"Critical Reflection"

In order to fulfill one of my General Education Requirements at UCI, I am require to take a class that involves actually doing something with real world applications.  Ways to fill it include lab science classes, art/performance classes, a silly class to get credit for internships (which I could have taken) or my chosen option a simple 1 unit pass / no pass class for returned study abroad students.


The assignment we had to do for this was quite open ended, not my preferred option for class assignments, and lacking much incentive to be overly created I settled on the option of doing a critical reflection of some events in Russia.  Those who have followed my blog will recognize most of the events here and in fact this blog proved to be an invaluable resource while writing this 9.5 page critical reflection.


I know many people have enjoyed what I have been able to write here and that it helped me keep in contact with friends and family back home while I was in Russia.  I also hope to keep it up to help me remember good times and to share my experiences from the past with those I will interface with both now and in the future.  I hope it is a fitting end to this travel log.


Here, unedited in any way, is that critical reflection:

Blending into Peter’s City

At the end of my first year of studies at UCI I decided that I wanted to fully take advantage of my time in school and also needed a challenge for myself.  I realized that I could further my future career prospects by learning an in demand foreign language and then study abroad in a country where it is spoken.  I narrowed down my choice of languages to Chinese, Arabic and my ultimate decision, Russian.  To that end, I enrolled in the Russian 1series of language classes for my sophomore year and studied hard in anticipation of using it practically within a year.  Language and history were the focus of the program I selected in Saint Petersburg in what turned out to be the perfect place to study.  With its unique past, as the former city of Leningrad and capital of Imperial Russia, the city is full of amazing art, history, culture and experiences on every street.  Before departing I knew I would feel like a foreigner once I got to Russia, in fact I relished the idea of being out of my comfort zone and having to adapt to new conditions.  I was looking forward to accepting a new normal for four months, as I tried to blend in and learn as much as I could about Russian culture, language and life.  To my great surprise, Russia turned out to be much more of a foreign place then I had ever imagined.  Simple things like everyday transactions at stores, interactions with Saint Petersburg’s citizens and officials, my attempts to blend in, and interactions with students from around the world in the same situation all illustrated my challenges.  Those being the dual challenge of attempting to learn, accept and blend in with facets of Russian life while not getting overwhelmed and retaining my own identity and customs.

The very first time I felt like a foreigner in Russia was predictably the first night in the city.  The  whole experience of arriving at the airport, clearing the draconian Russian border guards and customs services and meeting up with the proper people in the lobby of the airport was different, but nothing out of the ordinary.  Airports are accustomed to international travelers, the signs in multiple languages and some of the staff even spoke English when I tried to use my limited Russian.  However, once my group had driven through the city and arrived at our classroom and dormitory building, called IMOP, at Saint Petersburg State Polytechnic University and were now free to explore the neighborhood, I got my first real shock.  Unfortunately for both visitors and residents of Saint Petersburg, the city’s water supply is contaminated with heavy metals in the aging pipes and occasionally with a nasty stomach parasite called giardia.  This makes it necessary to buy, or in some situations boil, water to drink and there seemed to be a convenient place to do so right across the street.  Russians rely on small pocket grocery stores, called “produkti” which translates as groceries, for most of their food needs however they come with a few quirks as I was soon to discover.  Besides the obvious factors of having foods I have never seen sold in packages I could hardly read the store also had a few other surprises that made me at once realize I truly was a foreigner and it would take some time to not feel like one.  At that point I did not know that Russia is a cash based society, and stores keep very little change on hand and instead rely on their customers to provide as close to exact change as possible. 

