We stood in a long line at a place with only one item on its menu, so placing the order was simply a matter of answering the question of "how many" and as you see, people order a LOT of donuts for each person. Taken hurriedly (and therefore, unfocused but hey, it's creepy to take photos of other people's food so you have to do it surreptitiously and that's a challenge with a big SLR and big lens) over the shoulder of diners that scored a small table (as opposed to many who were standing at counters), I took this photo for Vera @vera365, because I thought it would be nostalgic for her. Oh, and the donuts were hot and delicious! I ate three and a half.
PS PLEASE READ Vera's comments below -- her story makes this entire photo worthwhile.
Oh my, you can't imagine what a huge swirl of everything this picture created in our house! Even before I saw the title (And I am so honored!!!!), I saw the donuts and had to call my husband over saying - look, look, someone tok the picture of the Russian donuts! And then it hit me - it had to be you, so I scrolled down and saw the title too! THANK YOU! This definitely brings a lot of nostalgia - and there are so many unmistakably "Russian" things in this image - the little napkins on the dish, the details on the ladies, the plates, the table.... It all screamed to me for some reason as "Bolshaya Koniushennaya" street right off the Nevsky prospect, if this is a picture taken in Saint Petersburg. This IS a magical place, has not changed much from the Soviet times - you still get the "donuts" and the "bucket coffee" (a very sweet and very milky coffee from a huge dispenser that they used to fill from the top with buckets of hot steaming drink prepared in the kitchen). And again - so many stories can be told about that place. As a kid, you stand in line hoping you are going to get a "good" portion of donuts, which means the first one from a new giant tray they carry out of the kitchen, and not the last ones that already cooled down. You also watch out for the way the powdered sugar falls onto them - the ones on the side get the least amount, so you hope for something that is in the middle and has a little mountain of it on top.... Once the infrastructure and the places to eat in town started to change and become more and more customer friendly, this place was deliberately preserved the way it was - till today. It's a piece of history, a taste of childhood for so many, and it's almost a national treasure :). You had awesome guides, as it seems, who took you to all the right places in Russia!!!! Thank you again for sharing and thank you for dedication!
@taffy@joansmor@photographycrazy@seanna@maggiemae@cgribben -- thank you for your comments. But @vera365 -- your fabulously wonderful description of the memories evoked made posting this photo completely worthwhile! Thank YOU for sharing such rich memories!!! (Note that I added a line to my own commentary above so any other people who read it see the commentary you wrote . . .) And yes, you are exactly right in the name of the place -- I looked it up on one of my photos taken of the exterior of the place! :)
@vera365 Isn't that the lovely part of 365. The evoking of memories, the sharing of them,and the community that is formed. Your memories triggered mine. My dad took me a couple of times to this little diner in town and I got to have a powdered chocolate donut. Not even home made but still give me a one today and I am back in that diner with my dad. The diner is wrong gone but my memories will last forever. It was that it was just me and my dad that made it special for me.
@jyokota Come to Maine and I will take you to Congdon's my favorite place for donuts as an adult. I even had the "memory gathering" for my dh after he died here.
@fntngrma@888rachel@joansmor@vera365 -- I'm so happy that my humble photo has created such a lovely discussion! Thank you all for reading and engaging. And @joansmor -- you never know where I will show up! @Taffy and I are on our way to NYC next week, and the idea of Maine is certainly intriguing!
@jyokota I am finally getting to go somewhere. LOL Taking my sister back to Florida in two weeks and we are driving down the mountains. Not as exciting as Russia but I am excited. I have always wanted to see NYC but I just haven't worked it out. Still on my bucket list.
@joansmor -- lots of photos ops in the mountains, no doubt, and then Florida! Enjoy the views as well as the companionship on your trip! NYC is two business trips with a photo diversion sandwiched in between. I hope you get there some day, too!
October 6th, 2015
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