Alyenka Chocolate

Produced by the Moscow-based Krasniy Oktyabr (Red October) confectioners since the mid 1960s, this is one of the most recognisable products on Russian shelves.

Documentary review: Storyville. Russia's Toughest Prison: The Condemned

This is Russia's prison for its most dangerous men; 260 inmates convicted of 800 murders collectively. The documentary, shown as a part of the BBC4 Storyville series, was as interesting as it was depressing. It focused on half a dozen prisoners, the governor and, briefly, a handful of family members and takes us through how they came to be in prison, their guilt, prison hierarchy, family and their future, giving an insight into thoughts and lives, or rather existences, of some of its prisoners and, to a lesser extent, of others involved. Welcome to a world of thin faces, sunken eyes and missing teeth in mouths offering few smiles. a place where hope and hopelessness vie for supremacy in the minds of people who have much to fear on both sides of the walls.

All along the watchtower

Tales of the Russian Post Office #2

The Russian Post Office can be a mixed bag. Sometimes they go the extra miles and then some; other times...

You can always visit their website, if you're prepared to wait.

Gruppa Kino/ Группа Кино

Of this legendary Soviet rock group, I once told a friend that I'd translated a couple of songs. He answered, "You cannot understand. You can know the words but you cannot understand." But I'll try to explain anyway.

Gruppa Kino

Recipe: Golubtsi #1 (with peppers)

Golubtsi is an Eastern European dish, claimed as theirs by half the nations of the former USSR even though it's found across Europe and the Middle East. Essentially it's something stuffed with rice and/or meat, usually cabbage leaves or occasionally vine leaves, particular further south. The Russian name means little pigeons, hopefully not from the original filling. I've done another Russian variant, what we in the UK would call stuffed peppers.

vkontakte

Vkontakte (VK) is to Russia what Facebook is to Britain and America, and more besides...

Small Shops

For a lot of Russians, supermarkets are not the first port of call for their shopping. Instead, they tend to use smaller shops.

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