To Russia with Love (Part 1)

These are the tales from Herr Willie (wil6ka)’s Soviet journeys. Welcome to the first of three parts of his Russian love story.

Russian holidays are not unthought of, but rather uncommon. Last year’s Sochi Olypics was a very rare occasion, and probably one of the first major events held in the country since the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. Russia, despite being the largest country in the world in terms of land area, just isn’t one of those top-of-mind holiday destinations. Its conflict with Ukraine doesn’t make it any more appealing to the typical tourist, either.

Political conflict and space exploration milestones aside however, Russia, along with the other nations in the former Soviet Union, is a beautiful and culturally-rich country. It may not be on everyone’s vacation itinerary, but the privilege to explore the region seems an opportunity too rare to refuse. And while exploring the region seems uncommon, there are those who have actually done it, and on several occasions.

One such person is German filmmaker and lomographer Willie Schumann. Schumann has set foot on practically all parts of the post-Soviet Union: Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Ukraine.

Throughout his voyages, Schumann absorbed the culture, formed friendships, discovered the wonders of the places he has visited, and even learned the language. His alias as a lomographer – wil6ka – is a Russian spin to his first name.

In this feature, Herr Willie, as he is fondly called, recounts his experiences of traveling to the Soviet region; first as a volunteer educator in 1998, the visits that followed, and later on a writing assignment for Lomography in 2011.

Maiden voyage to the USSR

I went to Russia for the first time in 1998 as a volunteer. After my high school graduation I worked for 18 months as a German language teacher in a little school in Novgorod, which is the oldest Russian town, roughly four hours south of St. Petersburg. It was rather a combination of lucky coincidences that I went there. I served my conscription with this volunteer service, but I had plans for Israel first. But there were some conflicting deadlines and all of a sudden I got the chance to go to Russia.

Everything changes once you enter the Tupolev 202 of Pulkovo Air. And maybe it did, as I can still remember the aviation company and the plane. Well, I was 19 and had the feeling that the world was waiting for me. Even there, where it is freezing cold and a hinch of vodka lingers in the air. You kind of sharpen your senses. At the time, people still smoked on planes and there were ashtrays by the seats. I had a window seat and below the window was a screw with ice surrounding it. I followed the extension of the screw through the window, and saw how it ended outside of the plane. Things like this sound very cliché. Things are not perfect in Russia, but they fly anyway. I felt very bold to go there – something that I carry with me until this day.

Coming home to different countries

You have to approach the region of the former Soviet Union from a historical, philosophical and even social point of view. For 70 years, the leaders in Moscow tried to create the Soviet citizen. In their belief to create communism, they created equal environments in education, work and life all over the Soviet Union, and of course they never really asked any of the republics within the union. What stays on to this day, even if many countries are now independent from Russia, is the many similarities. Whether you are in Vladivostok, Tashkent or let’s say Baku, you will find the same houses, some of the same food, the same behavior. That’s just my feeling, and it makes me feel like coming home to so many countries. But of course there are beautiful differences, and so much to see in each of these places.

To be continued

written by Jill Tan Radovan on 2015-02-17 #places #lifestyle #travel #location #herr-willie #to-russia-with-love