I Am The Milkman

"Hurry, we will be late." Not having much for me to do in Russia this haste was unusual. But unless we left now we would not be able to buy milk! Of course you can buy the store-bought milk at any time, but if you wanted the raw milk you had to hurry. It was a ten minute walk away. I carried my milk pail. We got there and waited in a short line to get our milk. It was a tank truck of some sort. The lady ladled the milk into our pail and we were done. The truck went to its next stop soon after, this is why we had had to hurry. The walk was rather nice-behind and through the multiple 5-story apartment neighborhood of my mother in law. But be careful, very careful when you cross a busy street. 

There are signs of decay everywhere. The abandoned theatre where Elena first saw one of her favorite movies, "Some Like It Hot." Better known here by its Russian name "In Jazz, Only Girls."  The theatre is from the Soviet era with a mural of a dramatic worker on the side, and a mural of Muromets. The Theatre was the largest in Murom, but was not economical. There seems to be some repair going on however. Building infrastructure is fine, but it must be productive infrastructure. Some of the abandoned stores are being renovated and are beginning to make a comeback. 

On the way back we went to the pensioner's market. I call it that because the pensioners with a garden spot grow extra food to sell to supplement their modest pensions. So the result was 12 sellers for 6 customers as each sold their own produce. We bought "bullheart" Tomatoes. This is a special variety from our area. The closest I can describe bullheart tomatoes is beefsteak tomatoes. Russians have not adopted national uniformity as we have. Most vegetables are not selected for the necessity to haul them a thousand miles. They are produced locally. And they taste much better. Everything tastes fresher.  

I enjoyed our walk but knew that I would not enjoy it as well if it was winter.

So today I was the Milkman. 

Oh BTW I shocked my mother-in-law when I told her that I said on Facebook that I was drinking raw milk. No proper Russian woman would do that! The milk pan is placed on the stove and boiled, cooled and then put in the refrigerator. 

We are returning home tomorrow so I will talk about the Russian transportation system to conclude my series about Russia.