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In Russia, St Petersberg there is a apartment building that houses over 18 000 people
/r/ALLTinder must be poppin in that 1 mile radius
Still no matches lol
This is the Russian equivalent of a trailer park.
This is the Russian equivalent of a trailer park.
It's not. Russian apartment buildings are the russian equivalent of american apartment buildings. Russian equivalent of trailer parks are these buildings .
Explain please?
Very old wooden housing built during the early Soviet times and given out for free to multiple workers/young families. Mainly remaining on outskirts, alongside wooden houses of individual families. It's shabby, low quality housing with little access to amenities, and majority of people living in such buildings are generationally poor.
It looks quite nice considering
User deleted comment
2.6y
That building would hold several communal style apartments. Basically one room per family or person. And then a communal bathroom and kitchen.
Where I live there's an old district which was once made up of these buildings. We call it soup town, because it was basically an area for beggars and poor people.
Of course in modern times, these buildings have all been renovated and it's actually quite a popular place to live.
I would love to go scroll tinder and finally be apart of one of those videos I love so much with the 25 foreign women and the carpets
Those videos are so terrible. Like which one specifically?
From Russia with the Love Bone
I think he means the Czech Harem vid with Claire Belle?
I thought this was a bit weird of a comment, but the name checks out
omg that's horrible what video where
You're more likely to find 25 foreign carpets and a single woman, but keep dreaming and you might get your orgy.
I’d like to see a tailor park that houses 18000… on the other hand, no I wouldn’t
Tornadoes will not allow.
Southern Arkansas?
Considering there's probably only 18,000 people total in Southern Arkansas, I'm going to say this checks out.
No that's the Russian equivalent of Suburbia.
Imagine all the unique Wi-Fi names that could pop up at once
Guarantee there's some that are named "KGB surveillance van".
CIA is living here and CIA's safehouse would be hilarious
It will be “Definitely not CIA”
"Apt 5038 is an undercover CIA Agent"
You could also have "Apt 5038 is a journalist who dislikes Putin".
This escalated quickly...
You need to submit this to one of the movie companies, that would be an awesome show Christopher Walken should be the head CIA dude running the operation in the building and John Malkovich (acting as he was in Rounders) can be the KGB dude trying to catch him
It’s great until the FSB shows up
They always call before showing up though, so it's fine.
Looks like it's time for a strategy change, thanks.
I really should rename my wifi.
Except it really is an FSB surveillance van, surveilling.
One of our router names is “Totally Not The FBI”. My neighbor asked if I knew who’s that was recently. I just played dumb. Haha.
We have a neighbor who seems to be a little nutty: she was all concerned about the health effects of 5G. I have a guest network called “6G Experimental Research”
You’re a special kind of evil. I like you.
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2.6y
Mine is named Loading…..
Got that one as well. Also have "Searching..." and "Connection Error"
We changed our WiFi to “5GImplantBeta[name of our county]” to fuck with our Qanon neighbors, because they think 5G is cancer or govt spies or…idk why they think 5G is bad, but they do.
Your food probably gets microwaved by all the Wi-Fi hotspots in the area
“Get off my LAN”
I bet you there’s one named potato_in_my_ass
A huge town in one spot. Does it have its own school, medical centre and grocery store?
Yeah, all of it.
Only if the landlord is smart and enticed some local businesses to set up shop in the vicinity. Landlord's definitely making bank, though, but it must also cost a fortune to maintain, let alone pay the taxes on that property.
Google streetview shows the bottom floor and basement of the buildings are all businesses.
This is just smart city planning.
Fantastic video! More people should know about Not Just Bikes
It's a "microdistrict". Russian: микрорайо́н, mikrorajón From wikipedia:
According to the Construction Rules and Regulations of the Soviet Union, a typical microdistrict covered the area of 10–60 hectares (30–160 acres), up to but not exceeding 80 hectares (200 acres) in some cases, and comprised residential dwellings (usually multi-story apartment buildings) and public service buildings.
... Typical public service structures include secondary schools, pre-school establishments (usually combined kindergarten and nursery), grocery stores, personal service shops, cafeterias, clubs, playgrounds, and building maintenance offices, as well as a number of specialized shops.
It's possible that even though this is post soviet, they still have regulations on construction on such complexes.
I'm originally from Latvia and these types of constructions, as you rightly said "mikrorajons", are very common and the designs originally came about during the Soviet times as during communism you wanted people to live in "equal" housing. So, the USSR built these buildings across all types of communities and housed everyone within them. I remember when I was little even post-USSR (early 90s), people in these buildings and communities would trade their apartments as opposed to selling. Many were given to them, many were sold for very small amounts.
