It begins with an essay
It Starts with an Essay Having marked essays in a number of countries and written by people from many nationalities, it is interesting to note the relationship between essay construction, how people argue and ultimately, how their judicial and political systems function. With essays, there are two basic approaches. The first method is to start […]
Olga’s Story
Watch the video Olga speaks about her life in her home country of Belarus on the pre war borderlands of Poland and the Soviet Union, before, during and after WW2…..
The Battle of Britain
Have you heard of the Battle of Britain – 80 years this month? Have you heard of the Battle of Britain which started 80 years ago this August?’ I asked my Belarusian colleague. ‘No, ’ she asked, ‘What was that?’ ‘It’s when Hitler’s Germany tried to invade Britain in what was called ‘Operation Sea Lion,’ […]
All dressed up
All Dressed Up The Female Folk Costume Tradition in Belarus Belarusian folk costumes are a significant feature of Belarus’s national identity. They are shown in books on Belarus for tourists, by folk groups and occasionally worn at officially sponsored events to underscore Belarusian credentials. Outside these occasions, Belarusian folk costumes are embedded in the national […]
Nearly gone – but not forgotten?
Nearly Gone, but not Forgotten One of my early realisations in coming to Belarus was that, given how significant the Jewish imprint on the region had been, how little of it remains unrecognised as part of the area’s unique heritage. How it happened For 800 years until WW2, the area of present day Belarus was […]
The Fear of Failure
The Fear of Failure Some years ago I was sitting with some American friends of Eastern European origin, looking back to our childhood. Somebody remarked that no matter how well he did in their exam, their Eastern European parents always said ‘why didn’t you do better?’ The rest of the group shrieked with laughter. […]
Of Bikes and Men
Of Bikes and Men There has been a curious invasion in Minsk. I would like to say ‘of bicycles’, but it’s rather ‘of bicycle lanes’. Yet these bicycle lanes are lacking in bicycles. Perhaps this heralds a potential future renaissance of the bike – an explosion of bicycles to compete with the Netherlands or Denmark? […]
The Minsk Metro
The Minsk Metro The Minsk Metro has its own etiquette in a mini version of Belarusian society. First of all, you can never quite shake off the feeling of being watched. Not that this is particularly unusual in a metro anywhere else in the world, whatever the degree of authoritarian government. It’s just that you […]
Наша мова – Our Language 2
When Lukashenko’s came to power in 1994, he announced a referendum which took place a year later. In it, amongst other things, there was the proposal to replace the white- red-white flag of independent Belarus with a green-red flag similar to the old Soviet Belorussian flag and to allow Russian as the official language alongside […]
Наша мова – Our Language 1
Наша мова – Our Language 1 Belarusian is one of the two official languages of Belarus, but it is classed as an endangered language. That’s because the other language is Russian which has gradually usurped Belarusian in the country of its birth. While some might welcome the demise of the Belarusian language in favour of […]