Things working in Russia taught me last year:
– traumatised people like certainty, but mystery is also a form of defence
– advice is not something you ask for it’s a way of saying hello
– some girls REALLY like flowers
– if you’re not dead you’re fine
– being seen as Stalin is both awful and fun
– feeding people can be a form of violence
– British men are pussies and our women aren’t very hot. Sorry.
– just because someone looks like a model in high-heels doesn’t mean they don’t have a PhD in being cleverer than you or are just going to the shops for milk
– capitalism left unsupervised is disgusting
– people who feel like they don’t exist can make up for that in overt displays of wealth, sex appeal, intelligence and physical strength. Sometimes all at once which is depressing
– being spanked with Birch by a big naked man in a sauna ‘rocks’
– some gay people are my heroes
– people don’t like generalisations about their country, especially proud ones with a fallen empire