how tough they are. “The drill this time is one of the largest in South Korea’s history, involving tanks, helicopters and fighter planes.” All so that they can saber rattle at the North…

OK! When Seoul is a burning pit of mortared trash. All South Korea’s chest beating and saber rattling will kinda look stupid…

I realized what kind of hypocrites the South Korea is when I see a video about a huge Christmas tree put on the border by the South Korea and act like they want to pass on good will and cheer…

They need that peace on earth and goodwill to all men: Because the North Korea just upped the ante and they have a “Holy War” to prepare for…

All I can say is “Stupid is as Stupid Does!” to both of the Korea’s…

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