INTAG Newsletter - Vol. 9, Issue 2

In The Answer to Your Country's Future

Written by Dustin "DP" Peffer, a Junior at Penn State

Some of the future leaders of Russia
(view a larger image)

During the evening of the previous Thursday, I tagged along to a student gathering with one of our Russian guides, Nadya. She was attending a meeting of Grazhdanskaya Smena, the Civil Shift. This organization is a Moscow-based student club that enables students from all the universities of Moscow to come together and work on projects ranging from class works, to civic duty activities, to business plans.

This club is two years old and gives students from more than fifty different universities a common forum in which to work together. The three main areas of the club are Activities, Government, and Business. I found this to be somewhat similar to American student clubs, but quite interesting because of the organization’s supra-university standing. This model seems almost alien, American students are generally more accustomed to university-based clubs that usually don’t interact with clubs from other schools. I am sure this is partly to blame due to the distances between American educational centers.

The Activities branch organizes various things for students to do on holidays and weekends, and might also be called the Social branch. The Government organization works with the Moscow government and proposes ideas that could be implemented and also sends students to work with officials from each of the city’s thirty-nine districts in something akin to an internship program. The Business side of Grazhdanskaya Smena allows students to make proposals for current businesses or for a new business. If the idea is good enough, the students can organize their enterprises and may receive funding from the club (provided by Moscow’s government budget).

Although I merely sat quietly on a couch and watched the proceedings, I could sense the camaraderie and willingness of the students to work together for their common benefit. As Nadya told me, it allows students to present their problems and hear many various viewpoints and solutions; the biggest thing was working towards and arriving at a solution that suited everyone. A large banner on the wall read, “You are in the answer to your country’s future,” and the smiling portrait of Putin on the opposite wall left me feeling that I was in the company of the future leaders of this great country.

Also in this Issue...

Russian Agriculture by Allison Justice

"Our tour guide stated that agriculture was quite a growing industry for Russia and surely will continue to increase. ... We ended our trip with lunch at the plant which was very tasty. It’s funny that you can pet the cow in the morning and eat it in the afternoon!"
Bleni, Bleni Everywhere by Glen Adkins

"... we celebrated a very famous Russian holiday called Maslinnesa Week. This week is dedicated to the celebration of the coming of spring, although temperatures remain to stay in the negatives and even drop as low as – 22 degrees Fahrenheit on some nights. "
MSAU: Our Home Away from Home by John Weston

MSAU (or Moscow State Agro-engineering University) is considered one of the largest and perhaps oldest centers for training engineering personnel for the agricultural field...During the early 1940's, close to 500 students and faculty left the university to help fight in the war. The institute continued to train students and specialists, and even aided in the repair and development of military machines and weapons.

Russian Agriculture

Writen by Allison Justice, a Senior at Clemson University

Our first excursion to an agricultural facility was to a dairy farm, meat processing plant, and a creamery. The name of farm was “Dmitrova” and the name of the processing facilities was “Dmitrogorskoe.” To get here, we took an hour and a half bus ride out of Moscow north to the city of Konokovo. The first facility visited was the dairy farmwhich was only three years old. At this farm, there are currently 800 head of cattle with 400 giving milk. The cows are milked three times a day to give around 9000-10000 liters per day… this was a very large farm! Our tour guide stated that agriculture was quite a growing industry for Russia and surely will continue to increase. This farm processes their own milk in a plant very close in proximity. We were able to tour where the cows were milked, held, and where the fed is stored and made. During the winter months, the cows are fed silage, which is made of corn grown at the farm in the summer months. During the summer months, the cows graze on Russian Rye Grass.

Next, we went a beef processing facility. I had never been in a meat processing plant, so this was very interesting for me, AT FIRST. We go through a door that led to steps going down into the “meat dungeon,” from here there is enough sausage hanging on racks and in production that could feed the world for five years… ok, maybe three years. When seeing this it was amazing, but then the smell of warm raw meat kicked in… I definitely started to feel light headed! Besides the smell and walking in blood, it was fascinating.

I would imagine that an American plant would fairly different because each country demands different types of meat. When I speak of sausage, it’s not the same as we would think of in the US. Americans would consider Russian sausage more like bologna or bratwurst. Also in this plant, there was one special room where pelmini was made by many women. The meat made in this factory is sold in most stores around Moscow.