The way my group discovered this that night was when the first student went up to the cash register to attempt to buy a 30 rubble bottle of water.  Being Americans it is commonplace to pay for even small items with a larger denomination bill, and he logically thought to pay with a 1,000 rubble note.  This bill, which is valued at around thirty US dollars, was quite unacceptable to the older Russian cashier who was not pleased in the slightest. The lesson was learned and I would later always carry dozens of smaller bills and coins with me to not draw attention and isolation from the rest of the shoppers.  There was another new aspect to the produkti, and I later realized holds true for most Russian stores, that was quite confusing that night as well.  Contrary to the American practice, at least until very recently, Russian stores do not provide free plastic bags for products purchased free of charge.  Instead they charge between fifteen kopecks and ten rubbles (half a cent to thirty cents USD) for them and a cashier will ask during checkout if you would like to buy some.  The question, “would you like a plastic bag” had logically not come up in Russian 1, so again for the second time in thirty seconds I was stuck not knowing what the cashier was saying or how to respond.  Eventually through some pointing and assistance by a friend who spoke more Russian than I, the situation was worked out, a plastic bag procured to take my precious water back across the street to my building.  The phrase “do you need a bag” was the very first new Russian I learned in Saint Petersburg and from that day until December, I would always either carry a grocery bag with me when going to the store or know to ask for one during checkout.  While this first night was a bit of a frustrating experience, and must have been quite a scene for the other people in the store, I learned to be patient while learning new ways of doing things, that I would not blend in without more time to observe, and that while I was a foreigner and certainly looked and felt like one, it did not preclude me from getting what I needed done.  Further I was able confirm that the Russian I did know was quite useful, verb phrases and numbers allowed me to figure out the rest of what the cashier said.

Feeling like a foreigner extended far beyond the corner grocery store and one aspect of Russian law made me almost constantly feel that way.  The Russian government requires that all people inside of its boarders have their general location registered with local authorities and have proper documentation of that status on their person at all time.  Nearly six months before going to Russia I had to fill out two original copies of a lengthy application for a visa that would only be used once, to be changed to a different status once I got to Russia.  When crossing through boarder control, I had to fill out a migration card and provide the location where I would be staying and reasons for being in Russia.  I felt both of these procedures were common in international travel and to be expected in this situation as well, but I was not prepared for was the rest of the documentation to come.  Our passports and migration cards had to be turned in to the city officials for inspection and so they could grant us a city registration to prove we are lawfully allowed to be there. At all times I was required to have either my passport with migration card, visa and city registration card or an official stamped copy of each from the university along with a note stating our status in Russia and that our real documents were on file and available upon request.  I also received Russian National student identification cards and a pass to allow us to be let through security and into our building.  At any given time I could have 5 forms of photo identification on my person, but this was quite necessary.  The reason for this is that the Russian police have the right to stop any person, at any time, for no reason and ask for their paperwork and their business at that moment.  This is not just a holdover from the Communist era, in fact the system is much older than that and has its roots in Russian serfdom.  Needing identification and proper paperwork at all times regardless of activity, is totally and completely at odds with normal procedures in America and I never quite got used to it or ceased to be paranoid about forgetting a needed piece of paper.  During my first week in Saint Petersburg two consular officers from the US consulate came to speak with the Americans in my program and told the story of an American who had gone across the street for milk and came back 24 hours later when he was released from a Russian jail.  His only mistake was not having his papers in his pocket, and he paid for it. The nominal reasons for this requirement including: preventing unauthorized immigration and illegal workers; catching known trouble makers, criminals or terrorists; catching young men who are avoiding their required national service and to generally keep ordinary Russians safe.

