CCSI Russian Puzzler


This was my first trip to Nizhnii Novgorod, and while I knew a lot about the economic development of the city, and its burgeoning nonprofit sector, I knew almost nothing about the city itself. I asked everyone I could -- Russian and American alike -- if they could recommend a hotel in the city. It seemed that there was only one hotel that regularly catered to foreign guests, called the Oktyabarskaya (October) hotel. However, we were on a tight budget, and the Oktyabarskaya was also the most expensive hotel in the area. Upon arriving in Nizhnii Novgorod, I had some scheduling mix ups that meant I didn't actually have a hotel reservation for my first night in the city, and I ended up at the hotel that was closest to the train station I arrived at. I was quite pleased when I arrived to see that the hotel, despite usually accomodating only Russian guests, was clean and comfortable, and all the signs were posted in English and Russian.

The sign to the right appeared at the landing on every floor. It warned guests not to smoke, and pointed the direction to the rooms on that floor. On the bottom it also pointed the way to the Dezhurnaya, or floor monitor. (Russian hotels still have a monitor on every floor that can provide room keys, a cup of tea, or information on the city). I noticed right away that the translation for "Dezhurnaya" appeared to be in another language. I puzzled for days over why every sign in the building would be translated into English, except this one phrase which appeared to be in Swedish-- or some language I didn't understand. The last day before I left, I spent a long time staring at it while waiting for the elevator. It suddenly came to me in a flash, and I had to laugh out loud. It made me feel infinitely better about my poor Russian speaking abilities.
Still don't get it? Ponder the translation of "Dezhurnaya". It actually is in English.
When you are ready to give up... [ click here ]

This site is the travelogue of the Center for Civil Society International's October 1997 trip to Russia.
Return to the beginning of the tour, or return to the CCSI Home Page to learn more about our work.

Center for Civil Society International is a nonprofit organization based in Seattle, Washington. We support the development of civil society by fostering relationships between the nonprofit sector in the West and and the grassroots and nonprofit organizations in the former Soviet Union. We do this by publishing information in books, pamphlets and on our Web site. This Web site is part of our effort to provide easily accessible information to the public and to raise awareness of the the important of a civil society outside the realms of business and government to support democracy and provide a safety net that the government can no longer provide.

To learn more about CCSI visit our Home page. There is more information about our activities through the "About CCSI" link. Also, be sure to visit our list of Russian nonprofit organizations currently operating in the Ekaterinburg area which is available under the "NIS Organizations" link from the home page.

CCSI Web site: http://www.friends-partners.org/~ccsi/