Message for Prospective Volunteers

So you've decided to come to Russia?

As someone who has studied this region intensely and who has been there on numerous occasions, I'd like to bring up a few points you may want to consider if you'll be in Russia any length of time.

First and foremost, there's a serious communication barrier that CANNOT be understated.... that is, that most Russians don't speak English and most Westerners don't speak Russian. Overcoming this barrier can take a great deal of time and energy, not only before arriving but during your stay as well. Learn the basics of Russian language, build some vocabulary, and bring a small dictionary with you.

Further, a bit of acting experience (clown-like hand and face gestures) can go a long way in solving minor problems along the way. Don't be surprised if, after a month or more in Russia you find yourself physically and mentally exhausted in your attempts to overcome the language gap.

Secondly, if you're from the West (and you probably are since you can afford this trip), then you have to understand some things about Russian people and bureaucracy and how they work. At first glance, it may seem that they don't function at all, but this can be a deceiving picture. When explaining something, a Russian may initially begin to answer your question, but then take a 90 degree turn and go on to another matter completely, before coming back to answer your original question in a roundabout way. Don't expect anything to happen instantly. Russian people possess a quality entirely unknown in 21st century North America..... patience. If you are trying to book a plane ticket or register a visa, then don't hound tour operators or government desk-slaves to the ends of the earth looking for answers. They'll get done what you've asked them to do and in good order (eventually). Expect to be sent to many different ticket windows when looking for the right train ticket, expect to hear "nyet" ringing in your ears more often than you might like.

Expect people to jump the queue and barge right in front of you, asking questions out of turn to the salesperson. This may seem frustrating, but you have to constantly remind yourself that you're in Russia and that this is just the Russian way. Many remnants of Soviet society still live on in this country, the most obvious being the existence of the world's largest bureaucratic system, and as we all know, the inefficiency of a bureaucracy increases directly in proportion to it's size.

Thirdly, if you like the double-pasteurized Neilson's Dairy brand of 2% skim milk or are disappointed that your Big Mac in Moscow didn't taste the same as the one at home (although it invariably will) and think that you won't be able to live without these things, then you might consider staying home. Russian shops abound with western-style food products but perhaps not in the same quantity of varieties as found in Canada or the States.

Russia does have the advantage in round-the-clock service however. If you wake up at 2am and have the sudden desire for a Baltika Number 3, or a nice piece of chocolate, then you needn't walk further than 100m to the nearest kiosk for your late night snack. Just remember that Russia is still undergoing vast social and economic change, change that will continue for years to come.

My final point is this: 99% of the westerners who visit Russia never set foot outside of the Moscow-Golden Ring- Petersburg circuit. If you think this is a discovery of Russian culture, then you might as well be off to Euro-Disney to learn about French culture. Of course, visit the Tretyakov Gallery, the Hermitage, Red Square and other places, but to get a true feeling for Russia and her people, then visit the regions to the east and the south as well. This is the real Russia.... away from the throngs of foreign tourists, the Pizza Huts, and the English- language newspapers.

This is a vast land with thousands of cities and towns and 150 million people. Go to some off-the-beaten track places and discover something new. Such travel will uncover the greatest treasures of Russia. The above points represent the major difficulties you may encounter in Russia. Sure, there are others..... someone might steal all of your stuff, you'll undoubtedly be overcharged to get into some attractions, your bus might break down, you might fall into a hole in the middle of the street because the streetlights don't always work.... but these things can happen anywhere.

You can avoid all of these pitfalls by simply staying home in your spacious four bedroom home with two cars and watching the news headlines from Russia and the rest of the world turn into history. Or you can choose the alternative..... visit Russia, see for yourself the rich history of this largely unknown country, meet, speak and live with people who will want to know everything about you and where you come from, and learn a culture largely alien to your own.

If you think you can overcome the relatively minor obstacles listed here, then not only will you open up the one-sixth of the world's land mass that would otherwise remain off-limits to you, but you'll also learn more about yourself as an adventurer and as a person, and make some wonderful friends while doing it. So what are you waiting for? Don't ask any more questions and just go!