File :-(, x, )
Russia for a year Anonymous
So I'm thinking about living/working in Russia for a year.

What should I expect and are there any cultural-whatsits I should expect?

And yes, I know that over there car drives you.
>> Anonymous
Russians are weird, weird people. Their culture is alot different from anything your used to, and you might live there a year and still never grasp half of it.

Also, the major cities in Russia suck shit, at everything. Jobs, crime, everything is bad. It is not like other countries where the cities are where your chances of getting a job or money raise, it is in the smaller towns, and rural areas that have high-paying jobs and high demand for labor.

Also, if your brown-looking people will hate you.
>> Anonymous
Oh, no. I'm quite white.
>> Anonymous
Russia is a big country. It all depends on where you are planning to live. Moscow & St. Petersburg (that's where I am from) are generally considered by the Westerners as being very cosmopolitan and "advanced" places to live in. Rural Russia is different. The further east you go, the less "civilized" it gets.
What exactly are you planning to do in Russia to earn money? Finding a job without knowing the language might be incredibly difficult. It might be possible for you to get a job as an English teacher since that's the foreign language that most Russians aspire to learn. If you are a highly-trained expert in mining/oil/drilling/natural gas/etc you might have some excellent prospects in Russia (I am not saying these are the only kinds of jobs out there though). I would advise trying to get a job with one of the many foreign companies doing business in Russia.
>> Anonymous
Russian culture is different of course (isn't every country's?) but we are not Martians. There are places in Russia you can find where the only thing to do is to drink vodka (yeah the stereotype is partly true) and fuck goats and cows. But life in the European part of the country might seem very much like that in the Western world. After I moved to the US from St. Petersburg I was actually pretty amazed at just how "village-like" life in the American suburbs seemed. Moscow/St. Petersburg feel tremendously more cosmopolitan (kinda like NYC without the ghettos).
>> Anonymous
Dear foreign anonyms. We shall be always glad to see you in the country as a labour, but I think fondly hope to find such place where to you would give money, did not touch, and whenever possible: sucked dick. If you are measured to live and work for us, prepare to begin all with zero and to not flaunt the social superiority, and also it is a lot of to stir about that, whence you have arrived. By virtue of last events such at us do not love and beat, sometimes - even to death.

*from Russia, with love*
anon
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>> Anonymous
>>63822

For work, if we do this, it would be going over to teach English for a year.
>> Anonymous
Russia: Lame since 1989
>> Anonymous
snow, poverty,and vodka
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>> Anonymous
>>63818
How are they weird?

Just honest inquiry. I know little about Russian culture.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>> Anonymous
OP here.

Read some travel guides and I got:

1. Boil the water or buy bottled water. Don't even open your mouth in the shower in St Petersburg

2. Tipping is generally frowned upon... then read conflicting info that said 10% is normal??

3. Smiling at strangers is taboo. Smiling is something people do with friends.

4. Women should expect bags carried for them, doors opened, etc... men should expect to have Russian women expect this of them as well.

True? False? Expand on these?

Also, this day-to-day stuff is what I'm looking for, I guess.
>> Anonymous
>>63854
>>Lame since 1914
>> Anonymous
I was thinking about going to russia, but im half east-asian(half japanese-half slav), i heard that it's difficult to live there being an asian.
do you know something similar to my case?
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
I'm black yay! Anyways I have been to many a small town in Russia and Ukraine. I enjoyed reading about the history there, so I downloaded some Pimsleur CDs and went over there.

Old people will stop dead in the street to watch a black person walk by before continuing on their way. One restaurant owner went so far as to say I was the highlight for the day... just cause I ate there and all the servers wanted to come over and talk to me. Some observations

An ugly russian girl is still hot when standing next to the avg U.S.A. female.

The light switch for the bathroom is outside of the bathroom.

All trees are painted white at the base in Ukraine... thats right EVERY single tree...

Religion isn't as highly regarded over there cause... well read your history.

Cash can and does settles infractions of the law on the spot.

You can forget about customer friendly service anywhere. Just remember they may work there, but they're still doing you a favor by helping you.

Be prepared to see statues and monuments of lenin and stalin and all the other rulers who ruined that nation every 10 or so paces.

If you don't own a pair of jeans and a leather jacket, you will look out of place. oh... and try not to be black either, cause jeans and a jacket won't help
>> Anonymous
>>64007

o hai brotha

Anyone ever expressed hostility toward you just for being black? I'm planning on traveling all around Europe soon and I'm counting on my afro to influence people to not hate me.
>> Anonymous
Hai. As far as I could tell there are 3 reactions you'll come across:

1. 'Cool you're the 1st black person I've ever seen that wasn't on TV'. When I visited a family, one little boy literally said "wooowww" upon first seeing me. Which in Russian sounds like "klausss"
this is about 20% of the people.

2. 'You black asshole, you're here for our women. Go back to Africa'
http://current.com/items/76373502_racism_in_russia
5%

3. 'I am so shocked I haven't really come to a conclusion about you... so I'll just gawk jaw agape'
60%

the remaining % are indifferent
>> Anonymous
>>64007
Smoov-Commie-Brotha is mostly correct in what he is saying. I have no idea WTF he is talking about with trees being painted white at the base.

Also, I dunno what he is talking about with the leather jacket and jeans thing... everyone in Eastern Europe, Russia included dresses like guys did in the 1950's in America. Jackets, Jeans, and ugly black shoes are the standard, not the exception.

Although I can guess a black guy trying to pull that look off in Russia would be met with raised eyebrows, I was assumed to be a Polish guy my entire trip through Russia and Belorus because of the way I looked and dressed. You know your disguise is working when the locals stop and ask you for directions in their native toungue.
>> Anonymous
>>64010
Painted Trees
http://plaplen.blogspot.com/2008/04/nancy-drew-and-mystery-of-painted-trees.html

And I was saying that everyone wears jeans and a leather jacket. Basically men look like they just got out of jail...
>> Anonymous
>>64009
What about black women? Any information about racial reaction(s) always seem to focus on men.
>> Anonymous
...shit, I killed the thread
>> Anonymous
>>63824
Just goats and cows? Are there any horses?
>> Anonymous
lol at ruskies in the thread. very welcoming, everybody knows that you only like foreigners who suck your nation off. what will you do when there's no more oil? dubai at least has a chance with real estate, you're pretty much fucked.
stupid empire complex.

anyway, as for the OP. post apocalyptic = the zone in belarus and ukraine. russia is just plain crap.
>> Anonymous
I'm surprised theres so many black people that went to Russia and never got assaulted, I always hear skinheads roam the street looking for any kind of foreign looking person to beat up.
>> Anonymous
??-??, ??????????? ???, ???????????, ??????. ?????? ??? ??? ??? ????????? , ??? ?????? ?? ??????? ??? ???? ???????? ????????? ?????????????? ??????
>> Anonymous
if ur especially looking for hot girls ;-----> THE FUCK GO TO ST PETERSBURG
>> Anonymous
>>64012
We have painted trees in Chicago too. Now I finally know why.