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Remember it then, Imagine it now.

RJFensterman@verizon.net
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  • Richmond, Virginia
  • United States
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2 blog posts by RJFensterman@verizon.net were featured
June 4, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
What can I add to what's already been said about a country with over a thousand years of recorded cultural history, and that had covered 1/6th of the globe? All I can do is what they told many years ago, when I was an umpire for high school baseball…
June 3, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
His name was Andrei, and he drove a black Toyota Avalon. As a Russian cab-driver there were two interesting things about Andrei: he spoke very good English, and he had actually been a professional wrestler. He felt that being a good cab-driver was m…
June 1, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
The black car was a 1991 Volga; that was the year the car became the choice of cab-drivers, rather than of members of the Nomenklatura. The car emblem was a red-and-black stag. The driver looked unhappy and tired; this was understandable, considerin…
May 30, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added 2 blog posts
May 26, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
Here is the sunset over Lake Ladoga; it is 11:30 PM on the good ship Vissarion Belinsky.... Definitely, time to go to sleep. It is very restful to lie in bed as the ship glides through the water in the night. (Valaam is the furthest north we have e…
May 21, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
The ship Vissarion Belinsky was part of the former Red Star fleet, a service of Soviet-run Intourist, since passed into private hands; but still serving the same clientele: working-class Russian tourists. The ships were all named for Russian literar…
May 18, 2009
RJFensterman@verizon.net added a blog post
We went to bed early, right after supper. The blaring of a horn woke me in the middle of the night (actually it was early Sunday morning). I got up and went to the window, parting the drapes. It was completely dark at last. And up in the sky above t…
May 14, 2009

Profile Information

Relationship Status:
Married
About Me:
I am retired after 37 years as a computer software engineer, but I went to college to be a doctor, graduated with a degree in English, and later took a Master degree in Film Making and Drama. I have written several novels (which still remain unpublished) and have traveled extensively in the US and Canada, in Central America, in Western Europe,and in the South Pacific. Oh yes, and I've been to Russia for 23-days, one of the greatest experiences of my rather-long life...

RJFensterman@verizon.net's Blog

RJFensterman@verizon.net

SUMMING UP: MEMOIRS OF AN UNREPENTANT RUSSOPHILE

What can I add to what's already been said about a country with over a thousand years of recorded cultural history, and that had covered 1/6th of the globe? All I can do is what they told many years ago, when I was an umpire for high school baseball games in New Jersey -- "Call it the way you see it". So that's what I've tried to do here. The good stuff. And the bad.
I've heard it said that no one comes to Russia for the Weather. Nor for the food. Nor for the Language. Nor for the Roads...
Well,… Continue

Posted on June 8, 2008 at 12:00pm —

RJFensterman@verizon.net

EPILOGUE: A TALE OF FOUR CITIES

His name was Andrei, and he drove a black Toyota Avalon. As a Russian cab-driver there were two interesting
things about Andrei: he spoke very good English, and he had actually been a professional wrestler. He felt that being a good cab-driver was more useful to society than being a wrestler. He arrived at 7 AM to the lobby of the Azimut, where we sat having wafers and coffee in lieu of a breakfast buffet that wouldn't open till 7:30. He whisked our luggage into his car, and we were off i… Continue

Posted on June 7, 2008 at 7:00am —

RJFensterman@verizon.net

THE BLACK STAG AND THE BLUE HUMMINGBIRD

The black car was a 1991 Volga; that was the year the car became the choice of cab-drivers, rather than of
members of the Nomenklatura. The car emblem was a red-and-black stag. The driver looked unhappy and tired; this was understandable, considering he had just driven up from Petersburg, about 200 miles away. It was a warm day for Russia, and his shirt showed the results. His name was Boris, and the name certainly suited him: he was husky with a gruff, gravely voice, had reddish h… Continue

Posted on June 6, 2008 at 3:30pm —

RJFensterman@verizon.net

I'M GOING TO RUSKEYLAND!

Kizhi would be the northern-most point on our journey, being just north of the 62' Parallel. Once we left the Island, we would be heading south and west, re-tracing our path -- a kind of deja-vu or a film being run backward: from Lake Onega into the Svir River again, and then back through the canal locks ("haven't I seen these rusty moving walls before?"), and heading toward the delta with Lake Ladoga. (We had actually passed today's destination on the trip northeast, and not been… Continue

Posted on June 6, 2008 at 11:00am —

RJFensterman@verizon.net

LAKE ONEGA: PETER'S FOUNDRY AND THE KIZHI NECKLACE

We cruised through supper, and through the evening's entertainment -- a long-haired guitarist and his blond singing partner, who did a lot of Russian ballads; the only one I recognized (the tune, anyway) was one from years ago, known as 'Those were the Days!' in English. When you're my age, the words are very poignant:
"Those were the days, my friend/We thought they'd never end/We'd laugh and sing forever and a day./We'd live the life we'd choose;/We'd fight and never lose./ Those were the days,… Continue

Posted on June 5, 2008 at 9:00am —

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