George and Sadie’s Soviet Union

Tour
Note by Doug Pincock
This was written by Sadie during their tour of the Soviet Union in
1981. I believe they were used for a speech in Tweed.

It is interesting to read from the perspective of a time when we

though the Soviet Union would last forever and, it disappeared
less than a decade later. A number of cities mentioned are no
longer in Russia – Samarkand is in Tajikistan; Tashkent in
Uzbekistan and Kiev in the Ukraine. Sochi is still in Russia but very
near Georgia and was a base in the strife between Russia and
Georgia as well as the site of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

I have added some pictures from Dad’ slide collection. Quality is

not too bad considering some of them were scorched in the fire
they had. You can view a large version of any photo by clicking on
it.

“Getting there is half the fun” is certainly not true of transatlantic flights. We left
Tweed shortly after lunch, drove to Toronto where we left the car with our fiends,
Don and Fran. Don drove us to the airport the usual hour ahead of the flight and I
believe we were seventeen hours from Toronto to Moscow and had a 45-minute
stop in Montreal, two hours in Zurich, 45 minutes in Warsaw, and finally, on to
Moscow. Swiss Air look after you very well but it doesn't change the fact that you
are exhausted at the end of the flight.
In this exhausted and dazed condition you have to handle your own luggage (not a
porter or cart in sight) and cope with Russian immigration and customs.
Immigration was especially nerve racking. You push your passport and visa
through a glass window to a very young man who looks mean and vicious (he
reminded me of Norman Cann, a former neighbour whom I hadn't thought of for
years). He seems to sneer at you through his window and a mirror over your head
gives him a two-dimensional view of you. He stares at you and then looks down
at your passport. This seems to go on for ages and as you never feel that your
passport photo bears the slightest resemblance to you, you begin to want to babble
such inane things as "I was thinner in July or I've just had my hair cut." Finally he
stamps your passport and the sound of the seal striking your passport is a
welcome relief. On leaving the Soviet Union you go through the same procedure
but it is even more frightening as you start to think, ``My God! Maybe they wont
let me leave." I should add that it was the only time on our whole trip that we felt
any apprehension.
The custom's officer was quite casual but we were warned that you had to declare
your money and jewellery - even your rings and watches. Some people have
omitted doing this and have had their personal jewellery confiscated on leaving.
Needless to say, we were very glad to get to our hotel, The Cosmos. It is a
modern hotel (1,600 rooms) on the outskirts of Moscow, built In 1980 for the
Olympics. There was the usual delay in registering our tour (only 15 as half had
cancelled when the tour was postponed). The lobby is huge, beautiful marble and
granite but in that whole expanse there is not a chair, bench or even an ashtray. I
couldn't understand such stupidity until we passed through the lobby on our way
to breakfast the next morning. You couldn't move for people. It reminded me of
the railway stations years ago when you literally had to work your way through
the crowd. I had never thought of Russia as a great tourist place but they come in
by the busloads from Finland, Germany, France and even the United States.
In Russia you have an Intourist guide who travels with you throughout your
whole visit. She makes all the arrangements for your domestic plane tickets,
hotels, meals, theatre tickets and generally takes care of all your travel problems.
In each city you pick up a local guide for that particular area. Therefore, you get
to know one guide very well and five or six other guides reasonably well. Our
guides were all young wome,n (under 30, I should imagine) college graduates,
and they speak English very well. They are earnest and patriotic to the very core.
They see absolutely no fault with their political or social system. I told our guide
that I found it really strange and unnatural that there was no criticism of
government policies. This idea was quite foreign to her way of thinking.
After travelling In the Soviet Union for three weeks you begin to understand their
viewpoint. It is a huge country isolated from Europe both by geography and
history. They just don't know a great deal about the rest of the world. In a
relatively short period of time (since 1917) they have made tremendous strides. In
1918 about 85-95% of the population was illiterate and now that figure is
reversed. I imagine that the most of the grandparents of our guides couldn't read
or write. We saw no obvious poverty, no beggars and the people look to be
warmly if not fashionably dressed. The older people seem rather drab but the
young people had just the same variety as you would see in Canada. The children
looked especially well dressed. In Italy, France, Greece and Mexico you see
people who look hungry and are almost in rags. Nowhere in the Soviet Union did
we see this and I don't believe you can hide this aspect of a national life.
In most cities there were miles and miles of apartment blocks. Most Canadians
would not like to live in such apartments but I suppose it depends on what you
had before. In the country, the guide pointed out summer cottages where people
escape from the life of the city. These looked pretty shabby but it must be a relief
to flee from mass housing and have a small garden where you can grow a few
vegetables and flowers. In fairness, very few countries are able to afford the
luxury of suburbs as we know them in Canada.
Everyone asks if we were free to go where we wanted. There was no restriction
on our movements. We were told not to take pictures of airplanes, airports and
railways. Near the end of our tour we were talking about our impressions of the
country and all agreed that we had no fear or apprehension about going out alone
day or night. You certainly can't say that about American cities or some Canadian
cities.
In Moscow we saw huge line-ups in front of the food stores. Our guide insisted
that there were no shortages but as nearly all women worked, everyone had to
shop before or after work. Once we saw a real mob scene as a man was selling
what looked like ordinary summer shoes right on the sidewalk. Our guide's
explanation was that some people just wanted to buy imported shoes (rather silly
people in her estimation). You can believe these explanations or not. They are
probably partially true as we saw jewellery stores just crammed with customers
and it is hard to believe that the merchandise was essential.
Despite the obvious progress that they have made there are things you can hardly
believe. Our hotel in Moscow was very comfortable. The rooms were not large
but very well designed and in every respect it was a first-class hotel. However for
at least two days the phones were not working and it was a real problem getting
up and down the elevators - the whole bank seemed to be out of order most of the
time. Many things were not well finished or in need of repair. It is perhaps
indicative of a society which has progressed too fast and lacks sufficient skilled
workmen.

We spent four days in Moscow. It is not a beautiful city - rather drab and has
what 1 call ''instant warehouse'' architecture. Window displays are rare which
adds to the drabness of the city. A culture which has no competitive
commercialism has no need to have attractive displays of
merchandise. Our first stop was the Kremlin which is a
walled city built by the Tsars. It contains the Tsar's palace,
about four churches and a modern government building. The
churches are not large as they were intended for the royal
family (I am not certain why they needed four) but they are
Church inside
Kremlin
fantastic inside. There is no use trying to describe them but
they are filled with priceless icons, beautiful chandeliers and
richly decorated - much more colourful than European churches. They are
beautifully maintained and crowded with tourists.
We visited museums, art galleries and of course the subway. As you have
probably heard, the subway is one of the wonders of the world. Not only are the
trains clean and fast but each station is like an art gallery. Each
one is different. The one near our hotel had chandeliers worthy of
a royal palace. We thought we might try traveling on it on our own
one day but we couldn't figure out how you knew whether you
were going north or south. We asked our guide and her answer
was “We don't discriminate between north and south.” She made
this statement as if it was a virtue on a par with no racial
Large Bell discrimination. I've decided not to try it on our own.
inside Kremlin
We couldn't get tickets for the Bolshoi
but we saw a ballet from Uzbekistan and it was
excellent. Ballet is not George's favourite thing but he
agreed that the chorus was excellent. The last scene
was spectacular. The young couple die, the curtain
descends but it is a lacy, gossamer curtain and you see
the lovers slowly being re-united in death. Mausoleums
In the Soviet Union it is just not done to keep your coat in restaurants, theatres or
museums. In the theatre you have great difficult getting by an usher with a coat.
One of our tour members fought a real battle with an usher to keep a thin plastic
rain coat. The first performance we attended we groaned at the thought of the long
wait at the end of the ballet. The audiences are huge - not a vacant seat and one
theatre contained 6,000 seats. We didn't need to worry. The cloakrooms are
masterpieces of efficiency. They are not pokey little rooms but long rooms
divided into numerical sections. When you check your coat (free of change) you
are given a disc with a number on it. At the end of the performance, you take your
disc to the correct section and in a few minutes you have your coat. Of course,
there are no tips included anywhere In Russia. The maids in the hotel are very
happy to receive small gifts such as candy or cigarettes but would be offended if
offered money.
Many boys and some adults collect national pins. We had taken quite a few
maple leaf pins with us. They would point to your pin and, most of the time, offer
you a Russian pin in return. We have quite a few pins with Lenin on them. One
boy who wanted a pin didn't show any sign of recognition when we said
‘‘Canada’’ but his face lit up when one of our tour members said ''Wayne
Gretsky''. That name he knew.
We visited the Pushkin art gallery where they have an outstanding collection of
French impressionists and Rembrandts. They had belonged to a wealthy Russian
and had been nationalized after the ''GREAT OCTOBER REVOLUTION.” All
the guides talk in capital letters about the revolution and the last war which they
call the GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR.
We also visited the Palaces of Economic Achievement. These are permanent
exhibitions and are found in almost every city. They contain exhibitions devoted
to agriculture, industry, engineering, fine arts, etc. We saw very interesting
displays of regional handicrafts, embroidery, ceramics, woodcarving, weaving,
and so on.
Outside of Moscow we visited Tsar's summer residence. It has a beautiful location
but unfortunately the palace his disappeared. There is a lovely church and several
buildings which date from the 18th century.
 As we prepared to leave Moscow, one of our tour members solved in ''the case of
the missing key.” In the Soviet Union the keys are not kept at the registration desk
but by a lady on your floor. She or her replacement is on duty 24 hours a day and
she looks after everything on that floor. She keeps the room keys, supervises the
cleaning staff, gets mineral water and generally looks after room service. Our tour
member insisted that she had turned in her key but the ''key lady'' said she had not.
She was so upset that you felt that if we did not find the key she might be sent to
Siberia. At the last moment our tour member found the key in her purse. A bit
embarrassing but the key lady seemed to be happy. Another time the key lady
accused a couple in our tour of taking the towels. To say the least, they were
highly insulted. It turned out that a maid had removed the towels immediately
after they had left the room. On another occasion we asked for an extra tumbler.
This caused great consternation until she realized that we had not broken one but
just wanted an extra one. They must be responsible for every single item on the
floor.
After four days in Moscow we flew to Sanarkand. Russian planes are not
luxurious and fairly cramped. They are always crowded and boarding is chaotic.
The luggage check only takes place as everyone is boarding so it seems to take
ages. There is no seat selection and it’s bedlam until everyone gets settled. It is a
little embarrassing but tourists have priority. There will be a great mob at the foot
of the gangplank but your guide will barge ahead. The crowd parts and you board
ahead of the local people. No one seems to show any resentment - perhaps they
believe that tourists are a little simpleminded and helpless.
Our hotel in Samarkand was not as modern as in Moscow but the rooms were
well designed and had very good beds. As a matter of fact the beds were good in
every hotel, which is wonderful for people with back problems. The bathroom
was a disaster area - old chipped tiles which looked dirty. There was a shower but
would you believe no shower stall. When you had a shower, water swirled over
the whole bathroom. Incidentally only in about half the hotels were there plugs
for the bath or basin. We had read about this and carried plugs.
Samarkand was a famous oasis on the ancient silk route
from China to Europe. The people are very different from
the Muscovites. They are of Persian stock and of the
Muslem faith. Many women still wear native dress which

Market in Samarkand
is a multi-striped silk with Turkish-type trousers. Many men and women wear a
little embroidered skull cap. Some of the old men look like biblical shepherds just
down from the hills.
Samarand is dry and dusty but they grow beautiful roses and cana lilies which are
more beautiful from a distance as they don't seem to
weed or cultivate the flower beds. The mosques and
mausoleums are wonderful - beautiful blue domes with
intricate mosaic tiles and lacy stonework. Like the
churches, they are now museums but the government is
doing a tremendous amount of stork to restore them to Market in Samarkand
their former glory.
Samarand is steeped in history. There was a civilization here 2500 B.C.
Alexander the Great conquered it. Genghis Khan destroyed it and Tamerlane
made it the capital of his empire which stretched from Delhi to Baghdad and
Damascus. Tamerlane's grandson Ulugbek built an observatory, made accurate
star charts and calculated the length of the year within thirty seconds. You can see
the ruins of his observatory a short distance outside the city.
Our next stopping place was Dushanbe, a very new city. Are had a delightful
morning at a nursery school. Young mothers in Canada would be envious of the
facilities and staff of these
schools. The teachers are very
kind and gentle but they train the
children to do very good
handiwork. Parents can bring the
children as early 7:30 am and
Nursery School
Varsob River Gorge pick them up as late as 7 pm. The
cost is nominal and I believe it
depends somewhat on the income of the parents. The children are fed and have
lovely dormitories for afternoon naps. At the end of the morning they put on a
delightful concert of songs and folkdances. The oldest child would be about six
and the youngest about two years of age.
We took a drive out in the country and it was fascinating to see the bare rocky
hills. You can begin to appreciate what an oasis meant to travellers in the Middle
Ages.
Our next stop (an hour's flight) was Tashkent. The city was almost totally
destroyed by an earthquake in the l960s. They have achieved wonders of
reconstruction after such devastation. All parts of the Soviet Union contributed in
the re-building and the different quarters of the city are now named after the other
republics.
We went to the opera in the evening and saw ''Madam Butterfly.`` The American
Consul looked like Frankenstein and the wife of the naval officer, like a blowsy
bar girl. We wondered if it was deliberate or if they thought Americans looked
like that. However, the singing was very good, especially Butterfly and the opera
house was magnificent. Like every performance we attended, it was packed.
Perhaps when you live in those drab apartment buildings, you welcome every
opportunity to go to the theatre to hear music, enjoy colourful stage sets and
costumes. Despite the beautiful opera house, the bathroom was a horrid smelly
little room with four cubicles. There was not a huge line-up so perhaps they have
better control than Canadians. Our guide would never admit that there were any
flaws in the Soviet Union but she did smile when I said that I had an idea for a
great cultural exchange - kindergarten specialists for our plumbers.
In this region you see people with solid gold teeth. Our guide said that the old
people had gold fillings because enamel fillings were unknown when they were
young. However, we were also told that many young people consider this a fine
investment and secure life savings. (How would you feel if you inherited your
mother's gold teeth? Probably quite content if the price of gold was high.) I
believe this story rather than our guide's version because we sew many young
people with a solid gold smile.
Tashkent is a city of two million and the majority of them are Muslims. Despite
this, there is only one functioning mosque and that only on pledges. They say they
do not persecute religious convictions but certainly it is not encouraged. Of
course, the Communists view religious belief of any kind, Christian, Muslim or
Jewish, as simply a primitive superstition that will die when people are educated.
It seems ironic that our churches are often half empty and the congregation is very
elderly while Russian churches are filled with tourists.
From Tashkent we flew to Sochi on the Black Sea which is much like the Riviera.
At has a beautiful coastline with the hills behind dotted with palm and cypress
trees. I went in swimming every day - the water was

