Autobiographical

Looking back, those previous entries conjure up a sombre mood of the despair of life in the sticks, whereas most of the foreign students made the most of the time to build friendships and improve their Russian. There were some, however, who stomped around aggressively, sounding off all the time on the infinite advantages of living in London. Suffice to say, I wasn’t one of their number. No doubt that was why I preferred to hang out in the main with students from other unis.

On a lighter note, I recall one event in late September while it was still hot when I had gone walking on my own in the city centre. I suddenly heard a whistle blowing furiously behind me. A swarthy red-faced policeman beckoned me over. He appeared a tad tipsy. I had jaywalked, unaware that this was allegedly a serious offence and ordered to hand over there and then 3 Soviet roubles, equivalent at the official exchange rate to GBP 1.50, or go to the station. I duly coughed up and I was given a receipt, albeit one that didn’t look that official. I suppose petty corruption was endemic in the backwaters, rising in magnitude in bigger cities.

Against the claustrophobic backdrop engineered by the KGB operatives in the hostel pretending to study, preening around in their tacky tracksuits imported from East Germany, the most developed economy in Soviet satellite states,  and sporting opaque sunglasses, there was a sense of camaraderie amongst most of the British students. Unless otherwise preoccupied, we would cook dinner together, consisting primarily of potatoes and carrots, on occasion supplemented by tomatoes and cucumber. 

The only other option was the cockroach-riddled canteen on the first floor, offering something bearing a remote likeness to meat, thereby rendering vegetarianism all the more appealing. I did my best to mix with a small number of Russian students staying at the hostel who were extremely friendly if you made the effort and avoided politics and trumpeting the benefits of capitalism over socialism. 

Indeed I ended up spending time with them along with students from Bath and Nottingham, going out for long walks, and singing Simon and Garfunkel songs, such as The Boxer and The Sound of Silence, on the way back after a typically liquid outing to our temporary home. Russian acquaintances also enabled me to discover local beer halls where the beverage would be served with a fish from the Caspian Sea (Caspian roach), commonly known as vobla. 

This was definitely a preferable experience to the small and dingy standing-room only bars on the main street. Known by the Russian name of Ryumochnaya, a diminutive of the word Ryumka (meaning glass), they served primarily cognac and vodka, together with some basic sandwiches (two slices of black bread with a slice of some form of meat or cheese).

On other occasions, I made it into the countryside where I would attract considerable attention primarily no doubt due to eclectic clothes that were my size and long hair that made me stand out a mile. As the Soviet economic system was based on centralised state command and no attention was paid to the differing requirements of population segments, it didn’t pander to the individual and it was extremely hard to find anything, most notably shoes that were a perfect fit. As a result there was a black market in Western clothes and a considerable amount of home-made clothing. Barter was also a key feature in the Soviet Union – for example, butchers would be able to trade the best meat for theatre tickets or items of clothing, or other goods. Such trade was portrayed in Soviet comedies, most notably in the 1997 Georgian film Mimino about a pilot who aspires to fly internationally and his adventures primarily in Moscow. 

So that was Voronezh, a tranquil place prevalent to stifling control, albeit this was far less noticeable than in Moscow and avoidable to a large extent in case of travel to more remote areas with Russians guiding you. However, in November 1984 I would have the opportunity to experience greater freedom in Russia’s former capital Saint Petersburg.