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Project RuSu 365

Not always so successful or interesting, & not always daily, though certainly a reflection of our daily lives - more like pick of the day. Our goal - to share our world and improve our skills. Thanks to all the members of the SmugMug Daily Community for your support and input. Feel free to leave feedback by clicking on 'Add Comment' below. We look forward to hearing your thoughts. The photo of the day will always be in first position. Thank you for looking. - Rustem Safronov & Susan Gilman a.k.a. RuSu. This gallery was started on October 26, 2010.

Henri Cartier-Bresson said, "Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.", so bear with us...
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Traditional Matryoshka dolls. (6.29.2012)<br /> <br /> An always popular souvenir from Russia, these nesting dolls can be quite elaborate with as many as 20 smaller dolls inside, each painted somewhat differently. My mother bought a beautiful set when she visited with each doll portraying a different fairy tale. These pictured are fairly standard & probably have 4-6 smaller dolls inside.They can get quite expensive depending on the number of dolls contained within & how elaborate the painting is. The tradition dates from 1890.
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Traditional Matryoshka dolls. (6.29.2012)

An always popular souvenir from Russia, these nesting dolls can be quite elaborate with as many as 20 smaller dolls inside, each painted somewhat differently. My mother bought a beautiful set when she visited with each doll portraying a different fairy tale. These pictured are fairly standard & probably have 4-6 smaller dolls inside.They can get quite expensive depending on the number of dolls contained within & how elaborate the painting is. The tradition dates from 1890.

Russian dollsnesting dollsMatryoshka dollspainted dollsматрёшкаМатрёшкиrusurusu photography

  • Santa enjoying himself before his big night. (12.24.2012)<br /> <br /> I couldn't let Christmas go by without wishing all my Daily friends a wonderful holiday. Please excuse my inactivity over the past months and a big thank you to everyone who's written me & commented on old shots - sorry for not responding to everyone. I've missed you! <br /> <br /> I'm flying to Boston in the next week for pancreatic surgery at Mass. General Hospital on Jan. 4. I hope I have the strength & optimism Mary & Maryann have had throughout their ordeals... Under the circumstances, I thought a bit of levity was in order for today. Merry Christmas!
  • Ribbons of reverence. (7.13.2012)<br /> <br /> Common throughout Siberia and much of the Mongol world is the tying of ribbons in the branches of trees. A shamanistic tradition associated with healing & luck, it's believed the spirits heed the wishes & intentions of those who've tied the ribbons.<br /> <br /> I'm still a bit under the weather since our return & apologize if I've missed commenting on some of your shots.<br /> <br /> Rustem will be off to another region of Siberia next week; thankfully, I'm staying put. Siberia is so vast that if were an independent country, territorially it would be the largest country in the world. Siberia spans 7 time zones.
  • Strawberry blonde with flower wreath. (7.11.2012)<br /> <br /> We took a break from the conference & sat by the river with this woman from Khakassia's Ministry of Culture, the organizers of the event. While we sat, she made this wreath following an ancient Slavic pagan tradition in honor of Ivan Kupala Day. According to Wikipedia, girls float wreaths of flowers on rivers in an attempt to gain foresight into their relationship fortunes from the flow patterns of the flowers on the river. Hers went in the river shortly after this shot. <br /> <br /> Thanks for your comments on yesterday's shot of Salome. Based on my last two Dailies, I'd say character trumps beauty :)<br /> <br /> I've got a busy day & a touch of dysentery, so will catch up this evening.
  • Salome. (7.10.2012)<br /> <br /> We visited Salome's village of Ust-Sos our 1st day in Khakassia. Due to some poor planning on the part of the organizers, we arrived 2.5 hours ahead of other conference participants. We'd already missed a night's sleep & had driven 3 hours since we hit the ground & standing around in the rain made for a long, tiring day, but it did give me the chance to connect one-on-one with Salome & others. Salome's 80 years old & was wheeled through the mud in her wheelchair to see the day's festivities. She has a Khakass name, but the priest pronounced her Salome when she was baptized & she prefers it. Her husband was a cattle herder & she worked on the village's collective farm during Soviet times. She had 6 children & bemoaned the fact that two died before her. We had some laughs together. <br /> <br /> For those who asked, my talk went fine - thanks for asking.
  • Khakass woman in traditional dress. (7.9.2012)<br /> <br /> Back from our whirlwind trip to the Republic of Khakassia in south-central Siberia. Beautiful landscape, beautiful people, exhausting trip.
  • Say a little prayer. St. Paul on the exterior of a Moscow church. (7.4.2012)<br /> <br /> We're off to Siberia today, so not sure I'll be posting or commenting much the rest of this week. I've been in a slump lately so I'm hoping I'll see something interesting or at least be more inspired to shoot. <br /> <br /> Headed to a town called Sayanogorsk, +4 hours ahead of Moscow time, about 750 miles from Mongolia, but not even 1/2 way across Russia. Long flight & I'm not a fan of internal flights. Also, public speaking is not my thing & I'm one of the speakers at a conference we'll be attending, so say a little prayer for me. Rustem's also a speaker, but he loves that stuff.
  • Yellow flowers (7.3.2012)
  • New Reeboks. (7.2.2012)<br /> <br /> Slim pickings & not much time or motivation. A distant cousin of Rustem's was here for a week in Moscow. She arrived with flip-flops, 1 pair of socks, and 2 underpants. I understand she's only 12 & her packing skills are limited as this was her first time away from home, but what was her mother thinking? We, of course, had to run out & buy her a pair of Reeboks.
  • Skylight & camera. (Mega Mall, Moscow) (7.1.2012)<br /> <br /> Swedish retailer, Ikea, built the 1st mall in Russia in 2002 known as Mega Mall, one of the largest malls in Europe. There were lines waiting to get in & their initial inventory was wiped out, if you can believe it. There are now three Megas in Moscow alone & everyday looks like holiday shopping in the States. The anchors are always the same: Ikea, German DIY chain OBI, Finnish department store Stockmann (tiny by our dept. store standards) & French supermarket chain Auchan. Auchan is known for their cheap prices, but after a couple of visits I swore never again as the wait at the cash registers can take from 30 minutes to 1.5 hrs. and that's with 40 functioning registers!<br /> <br /> Sure wish they'd get some American chains or dept. stores, though on this visit I saw an announcement that Banana Republic will soon be opening. Shopping in Moscow isn't easy or fun & I usually wait for a trip home where choice & prices are better. Unfortunately, there's something I need so I have to go shopping again today (-: <br /> <br /> Have a good Sunday!
  • Boys in summer. (6.30.2012)
  • Traditional Matryoshka dolls. (6.29.2012)<br /> <br /> An always popular souvenir from Russia, these nesting dolls can be quite elaborate with as many as 20 smaller dolls inside, each painted somewhat differently. My mother bought a beautiful set when she visited with each doll portraying a different fairy tale. These pictured are fairly standard & probably have 4-6 smaller dolls inside.They can get quite expensive depending on the number of dolls contained within & how elaborate the painting is. The tradition dates from 1890.
  • Leningrad WWII Memorial. (Alexander Gardens, Moscow) (6.28.2012)<br /> <br /> Outside the walls of the Kremlin are the Alexander Gardens, built by Tsar Alexander following the defeat of Napoleon. The tomb of the unknown soldier is at the entrance to the gardens & 10 of these red porphyry blocks with the names of WWII Hero cities.<br /> <br /> Many cities suffered horrific losses during the war, few as much as Leningrad (St. Petersburg). Hitler's siege & blockade of Leningrad lasted 900 days during which time rationing in the city decreased to 125 grams of a bread, consisting mostly of sawdust, a day. In January & February 1942, 200,000 civilians died from cold or starvation. The official loss in Leningrad is 632,000 though many estimates put it as high as 1.5 million.
  • Smile - it's Wednesday! (6.27.2012)
  • A bit of Americana in Moscow. (6.26.2012)
  • Coffee café decor simplified. (6.25.2012)
  • Rooftops on & off Red Square. (6.24.2012)<br /> <br /> The golden domes are those of the Kazan Cathedral on Red Square. Originally built in 1612, the cathedral was destroyed by Stalin in 1936 and rebuilt in 1993. The mansard tiled roof was the Central Lenin Museum, shut down by a Yeltsin decree in 1993. The rear rooftop is that of the newly redone Hotel Moskva, an example of classic Stalinist architecture.<br /> <br /> Thanks for all your comments yesterday. Today's our 21st wedding anniversary - how time passes.
  • St. Basil's Cathedral Dome. (6.23.2012)<br /> <br /> Our Internet was down all week which is why we haven't been around. It was also a busy week as we had company so, of course, we had to visit Red Square. This a just one of St. Basil's nine brightly colored domes. I couldn't get a good shot of the entire cathedral with bright hazy sunshine and huge crowds, but you're undoubtedly familiar with this iconic building completed in 1561 during the reign of Ivan The Terrible. Legend has it that Ivan ordered the architect of the building blinded so he could never create anything as beautiful as this. Just reward for a masterpiece that's lasted more than 450 years?<br /> <br /> Hope everyone had a good week.
  • Bench with serape. (6.18.2012)<br /> <br /> This bench was outside a Ukrainian restaurant where a friend of ours celebrated her birthday yesterday. It was a very busy weekend with no time to post. Hope everyone had an enjoyable Father's Day.
  • Sunset through the hotel's frosty window
  • Not the surrey with the fringe on top; the horse with the tassels on top. (6.14.2012)<br /> <br /> Another shot from the Sabantuy. Horses play an important role in Tatar culture & it's traditional to adorn them. Of course, it's also traditional to eat them. Rustem returned home with a freshly made sausage he was presented with. We suspect it may be horse meat. No labels, so no idea what's in it...

  • Laura Roberts

    on February 17, 2013

    I use my stacking dolls to practice placement within groups after a fellow photographer accused me of head stacking...which admittedly, I was guilty of in a couple shots at a charity event. http://lauraroberts.smugmug.com/Photography/52-Challenge/Week-5-Red/i-9CrVc2F/0/M/201302_50D_8175-M.jpg.

  • sharkbayte

    on July 2, 2012

    beautiful colors, neat information and nesting dolls. I didn't know they portrayed a different fairy tales.

  • Vandana Raman

    on July 2, 2012

    I remember having one a long time back ! lovely colors and shot

  • SundaysChildSnapShots

    on June 30, 2012

    I remember my grandmother collecting these when I was a little girl. What a terrific memory you have awoken.

  • 100987laurajohnson

    on June 30, 2012

    So fun! Superb, gorgeous colors!

  • Douglas Sandquist Photography

    on June 30, 2012

    Neat capture..

  • fotoeffects

    on June 30, 2012

    Great comp and color; very interesting to hear about how the dolls can each represent a different fairy tale. I'd seen them before but never understood this.

  • Gene Hyder

    on June 30, 2012

    Excellent shot.

  • Howard's Photography

    on June 30, 2012

    How fascinating, beautiful catch and color!

  • Scianghetti

    on June 30, 2012

    wonderful details on these nesting dolls Susan

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