Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I am always curious to know and understand better the Russian perspective on things.

Very interesting about your bunkers. I didn't know you had that many and that huge bunkers. I have read that Helsinki has a huge underground bunker for the whole population. However I did not know that this was common in Russia as well.

One likes to say that the Russian mentality is an enigma to people in the West but honestly I have come to learn that to truely grasp the mindset of anyone outside your immediate cultural sphere is hard.

Like I find that I understand Germanic people quite well such as Germans, Dutch, Swiss and other Nordics.

French people can be hard to get. Likewise with the English. Scotts and Irish can be a bit more transparent.

But I must say some of the more interesting conversations I have had has been with Russians. I remember a guy from years back who grew up in this Siberian city which had been created as a prison colony during Stalin times. His city had just had a number, no name.

He was a very curious and open minded guy with a lot of reflections on life. It was illuminating to hear his thought on his past and how he experienced the world.