One of the things that I love about journalism is that I am always learning new things. And yesterday morning, I got an especially big dose of learning.

Like most people, I have always thought of the word "Kremlin" in the singular, with a capital K. I believed that it referred solely to the giant walled complex at the center of Moscow, and I used "Kremlin" as being synonymous with "government" since the Moscow site is where Russia's president... more

Valdivostok, a destination for fine dining?

So says Saveur magazine, which does not dole out food compliments lightly, in its September issue.

In a story entitled "Land of Plenty", writer Sharon Hudgins takes readers to the biggest city in Russia's Far East, a place she last visited in 1993-1994. Back then, she and her husband were teaching economics and communications at a university there. Now, she is astounded by the changes: modern buildings, new roads, and most of all: lots and lots of food and beverage options.... more

The potato crop is in and it is a beaut. Some easy digging into the hills turned up delicious Yukon Golds, Red Bliss and Purple Peruvians. And if you are wondering why they are not pictured here, the answer is simple: The entire 7-pound harvest was eaten before I could remember to get the camera down from the shelf.

Now I'm sure that those of you who live on farms or grew up on them are laughing hysterically over somebody making a fuss over a 7-pound harvest. But given that this was my big attempt to grow the foods that my two Russia-born boys... more

After I completed the Russian culture calendar for August, I had another dilemma to deal with: Why was there so much Tchaikovsky on it?

At first, I thought it might be an anniversary that hadn't popped up on the Russian calendar I've set up. But no: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in what is now the Republic of Udmurtia (bordering on Perm krai) on May 7, 1840... more

If you want to brush up on your Russian culture, you can listen to a lot of Tchaikovsky around the United States this month.

Tonight at 6:30 p.m., Chicago's Grant Park Music Festival will feature a program of Sibelius and Tchaikovsky, including his Swan Lake Suite. The Russian composer's Violin Concerto is on the program on August 8, and there will also Russian music--pieces by Rimsky-Korsakov and Shostakovich on August 3 and 4 All the concerts are free.

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra will perform... more

It's too early to be thinking about the three "Rs" here, but four areas of Russia have revealed school curriculum plans for the fall that may surprise you.

According to a feature story on Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty last Friday, it will be mandatory for schools in four regions to teach the Russian Orthodox religion this fall. Ten other regions will have the choice of teaching about the religion or not.

The four mandatory regions are Belgorod,... more

It's summertime and that, to me, means it's time for a cooling, refreshing beverage. To many Russians, that beverage is kvas.

The first time I ever set foot in Russia, back when it was still the Soviet Union, it was summer. I can remember seeing these funny little tank trucks marked with the letters KBAC (the Russian spelling of kvas) parked near street corners and parks in Moscow and St. Petersburg. People would go up to them and, with their own glass or a communal cup, get some sort of murky-looking liquid. Being ever the intrepid sort,... more

Want to help your adopted child explore his or her Russian heritage? Here are some cultural events taking place in the U.S. this month.

The first event came up in my July search, but it appears to be a permanent exhibit. The Denver Museum of Nature & Science has devoted a section of its gems and minerals collection to the gemstone sculptures created by Vasily Konovalenko. Many of the pieces draw on themes from Russian folk tales.

If you are in... more

When you travel to Russia on your adoption journeys, chances are good you'll be seeing a lot of in-flight movies. Particularly if you travel to the Russian Far East, as I did twice in 2005.

Now I realize that in-flight entertainment is rarely the best indication of a movie maker's cinematic prowess. Forgoing the standard G, PG-13, etc. ratings system, a dear friend of mine rates movies this way: Big Screen, Small Screen, Airplane and Airplane No Sound. And most of the movies I saw on my trips to Sakhalin definitely fell into the latter category. So it... more

If there is one sight you can count on seeing no matter where your Russian adoption journey takes you, it is a Russian Orthodox church. There has been a huge resurgence in religion since the demise of the Soviet Union, and Russians have poured a lot of energy into restoring, rebuilding and building churches from scratch.

Some will be small, like the boxlike, two-room church near my younger son's orphanage on Sakhalin Island. Some will be huge and magnificent, like the... more