Пустячок, а приятно!

Сегодня компания Procter and Gamble прислала мне туалетную воду Lacoste Pour Homme и грамоту за участие в P&G Success Story Competition. Мой рассказ вошел в тридцатку лучших.

Весна идет, весне дорогу!

Вчера с моей землячкой Викой и австрийским другом Питером гуляли по набережной, что возле Шабловской. Необычно теплый для этого времени ветер дул нам в спины, в кустах целовались парочки, фотографы устанавливали штативы, а мы пытались вспомнить как же по-английски будет молитва "Отче Наш". Потом зашли в какую-то забегаловку поесть пиццы. Когда мы вышли из нее, два алкаша у входа что-то друг другу доказывали. Вдруг у одного из них из кармана высыпались крупные бусины искусственного жемчуга... Странно. В метро Питер утверждал как странно читать "Воздушные пути" Пастернака.

Вот вид с набережной:

Дача Аннаева в Самаре

Оказывается, есть и такое. Интересно знать был ли он туркменом и что он делал в Самаре.

Микрофинансирование и танцы с огнем

Наступают чудесные времена! Вчера было так тепло и солнечно, от чего мне показалось, что наступило лето. Более того, я почуствовал Москву как настоящую европейскую столицу.

Утром я пошел на конференцию по микрофинансированию, организованную AIESEC и ВШЭ. Мне казалось, что я уже знаю Москву вдоль и поперек, но мне попались такие милые в районе Курской: церквушки, особняки, парки. Сама конференция проходила в здании старого дома офицеров с высоченными потолками и паркетом. Четыре часа нам вещали немецкие консультанты и российские банкиры как они развивают российские малый бизнес. Вот молодцы!

Вечером мы с Любой Ермолаевой решили изучить переулки в районее Пушкинской. Пока я ее ждал у Friday's, мне почему-то вспомнился Стамбул. Также много рекламы, туристов и ассоциальных элементов. В конце концов дорого привела нас к Кузнецкому мосту, где возле ресторана "Джаганат" играли на там-тамах и танцевали с огнем любители Востока. А какой-то бородатый мужик с девушкой на шее танцевал, собирая мелочь для артистов. Тогда мне Москва и показалсь по-европейски открытой.

My Moscow Room 270 Degrees



You can click on the pic to enlarge it.

Altyn Asyr

Yesterday night I took a train to go to Domodedovo Airport. It was very strange: I was sitting in the car alone, the lights were twinkling, and the doors were slamming. I was a kind of scared, but soon reached the airport to meet my parent who had come from Ashgabat.

Again, I have very mixed feeling about my relations with the country where I live for 14 years and formed as a personality:

• I'm not a member of this society. I don't speak their language, I don't look like them, I have a completely different mentality. I'm cosmopolitan. So why am I so attached to Turkmenistan?
  
• The Asghabat I love doesn't exist any more. There are no narrow streets, cosy yards and intelligent people. What you can see is skyscrapers made of white marble, statues and NO people on the street.
  
• People really deserve their rulers. One poor man even died of after crying a lot after the leader's death. If they don't want to think for themselves, why should somebody be so concerned?
  

Here are some pictures of outskirts of Ashgabat:

GPS Tracking Technology

If you know a mobile phone of somebody, you can determine his/her location. On the one hand, now parents can know where their children are. On the other hand, criminals may misuse this technology to see whether you are at home or not.



MTS, Megafon, Beeline are suitable. Test it here.

Insectoids

These days I've been experimenting with Photoshop. I made a sketch by hand and decorated it in the program.

Budget and Treasury Academy

Watch two episodes of live at my academy.

On the first video I'm telling something about budgets (I hate my voice and hope it sounds not so nasty in reality).



On the second video we (men of our group) are congratulating our girls on March 08 during a lecture on Banking. It's a national women's holiday in Russia and ex-Soviet countries, when men present flowers, chocolates, postcards to all women... whatever they want.



It might be like Christmas in Europe: crowds of husbands, brothers, sons, students, colleagues, boyfriends, employers rush to shops to buy presents, which is a must. Everybody is with flowers, but stuck in the subway! It's lucky time for sellers, as they usually double prices.

Turkish Cooperation

My congratulations to Katya Khaletskaya, who is on the short-list of Procter and Gamble Success Story Competition! Although I haven't managed to get there I'm very glad that I decided to take part in it. It made me to sum up the experience I got in AIESEC and assess my way of presenting information.

