Oscar-Winning Documentary “Moscow Strikes Back” – WW2 History: 1943 To 2010
May 9 marked the 65th anniversary of the end of the Great Patriotic War. The Victory Day has always been very special in my family growing up. We were fortunate and none of my family passed away in that war, but the pain and the suffering that engulfed the nation hit so hard that six and a half decades later, we still feel it.. of course, myself being the third generation survivor, I know it from the accounts of others, but this intangible legacy is inherited, it is almost inbred.
This year around May 9, I came across the footage that I never knew existed. A documentary titled "Moscow Strikes Back" was shot in October 1941 and documented one the bloodiest and most pivotal points in WW2 - the Battle of Moscow. The movie received an Oscar at the 15th Academy Awards ceremony in 1943, half a world a way in the sunny Los Angeles where the ravaging war on the Eastern front was but a concept on the movie screen. A unifying thread, the movie symbolized an era when the US and the USSR were still allies, fighting against the same evil.
Here is an excerpt:
After watching the movie, I did some digging to find out more about the people behind the footage. It turns out the Soviet Union had 258 wartime videographers. Of them, every second one was injured, every forth - was killed. Collectively, they shot 3.5 million meters of tape, every centimeter of which had to be torn from the grip of death.
But, how much has changed? Thinking of dozens of reporters and cameramen dying on the front lines around the world every year, I think we ought to give more respect to the people who still dare risk their lives to document history for us ... after all, tape is one of the few things remaining that does not lie. It is how we choose to use and interpret it that is sometimes questionable...
Pre-Easter Orthodox Lent: My Personal Journey
So, it is Orthodox lent time. Well, technically the Great Lent started on February 15. But, I decided to do at least one week of this year's lent anyway. So, here I am eating no meat, fish, sea food or dairy products since this Monday. I have two more days to go, and I have to say -- surprisingly, I am feeling good.
I am not the most devout Orthodox Christian, so I have never really lented in my life. I tried two or three years ago, and the most I could go for was three weeks. But, I kind of liked the experience of having to resist...
In the modern world, we are not used to having to resist anything. Within reason, we can usually get whatever we feel like -- be it food, clothes, cars or vacations. So, the notion of refusing your wishes can be odd.
The Orthodox lent also gets you to go through the torture of resisting your temptations all by yourself, unassisted. That is also something that I don't get a lot of in my life living in a first world nation. I mean, if you want to quit smoking, you just stick a plastic patch on your arm, and Nicorette does the trick for you. If you want to stop eating, you go to Jennie Craig and she will feed you the food that will make your slim. Again, the helping hand is always there if you want it. But, how often do we get to face our temptations all on our own? Hm.. Kind of scary, eh?
It is an interesting experience that can be daunting, but it is also something that I think all of us could use more of. It definitely opens your eyes to what is under-valued and how addicted you are to certain things in your life.
Meanwhile, here is a photo resume of some of the items that I can and can't eat while I am lenting for a week. Looks like I am in for some serious "soul cleansing"...
CAN EAT
CAN'T EAT
Top Ten Traditions No Winter Holiday Season In Russia Goes Without
Winter holidays are something Russians hold dear. It is the season when people really kick back and relax. Unlike here in North America, the holiday season in Russia stretches over good ten days: it is the dead season for business, and it becomes almost sacrilegious to work over holidays.
Now, let’s make it clear what holidays we are talking about – the majority of people in Russia identify as Orthodox Christian, so we also celebrate Christmas, just not on December 25th, but on January 7th. So, we celebrate Christmas after the New Year’s. But, the fact that the New Year's is celebrated ahead of Christmas, it is probably the staple holiday for most Russians. So, all the cooking and presents come around on December 31 with big parties that can go on for days. You know what I mean, if you ever partied with Russians on New Year's 
By Christmas time, most people are emotionally, physically and financially exhausted, so our Christmas is a much lesser celebration than the New Year’s is. In any case, winter holidays are so revered in Russia that there is now a set of traditions that no winter holiday season in Russia ever goes without. And, here is my take on the top 10!
Photo by Flickr user Absinthfairy
1. Elka, or Christmas tree – always in the center of any New Year’s celebration in Russia. The difference – people in Russia do not have the patience to put up their Christmas Trees a month before holidays the way it is done here. In fact, it is not uncommon to see someone drag a Christmas Tree into their apartment hours before the clock ticks midnight. But, once the Christmas Tree is hastily put together for the New Year’s Eve, it can stay there for ages. I remember in my family we were always so upset about the holidays being over that we refused to put away our Christmas Tree until February. Oh, and most Russians prefer to get real Christmas trees, the ones that have that fantastic pine smell. And, while I love, love, love real Christmas Trees, our family decided against getting the real ones, because we just could not get over the idea of wasting a whole tree every year. It is also not a common thing to put up Christmas lights around your house or balcony in Russia. Just not one of the traditions yet, but I am sure it will be picked up soon.
2. Last-minute gift shopping – here, we are no different. Russians like to take their time and many leave it until one day before the New Year’s to do their gift shopping. But, unlike in North America, where the last-minute Christmas shopping is usually associated with men, in Russia it is gender independent. People just do not stress much about the gifts, and the culture of consumerism that dominates North American Christmas is definitely not as out-of-proportion as it is here.