I often observed document check procedures in action and thankfully was never the subject of scrutiny by the notoriously corrupt city police, the Malitsiya.  Those appearing to be from the Caucuses, southern Russia, and Asia or just not fair skinned were more likely to be stopped and their papers scrutinized.  My physical attributes do not make me a credible subject for profiling by their standards, and my only interaction with local law enforcement occurred tangentially but still left me feeling out of place and ill at ease.  While setting off one day to a museum in downtown Saint Petersburg, a fellow American student in the group I was walking with was stopped by the Malitsiya outside of a metro station.  Being of Armenian descent he fit into their profile of a potential problem and was subject to scrutiny.  While he was being investigated on the street corner, a second officer approached the rest of us in a similar manner but acted quite differently.  After a quick glance at our papers and realizing we are American students, he said to us in broken English, “Ah you are all American students.”  He smiled, saluted, gave us two thumbs up and said good bye, again in English.   This encounter, while it not ending negatively in any way, illustrated an interesting point about Russian culture and one I could never quite get used to.  The protections of the fourth, fifth and sixth amendments of the US Constitution don’t exist in any comparable form in Russia and not having that protection is kind of disconcerting.   While I never intend to be the subject of criminal proceedings in either Russia or the US there are definite advantages to dealing with American law enforcement over their Russian counterparts. Russians would seem to agree with this assessment, I observed them always trying to avoid the Malitsiya on the streets and most stores and schools have private security guards because they are not confident in the state’s ability to protect them. Soon after I left, it was announced that the Malitsiya will be reorganized and renamed on a national level in an effort to counteract systemic corruption and inefficiency, hopefully it works but based on my observations that is unlikely.

On one occasion being a foreigner proved to be costly but still advantageous and an interesting starting point for interaction in the end.  Right next door to IMOP is a one quarter regulation sized, artificial turf soccer field and many of the Russian students would play there in the afternoons after their classes.  At first when I and a group of Americans in my program found it closed to us, we attempted to find out how it to reserve or to get it unlocked.  It turned out that the soccer field could be opened by paying one of the building guards 150 rubbles, about five USD, to unlock it.  Over time we realized that this was just a trick they played on the American students because they knew we would pay them what amounted to a bribe.  This was not a very nice way to treat visitors but we paid their bribe, realizing that five dollars is a small price to pay to entertain and exercise ten people for an hour.  Some days we would encounter other students from the university either finishing their games, coming for new ones, or just checking out what we were doing and on several occasions we played with them. They say that soccer is an international language, and I have never been much of a soccer fan, but after several games with a mix of Americans, Russians, Thais, Belgians, Poles, Peruvians and Brazilians, I believe it now.  Communication was accomplished in Russian which we all spoke to some degree, English which many spoke to some degree and with Spanish between the North and South Americans.  Until mid October, when the temperature stated to drop below freezing during the day, we would continue to play soccer several times a week often with a multinational group of players and this provided the best place to interact with my peers from all over the world and is one of my fondest memories from Saint Petersburg.  In this case, being discriminated against as a foreigner was not harmful; in fact it resulted in a great benefit.

As a student in a Russian university I received incredible benefits not available to normal foreigners or even to students in the United States.  I found it quite incredible at times how much Russians and Russian institutions respect, assist and give benefits to students, and even foreign ones are accorded the same status.  My first experience with this came when gaining admission at the world renowned Russian State Hermitage Museum housed in the former Imperial Palace.  It was free for Russian students or in my case an American with a national student ID card, about ten dollars for Russian or CIS citizens and almost twenty for foreign tourists.  It turned out that this policy applied almost everywhere in Saint Petersburg and in other parts of Russia.  I never had to pay admission to any one of the dozens of museums, churches and attractions I went to.  At concert venues, amusement parks and even the bowling alley the student ID card would almost always lead to a fifty percent discount.  Even in places with no posted student rates, or with posted but nominal prices for students the cards often got me into places for free or a very low rate.  In the US the same thing exists, in some places, but often only results in a twenty percent or so discount and almost never for more expensive attractions.  I found it quite interesting that I was treated better as a foreign student visiting Russian cultural treasures, than then I would visiting a similar attractions in my own country, many of which are at least partial beneficiaries of government money.  I can see why the Russian government, which runs all the museums and nearly all the historic and cultural attractions, would want to encourage students, both its own and those visiting to see as much as possible.  Foreign students are in Russia to learn about it and hopefully to come back with a positive image of the country and good experiences to share and remember.  Such “soft diplomacy” does not cost much in terms of government revenue, they more than make up for it by overcharging tourists I am sure, but remains a big positive influence on my view of the Russian government and their society.  Despite being a foreigner I was accepted, appreciated and directly encouraged in my efforts to learn about Russia in a manner equal to the average Russian student.