“I want you to have the opportunity that I didn’t have last year”. These words started the most incredible experience in my life – Turkish Cooperation, an eXchange project in AIESEC Moscow. Nastya, the former project coordinator asked me to take her role shortly after I had joined the organization. Then, being a freshman, I could not imagine that I would be able to unite a group of strange people, achieve outstanding results in AIESEC and get unforgettable cultural experience.

At first it was so difficult. I inherited from Nastya a group of people who were going to Turkey for internships. They were supposed to get volunteer experience first, but it had not been reported to them properly. They did not share AIESEC values and were reluctant to work in the project. So, my aim was to understand their aspirations and find the way to unite us. Of course, we all loved Turkish culture, but there was no trust among us. I spent two months trying to appoint team meetings and control calls to companies. However, it led to nothing before I realized that trust was the remedy for passivity. I decided to meet every member of the team to talk about his or her interests and ambitions. I shared my vision on the project with them and delegated the responsibility for our success. As a result, we lost 4 members, but we managed to unite in a real team of 4 striking personalities: Tamila, Katya, Luba and me.

Soon Olesya, the first intern within our project arrived from Ukraine. She motivated us a lot and signaled a new stage in the development of our project. At the same time, we were excited about the arrival of Ercan and Bilal, two AIESEC members from Turkey who would join our team. Katya and Luba were preparing welcome packages; Tamila was looking for accommodation; I was planning their professional activities. When they came, our life became crazy. We organized fancy welcome parties, we did not sleep nights to discuss marketing strategies, we had several meetings a day with general managers of Turkish companies, and we went for sightseeing all over Moscow. In other words, we not only team members, but real friends.

From top left: Ercan, Katya, Alex (author), Olesya, Bilal, Tamila

The experience with Olesya, Ercan and Bilal lasted for about a month. Then Tamila went to Turkey for an internship with a private school. At that time we learned that the outcome of our work was 8 interns raised in a leading Turkish company. We were so happy, but concerned about the lack of motivated people to take on this challenge, so that Lesha and Masha, new members of AIESEC joined Turkish Cooperation Project. In half a year Antje, a German intern came to be followed by Peter from Austria, Jeff from USA, Krishna from India, Ozgur, Ulvi, Tugrul, and Orcun from Turkey. We organized an intensive cultural program for those who wanted to enjoy Moscow. There was fun, but I look back at this time as a real life school. Our team had no right for faults, as we were responsible for so many people expecting to get life-changing experience in Moscow. Now I feel myself much more mature, as I have overcome all the problems and understood the different mentalities.

From left: Peter, Tugrul, Tati, Antje, Jeff, Ozgur

Life is interesting. In 3 months after the interns came, Katya and I turned out to be in Istanbul, Turkey. Ercan, a former member of our team arranged internships for us and invited to share a flat with him. Moreover, Bilal, who is originally from Ankara, was also in Istanbul for a summer internship. They helped us as much as we helped them in Moscow. However, Katya and I preferred to interact more with colleagues at work to check our interpersonal skills and understand Turkish culture better. As a result, Feride, Hakan, Asli, Sonmez, Behiye, Bilal and Yilmaz from Fiba Factoring became my new friends for life. They used every chance to make my internship the best in all aspects. I am so grateful to them for taking me to Formula 1, teaching Turkish, going to bars, introducing to Turkish cuisine, riding horses in the mountains and many other things. Turkey has made me more calm and people-oriented, so now it is hard to see grim Moscow faces in the metro.

From top left: Asli, Feride, Hakan, Behiye, Alex (author)

Today my team members and friends are in Istanbul, Simferopol, Kansas, Moscow, Caracas, Jaipur, Ankara, but we are all together. Our team doubled the number of AIESEC Interns in Moscow. However, we are proud of the impact we have provided in the society. A group of volunteers has managed to provide 14 people with international experience, 5 companies with agents of positive change and 6 people with the potential to take leadership positions. Masha, our new member has just stared her own project about tolerance to develop her own Cooperation.

Alexander Annaev, 20 December 2006

Assessment Centre

Today I've assessed the boyz and girlz who are going to join AIESEC. It's so difficult to make a decision about people who you don't know, especially if you are not perfect yourself. May be some people just need time to show themselves, but we have to turn them down, as we there is no time to make it clear. On the contrary, we get rid of too pushy and agressive leaders, but they might just want to make a good impression on us.

