I know that I bore you all sometimes with political STUFF!
So these pictures are to make up for subjecting you to some of my articles! 🙂
2. Good thing that the Lion is nice!
3. Neat Picture!
5. Really cool tower!
Windows to Russia!
I wanted to tell you about the best Expat community.![expat community](http://www.expat-blog.com/logo/logoExpatBlog.gif"){kind=logo}
The one Blog community that We feel is the best for Expats, is the Expat-Blog. Now an Expat is someone like me, an American living in Russia.
This is one of the best run Blogs and forums that I have found. If you are from one country but living in another country give it a try. (Even if you are not, still stop by.) You will find the community is friendly and inviting.
My Wife loves this community and thinks that I should only be signed up to Expat-Blog!
So if you want to go look at the site click on the Luggage Bag above! Or click right here: BLOG
You will not be sorry, the stories are fantastic.
Windows to Russia!
“The death of a Russian-born adopted boy – and homicide charges against his Carroll Township parents – has York County in the headlines of state news agency Tass and televised broadcasts of state-run and independent Russian news.
Nathaniel, who was born as Ivan Skorobogatov, was adopted along with his sister in 2003 by Nanette L. Craver, 54, and Michael J. Craver, 45. Doctors counted more than 80 external bruises in various stages of healing — 20 of which were on his head and he was diagnosed to have died of traumatic brain injury.
Remember the part as you read about where Doctors counted more than 80 external bruises in various stages of healing — 20 of which were on his head, according to charging documents. Also the sister is safe and away from the people.
This kind of stuff happens way to much in our world…
Windows to Russia!
PS: So far I can not find this story on any major Western Press – such as TIME, CNN, ABC and FOX – If anyone sees an article on a huge news source about this let me know because they seem to not care about this particular incident…
Hello,
I was drinking my morning cup of coffee & thinking about how much my wife loves toast! She never had toast until we met.
One day we were at the department store & I saw a toaster. She allowed me to buy it, Then I got to teach my Wife the art to fixing toast. From the first piece of golden brown toast with butter and jam on it, she fell in love! (Her favorite topping is cheese)
“Toast is sliced bread which has been browned by exposure to dry heat. Toasting warms the bread, making it more pleasant to eat for some, and makes it crisp such that it holds toppings more securely. Toasting is also a common method of making stale bread palatable. Toast is often served with butter,cheese,marmalade,or any number of other toppings. Toast is a typical breakfast food.”
Strange about what we take for granted when we grow up. I never thought that anyone in the world would not eat toast all the time for breakfast.
I see that once again that narrow minded American in me, keeps trying to look at the world from one view point!
That is why I love Russia!
Kyle
comments always welcome.
I was drinking my morning cup of coffee. Then my wife reminded me about the pictures that she took yesterday! So my Wife the world famous photographer. Has found a new victim for her camera.
A Russian Squirrel!
http://www.windowstorussia.com/2007/08/ukraine-this-is-ukraine-squirrel_16.html
This link goes to a Ukraine Squirrel that I wrote about months ago. The Russian Squirrel looks allot like the Ukraine Squirrel. Regardless they are cute!
This squirrel was running around near the Moscow university! She took some pictures of the University. Impressive isn’t it!
So now you know a little more about Russia!
Kyle & Svet
comments always welcome.
I was drinking my morning cup of coffee andthinking about the Old Soviet Playground!
We took pictures of it in the snow. Now of course I couldn’t keep my Wife from playing in it!
I did an article a long time back on this Playground, just click on the link above.
The one thing that amazes me is that it is still standing and open for anyone to play with. In America, society has gotten so twisted in on it self that this playground would be a snake bed of lawsuits. Society has gotten so bad in America, that they look anywhere but themselves for fault.
I am glad that I have had a chance to enjoy this playground. It is very peaceful and quiet. I still can hear the kids playing all over it. I can see kids driving the imaginary cars, for most kids in the Soviet Union this is as close to driving as they would ever get.
Kyle and Svet
Windows to Russia!
This is the facts:
The Ukrainian parliament passed a vote of no confidence in the Yulia Timoshenko headed government on Wednesday. 243 MPs voted in favor of the move with a required minimum of 226 votes.
Yulia has lost or has she?
