"My brother left for Germany in 2007 and two years later my sister followed him. Nine out of twelve siblings of my wife also left. We visited them three times. Of course, they invite us to move as well. I can't say that I'm so happy with my life here, that I would not want to move. However, it is possible to live here, too. Of course, this life is not an easy one: we have cows, two calves, pigs, rabbits, hens, and a large garden. We could drop these household activities, but as long as you keep moving, you stay alive.



My wife often laments that we should be leaving, too, but then she calms down and we stay. It is easier for us as compared to those Germans, who want to come back here. There are such people as well. A few families returned, but it is still a rare situation. As a rule, those are the people who could not become a part of that system. They could not overcome themselves and start cleaning the streets, for example. They prefer to work as a school teacher here. Others start to miss Russia and come back. When they are here, they start to miss Germany. I tell them: you did not miss Russia, you missed the village and the community. Thus, they are neither here, nor there anymore."