I was taken aback when one group came to the idea that global warming is ok, so that we should do nothing. They suppose we should easily accept it, as it is a natural cause that may bring benefits to Russia. With this ideas, we will never reach sustainable development... That's strange!

Matching Night

This nigh was unforgettable. The idea was to gather together at Lesha's place in Korolev and spam foreign students, so that they go on the internships with AIESEC Moscow. Of course, it was just a cause to have fun.

Lesha's spitz-dog is mad. It didn't sleep even a minitute, but fucked others' legs and whatever with enthusiasm. We had to put away our bags and take care not to be fucked accidentally. Oh, poor dog!

At 2.00 AM Lina and I went to a room and e-mailed to some random Dutch guys something like "Hey! There is such a cool opportunity in Moscow. You are welcome to Russia!"

At 6.00 AM we were discussing strategies of market expansion with Arshak, an Accenture consultant and AIESEC alumnus from France. He also told a lot about Iran, where he lived for about a year.

Imagine, there are lots of gays in Iran, because they cannot approach the woman before they get married, which is very difficult. One German was about to get his penis cut off, because he had relations with an Iranian girl.

So, enjoy the freedom!

Hawa Maglumatlary

Listen to the most famous example of Turkmen classical music by Nury Khalmammedov. It makes me to recall autumn in Ashgabat.

I love you, my girls!



Painting by Izzat Klychev

Solomon's Wall

Today I've visited Tretyakov Gallery especially to see Solomon's Wall by Vasily Vereshchagin. This painting is here just for 10 day, as it is on Christie's preauction tour. Vereshchagin is one of my favourite Russian painters, as he is in love with the East and appeal to humanity with his works.



As usual, Alexander Ivanov's The Appearance of Christ before the People dragged my attention. This time I felt it in a special way, may be because I felt giddy and shuffling feet annoyed me so much. What leadership this painter had! He prepared more than 600 sketches for 10 years to paint his masterpiece of life.

Budget and Treasury

This is how we prepare for a seminar about Budget of the Russian Federation.

Just wash your hair!

I'm looking for a wonder... Several times a day I check up my e-mail with a hope to get a message from a company somewhere in the world offering to get experience with them. I've realized that spamming the world with my CV is not effecient, but I'd like to go abroad this summer so much! I feel that I'm trying to touch the sky, while there are lots of challenges under my feet. What can I do?

I may change my dream, But I'll be a dreamer anyway...

I've translated into English a poem that is famous with people from Turkmenistan who live abroad. It sounds very funny, but it tells you what migrants feel: nostalgia, dreams for nothing and challenges to start a new life. You can find the Russian version on Ashgabat Community.

Home, Sweet Home

I don't need any flowerets,
Not to mention northern lights.
I'd go the desolate wilderness
Just to smell thorn at nights.

I'd go to the sun of Turkmenia,
To lizards, snakes, and hedgehogs.
I'd touch a shell of the tortoise
And embrace saxaul logs.

I'd feel sand on my drying lips
And wind uncurling the hair.
I'd go to the gorge in early spring
To take the mountain air.

I'd pick an armful of tulips
In the foothills of Kopetdag
Or fall asleep in red poppies
Making up a magnificent rug.

Should I admire birch wood?
Do I like European cuisine?
All my dreams are about Chuli,
But my heart is in Bezmein!

I'd prefer any motel in Geoktepe,
Even in August, unbearable heat.
At noon I'd go to Teke Bazary,
Which is opposite to the discreet.

It's forty in shade, but at home.
I prefer it to breezes abroad!
You can eat home-grown straw
And your tears are not so salt.

Ailantus's smell could be nice,
Although it makes me to sneeze.
There is neither rhyme nor reason
To love these honey linden trees.

I detest these severe seasons:
Sleet, mud rain, and frost...
Platan, aryk and takyr are the reasons!
I'd go to Mary...
But who is going to host?

It's pleasure to go to Kurtli,
To lie on the beach and drink chal.
I'd wake up with buzz of a bee
And feed a mosquito just off the canal.

If I stretched on a tapchan in shade,
Having left the depression aside,
I'd imagine bakhshi's destans,
Delivered as national pride.

What is Turkmen is always so dear!
I might go there. Who knows?
I'd change your blonde hair
For dark braids in four rows.

If only I had Bishkeshechka
Or Muradovna for ten minutes or so.
I wish I could hug Lyalyechka,
Or just drop in Irusik... Oh no!