Now comes the rumor part of the story: (According to the grapevine)
Yulia is rumored to be eyeing the spot of Mayor of Kiev. It seems that Leonid Chernovetskyi the present mayor of Kiev is not well liked and or loved! 🙂
Can she do it?
Windows to Russia!
A good reader of “Windows to Russia” sent this link today: Georgia hopes France won’t sell Mistral to Russia. They know how much that I love it when Georgia jumps up and down, all upset over what Russia is doing.
I have written several articles about this sale of the French Warship to Russia. Now that Medvedev is in France, it seems that the whole world has restarted jumping up and down about how bad it is to sell a French Warship to Russia…
Well for all you Doom Sayers, it is not just one (1) ship but 4 French Warships being talked about. The last I had heard it was 3 French Warships. Then to my surprise, today it was announced by the Russian news that Medvedev and Sarkozy have laid the ground work for the sale and transfer of information to produce 4 of these Mistral Class French Warships…
After talks with President Dmitry Medvedev, on a state visit to France, Nicolas Sarkozy, his French counterpart, said one or preferably two 21,300-ton Mistral-class ships would be built at the STX shipyards at Saint-Nazaire, western France. The others would be built in Russia. (Link)
So all the Doom Sayers can go home and hide under the bed! France is going to sell 4 of these Mistral-class Amphibious Assault Ships to Russia…
Oh My – Lions,Tigers and Russian Bears – Oh My!
Windows to Russia!
I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about what does the Average Russian make? Then compare that to what does the Average American make? So I did some search on the subject.
The average salary in Russia in 2007 has just reached $545 per month! $6540.00 per year!
The average salary in America in 2007 was at $48,409 per year or $4034.08 per month!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com, also .
The average American almost makes as much per month as the Russian does per year. I know this is true because I was the average American at one time. I made with in a few dollars the same exact salary.
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“The average salary in Russia stood at 13,800 rubles ($545) in September, 25 percent more than last year, the Federal Statistics Agency reported on Friday. Analysts warn that the growth of incomes will slow down in the next few years.
Incomes and salaries in Russia are still growing fast, the Federal Statistics Agency said in a report on Friday. The average wages went up 24.7 percent over the past year following a 25-percent hike a year earlier. The inflation-adjusted real salary went up 14 percent in the past twelve months. Disposable income rose 13.5 percent this year compared to 8.5 percent a year before.
Experts note that this year has not seen any dramatic economic changes in salaries. Incomes are rising mainly because of growing wages which make up 40 to 42 percent of the overall income.
Analysts note that the salary growth is pushed by the private sector. Pensions are still growing nowhere as fast as salaries. In 2004, the average pension amounted to 28 percent of the average salary and as little as 23 percent in 2007.
Director of Rosgosstrakh’s Center for Strategic Research Alexey Zubets predicts that the GDP growth will drop to 5 percent and income growth will go down to 6 percent in Russia.
Meanwhile, the Economic Development and Trade Ministry is concerned that the income growth is much higher that the growth of labor productivity. Low competitiveness means that both economy and living standards are not growing fast enough, the government says. www.kommersant.com”
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I find it interesting the huge wage gap between countries. I am here in Russia and the costs of material items are the same as in America. The cost of food is the same.
How many Americans could live on nothing?
Windows to Russia!
The Russian queue is as much part of life in Russia as breathing and walking. The Russian expects to stand in queue. They have protocol for standing in queue.
1. You may ask someone to save your place in queue while you go stand in another queue!(I have seen people occupy three queues)
2. All members of a family spread out to all queues, then the member that gets to the cashier first lets all the others in queue.
3. People can cheat the system by being sneaky in a queue and its not considered cheating, just being smart and aggressive.
4. Babushkas have priority.
5. You must be Russian to decipher a queue, the queues are always mixed together. Russians somehow know where to stand. (I do not, my Sweetie does).
6. Queues are acceptable and expected for: government paperwork, government events, government anything 🙂 Queues are acceptable and expected on the Metro, and waiting at bus stops.
7. Queues are not acceptable when driving: Russians, will drive over it, under it, around it, through it, by it and will chart new territories to miss it! Queues are not acceptable to wait in line to buy cellphones and such!
There are more rules that I do not understand yet, But my Wife knows them and she keeps me in Queue. 🙂
Windows to Russia!