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25.02.2024

▶ Basketball hoop at the Consulate General of Lithuania

There's a basketball hoop on the territory of the Consulate General of Lithuania in Kaliningrad. Basketball is the most popular sport in Lithuania, so I guess even the consulate staff likes to go Ballin every once and then. "Photo" courtesy of Yandex Maps street view as I didn't dare to take a picture myself; according to the street view history the hoop was installed sometime between 2018 and 2021. My guess is that the consulate staff wanted some physical activity during the covid lockdowns.

21.10.2023

▶ Eggplant-coloured cars

I saw two of these cars next to each other, bearing a rather rare colour; seeing the two of them nearby is even rarer! I occasionally see each of them separately close to where I live, but this was the only time I saw them next to each other.

15.10.2023

▶ EC Kassel Huskies logo on a truck

EC Kassel Huskies are a ice hockey club from Kassel, Germany. Pictured here is their 1994-2002 logo on a rear window of an old Mercedes truck at one of local markets. In the 90s and early 00s Kaliningrad saw a surge of car imports from western European countries, and there are still a lot of trucks with their original liveries driving around.

03.08.2023

▶ Ballin Lamps

Ballin Lamps

22.04.2023

▶ Krtek Manhole Decorations

Manhole decorations in the coastal city of Svetlogorsk. These fill my heart with pure joy, just like anything else Krtek-related.

11.03.2023

▶ Ballet Hotel Room

The hotel room I last stayed at is filled to the brim with ballet-themed decor.

03.12.2022

▶ New Zealand proposed flag

A wine store in a local mall is (perhaps unknowlingly) using a proposed flag, specifically the "Silver Fern Flag", on the New Zealand wines shelve. I wonder how they ended up using it, given that it's not even the most widely used version of the flag.

20.10.2022

▶ A pipe with a thermometer

A power plant pipe in Murmansk that has a functioning thermometer on it. (the photo is not mine)

18.10.2022

▶ Fine tableware

A few pieces of tableware from the apartment I stayed at in Murmansk. I think these look really cool.

09.10.2022

▶ Unexpected Hopper

A large piece from Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks" on a derelict ad stand in Saint Petersburg near J's house. They don't call it the cultural capital of Russia for nothing.

05.10.2022

▶ A yellow folder

A folder in my local clinic. The text label on it says, with large letters, "Yellow Folder". Most of you don't know Russian, so you'll have to trust me on this one.

30.09.2022

▶ A picture in an elevator

A picture on a small display in a random elevator I used. I just found it mildly amusing and curious.
05.06.2023 update: thank you delonghi for your email! This image is of the Maiden's Tower in Instanbul, Turkiye.

14.08.2022

▶ A cat ad (!!!VERY Important 2023 Update!!!)

Not all of the advertisment stands in Saint Petersburg metro are occupied by actual ads, so sometimes you can see some cute stuff on them, like this one on Zenit station, which is literally just a picture of the very respectable Mr. Cat.



As of June 8th 2023, the ad is still there. I took a more sharp picture.

29.04.2022

▶ A duck among pigeons.

The security guards of our office building love feeding the pigeons by throwing stuff out of the windows in the background. One time I saw a duck pretending to be a pigeon to get a slice of such a generous pie.

02.02.2022

▶ A broken toy revolver.

A broken toy revolver on the sidewalk. A kind of a sad sight.

22.01.2022

▶ An aquarium in a clothing store.

While my mother was busy picking a robe for her sister, I was busy pondering these fishes.

07.01.2022

▶ A jukebox

A jukebox used as a decoration in a cafe in Saint Petersburg. I don't know whether it's in a working condition or not.

▶ A toilet not for the lonely

A toilet room in the cafe in Saint Petersburg. It has a truly interesting floor plan; the two water closets are not separated by any wall, and there are two entrances on the opposing sides of the room. The person entering from one of them has a clear overview of both water closets. The first door is seen on the second photo; the second one is behind my back and a bit to the left.

▶ I Speak Very England

This housing project's name is "Zalive", which is a Latin transcription of the word "Залив", meaning "a bay". In order to comply with the local laws, they gave the "translation" of the "word" "Zalive", making it look like "Zalive" is indeed the word for "bay" in English. It's like how as a kid I used to think that English language is just Russian written in Latin letters.

05.01.2022

▶ Contactless Card Insert To Gain Power

An amusingly translated enscription on the card holder in the hotel I stayed at in Saint Petersburg. As you can see on the photo, I've Gained The Power.

As of 09.10.2022, the last time I stayed at this hotel, the enscription is still there.

26.12.2021

▶ A bottle of vodka

A bottle of vodka seen in a trash bin in a toilet cabin at the main railway station of my city.

11.12.2021

▶ Empty mall

A newly opened mall near the city centre with it's second floor almost completely devoid of any shops or customers.

▶ Scattered price labels

A pile of price labels was discovered at an electronics store.

▶ A concealed bottle

A bottle hidden in some kind of a utility compartment in one of our office's restroom.
The bottle looks quite dusty and old; the label says "Russian Troika". There's little doubts that it must have been vodka.

17.07.2021

▶ Doorway people

Some more doorways with sculptures surrounding them. All of these are on the same building.
The first one depicts what I think are fishermen, and the other 2 look like some goddeses.
The ad on the last door offers treatment of PC and internet addiction for kids in middle/high school.

04.07.2021

▶ Camera-shaped building entrance

A store entrance shaped like a photo camera. You enter directly into the lens. *_*
As a kid I saw this store quite often, and I remember it was a Kodak photo shop. It's long gone, but the entrance is still there.
These days this place is occupied by a pharmacy.

the store in 2010, back when it still was a photo store (although no Kodak branding is visible anymore)

the store in 2016

the store in 2021

the store in 2023

03.07.2021

▶ An ambiguous toy bus

My little cousins's toy bus. The driver's seat is on the left, like on an LHD car, but the passenger's door is also on the left, which would have been ok should the bus have been RHD, but it is incorrect as the door should be on the right side.

23.02.2021

▶ Enscribed tree

An old tree in a forest near Pravdinsk. It has a lot of carved tags and messages, some of them rather high. The oldest one I found was carved in 1978 by a man named Valera. I wonder where's Valera now...

31.05.2020

▶ A jar of pickled tomatos

A jar of pickled tomatoes left by someone on the roof of a car, presumably to punish the owner for asshole parking.

16.10.2019 - 20.10.2019

▶ Abandoned thermoflask

A thermoflask abandoned in a nearby yard. It's been there for 4 days and then disappeared. On the third day it fell down, but on the fourth day, it found the power to stand up and occupy a concrete block.

05.10.2019

▶ GTA San Andreas cheat on a fence

Someone wrote the invincibility cheat from SA on a fence.

22.08.2019

▶ A very small excavator

This excavator is very small and very cute ^_^.

14.06.2019

▶ Talking fellows doorframe

This building's entrance is framed with a bas-relief depicting people talking on the phone. The building was built in 1928 and, apparently, served as a place where people could use a telephone. These days it's a typical Soviet-style office&business center.


Upd. 24.10.2021: the talking fellows are feeling much better now that the atrocious signs on the doors are gone.

31.08.2018

▶ Abandoned bumper car

A bumper car found abandoned in, at the time, one of the least known villages of Kaliningrad region. Features a shark artwork, rawr.

28.06.2018

▶ English football fans

English fans spending their time in local cafes before the England-Belgium footbal game that took place in Kaliningrad during the 2018 World Cup. The World Cup was indeed a very exticing time for Russia.