Short-term Trip Abroad in 1973

When a group of York College students spent a week in Russia in April of 1973 with Leonid Murog, PhD, their experience was a bit different than that of today’s students. 

Priceless works of art at the Hermitage, Gleaming gold turrets at the Summer Palace, Faberge Eggs and chandeliers in subways! These were a few of the things that dazzled us during the trip from April 18 – 25, 1973. But what has made a lasting impression on me was the stark contrast in cultures.   

I don’t think any of us were prepared for the stark contrast of the USSR to the free wheeling USA of the ’70s! What immediately jarred us into the realism that we were no longer in the land of the free, happened immediately after disembarking the plane when everyone’s luggage was thoroughly hand searched!  Socks unrolled, personal items overly scrutinized, and magazines and Bibles confiscated! I’m not sure if my memory plays tricks after all of these years, but I think the confiscated items were returned when we left the country. But if that is so, we left from a different city and there were no GPS or computer systems to track movements. I still remember Lynne Popkin’s (’74) great uncle in a black coat and hat, with a silver grey beard patiently waiting to meet her for the first time.   

I’d like to visit the Soviet Union today, to see it through the eyes of an adult. I often wonder if I would still see everyone working. At that time the government supplied jobs for everyone except the disabled. Depending upon your aptitude you would become a member of the Bolshoi Ballet or a street sweeper. Would that old lady in the babushka still be washing the fence around the park with bucket and mop in tow? Would the streets still be exceptionally clean? Would the subways be their own cultural experience, of crystal chandeliers and opulent flooring? Would the vodka, Cognac, and caviar still be as delectable? Would children still run up to tourists with offers of trading their parents (at that time Communist) pins for gum? Do people still want to buy the jeans you are wearing? Could I take pictures of a bridge or military assembly? Was healthcare for tourists still provided at no cost?  Is there a soldier in each train car? Would you only travel the rails at night with strict orders to keep the shades drawn? Could I gather a group of more than five people in Red Square and not be charged with unlawful assembly? Is there still a matron on every floor of the hotel? Without the benefit of a computer system, words or notes, would she still retrieve your key when you left your room, and return it to you when you returned? Did she ever learn to smile? Are ordinary citizens allowed to visit your hotel room, or do you still need to smuggle them in? Are citizens still prohibited from purchasing items in the hotel gift shop?  Is that gift shop still on par with a trendy boutique crammed full of artistic items?    

I’m sure that the priceless works of art are still at the Hermitage, the turrets of the Summer Palace still glisten, but I wonder, what would impress me in 2010?  

- Elise Reesey ’74, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.