when we stopped over in st petersburg for two days in 2002 during our baltic cruise , things still looked rather bleak .
while the roads and streets were generally in bad repair , a completeely new road had been constructed leadind to the summerpalace - and also to president putin's sommerhome !
our tourguide - a russian highschool teacher and interpreter - told us they had great hopess that president putin would be able to improve conditions for all russians - and particularly the people of st petersburg .
she said : "he is from st petersburg and we are sure he is going to look after us ! " .
we noticed that in the hermitage museum , a number of signs showed that the german natural gas giant "ruhrgas" had paid for restoration of many of the exhibits .
it seemed pretty clear that "ruhrgas" was "greasing the skids" to ensure favourable relations with the supplier of much of the gas being piped to germany .
it now seems that russia is cashing in on its gas and oil resources .
as the lead article in the "focus" section of saturday's "globe and mail" (toronto/canada) explains , russia is making good use of its resource revenue ; government loans are being repaid swiftly , pensions have been re-instated - and have even been increased , construction is booming and the formerly glum GUM department store is brimming with luxiry goods from around the world !
pls go to the link for the full article .
hbg
Quote:Russia, pumped
SHAWN MCCARTHY
From Saturday's Globe and Mail
MOSCOW ?- This city of 12 million has all the hallmarks of an oil-fired boomtown - traffic snarled at all hours of the day along roadways not built for three million cars, ubiquitous construction cranes hovering overhead, rampant consumerism in the luxury shops of the elite and the more prosaic housewares and electronic stores of the growing middle class.
Gone from the underpasses and Red Square itself are the legions of pensioners who just five years ago were begging and selling off family treasures to put food on the table. Flush with petro-rubles, the government of President Vladimir Putin cannot only pay their state pensions but has increased them.
A decade ago, the monumental GUM department store - which faces Lenin's Tomb and Kremlin walls across the famous square - offered only drab and shabby local merchandise. Now, it has more in common with New York's Fifth Avenue, boasting designer boutiques for Louis Vuitton, Mexx, Burberry and Russia's own Bosco Sport.
And, as in every boomtown around the world, real estate is a hot topic. Many longtime Muscovites have relocated to the suburbs and rent out for small fortunes the downtown apartments that were given to them in the days of the Soviet Union, while the upwardly mobile professionals have seen the price gap between their current dwellings and their dream digs climb beyond reach.
link to article :
...RUSSIA , PUMPED !...
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace