Belarus - Musical Мiнск

Have fun in Taiwan? It was meh, although it was a nice way to easy our broken bodies back into the work week.

Hey! It's been a while since we've heard over the top Russian pop. Howsabout we visit Belarus? The land of the annoying visa process that fucks up Kesi and Pinky's travel plans... (epic story, but they were totally sidetracked)

The states surrounding Belarus (or Беларусь in Belarussian) have fought over and occupied it for centuries. The current approximate borders emerged early last century in the aftermath of WWI. It was kinda kicked around as somewhat of a puppet border state (it's flat all the way to the Kremlin from mainland Europe, and Moscow wants to control as much of that area as possible) and was absolutely ravaged in WWII. One third of the population was killed and over two thirds of their cities were destroyed. Imagine trying to rebuild after that.

Stalin and Khrushchev poured resources into Belarus, turning it into a major manufacturing center for the USSR in their attempts to limit European influence. They stymied the use of the Belorussian language, sent in plenty of ethnic Russians, and kept Belarus under the Kremlin thumb.

Moving on, independence rolled around in the early 90's with the fall of the USSR. And, a few years later Lukashenko was elected and turned the fledgling state into a de facto dictatorship. That's where it remains today. However, it's pretty much running a three-legged race with Russia because of treaties calling for a monetary union, single citizenship, and common foreign and defense policy. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride...

when we googled "leschenko and medvedev" this is the picture we got. maybe this helps to explain Bela-Russian relations...

Good news though! They're good with the gymnastics and the hammer throwing! And, always make for a good bet at the Olympics. (Is it an Olympic year yet, or what?)

So, bust out your rusty Russian, your wodka, and your Russian Orthodox tendencies and prepare for some eastern European goodness!

Well, it's too early for wodka here, but not in Minsk (Мiнск)! Enjoy!

1st Channel of Belarusian Radio

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