Square outside Hotel in

Sochi
quite cold but invigorating. Up in the hills there are many sanatoriums where
people go to convalesce after an illness or just to rest and relax. With a voucher
from the union the cost is minimal. There are also spas where they drink the
mineral water which they believe cures many ills from arthritis to high blood
pressure. Many Europeans have this faith in spas but it is not shared by many
Canadians.
Our hotel was lovely but the first night we discovered that our wash basin was not
properly connected to the drain pipe and the water just ran out on the floor. The
first night we managed to catch the water in a plastic container and fortunately got
a plumber the next day. Another little note about plumbing - often the pressure
was not sufficiently strong to carry away the toilet paper. We think perhaps they
put the paper in a waste basket which is why so many public toilets smell so
awful.
A real mystery occurred in Sochi. One day our hall was filled with new beds so
could hardly reach the elevators. When we returned from dinner we discovered
that in every room, one bed had been removed and a new bed moved in. As the
old beds were practically brand new, it didn't seem to make sense. In addition the
old bed was now on the balcony which made it a little difficult to sit and enjoy the
evening breeze. We thought perhaps some factory had simply turned out more
beds than needed but then noted that the new beds cane from Finland. Perhaps
they have a commercial treaty with Finland and simply must accept more beds
whether they need them or not. We also wondered if they would ever move the
old bed from the balcony or would it just stay out there in the wind and rain.
The most fantastic sight in Sochi was to watch the Finns and Germans working
out on the beach before breakfast - they jogged or did
exercises. It was like watching dozens of football teams
stretching and pulling every muscle in their body. Despite
the fact that the women are fat with simply rolls of excess
flesh ground the middle, they all wear bikinis. I saw one
fat woman in her bikini sitting on the beach blowing up
Garden in Sochi
an air mattress. I began to wonder if she was getting
fatter or the mattress.
The Moscow Circus was in Sochi and we managed to get tickets. Much to our
surprise it was on ice and it is fantastic what they can get the animals and birds lo
do. Doves, a hawk and a vulture work together in one act and their wings are not
clipped. The bears played a hockey game and it was a riot. I always feel thought I
shouldn't be amused by such acts as I don't think the animals are really happy but
you couldn’t help laughing as the bears stick-handled across the ice.
We visited a State tea plantation and afterwards had tea in an inn built in the style
of the last century and were entertained by folk songs and Balalaika players. We
saw a great collection of samovars. I thought they made tea in the samovar but
they just boil the water in them. A tea infusion is made in a small pot and then
water added from the samovar. Almost without exception you get good, hot tea in
Russia. The samovars are all electric now but they used to be heated by charcoal.
From Sochi we flew to Kiev the principal city of the Ukraine - the landscape
reminds you of the prairies. It is a very attractive city. We visited a number of
beautiful churches and a very old monastery. The
monastery is on the banks of the Dneiperr and in the banks
there are caves which were used by prehistoric man. The
monks used these caves to bury their dead and due to the
particular quality of the soil and climate, the bodies
mummified. In the Middle Ages, this was deemed a
Monastery in Kiev
miracle and proof of sainthood. The monastery became
wealthy from the donations of the pilgrims.
The Germans used some of the buildings during the last
war, stole a lot of the treasures and blew up the actual
Monastery before they left. However, the church and
some other buildings remain and have been restored. We
went down into the catacombs and it was an eerie
experience.
We saw a modern ballet in Kiev, ''Olga'', and thoroughly
enjoyed it. There was a little boy in it who looked about St Sofia in Kiev(?)
four. He didn't dance but played his part beautifully.
In Kiev we saw an exhibition of Ukrainian handicrafts – weaving, embroidery,
ceramics, wood-working, etc. We didn't see anything in the
shops which came anywhere close to this work.
 Our guide in Kiev told us about her family during the war. Two of her aunts were
hung by the Nazis, two uncles killed and another Just disappeared. By the end of
the war they were living in an underground shelter. They had one pair of boots
between twelve people and her mother said her only clothing was one skirt
War Memorial
and one jacket. We forget the terribly suffering of the Russian people
during the last war - 20 million killed and countless villages and cities
destroyed. You can begin to appreciate why they feel so threatened.
There is a very moving war memorial in Kiev - a huge stainless statue dominates
a hill. Underground there are larger than life bronze figures representing the
soldiers, the resistance fighters and the some front. Unfortunately we couldn't get
a picture as George didn't have a flash. I don't think I have ever seen a war
memorial that moved me so much.
From Kiev we flew to Leningrad and our hotel was beautiful – it was built by the
Swedes. Unfortunately they had a smorgasbord instead of a dining room. The
food was terrible and the room was crowded and noisy.
Our guide in Leningrad was very pretty dark girl who made the history of the city
come alive. In 1905 the peasants marched in the thousands carrying ikons and
pictures of the Tsar. They were starving and innocently believed that the Tsar
would help them if he only knew of their plight. The cops fired on them and many
died in the snow that December day and most historians believe that was the
beginning of the revolution and the end of “Holy Russia.”
There is no use trying to describe Leningrad as the churches and castles are
fantastic. The Peter and Paul Fortress which was always used as a political prison
is a gloomy depressing place which just have been horrible in the winter. We
spent three hours in the hermitage and walked the three kilometres and of course
didn't begin to see even half of it. Like the Louvre, you would have to spend
weeks to have any idea of its contents. The most remarkable palace is that of
Catharine the Great. The Germans used it in the last war (the Russians never say
Germans but always “Nazis”) and before they retreated they blew it up. In every
room there is a photo of the destruction - the building
was just a shell and the roof was gone. They have
restored it completely - the floors are mosaics of
many different woofs and each room has a different
design. They have restored all the gold, marble and

Revolutionary Square in
Leningrad
paintings and murals of the original 18th century castle. It really is an incredible
undertaking and they say it will take another twenty years before it is finished.
In Leningrad we had a gala dinner. The dinner was terrific but the entertainment
left much to be desired. It was the first time I had tasted red caviar and I could
develop a taste for it. It got so noisy and hot in the room that George and I
retreated to the lobby. Evelyn joined us and insisted that we come back for a time
and much to my astonishment they brought in a birthday cake for me. Everyone in
the restaurant ended up by singing Happy Birthday' and I shared my cake with
Germans, Japanese and Americans. My birthday was actually the next day but we
were going to be leaving Leningrad early in the morning. I don't suppose I will
ever celebrate a birthday in a stranger place.
The day before our gala dinner we attended a terrific concert of folk dancing and
singing. Impossible to describe the colourful costumes end the fabulous dancing
but the concert is very fast-paced with a great variety of dancing.
We flew back to Moscow and then departed the next day from our hotel at the
ungodly hour of 1 am. As we huddled down in the bus to go to the airport, our
guide who had been with us for three weeks chose that moment to give us a
lecture on the virtues of the ''peace loving Soviet Union.” I felt it was deliberate
propaganda as we had no time or energy to rebut her augment that the whole
cause of tension in the World was due to the American Government. However,
we did rouse ourselves enough to state energetically that Russia had to accept
some of the responsibility for world tension. Ted pointed put that twelve
Canadians had been lost in the Korean plane disaster, and their ambassador in
Ottawa would not even accept our note or express any regret of the loss of
innocent lives. She seemed quite astounded when we told her that we feared the
policies of her government. When you are travelling through the Soviet Union
you can begin to understand their pride in their achievements and also their fear.
Again we went through the rather unnerving experience of immigration but the
custom officials were very casual. Getting on the Swiss Air plane seemed like
getting home. We didn't realize how much we had missed what I would have to
call commercial charm. The stewardesses seemed so beautiful and charming. The
smiles probably don't mean a great deal but it gives you a sense of welcome and
of course Swiss Air pamper up you to the utmost degree. Everyone in the Soviet
Union was very nice to us but they simply lack that graciousness which probably
develops in a competitive economy.
At the end of our long journey it was good to see our friend Don waiting for us at
the airport. We spent the night with Don and Fran and then rushed home to see
our pets. Our cats give us a restrained welcome but Jane was absolutely frantic
with excitement.
We got our pictures back and I wish you could see them because they would
make my account much more understandable. It was a terrific experience and
made me want to read much more about the Soviet Union. When we were in
Sochi, Ted held a communion service at 8 am on the Sunday morning. He took as
his text ''Render unto Caesar.....” and it brought into focus for me the whole trip.
We were visiting a country where everything was given to the state and we were
seeing a secular religion. Everywhere there were pictures and statues of Lenin.
One Dutch tourist we met said “I have seen Lenin sitting, standing, in paintings
and in sculptures. Today I am going to the Kremlin. I want to see him dead.” We
were highly amused by this as it perfectly expressed our own weariness of seeing
Lenin everywhere and continually being told of his many virtues. But Lenin and
his ideas will not die and we became aware that he and this party had changed the
country from a backward, poverty-stricken nation to a world power. It is
something we will have to live with and we hope and pray that we can live in
peace.