Dustin and the never-ending sausage room
(view a larger image)

The final place we visited was a creamery. Here sour cream, cottage cheese, milk, kefir, and butter is made. To explain things- we would describe kefir as thick milk that has soured. Russians drink this frequently and say that it has enzymes that help digestion, I guess like the American yogurt, activa. One thing that I found very surprising was that much of their milk is packaged in small bags. Supposedly, this makes the milk cheaper, but seems like a nuisance after the first time it is opened.

We ended our trip with lunch at the plant which was very tasty. It’s funny that you can pet the cow in the morning and eat it in the afternoon!

Bleni, Bleni Everywhere!!!

Writen by Glen Adkins, a Freshman at Clemson University

Last week, February 11 – 17, we celebrated a very famous Russian holiday called Maslinnesa Week.

John and Glen eating Bleni
(pancakes) in Red Square
(view a larger image) .

This week is dedicated to the celebration of the coming of spring, although temperatures remain to stay in the negatives and even drop as low as – 22 degrees Fahrenheit on some nights. This week is celebrated by eating lots and lots of bleni, or should I say pancakes. Upon every street corner one can find pancakes being sold by vendors that are stuffed with everything from honey to ham and cheese to fried chicken to cottage cheese and salmon.

But if you want to go traditional you must eat your pancake with caviar. The pancake is so popular during this week because in Russia the pancake is symbolic of the sun because of its round shape. Also during this week it is tradition to burn a Chu-Che-La, more commonly known to Americans as a scarecrow. The burning of the scarecrow represents winter melting away and the arrival of spring. This week is also celebrated by the partaking of some traditional Russian games. These games include tug a war, a game that involves trying to knock your opponent off of a balance beam with a bag of feathers and many other interesting games. Along with all the celebration comes a very serious day at the end of the week. On Sunday many Russians celebrate what they consider a day of forgiving. It is a day when they ask God to forgive them for their wrong doings and it is also a time of forgiving and asking to be forgiven by friends and family.

MSAU: Our Home Away from Home

Writen by John Weston, a Junior at Clemson University

We've been studying here at MSAU for over a month now, but what exactly is this place that serves as our university? MSAU (or Moscow State Agro-engineering University) is considered one of the largest and perhaps oldest centers for training engineering personnel for the agricultural field. It currently serves for the training of over 3500 students in many different specialties.

The university was founded in 1930 by a number of scientists and teachers, among them Vasiliy P. Goryachkin for whom the university is now named. Originally called, "MIMESKH" (or the Moscow Institute of Mechanization and Electrification of Agriculture) the main academy branched off of the old Timiryazev University. Unfortunately, the formation of the institute did not occur without problems. In the beginning, there were difficulties in organizing and obtaining the necessary resources needed to run the institute effectively. They lacked the laboratories and study halls that they required, and were forced to build many new buildings. The university experienced a constantly changing teaching staff, and in the first 10 years of its existence the university staff replaced their director 9 times. During the early 1940's, close to 500 students and faculty left the university to help fight in the war. The institute continued to train students and specialists, and even aided in the repair and development of military machines and weapons. As the German army approached Moscow, the university was completely evacuated and its literature and teaching resources were disseminated to other institutions and technical schools. In 1943, the students returned and resumed their scientific and educational work. The attendance at the college increased to over 1500 students in the first years after World War II.

The symbol of our
new university

The student body has continued to increase, and now MSAU produces many specialists and engineers that work here in Russia and abroad.

Nowadays, when looking at MSAU you might see a conglomeration of buildings all nestled around the same area. A main street, open only to pedestrians, connects the main buildings of the university. Walking down the street, you might see statues of Goryachkin or vehicles on pedestals commemorating the university's part in World War II. Also, there are tremendous fields used for agricultural experimentation. Apparently, Lenin had given the land to Timiryazev University for agricultural study. In a city where land is sorely needed, it’s amazing that the university can retain this much acreage. Although other parts of the city might have its land requisitioned, few people question the university's claim on the land. Lenin's word still holds a lot of value even almost 100 years later.

The university also owns a series of hostels that houses not only faculty and staff, but students as well. We American students actually live in hostel number 5 along with a number of Russian students that we study with.

The majority of students that we've met here are majoring in the pedagogical aspects of agricultural engineering. They all seem very motivated, and are quick learners (even when being taught in a foreign language!).

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