July 01, 2022

Summer Fun at a Russian Prison


Summer Fun at a Russian Prison
Just you and your prison gang enjoying the sunshine and water. Laslovarga, Wikimedia Commons

Even as Russia invades Ukraine, there are some things that have stayed the same. For instance, Russian prison officials getting up to shenanigans.

A tender announcement posted on a website for public procurement specified a need for a "towed water banana." The institution requesting the watersports equipment was Penal Colony No. 7 in Meleuz, in the Russian republic of Bashkiria.

The posting details requirements, including that the banana must be able to sit six people and measure 3.9 meters × 2.4 meters × 0.75 meters (approx. 13 ft x 8 ft x 2.5 ft). The colony has also requested that the banana come with all necessary accessories, including a pump, case, a repair kit, and necessary documentation. All of this must not cost more than R 133,000, or $2,440.

July 12 is the deadline for delivery, so if you're looking to unload your watersports gear, now's your opportunity.

While we can't exactly picture guards and inmates frolicking on a sunny Russian beach, taking turns driving the boat and giggling on the inflatable, we assume that the "towed water banana" will at least be put to good use.

 

 

You Might Also Like

The Water is Fine: Water Sports in Russia
  • August 08, 2021

The Water is Fine: Water Sports in Russia

Russia isn't known for being a warm-water country, but during the summer months there are more than enough accessible rivers, lakes, seas, and oceans within and around the country to have a little fun.
Yes, Dumplings are Still Bribes
  • December 11, 2020

Yes, Dumplings are Still Bribes

A police chief in Novosibirsk has been convicted of corruption charges after accepting Caucasian dumplings as brides.
'Sup?
  • August 12, 2020

'Sup?

St. Petersburg saw over 2,000 attendees at its stand-up-paddleboard (SUP) festival this year, many in costume and with pets in tow.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955