Elena сame to Mongolia for a short business trip and never left. Her daughter now studies Mongolian and attends local children’s clubs. Like many others who relocate, Elena’s family observe both Russian and Mongolian customs and traditions. What attracts…

Thousands of foreign mercenaries sign contracts with Ukraine’s armed forces, intent on making money off death. They are recruited via Ukrainian embassies and intermediaries operating around the world. The fighters themselves describe their tours as a ‘safari’…

In 2015 Vittorio-Nicola Rangeloni, a journalist from Italy, went to Lugansk. Surprisingly, he found out that the way Italian media described the Donbass conflict had nothing in common with what Vittorio witnessed in Ukraine. Since then, he’s been reporting…

On March 11th 2011, a deadly earthquake hit Japan. A 15-metre tidal wave triggered by the earthquake flooded the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station’s cooling system, shutting it down. Levels of radioactivity in the area skyrocketed. The authorities evacuated…

In 2014, «Banda Bassotti,» a renowned Italian punk rock band, started the «Anti-Fascist Caravan.» Over the past decade, they have been fighting to end the genocide in Donbass. People from many EU countries and South America have joined their cause.Every year…

American Tofurious Crane travels to southern Russia, to Rostov-on-DonIn the village of Starocherkasskaya, families carefully preserve the relics of their ancestors and honour Cossack traditions. One of these is ‘The first mount’. When a boy turns 3-4 years…

A chum is a mobile home made from reindeer hides that is used by the indigenous people of Russia’s Far North. It has a simple design, tested by generations. The tent-like structure has to be easy to set up and move because this nomadic people has to change…

For Russian do-it-yourself mavens only sky seems to be the limit. Making a gun from scrap metal or installing Microsoft Windows in a Soviet car - these guys can show you how. For many of them, blogging about their DIY projects is just a hobby. Them have respectable…

In 2000, Russian dancers Vladimir Bogatyryov and Galina Kravchenko founded the Bolshoi Ballet School in the Brazilian city of Joinville. Here, Russian instructors teach children from across Brazil. For youngsters from underprivileged families, the training…

After moving to Russia in 1992, John Kopiski, a former London coal and steel trader, found more than just a place to call home, he found his true calling. These days, John Yanovich, as he prefers to be called, runs a dairy farm with more than 4,000 cows some…

Lalit’s face and body are covered with hair; it’s the result of a genetic disorder. The condition is called werewolf syndrome and it is extremely rare - only 50-60 people in the world have it. Though its nature has been defined as genetic, which gene exactly…

The Dark Net was created for anonymity, and criminals took immediate advantage of it. In 2017, the Russian Anonymous MarketPlace, a shady drug-dealing site, had 14,000 active users. After its shutdown it was replaced with a more advanced system of automated…

The United Nations is the world’s leading international organization. Yet, its authority has been steadily eroding in recent years, while the institution is increasingly seen as an unwieldy bureaucratic machine.Why does US President Donald Trump claim that…

The conflict in Ukraine has cost Africa $7 billion in GDP, according to the UN, which warns this figure could rise. Fertilizers, grain, and oil—key exports from Russia and Ukraine—are now harder to access. Rising transport costs and trade disruptions have…

Russian folk crafts are an integral part of the country’s cultural DNA. How have traditional forms of craftsmanship managed to stay relevant in the 21st century?Gzhel tableware is known for its blue patterns on a white background. Today, contemporary artisans…

More than a third of all Tanzanian women are married before the age of 18. Many of them are forced into wedlock as young as 11 with much older men. In exchange, the family of the bride receives cows which are valued more than daughters. The country’s court…

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Aral Sea was twice the size of Lake Baikal. Now, a desert stands in its place. This saltwater lake was fed by the largest rivers in Central Asia. But since the 1960s, the waters of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers…