Сила диктаторского художественного слова
Туркменский президент Гурбангулы Бердымухаммедов – очередной тиран, пробующий себя на поприще
Last Postcard from the Golden Age
Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan was the showpiece of Turkmenbashi’s Golden Age. Originally a village, then a Russian fort, subsequently a dusty soviet settlement, the city
Poland Diary
Monday 3rd November I did not know that I was famous when I arrived in Poland, and as I spent the first couple of days probing the remote borderlands and discussing John Denver in
Vissarion Christ: Siberian Saviour
Vova the taxi driver wasn’t happy about abandoning me in Petropavlovka, a village separated from the nearest city by over a hundred miles of silent, snow-covered Siberian forest.
Daniil Kharms: Today I Wrote Nothing
For decades Daniil Kharms was known in Russia only as a children’s writer. In fact, he was the last genius of the Soviet avant-garde, providing a link from the giants of Futurism
The Bizarre Guide to Russia
When most people think of Russia just a few images come to mind: vodka, mafia and children getting caught in the crossfire between nutjob terrorists and government security agents
The Joy of the Wasteland
Hello. My name’s Daniel Kalder. I am the author of LOST COSMONAUT, a blackly humorous ‘anti-travel’ book about my wanderings in four surreal (but real) wastelands. It also co
The True Centre of the Universe
Frank Zappa once said that the most common element on the planet is stupidity. I suspect it’s boredom. I got bored today myself. Maybe you did too. If so, we’re not alone: last
The Bat Hotel
Last week I was in Deerborn, Michigan to attend the wedding of one of my best friends. I was glad to be present, but still, I was a bit disappointed that the ceremony was not being
A Brief Note on Cross- Cultural Communication
Yesterday I mentioned that I was at a wedding in Michigan recently. While I was there, I met a lot of new people and found myself telling many of the old stories again. That can ge