By Don Harder with Marina Aydova, Facebook, 12/24/23

Very eye-opening impressions from a westernized, Russian liberal who recently visited Russia due to a family emergency- (the part about how she found no hatred towards Ukraine or Ukrainians is absolutely my own experience living here too. It simply does not exist)

Translated from Russian. Thanks for the post Marina:

Lila Kim, a Hollywood screenwriter, found herself abruptly flying from Dubai to Russia due to a family emergency. She hadn’t been back to her homeland in two years. Here are some of her observations:

Amidst the chaos of Dubai, I received news that compelled me to immediately board the next direct flight to my hometown, a place I hadn’t visited in two years. The suddenness of it all left me without warm clothing, a laptop, or necessary documents. Family bureaucratic issues piled up, and medical matters arose.

Over five weeks, I interacted extensively with various government agencies, medical institutions, and my relatives, who are just ordinary people. I also met hundreds of individuals from diverse fields such as high-tech, media, cinema, TV, real estate, retail, medicine, and government. I overheard many conversations, some intentionally. Taxi drivers were, of course, a source of information. In these five weeks, I learned about more Chinese car brands than I had in my entire life. Considering that St. Petersburg experienced a severe snowstorm and frost for two of those five weeks, the cars proved to be surprisingly reliable.

Before I share more of my impressions, here are the top five things that struck me (aside from the volume and quality of free medical treatment my family members received):

The massive film cluster near Moscow! I didn’t personally visit due to time constraints, but the videos on witnesses’ phones were astounding. The size is larger than any LA movie studio’s lots. The diversity is impressive too, with replicas of old Moscow, European cities, and even futuristic settings.

The number of launches everywhere. There were disputes over props at Lenfilm. The number of premieres, platforms, and collaborations with other countries was impressive.

The food culture in St. Petersburg! From deer sous-vide, duck dishes, boar carpaccio, Hassan mustaches, Murman scallops and halibut, to Argentinian, Brazilian, and Japanese steaks. The assortment of my favorite Malbec at the St. Petersburg steakhouse “Mitcoin” rivals that of an Argentinian restaurant near my home in Orange County. Even my relatives started dining out more often due to the availability of affordable Georgian and other Eastern restaurants.

My family, simple folks who enjoy home, cottage, and fishing, had never traveled before. To my surprise, they had started traveling within Russia, where they felt comfortable and could revisit places from their youth. They had no interest in going abroad, despite my offers. They genuinely cared about their old haunts in Russia, and my stepfather, a fishing enthusiast, loved the fishing spots.

Needing everything from underwear to warm shoes, I experienced escorted shopping for the first time in my life. Stylist Tanya saved me a lot of time and money with various discount cards, dressing me head-to-toe in Russian attire within a couple of hours.

I was astounded at how rapidly everything had transformed. These companies, all 10-15 years old, previously didn’t have showrooms, or if they did, they were obscure. They sold everything through marketplaces. Now, they’ve taken over the vacant brand squares, where people continue to shop out of habit, because most people dislike waiting and prefer to try things on.

In general, the resilience of small and medium-sized businesses that not only weathered the odds but also flourished is remarkable. More broadly, the adaptability of people who had no choice but to carry on, making do with what they had – even the 90s didn’t shock me as much as what I witnessed now.

“I’ve already shared an update, and I’m not going to say much more. During my time in St. Petersburg, no one confronted me about living in the USA or being against the war, even though many there believe the US is to blame for the current situation. I didn’t receive any personal animosity for my stories about the United States.

Not a single person, including public servants and taxi drivers, expressed hatred towards Ukrainians. I didn’t encounter the intense hatred I had anticipated. Most people expressed regret, lamenting that all Ukrainians had been deceived and abandoned by the Americans.

Again, I experienced no personal hatred, despite being there with my blue passport. I arrived and left St. Petersburg safely.

I didn’t encounter the wild hysteria and endless hate speech from patriots that I had expected. Nor did I receive death wishes from the ‘bright men’ for me, my family, or anyone in St. Petersburg and beyond, just because I wrote about what I saw.

The image I’m left with is one of expectations, dreams, and wishes. This, too, is part of the strong impressions from my trip.”