Just a few facts...

When I was a child I heard about this country that was behind an Iron Curtain. Wow! Imagine that. A curtain made of IRON, and big enough to surround a whole country!

And people weren’t allowed in or out of there. There was some sports person who came to our country and managed to run away from the people she was with. It must have been a scary country.

On top of that, those people behind all that iron were building a bomb. A nuclear bomb (sounds pretty bad). So we’d better not make them angry or we may not see our tenth birthdays.

Not to mention this giant frozen prison there called Siberia where your parents would send you if you were really bad.

What WAS this place?

My childish impressions of Russia were somewhat different to my current ones. But there is a common theme – it’s a most fascinating place. And one that many people still don’t know much about or understand. Then again, we shouldn’t be surprised about people having false impressions about a place. Don’t kangaroos jump down Melbourne’s mainstreet?

So, what IS Russia like?

With over a thousand years of recorded history, Russia has many stories to tell. She has seen many wars, revolutions, and different leaders. Her history makes for a most exciting read with all of the changes she has undergone. As I write, Russia is still changing, and rapidly. The last twenty years have seen Russia emerge from the restrictions of communist rule and develop as a free economy. The rapidity of this change means Russia is a land quite unlike our own, in many ways known more for its corruption than its integrity. (Reports vary, but according to one report Russia is the 148th LEAST corrupt country in the world – out of 180 nations, with national bribe taking being worth about $300 billion a year!) 

With so many layers to her character and the depth of her history, there is no way I can possibly convey Russia in a single blog entry. Hopefully over time I can share my impressions of this amazing land and people to give you some insight, but for now, let’s settle for a few facts. And hopefully some that you may not have been aware of..

Capital: Moscow

Currency: 1 Russian Rouble = 100 Kopeks. Currently approx. 30 roubles = $1 (AUD)

Life Expectancy: Male 59.54 years, Female 73.17 years (2010 estimate according to CIA website)

Language: While it is estimated that around 80% of the population are monolingual (ie one language only) Russian speakers, there are over 100 minority languages spoken in Russia. Many of these are indigenous Siberian languages. Sadly, many of these are being lost, and with them elements of the rich cultures they represent.

Population: approx 139 million and shrinking? Russia has just completed a census which should hopefully give a more accurate number. This year Prime Minister Putin declared that the Russian population had stopped shrinking with a 10-20K capita increase this year. (Not sure how they work that out.) in any case, the population is down about 10 million on the nearly 150 million population of around 1995. Brain drain, more deaths than births and very low immigration means I don’t see the population booming any time soon, but who knows, maybe it will stabilise.

Rich in natural resources: Oil, natural gas, coal, minerals, timber. Many of these are difficult to access given the harshness of Russia’s terrain and climate. Much of Russia is subject to permafrost – the soil is perpetually frozen apart from the top 30 cm or so.

Russia is an Asian country. While most Russians are European in appearance, two-thirds of Russia is in Asia. It spans 40% of Europe and ALL of northern Asia. There are only two other countries that straddle both Europe and Asia – Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Russia is the largest country in the world with over 17,000,000 sq km. This is more than a ninth of the earth’s land area.

Russia spans 9 time zones. There were more, but this year has seen a consolidation of some time zones. They do not match up exactly with the GMT zones. You could say it’s the land where the sun never sets – even in winter. When the sun is setting at one end of the country, it is rising at the other.

Climate: Russia’s climate is extreme – to say the least – with possible temperatures ranging from -60C to +40C. (I have personally experienced -40C and +40C in the same city - although not on the same day!!) The coldest temperature ever recorded in an inhabited place was in Omyakon in Russia, at MINUS 71 DEGREES CELSIUS!!! Wow. Believe me, anything much below -20C is COLD.

I can't wait to share more with you about Russia, but I think that's enough for the first instalment. Hope you learnt something new!