***

You are calling me, dear Motherland.
Ok, I'll come, but what's next?
You are different, you are not my dream.
Your behavior makes me vexed.

Utter ruin. None of my friends.
No Martkevitchs. The Sokols are gone.
We are challenged to start it again,
The life at the crack of dawn.

Nostalgia has taken its rule.
It's my verdict, so that I'm mad.
I'm walking down Svoboda to Mir,
But it's a childish fad...

N. Basova, 14.03.2003
A. Annaev, Translation, 23.02.2007

Listen to a very unusual reading of "Khoroshaya Devochka Lida" by Yaroslav Smelyakov. The reader is Yashar Niyazbayev, a young Turkish, Russian, Kyrgyz, and Uzbek journalist. Unfortunately, only in Russian.

See the video by Timz, an American of Iraqi origin. It demonstrates that the war in Iraq has caused only horror, not prosperity and freedom. Why should the Iraqi people die for nothing, sorry, "democracy"?

See the World Bank's overview of Europe and Central Asia. It's very inspirational, but do you think it has such an impact on our development?

Today I've practiced skating for the first time in my life!

The short winter is going to and end, so that it's high time for skating. Olya, Roma, Zhenya and I went to Iksra Skating Rink that is off the Botanic Garden. The ice was pefect! Zhenya and I hadn't skated before, but we never fell. It's so nice to feel freedom while skating, but you are more free when you take off your skates in the end. As people say, if there were no clouds, you wouldn't enjoy the sun.




Then we went to an Uzbek restaurant called Shabada. When did Uzbek food become so expensive ya?

See the full photo report here.

Now I'm officially an alumnus of AIESEC in Moscow. This organization has drammatically changed my life! For 2,5 years I got so much experience, so that you can share it into several lives. The main outputs are:

• Impossible is possible. Sometimes I use excuses to justify my laziness or fear, but AIESEC has helped me to overcome it. Now I try using every single chance to reach my aim.



• Life is a movie, where you can be a spectator, player, director... I wan be the director, but I have to practice playing first. Every movie is a project, accordingly I divide my live into project that have aims, timelines and success criteria.



• There are no borders for me. We all are citizens of the world and bear the burden of responsibility for our future. Diverisity is my zone of comfort! I try to use it as a source of inspiration.
  
  
  
  
  There are so many discoveries I've made with AIESEC... Now they look natural for me, but I used to be different, believe me. I will try to be a real agent of positive change and share my experience with others.
  
  I'm consider myself a role model of what is called AIESEC Experience!

Do you like bruised bananas? Protect your banana!


I've taken it from Sasha Sosnovskaya's blog.

Today I've a Central Asian Art Exhibition in the Museum of Orienatal Art in Moscow. I often visit this small museum in Arbatskaya. There I bought a unique album of Ruvim Mazel (1890-1967), a founder of Turkmen painting.

He was born in Vitebsk (Belarus), studied in Italy and Germany, but found himself in Ashgabat in 1915 as a soldier. In 1920 he founded the Advanced Art School of the East, where he intoduced painting to the Turkmens (Islam prohibited to depict people before). One of the first students was Basim Nurali, who subsequently founed the Childrens' Art School that I have graduated.

Having moved to Turkistan, Ruvim Mazel fell in love with its people and culture. He painted lots of pieces on Turkmen life-style, but today I have discovered the very strange pictures - The Turkmenized Bible. I don't think the Turkmens would like it.

Jakob's Escape



Avel and Cain



The Sale of Joseph



There are two reasons for this strange act. Maybe, Mazel wanted to deal with the Bible and simultaneously be in line with the official atheistic propaganda. Or he wanted to show the common rutes of Judaism and Islam. This album is sold in many Jewish centers.

Lots of world leaders have welcome "the first alternative elections in Turkmenistan" and congratulated Berdymukhammedov. Only now, the situation is clear, a fight over the country's natural resourses will start among Russia, US, EU, Iran, and China.

Today the new government hold talkes with Mikhail Fradkov, Russia's Prime Minister. It seems that Berdymukhammedov has decided to pursue Russia-oriented policy before any controversy starts, which guarantees him political support. As you know, all the Turkmen gas is bought by Gazprom and resold to Ukraine for a double price.