3. The dinner – yum! What is interesting about the New Year’s feast in Russia is that if someone did a random sampling of food from 100 different households across Russia on December 31 and compared it, chances are the food would be 90% similar. The staple items that absolutely have to be on the table are - seledka pod shuboi, Olivie salad, champagne, Napoleon cake and mandarin oranges.
Now, I am going to share my Mom’s recipes for two of the delicious foods I mentioned - seledka pod shuboi and Olivie salad. You have to try them. They are yummy!
seledka pod shuboi - Photo by Flickr user minas_h
seledka pod shuboi
This takes a bit of work, but it is yummy. Purchase seledka (salted herring ~ 300 grams; it is usually sold in many Russian or Polish food stores), remove all the bones and cut into small 1-cm pieces. Boil potatoes (4), beets (3) and eggs (4) separately. Grate potatoes, beets and eggs separately too. Mix each grated ingredient with mayo. Now, on a large dish lay out in layers one by one starting with a layer of the potato mix, followed by a layer of processed seledka. Cover up with a layer of chopped fresh onions, followed by a layer of grated boiled egg, than a layer of beet to top it up. Top that beet with more mayo (you will need ~400 grams in total). Let it stand in the fridge for about 1 hour to cool it down. That is it. Enjoy!
Olivie salad
Olivie salad - Photo by Flickr user belamaxx
Also takes time, but it is really, really good! Boil 4 eggs, 3 potatoes (in skins) and 2 carrots (also in skins). Prepare ~300 grams of your favourite meet (boiled or lightly fried, sausage will work too). You will also need a can of green sweet peas, 3-4 medium sized dill pickles, green onions and mayo. Cut the boiled eggs, potatoes (peel the skins), carrots (peel the skins) and pickles into small 0.5-cm cubes (the smaller, the better it looks). Cut the meet into slightly larger cubes. Chop the green onions. Mix everything together. Add the green peas, salt and mayo. Keep in the fridge for 30 minutes. It is ready to go!
But, back to our list of top ten New Year’s traditions…
Ironiya Sud'bi
4. Watching Ironiya Sud'bi – in all honesty, I think this is a cultural phenomenon. Here is the story. There is this New Year themed movie called Ironiya Sud'bi, which came out back in 1975 that quite literally gets watched every December 31st of every year in all of Russia. All major TV channels show it before midnight, and it has almost become a good omen for the next year to watch that movie on the New Year's Eve. And, the movie is really good, but everyone knows what is coming up next, people quote it as it goes, and for some mysterious reason, people still keep watching it. I guess, the only movie I can sort of compare it too is Home Alone: we have all seen that movie a million times, and yet there is something about that kid that just makes you want to watch that movie over and over again. It is kind of like that with Ironiya Sud'bi, but on a more cultural level.
5. Dressing up for the New Year’s depending on what Chinese calendar year it is – I know, this sounds weird. You might think, what does Chinese calendar have to do with the way New Year’s is being celebrated in Russia? But, Russians have always identified years with the corresponding animal in the Chinese calendar. It has just become a fun tradition to follow. Part of that following is dressing up on New Year’s in accordance with what lunar year is coming up – so, for example, year 2010 is the year of the tiger, and tigers have stripes on their skin, so I can guarantee people in Russia will show up for New Year’s parties in clothing with stripes this year. God forbid anyone wear bright colours because supposedly the tiger does not like bright things and that might ruin your whole next year. I know that it sounds ludicrous, but people genuinely believe in this kind of stuff. But, the craze does not stop there. Russian newspapers and magazines around this time of the year are filled with articles on how to decorate your dinner table and your house to “please” the year of the tiger, so you do not end up a mess by the end of it.
6. The New Year’s televised message from the President – classic! Ever since the late 90’s, watching the New Year’s message from the President minutes before midnight has become a tradition everyone actually waits for. Usually, the President talks about the past year: what went wrong, what was good. It is basically a wrap-up of the year past, and wishes for a good year to come. Interestingly, Vladimir Putin was the first President who took the New Year’s message “outdoors.” Previously, all of them were taped indoors, but Putin was the first one to escape the stuffy studio and deliver his message from inside Moscow’s heart – the Red Square. Here is President Medvedev's New Year's address from last year.
7. The midnight countdown – this one is huge because traditionally, the clock tower in Red Square – Kuranti has been used as the chief countdown clock for the country. The countdown was always broadcast on television, and it is with the last 12 beats that people would open champagne bottles and start celebrating.
8. The fireworks – fireworks are an absolute must at midnight on New Year’s. And, it gets so noisy and loud that the whole past-midnight commotion when car alarms get activated and windows get blown out has just become part of the celebrations.
9. Starting to celebrate the New Year’s as early as 3 PM on December 31 – this one is purely geographical. Russia has 11 different time zones – and given that many people have relatives and friends living in places like Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in the far East, they have to call them up at 3 PM to wish them a happy New Year because it is already midnight there.
10. The “Old” New Year – this one is completely and totally illogical to most Westerners. Because how can the New Year be “old”? Well, in Russia it can. It is celebrated on January 14, and it really is just the New Year celebrated according to the Julian calendar. Russia used the Julian calendar until 1918, after which it switched to the Gregorian calendar that was used everywhere else. It is a bit weird because the Christmas tradition did not change. The January 7th Christmas is the Julian calendar version of December 25th Gregorian calendar Christmas. But, everyone loves to celebrate New Year’s twice regardless, although the “old” New Year parties are definitely quieter.