After several weeks of living and leaning in Saint Petersburg I began to learn enough about ordinary everyday customs, patterns of dress, mannerisms and procedures to try to blend in and cease to look and feel as much like a foreigner.  I knew that I would not be able to completely assimilate and learn the language to the point where I would be mistaken for a local, but over time little steps I took to look and act more Russian were both appreciated by those I encountered and made me feel like I truly was learning and making the most of my environment.  One of the first ways to adapt and to look more Russian was choice of footwear.  Russian men, students and even boys almost always wore black or dark leather shoes or dark colored sneakers to the exclusion of any other colors or styles.  One of the fastest ways to spot a tourist in downtown Saint Petersburg is to just look down at their feet as they walk. For Russian women shoes with heals seemed to be almost a universal dress code. Teenage girls and young women wore extremely high heels, even in the snow and while pushing baby carriages and older women well into their 60s still wore them.  I did not get a satisfactory explanation for this phenomenon, and I am at a loss to explain.  After shoes, picking the proper clothing both for the climate and to blend in presented another set of challenges.  Thankfully my dark grey coat, dark jeans and grey sweaters I bought were suitably dreary to fit in with Russian men’s taste in clothing.  I found that buying more outerwear as the weather got colder helped me blend in more.  The best way to not stand out is to dress like the locals and shop where they do.  When going around the city, especially downtown in areas that tourists frequent, I could easily tell from a distance who did not seem to fit in with the surroundings mostly based on their clothing.  With my careful observations and choice of clothing I believe I was able to match to the locals’ appearance fairly well and not stand out to be identified as a foreigner. My observations about clothing and how essential it is to blending into a situation will be useful in the future since it is never advisable to stand out too much when traveling, it only invites unwanted problems.

The ultimate proving ground for how well I could blend in turned out to be on Saint Petersburg’s Metro System.  The metro system in St Petersburg is one of the oldest and deepest in the world and I used it as my primary means of transportation around the city.  It was never affected by the snow like the buses, trams and electric streetcars are and once I figured the system out almost every site of interest in the city was accessible.  It is also arguably the worst place to look like, act like or simply to be a foreigner.  A crowded train is a perfect place for pickpockets to operate, not all Russians like foreigners and simply getting on the metro brings the scrutiny of the Malitsiya.  Initially I did not travel on metro alone but over time I got more comfortable with my Russian, the metro system and my ability to not stand out in the crowd.  I believe that near the end of my time there I was able to successfully do this and that remains one of my proudest achievements from the entire semester.  One little event in the grocery store provided all the conformation I needed of how my efforts paid off.  Most Russians don’t speak with strangers in public places, let alone with foreigners, but a tiny woman in her late 60s felt comfortable enough to complain to me about the price and size of the loaves of bread available in the store.  I was able to respond to her comment, agree with her assessment of the situation and I firmly believe that she walked away not knowing that I was an American.

During the courses of my semester in Saint Petersburg I saw, did, experienced and lived in a way that I will never experience again.  Every day brought new cultural experiences, foods to try, historic places to visit and life to live.  I believe that my efforts to blend in and adapt to Russian cultural norms instead of trying continue to live like I do in the US made the experience even better.  Globalization has made it possible to live in almost the exact same way in many places on Earth.  For example I could walk a block down the street and get a meal at McDonalds that was almost identical to one in the US, but doing so would have been more comfortable at times but would not have resulted in anywhere near the level of enjoyment I was able to get out of my experience.  My small obsession of not being mistaken for a foreigner may seem somewhat silly when examined on its own, but in the context of my study abroad experience it was the most logical course of action.

Signing off, 

~Matthew

(AT LEAST FOR NOW.....)