Nizhny Novgorod

July 16–17, 2003

There’s a huge ad on the Nizhny Novgorod airport building: “Lukoil — a global economic leader” (I corrected the mistake, replacing the hyphen with a dash). The designer must’ve been joking, but then the text was sent to print and it was too late.

Lukoil — a global economic leader

The city centre is thoroughly agreeable; I saw a couple of places I would happily move to. The design of the city’s signboards and signage does not follow any one style. There are some pleasant street signs, but they are just as hard to read as the text on jean buttons.

Occasionally you come across philosophical works penned by anonymous authors.

Being human means feeling responsible for everything

Sole traders are trampling all over the dignity of globalism’s mainstays.

Golden hen
Grill

Entrepreneurs play on words (the two sound very similar in Russian).

Optician Chemist’s

Those sick of waiting for the bus can phone for a taxi.

Call a cab
Round-the-clock

You can take the stairs to get to the wall.

Wall.

If you aren’t in a hurry you can go for a stroll.

Strolls along the wall
10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily

Nizhny Novgorod in a nutshell:

The Nizhny Novgorod regional
committee of the Communist Party of
the Russian Federation