Category: me&my: travels

me&my: travelsLeave a comment

Only in America

shannonleebanks

For some reason on this quick visit to the US, I have really noticed cultural differences between my native country and my adopted one: I ordered a steak at dinner and it was large enough to feed  a family of four. I thought I’d enjoy it, as the US really knows how to make a good steak, but instead I really feel a bit ill. And I even left half of it on my plate! The shopping hours make it feel like every day is a holiday. How fantastic to finish work and have there be stores open that you … Continue reading Only in America

Career, me&my: travels, me&my: writingLeave a comment

Buy the Matches

shannonleebanks

In 1992, when I was 21, I lived in St Petersburg. It was just after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and it was hard. Food was in shortage because workers had walked away from the communal farms and all the crop was rotting in the fields. It was spring and cold and ice fisherman were drowning and floating ashore after fishing when the ice was thin. We lived with Russian flatmates who were disillusioned. We were millionaires compared to our friends but there was nothing to buy. We had to search to find food in the empty supermarkets, just … Continue reading Buy the Matches