Anyway, this building is a particularly large example of this type of architecture that you can still find out all over the place in Eastern Europe. Visually and structurally all the buildings are usually the same (literally across all the post-soviet countries) with the most common distinction being balcony or no balcony. The buildings come in different heights and if you're lucky and live in a smaller one (e.g. 4 story), as a teenager you can gain access to the completely flat roof for sunbathing on melting tar.
Not all of these buildings have business spaces at the bottom, sometimes they are entirely residential OR will house like one or two shops and the rest are ground floor apartments. Extra props if you get to live in one of the low apartments, you can have your friends come and go via the balcony (structure dependent, tried and tested in childhood).
If you grow up in one of these as a kid you will by default have a lot of friends and you all go to the same school, and your parents all grew up and went to the same school, and the teachers are usually the parents of your school friends and everyone marries their friends' siblings it's veeeeeery small and usually extends through generations. My childhood teachers are still neighbours with my grandma and I went to school with their kids and so on.
I live here… And yes, parking can be an issue, but you always find a spot. And yes, some times it’s quite grim, but nearest forest and parks help a lot. If you have have questions - AMA.
Edit: People, you are freaking amazing. So many interesting questions, warm feedback, karma (from 100 to 9.3k whaaaat and reward (what for, why...). Thank you.
What’s in the courtyard? The inside part of the complex.
well, not great. There are spots for parking and there are small areas for kinds and that's pretty much it.
How crazy is the sound in the courtyard? seems like there would be a ton of echo in there
It is. Worst thing is the morning when everyone start to get their cars going. The noise is real.
If it was quiet in the courtyard and someone farted down at the bottom, would a person with their window open at the top be able to hear an echo?
That's would be hell of a experiment. But with loud enough fart - possibly yes.
So uh… gonna try it? For science and all? ;)
lol. I will think about it :D
Ah, that's disappointing. Would be amazing to have a park in there with tons of trees.
It really would..
How’s the noise level at night?
Usually pretty quite. Rarely (on fridays) some drunk guy will scream in a distance for a minute and that’s it.
That’s good at least. Are the entry/exit points of the building usually very crowded?
Not at wall. You might find 1 person having a cigaret near the entry, but that's all.
That surprises me. Is there a sense of community and shared culture within the building, or do people mostly just keep to themselves? Are there building activities?
Most people just keep to them selves. No building activities.
But (I've already put in one of replies), there a dog owners community, there are groups on social media related to district. So you can find people with the same interests.
Do you guys have your own police force or security force???
Nope. Ordinary police. But we hardly see them during the day. Once in a week I'd say.
I think everyone is wondering. Do you enjoy living there? What do you like? What do you not like? What would you want that would make it a better place. Thanks
I'd say it's fine for my age (32) and for me personally. I can say that I enjoy it for now. But I want to move to my own house (more like a dream for me).
I like that I get anything I want in 20-30 min, don't need go anywhere to far. I like that there is a park (pretty big one) quite near. I spend there like 1-2 hours a day.
I don't like parking issues, but I got used to it already.
Probably I would add more trees and plants in nearest area. That would be pretty amazing tbh.
It's amazing how your feelings are similar to mine and many other big city citzen. I live in São Paulo, 31yo , it's just buildings everywhere, with EVERYTHING under a 20min walk, I like living in a busy area for now, but I'd love to get my own house and live more peacefully somewhere eventually too. I guess you can be halfway through the other side of the world and be very similar in some ways still lol
Well, my guess will be, it's pretty easy to get fed up with buzz and start to dream of a quite place. But I think, with some time, we would want to go back cuz the buzz of a bug city is under the skin. And with the buzz and speed on things around us, we simply forget that people around us feels the same. Might sound stupid, but it's just my guess.
But anyway, high five.
Mid 30s NYC checking in. I feel you, my friend.
What communal stuff is there? Any bars or commercial units for shopping etc?
Yeah, shopping center (mall) is quite near. Everything you can possibly need is in 20-30 min reach.
Ah OK, thanks for your reply.
Is it a pretty tight community or do people stick to themselves generally?
They stick to themselves mostly. But as a dog owner, I know all other dog owners and we go for walk together for time to time. So guess I can say there are small communities based on interests :)
Thats cool. What is a distinct Russian activity/sport/ culture/behaviour that you would see as particular to you guys or your city?
I will stop now. Always found Russia interesting :)
Wow, that's a massive question.
