FIRST IMPRESSIONS - 36 HOURS AND FADING FAST

Light - The sun comes up very early and sets very late. While the much celebrated White Nights have ended, there is still plenty of daylight. So much so, that at 5:30 a.m. today (after only four hours of sleep) the sun was high enough in the sky to flood our little bedroom with a strong, yellowish/green glow. And last night, it was 10:15 p.m. before twilight was finally upon us. It was somewhat unnerving for this old father to see small children playing in a public park at such an hour. And while I have not yet put my finger on it, there is something different about the quality of the light here, probably due to our point on the  compass and being farther north than I am accustomed.

Buildings - As we descended through a thick cloud cover into the St. Petersburg "oblast" (region) on Wednesday afternoon, I was first struck by how "normal" things appeared: there were single family homes along streets. However, as we drew closer to what I can now assume is the metropolitan area, I began to see the construction of massive apartment complexes on the outskirts of the city. These are much more in keeping with my vision from the West of what Soviet-era buildings are. However, I must assume that these are not state financed and constructed mini-cities, but are privately financed and built "co-ops" or condos that individuals and families will purchase based upon demand for affordable housing.

    Furthermore, here in the city center,  a street address is not like I am accustomed to in the States. There, a street address is assigned to a specific building, such as 3815 Nall Court or 900 N. Michigan Avenue. Here, however, a street address is only a portal to what at this point in time I must assume are "compounds." Compound is a term I am using, based on a Russian word I have seen to denote these "mini" neighborhoods behind the street address. 

    For instance, our street address is 88 Nevsky Prospekt. Walk through the portal and enter not a neat courtyard of a building centered around a nicely landscaped area of similar structures but a jumble of disparate buildings. The main portal is more of an alley, and there are side streets and parking areas within this space. On Google maps, 88 Nevsky Prospekt appears to be what we might call a city block. I have yet to discover all there is at 88 NP, but there is the building that faces the main street. Then, there are separate retail and office buildings. Our building is six stories high and sits across the internal street from the Annabel Hotel. 

     I was a tad apprehensive when Dimitri (our driver from the airport) dropped us in front of our building. There were no visible signs stating this as an apartment building. There is only a huge, brown metal door. My heart sunk when I pushed our luggage through from the gloomy rain into a gloomier foyer. We were told there is an elevator, but after ascending the half dozen or so worn concrete steps, the lift is nothing more than a closet on pulley strings. No more than two people can fit in it at one  time. Three trips were required to get us and our bags up. Each floor has an equally squalid appearance; badly lit, unkempt, half finished and dirty. Here again was a large metal door with no signage. Julia from the apartment rental company accompanied us through this door to reveal a brighly lit, modern corridor. On the immediate right is Anna and Rosa's station: the laundry room, cleaning room, electrical hub and Internet box. Our apartment is right next to that. I believe there are five more units on this corridor owned and operated by Chuck Rodgers (formerly of Chicago?)  and his beautiful, out-front schill and Russian wife, Oksana of Oksana's Ltd. I will write more about our one bedroom apartment later.

Smells - Body odor, stale air, smoke, urine, sewage. Unlike Western Europe, there is very little perfume I have yet noticed to hide these smells. On a few occassions yesterday, I was pleased to note the refreshing scent of flowers. They served as welcome and light relief to the heavy, sobering scents that pervade the air trafficked by people. 

Sounds - This is a big city. The sounds are not much different than most big cities. Nevsky Prospekt is the equivalent of a Michigan Ave in Chicago or a Broadway in New York - lots of traffic and lots of people. While I should not be, I have been surprised to hear auto alarms sound or the unique noise cars make when their locks are engaged or disengaged. Andrea noted the plethora of cars on the street, even compared to her last trip here in 1996. The police and ambulance sirens are different even from Western Europe. There is just something threatening about them. You don't want to just get out of the way; you want to duck and cover to make yourself invisible.

Sights - Again, I have not been here but maybe 36 hours and have not yet ventured too far, but my impression is that none of the neon can hide the decay. There are beautiful old buildings, and some (like the Singer Building) have been meticulously maintained. However, the majority may have had some bright paint applied within the last 10-15 years, but a dinginess, grunginess remains. 

      From the air and even here on the ground, new construction is confirmed by the big cranes appearing on the horizon. And perhaps I am not the only one to have noticed the rotting buildings, because there are many older structures that have screens over them to prevent dirt and debris from falling on pedestrians.

     The streets are old and uneven, as if the extreme cold this city confronts for months during  long winters and the short-lived sweltering hear of summer have warped them. (Is that a metaphor for this society?) 

     I hope to address the appearance of people later, and while many of the women are pretty and dress provocatively in early August, even a first impression would be unfair to put on paper. 

     I believe I am characterizing Andrea correctly when I write that English is much more widely heard and understood than when she was in Russia last. While her Russian is more than competent, there appear to  be numerous people who speak commendable English, such as our waiters at dinner both nights. Enlish-language menus have been available. Signs on the metro also include English directions. I imagine if I stray too far off the beaten path, I might be in trouble trying to communicate, but here along Nevsky Prospekt, I can manage.

     Again, we are staying in what may be the equivalent of the Gold Coast area of Chicago and have circulated within a 3-mile radius so these are only initial impressions that must be forgiven once more "data" is collected over time.

Prices - Sky high! Again, I must emphasize we are in the center of a major metro area that
caters to the high end. However, we spent at the grocery store the equivalent of $72 for what may have cost $35-40 in South Bend.  We bought a few basic things just to have in the apartment for breakfast: three nectarines, cereal, some cheese, bread, milk, juice, sugar for coffee that we actually brought from home. Before we left the States, Andrea asked if we should take peanut butter. I replied, "no." My thought was that I will be in Russia, and Russians don't eat peanut butter, so why should I? However, when we shopped for groceries at Ctokmahh (pronounced "Stockmann" - a Finnish store that was here when Andrea was last in Petersburg), there displayed was Skippy PB! Andrea wanted some. A 16 oz. jar cost the equivalent of $10.  Doing some comparison shopping yesterday, Ctokmahh prices are not out of line, even though it is a luxurious, high-end store that is the equivalent of the old Marshall Fields: cosmetics on the first floor; men's fashions on the second; women's on the third; kids on the fourth; household/bath/kitchen goods on the fifth; and a grocery in the basement! Eating out is very costly, too. For instance, I had a small "iced" coffee yesterday. (No ice., whch according to Andrea is safer than Petersburg ice.) It was about $6. Andrea had a berry cooler drink, and it cost roughly $9. 

     On the other hand, from what I can tell, gasoline is slightly less expensive than at home. It's about 32 rubles to the litre. You do the calculations, but my feeble math comes up with roughly $2.50 per gallon.

With that, I will conclude my first blog positng in Russia. While I plan on trying to describe things to the best of my ability, there will certainly be days when a post may have nothing more than a sentence or two about the weather. Also, once the "newness" of Petersburg gives way to a mundane daily routine, there may not be anything worth writing at all.