I’ve been to Hostel “Africa”. In this particular area there is something like three or four buildings of students, and in each usually a floor of foreigners who are generally all coloured. The foreigners and Russians don’t mix and it really is becoming something like tribal warfare. In fact TJ told me about one incident that happened this week; two Africans were walking in a nearby park when a gang of Russians surrounded them, demanding money. Someone called someone, and suddenly every single African male in the area appeared at their side. Terrifying the bullies of course, who apologised and fled. TJ marvelled at the ‘brotherhood’ of it all.
Elsewhere in the linguistic university hostel, where students from all over the world study Russian, there is a similar Chinese stronghold. Before Kevin left he told me about some fight between a Chinese girl and her Austrian roommate which resulted in a sort of European vs. Asian clash for a month. The racial divides are just confounding, especially when you’d think everyone would have had enough of it on the streets.
And on Saturday night as Sarah, TJ, Rufus and I stood waiting for my bus, a drunk young man shouldered into TJ. Before I’d even noticed his friend returned to apologize, slurring ‘excuse my friend’ as sincerely as he could in his drunken state and limited English. He continued to ask us where we were all from and what TJ was studying, before another friend dragged him away. Another minute passed and suddenly the perpetrator came over to apologize.
Standing on the street, aware that people were staring at us and I would probably be safer alone, their drunken antics seemed to disperse all the hostility. Looks became curious rather than condemning and suddenly the boys were returning again and again to apologize or just be drunken fools.
But TJ just became more and more offended. He scoffed as I pointed out that they were only being friendly, saying that I didn’t know what it feels like to be completely out of place. It was humiliating, rather than endearing for him. Rufus asked if he would prefer that they were racist, and he replied that he would prefer they treat him like a human.