Tbh, I don't really know. Interests are vast. Judging by people I know, I'd say:
Sport (football, jogging/running, free weights workout outside, fishing)
Travelling
Dog training
and of course job (whenever I meet my friends that number one topic for discussion).
I think I would give a better reply if I were not typing it :D
You should visit it when you will have a chance. There a lot of interesting thing to see and to experience.
Thanks again. I would love to. Couple mates did the trans Siberian express through Russia to China, they loved it.
This is super off topic, but how were your friends experiences and how long was the trip? My dream is to do that trip one day!! seems like an adventure
Couple months. Russia, Mongolia, China. Hard travelling back then from their stories but they had a blast. If you got the time for sure, must be amazing
I too used to be very interested in Russian culture as an American. I visited Moscow and have a few Russian penpals and the general consensus is that their life is just like ours. Except Russian.
My uncle is obsessed with Russia and spent most of life hiking around Siberia. All he talks about is how great Russia is (We're British btw).
Still, i like to get under his skin and pretend to get Russia confused with France lol
Particular to that city, it's like asking what's particular to London, it's Russia's old national capitol. It's huge and beautiful.
My favorite bit is about the symphony that helped repel the Nazi seige. Hitler invaded Russia in WW2 and devised a whole strategy for starving this city to death instead of just running a blitzkrieg through it, he was going to just convert the whole city to a place for Germans ,with no pesky natives to worry about. Bombing runs were arranged specifically targeting warehouses of food. Just imagine, all the store shelves not being restocked, for 700 days, and you can't leave.
Russia's finest composer at the time lived there, and composed a symphony as he was trying to sneak himself and his family past the enemy trenches/stay alive. Some of his family didn't make it. Finding an orchestra to rehearse and play it was a terrible struggle. But the piece became a shining light of civic pride in the midst of hell. They recorded the performance and blasted it from loudspeakers on the city walls to the German army in 1942. The sheet music made its way around the world and was performed by all the major orchestras and they were able to bring awareness to the shit the city and Russia were going through. Millions died needlessly, but the city never fell to Hitler.
You can watch a performance of it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB3zR_X25UU&ab_channel=hr-Sinfonieorchester%E2%80%93FrankfurtRadioSymphony
And I like the book "Symphony For The City Of The Dead" if you ever come across it.
We wanna see a picture of your dog!
Easy. Is there a way to do that in the comments or I need send it in direct?
You can upload one to imgur.com and post the link.
I’ve been on Reddit for over a decade and I’ve never understood why there’s not a way to put a picture in a comment without going to an external site.
What communal stuff
They organize a weekly 18,000 people orgy. Lifts the spirits.
DO NOT show up late.
the smell alone at that point would be like a physical force repulsing anyone who tried to approach the writhing mounds
In Russia we call this type of living place as Cheloveinik (the meaning combines words human and formicary). How would you construct this word in English?
Human ant colony.
It doesn't sound the way it does in russian. Cheloveinik word represents it perfectly imo.
I've been thinking about it for awhile, but still have no answer to that, that would be smart enough :)
formicary = ant colony.
I don’t think there’s an exact equivalent, but the saying ”like living in an ant colony” when referring to places a bit like this (but probably smaller!) is quite common.
Human colony, I think would be the closest translation to this.
Do those living in the apartments facing in get any sunlight at all?
Sunlight? In SPB? The joke's getting old you muscovite.
I'm no muscovite or russian, but I bet they get more sunlight than Finland (laughs in swedish)
As jokes say there's no such thing as sun in Saint Petersburg. It feels true from time to time.
Frightened citizens of SPB report seeing a glowing orange UFO in the day sky, government agents dispatched to investigate.
Overall, is it a nice place to live? Do you feel safe?
That's very tricky questions. Personally - I would not prefer to live here my whole live. But it's not like terrible place to be in. It's fine and even nice. There are schools and kinder-gardens around, anything you need is in reach, a good park/forest not too far (30 min walk). And yeah, feels safe.
Thanks for answering my question. I've seen this apartment building a few times on the internet and it's really fascinating to me.
Thanks again. Have a good night!
When my parents first visited me (they live in a very small town thousands miles away) they were fascinated as well :)
But you know, after years that you spent here, you got used to it and it's already looks normal.
Thanks for your questions. I was glad to answer. You have good one as well.
What made you leave your childhood home for this place?
Same things as other things make young fella leave his small town and parents house. Search for better life, better job, better salaries etc.
Appreciate the reply man, nostrovia!
haha
I appreciate your interest. Ne boley (Don't get sick).
