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Zelfs in de miljoenenstad Moskou zijn er nog ontzettend veel mensen die alleen Russisch spreken en wanneer ze aangesproken worden door een buitenlander, zelfs als die gewoon om de weg vraagt, zich zonder één woord te zeggen afwenden en weglopen.
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Still today many Russians don't know well how to react on strangers, though. Even in a city with millions of inhabitants like Moscow there are an awful lot of people who speak only Russian and when a foreigner talks to them, even if it only is for asking the way, they often turn around and walk away without saying a single word. It seems like a strange reaction to Belgians. In our cities it happens every day that you're asked to show the way in another language, and when you drive for one hour by car - in any direction - you're abroad. From Moscow, however, you have to drive thousands of kilometers before meeting the first person who doesn't speak Russian, most Russians even never were outside Russia - or at least the former Soviet Union. In Russia you will rarely meet people with a black skin neither. When a Moscovite talks of a «black» person he doesn't speak of someone with a black skin, but with black hair - someone from the Caucasus.
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Mais encore aujourd'hui beaucoup de Russes ne savent pas bien comment réagir aux étrangers. Même dans une ville avec des millions d'habitants comme Moscou il y a beaucoup de gens qui parlent seulement le russe et quand un étranger leur parle, même si c'est juste pour demander la route, ils se retournent et s'éloignent sans dire un simple mot. Cela peut paraître une réaction étrange aux Belges. Dans nos villes ça arrive tous les jours que l'on demande le chemin dans une langue étrangère et quand vous conduisez une heure en voiture - dans n'importe quelle direction - vous arrivez à l'étranger. De Moscou, pourtant, vous devez conduire des milliers de kilomètres avant de rencontrer la première personne qui ne parle pas de russe, la plupart des Russes n'ont même jamais été à l'extérieur de la Russie - ou d'au moins l’ancienne Union soviétique. En Russie vous rencontrerez rarement des gens avec une peau noire. Quand un Moscovite parle d'une personne «noire» il ne parle pas de quelqu'un avec une peau noire, mais de quelqu’un avec les cheveux noirs - quelqu'un du Caucase.
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But still today many Russians don't know well how to react on strangers. Even in a city with millions of inhabitants like Moscow there are an awful lot of people who speak only Russian and when a foreigner talks to them, even if it only is for asking the way, they turn around and walk away without saying a single word. It seems like a strange reaction to Belgians. In our cities it happens every day that you're asked to show the way in another language, and when you drive for one hour by car - in any direction - you're abroad. From Moscow, however, you have to drive thousands of kilometers before meeting the first person who doesn't speak Russian, most Russians even never were outside Russia - or at least the former Soviet Union. In Russia you will rarely meet people with a black skin neither. On all my visits of Moscow, Russia, or former Soviet countries like Moldova or Ukraine, I met a total of two black people. One member of the staff of the Belgian consulate in Moscow, and one doorman of a casino in Moscow. When a Moscovite talks of a "black" person he doesn't speak of someone with a black skin, but with black hair - someone from the Caucasus.
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