Latest posts by Veronica Khokhlova from January, 2008
Hungary: “Is Budapest Scarier than LA?”
Pestiside.hu responds to an LA reader who is afraid of going to Budapest.
Poland, Ukraine: The Border
Our Man in Gdansk writes about Poland's eastern border, the non-Schengen, closely guarded one: “A lorry driver died in the 20-mile queue at the Ukrainian-Polish border crossing at Dorohusk. Warsaw sat up and noticed: Poland has an eastern border.”
Russia: Hajj Quotas
Window on Eurasia writes about hajj quotas and how it relates to Russia's Muslims.
Russia: Decossackization
De Rebus Antiquis Et Novis writes about the history of Decossackization in Russia and recommends a book on the subject, written by Gregory Tschebotarioff, a former Cossack officer, now a professor at Princeton University.
The Balkans: “Jestdej”
Sleeping with Pengovsky posts a copy of the Beatles’ ‘Yesterday’ – spelled phonetically by Croatian musicians: “… For all of you native speakers out there – if you ever wondered how English sounds to people from the Balkans – take a look at the above picture. It just doesn’t get...
Ukraine, Russia: Monopoly
MoldovAnn asks readers to vote “for Kyiv to become one of the 22 cities of the world to be included in the new Monopoly World Edition game board.” Robert Amsterdam writes about real-life Monopoly being played in Russia by the Kremlin.
Ukraine: A Porous Border
Ukrainian news site Korrespondent.net posted a translation of a Sunday Times story on Ukraine's porous borders and illegal migration. The English-language original has received 16 reader comments so far, the Russian translation - 88 comments. While many readers admitted that the problem of illegal migration existed in Ukraine and that corruption among officials contributed to it, most did not seem happy about the Sunday Times' story.
Ukraine: Crimean Tatars Protest
Orange Ukraine writes, among other things, about Crimean Tatars’ protests in Simferopol over the long-delayed construction of a mosque.
Ukraine: Anthrax Housing
Ukrainiana reports that Kyiv authorities have decided to go ahead with the plan to build a house at the site of a 19th-centruy anthrax cemetery.
Russia: Kasyanov and Zyuganov Out of the Race?
Siberian Light reports that it is likely that former PM Mikhail Kasyanov will not be able to run for president of Russia. Vilhelm Konnander reports that it is also likely that Communist leader Gennadiy Zyuganov will withdraw from the race.
Russia: St. Pete Tailors
Megan Case writes about affordable tailors in St. Petersburg.
Poland: More on Healthcare
The beatroot visits a state-run and a private clinic in Warsaw to get a sick note and a medicine – and ends up writing about disadvantages of each option.
Latvia: Old Believers
Aleks of All About Latvia writes about the Old Believers’ community in Latvia.
Czech Republic: Fake Radiation Leak Alert
The Czech Daily Word reports on a recent fake radiation leak alert in Brno.
Slovenia: EU Presidency Update
Marko Bucik writes about Slovenia's “overshadowed” EU presidency: “Then comes Kosovo. This will be perhaps the only headline news for the Slovenian Presidency – be it good or bad news.”
Poland, Bulgaria: eDeclarations; AntiCorruption.bg
Information Policy reports on the introduction of electronic tax declarations in Poland and the launch of an “anti-corruption portal” in Bulgaria.
EU, Mauritania: Faraway Fishing
Polish, Latvian and Lithuanian fishers are robbing Mauritania of its fish – all because “the EU has methodically depleted fish stocks in its own waters, and now, it is buying fish quotas from poor countries in the third world,” Jonathan Newton reports.
Ukraine: Unity Day
Ukrainiana writes about the neglected Unity Day in Ukraine.
Ukraine: Euro 2012 To-Do List
Orange Ukraine lists what needs to be done to accommodate the Euro 2012 visitors (from 400,000 to 1 million) in Ukraine: “As of this moment, Kyiv has 4,000 hotel rooms. What is required is all the logistics incl. infrastructure (roads, parking, planes, trains, etc.) and upgrading facilities such as hospitals...
Russia: The North
Window on Eurasia writes that “small ethnic groups of Russia’s north suffer […] from abuse in the post-Soviet media which appear to treat them all as one enormous and inappropriate Chukchi joke.”
Poland: The Primaries in the U.S.
The beatroot writes on “who should Poles vote for, if they could, in US primaries”: “What goes on in Washington should be of keen interest in Warsaw.”