Have you lived there your whole life? I read in another comment that you wouldn't want to remain there for the rest of your life, is there any other place you'd like to go/check out? (whether in Russia or elsewhere)
Also, are kids able to connect with each other? For example with playgrounds or places specifically set for them? Do you ever talk with your neighbours from the windows, maybe during Summer when some might be often looking outside to get the sun?
Is internet working well there by the way? I'm kind of curious whether the building relies on separate structures that are made specifically for it, my understanding is that this comes from a soviet-era time, does it receive regular maintenance, restructuring, improving, etc.?
Also thanks a lot for your time! I have been kind of curious about life in Russia since an uncle of mine moved there; he laments about many compromises, but says that it is very livable and not all stereotypes of malfunctioning and dangerous day-to-day life are true.
Sorry in advance for my poor english. I will try to answer all of the questions :)
I've been living here for the last 8 years. I'd love to live somewhere closed to nature or in my own private house in the woods. But it's more like a dream. Probably I will move to my home town, once I will be able to work from home. I'd love to visit NYC again some day and probably travel more in USA.
Yeah, they are. There are a lot of playgrounds for kids.
We don't talk from the windows (it's very close and not the comfortable for that), but we can meet and have a chat on the (i'm not sure if it called that) somewhat public balcony (similar to fire escape stairs) when we have a cigaret.
Internet is great here. Cheap ($10/m) and fast.
These building are quite new actually. They are like 15-10 years old maximum. So not much of improving or restructure needed and noticed so far. But will see in a couple of years :) Soviet-era building are usually not that huge and looks in a way worse condition.
Warm hello to your uncle. Let me know if he will be in Saint P. and he will need a help.
Do you see judge dredd often?
This is awesome! Thank you for answering all these questions. What was it like during the first Covid lockdown when everyone was stuck at home at the same time. Did it literally feel like there was 18000 around you at the same time? were you guys singing in the balconies like the Italians too?
Well, it is sad and embarrassing to tell, but during the first and second and even now covid lockdown nothing had changed. People where still going out, especially if there were send to work from home - there were out making barbecues etc.
I started to work from home before covid happened and for me nothing have changed. I haven't felt like there are more people around me, but I noticed more people on the streets.
Sadly, but no, there were not singing.
How often do you see emergency vehicles there?
Once in day or two. Nothing special usually
I have no question. Thank you for doing this AMA. I've always seen this building on internet and always wondered how's the life in it. Learned a lot from you.
а Варламов у вас случаем не гостевал?
Хз. Я не знаю кто это.
Был уже, обосрал как обычно. Но дом и правда уникально депрессивный.
Thank you for taking the time to reply to all of these questions! I just enjoyed reading all of your replies. How incredible is the internet and Reddit? The fact that we can share our life and culture with one another from anywhere in the world, amazing!
What is the lowest and highest rent? How big are the units?
Lowest will be around $140/m, highest - $550-$700/m
You can find from smallest like 30 m2 (kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and that's it), to like biggest 70 - 80 m2 (kitchen, 2 bedroom, guest-room)
Thank you so much for the information!
Americans: 70-80m2 = 750-850 ft2
I pay $1500/m for a slightly smaller apartment.
Oh man. For $1500/m you will have top apartment in center of the city or even a house :D
The salaries are different though :(
That's so true...
I know a guy that went WFH at the start of the pandemic in SF then went back to where he grew up in Thailand. Been there a year making SF money, living like a king.
In the US, I paid $1500 for a small one bedroom apartment in 2008. It's prob over $2000 now.
American dollars?!
OP, I must say I like your responses. You sound chill, easygoing and have generally a positive attitude.
Cheers to you.
What are peak times like i.e. people leaving and coming home from work? Not just cars but hallways, stairs etc? Any bottlenecks or is it smooth enough?
During peak time you can meet your neighbour or two at the elevator. Hallways are usually empty, maybe a few people will pass by.
Right that’s interesting, I imagined throngs of people but I suppose it’s a huge place too.
Thanks for the reply and hope you have a good day
Thanks, you too.
What's the nearest metro and how far is the walk?
Dubenko subway, around 25-30 min by walking, around 10 min by bus. But the district keeps growing.
Edit: Placed wrong subway station.
Your answers have been very interesting and your english is amazing.
My question for you is "What has it been like during the Covid19 Pandemic?"
Since Covid is fairly contagious, especially in close proximity, and since you said that people use elevators and stuff, what has it been like?
Have neighbors/you gotten sick? Do people wear masks? Were you worried when the pandemic started? Have there been any issues with getting to a supermarket? Were there any lockdowns? Were there any rooms/apartments that were quarantined?
You don't have to answer every question. I added several questions to guide your answer.
Thank you for the AMA!
Thanks!
Well, embarrassing to admit, but during the pandemic (especially during the first wave) nothing changed. Maybe a bit more people went out side since they were sent back to their homes. Numbers were rising, I heard some of my friends got sick, but there were nothing serious. I was very nervous, since I have 60+ years father and mother + I'm personally a chain smoker with some extra weight. So I even before all went down in Russia, I was already working from home and was trying to convince my parents to stay at home as well.
Week/month passed by. People started to get ill, some terrible news started to coming up and finally for some people it hit. And there less and less people outside. During that time, somehow, I got covid. It was a challenge. But we (me and my wife) got through and were healthy 2 weeks after we had our first test.
Since than we were working from home. In Russia delivery was already very popular, so there were no problems with grocery.
During second wave my father got covid. Long story, but he survived despite the second type diabetes, two heart attacks and overweight being 63+ y/o. Since those time no one had covid.
People do wear masks, but barely. Just not to get in trouble with police or security.
No trouble with supermarkets.
Even thou there were lockdowns - nobody give a flying duck about it. Hidden clubs and bars all over the place.
I don't want get into many details during those times, bit I guess it give an expression of it :)
Can you own an apartment or are they all rentals? Thanks for answering all the questions.
How's air circulation in your apartment, and on the ground level at the center? Doesn't seem like there's much space designed for the wind to go through, doesn't the air feel stuffy?
Well noted! Air circulation is quit bad here, especially at high levels. Don't know for ground level and at the center. It does feel stuffy. But after 7 years I got used to it. And by opening windows and the main door it makes it much easier.
I live on Kollontay 47 basically right down the street it's surreal seeing this on a big ass subreddit. And how there is a huge open space right behind this building with broken down construction buildings.
How often do you run into plumbing issues and how bad does it get? How challenging is it to keep away pests?
Never had one. Everything work smooth.
But, once in a year there might be a few days without hot water or cold water. But such days happen cuz of preventive work.
Wow, so well maintained!
It is pretty standard in the whole region to check the pipes before winter. repair when needed. becasue no heating and/or hot water during our winters would be a disaster.
Are there any elevators?
Hell yeah. It would be a nightmare without it. There are like 4 elevators in each entry.
What if there is a fire or earthquake?
Is there like a small community or group of people you regularly see each day?
Yeah. I have a big dog (german Shepard) and I know a lot of other dog owners around. Usually we go for walk together or meet each other outside on certain spots. So I guess it's like a community of dog owners. Also there a lot of groups on social media that created by the locals to help other on different matter.
Oh and of course, some of my friends live not to far as well as my brother.
Yeah. Dog owners gather for a walk, parents go out with their kids (lots of small areas for it) etc.
How often does the post mess up? Or dou you get all of your orders without any issue? What about food delivery?
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2.6y
Yeah. There are like 3-4 small ones, 7/11 type, at the first floor and bigger ones in 10 minutes. Huge mall (like wallmart in US) can be reach in 15 minutes by bus.
Do you hear many people having sex?
Peach Trees. Mega city One.
I really do love Dread. I just watch it again 2 days ago. This is all I could think about when I saw this photo.
Judge Dredd would like to know this location.
Don’t think even Dredd would have much luck on a Russian council estate.
You know how often we get a judge up in Peach Trees?
"There are 9999 single moms near you, click here to know more"
A Zombie apocalypse here would be intense.
2.5 times more than in the city i live in
city
I don't think that's what I would use to describe a place with under 10k people.
officially where i live is a city
Ah yes, Russia, my favourite city in St. Petersberg
Beats the hell out of tents on the side of the street with nowhere to shit but the road.
Social housing isn't always grim blocks of partments in an urban hellscape.
See: Vienna Austria.
Grim social housing > Skid Row/Tent city
That's a Lada people
Finding a car park would not be fun
What happens if everyone shits in the same time? Can the drain handle this?
Put a sporting event right in the middle or lions and people
Новый Оккервиль, pronounced Novy Okkervil. 59°54'50.20"N 30°30'34.31"E
https://www-newokkervile-ru.translate.goog/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=nui
Parkour!
User deleted comment
2.6y
Industrial CHP (combined heat and power) units go as small as about 4.5MW and provide about 10T of steam for heating. According to the first google result, I’m assuming 1kW per apartment which means 18MW for the whole building, plus auxiliaries such as lighting and elevators. I think it would be a practical solution.
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