March 29th

Hello, I am safe at home. Stayed here after heard the news on the radio. Cell phones do not work, so still challenging to locate everybody. Hardly found Artyom, the brother, and he is okay at work. Youlya, the friend who uses exactly the Red (Sokolnycheskaya) line at this time - was using it (in fact, the other line) a bit later. Now metro is quite empty as many stayed at home. Red line is still not working, bodies are still there, the injured are in the hospitals.

The phone lines are overloaded, and also there is information that cell lines are blocked to control the situation (supposedely the cell signals were used for attacks). So only regular lines and Internet.

Listen to Russian radio and reading BBC, France2 etcetera - the information looks the same and adequate, though things were very emotional on Russian radio (the channel I listen - when people call to the studio and suggest different ideas, which were difficult to imagine to be heard on the radio yesterday (quite a free-minded radio, and now there are ideas about giving more control for example, more authority permissions towards citizens etc). Yes, it is the wrong day to build theories, but somebody has done all that - somebody and for some reason, and for some reason others change their mind now. Right now on the radio - it is more like news, with news jingles and adverts. Such is life.

As people say, police and metro employees were reacting quickly and professionally, the medical help also arrived quickly. But right now I do not understand the forty minutes gap in the timing between two explosions. There are only three station in between.

It is officially advised now not to go to the center if possible. My office is in the center exactly, and our director recently sent emails encouraging everybody to work from home. I was on the Loubyanka station yesterday evening - were meeting with girls.

Speaking a lot about North Caucasian people (there are a lot of them in Moscow), about taxi drivers who overcharged hugely today because the metro stopped (and taxi drivers are often the same "southern" people). But again, those unhappy quite suffer from police and circumstances, so they are trying to earn more when possible. There already was a fight on another station - the man suspected two "southern" looking women (just said on the radio). Of course there are examples of solidarity and healthy sense, but the reaction started (or was started) again. There are also official announcements to stay calm and tolerant towards each other (meaning possible ethnical conflicts).

It is terrible.

I am safe, so are my close ones, thank you.

Festival du film francophone

By the way... And I guess that the today title is understandable in English as well :)

Tomorrow the annual Film Festival of Francophone movies starts in Moscow.

Cinema-France is one of the official information sources! Which means that tomorrow, after work, I am going to see at least two movies.

To France through Lithuania

Bonjour my friends :)

Missing real France for already almost half a year (and that is a lot), decided to go there agaian.

Through Vilnus, which is the capital of Lituania, because it looked better. This time I was not believing in three hours long plane from Moscow to Paris and wanted a longer journey. So I took the train to Vilnus and then a plane to Paris, then, to be honest, also the train to Lille because I wanted it there too.

Never before I slept in a hotel with such a view: the planes, the control tower. Near Vilnus airport.

Lithuanian money. They are part of European Union, but still have there own money, the Lits. I liked the airplane design.

This amount (on the photo) was enough to feed me there with several local cheeses and sweets. Another thing I wanted to do in Vilnus was to visit the Genocide Museum (since 1940 Lithuanians see there history as one year of Soviet occupation, then several years of German occupation, and then four decades of Soviet occupation again). And that was very serious, and I am really impressed, shocked by the facts I have learnt there.

The train to the airport. Tiny little carriage.

Still winter here...

But spring in France!

The flowers! (Lille, north of France)

Green grass and real flowers already! (Lille)

The birds in love! (the Lille Zoo)

The flowers again!

And yes - it is the famous les Champs Elysees with both Russian and French flags. 2010 is the year of France in Russia and the year of Russia in France. What a coincidence! :)

To be continued...