I'm so inspired to listen the promises of the new elite, but I fear it just wants to improve its image in front of the West. Anyway, my friend says there are no longer Rukhnama lessons at school, which is a good sign. He also wants to send students abroad, restore the education program, and implement Internet.

We will see!

PS: See the photos of inauguration here.

Are you reading Ruhnama or developing the country?

It's up to you!

My Russian Grammar score: 83%. I must work on it!

Мой результат "Теста от ульяновского губернатора" 96 из 116 Пройти тест на грамотность

Silence

Today I'm wathing all the news programs trying to grab some information on the elections in Turkmenistan. I'm wasting time, as nobody actually cares. Democracy? Who needs this fucking democracy? EU, US, and Russia are ready to accept any goat as a president provided that he guarantees long-term provision of natural gas.

99% attendance. No observers. No opposition. I didn't go to elections yesterday.

PS: Photos are taken from Turkmenistan.Ru. I'm not going to discuss politics any more. There is no sense nor reason.

Today is the unique day that I have been waiting for all of my life. I thought it would come in the distant future, that people will be excited, that new leaders would make speeches on squares. As a result, today is just a common day: I haven't understood the people's mentality.

Today Turkmen people elect their president after the 21 years of Turkmenbashy's rule. According to the elections committe, 95% of people have already voted. It is very strange, but nobody cares, as the truth is that Berdymukhammedov has come to the stage.



Democracy cannot evolve overnight. That's why there is no sense to speculate on Berdymukhammedov's way to power. The main is that he is determined to do. It's so tempting to believe that he will fulfill his commitments.

Anyway, a new area of changes has begun.

Night Photo Session

Finally winter has come to Moscow: today is the coldest day in this winter. At night there were - 27C, but now it's -17C. The sun is shining!

Perovskiy Park, Moscow

Moscow is rapidly changing its face. More and more historical buildings are being reconstructing and renovating for business purposes: Voentorg, Moscow Hotel, Manezh, etc. With this process the city is loosing its 850-year old spirit.

Some enthusiasts have created a web-site called "Moskva, kotoroy net" or "Moscow that is no more". It contains a fine collection of photos of what is now gone and encourages us to preserve the rest of the buildings.



However, there some places where you can feel real Moscow. I'm lucky that my academy is located in such a place. In this semester I study on Nastasyinskiy Lane just off Pushkinskaya Square, in the very city center.

Next to our building is State Treasury designed by B. Nilus and V. Pokrovsky in 1913. Due to its unique architecture and turquoise colour, it looks like decoration for a Russian fairy tale.



Now the Banks of Russia keeps its cash reserves in this building. Therefore, there are fences with barbed wire and armed soldiers walking here and there in front of our window. Our girls wave to them at breaks, which makes them smile.

Today I've met Natasha, my old friend who I haven't seen for 7 years! Having wandered in the center of Moscow, we went to a Central Asian restaurant called Rahat Lokum.



We recalled all the funny moments we had in Children Art School in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

- Once we decided to play "butylochka": you spin a bottle and take your clothes off if its neck finally looks at you. The point is that the deputy principle entered the room when some people were half naked.

- Once I had a fight with one guy. He passed me a scrap of paper with his snot inside. I got furious and spitted out to his face. He did the same, so that I spitted him all.

- Once we went to the county for a picnic and "plain air". We got crazy and jumped in the mountain river in our clothes. Then we decided to explore it and followed the flow. We were all wet, bruised, but so happy.

Have fun!

See an interesing collection of doors and windows in Tashkent, Fergana, and Shakhimardan, Uzbekistan. My relatives in Tashauz, Turkmenistan live in the similar environment. I like it.

Today I've learned that one of my former colleagues is a member of Bilderberg Group. It's an unofficial invitation-only conference of around of the world's most important people in business, media, and politics.

The content of the conference is kept in secret, which whips up numerous conspiracy theories. Actually, the initial purpose of Bilderberg was to intensify cooperation between North America and Western Europe in their fight with the USSR.



The USSR is gone, so what are they doing now? Like World Bank, UN, NATO, it's just a an organization promoting US as the only superpower. Representatives of Third World Countries are still not eligible for participation.

Most of international agencies are not really independent. Their donors define the rules of the game. I think the colleague also depends on them, unfortunately for her.

Relax with this "kalyaka-malyaka": click on the image.

See the best photos of 2006 according to MSNBC, Time, National Geographic, Digital Camera Magazine, NPPA BOP, World Press Photo & American Photo.