Vladivostok: Up North and Far East

I never thought I would ever set foot in Vladivostok, Russia. Most of us would either visit Moscow or St. Petersburg when coming to this country, and if not chosen to host 2012’s Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Week, it was honestly a city I never knew existed. True enough, as a friend exclaimed, I was on a “real adventure.” The idea of coming to Russia, learning a few Slavic words and bringing home a matryoshka doll, was irresistibly exciting.

I had major hesitations about coming because I only had two weeks to get a plane and cram my visa application. But my wanderlust argued the contrary and prevailed. With the high heavens conspiring with me, I found myself landing in the capital of Primorsky region, just 2.5 hours away by plane from Seoul and three time zones away from Manila. 

The trip begins with a horror visa story, among the things we should expect at least once in our lifetime for being a non visa-free country. Arriving a day earlier than indicated in my Russian visa, I was held for almost four hours at the small immigration building together with a stoic-faced security, my luggage and the airport dog. This was the price to pay for cramming my visa, and I suddenly felt being in a Cold War movie. Grappling with the language barrier, I was hell scared as they took my fingerprints and posed for a “mug shot.”

High heavens were still with me. I wasn’t escorted back to Seoul though I had to pay a hefty fine (around 3000 rubles). The next four days became the best escapade ever, an immersion to the unique character of the Russian empire.  

Vladivostok was originally conceived as a military fortification and homeport of the Russian fleet in the Pacific. It answered my honest curiosity why the people of Vladivostok are predominantly European looking, and the Asian population is too few despite its proximity to China and Korea. There was a chapter in the city’s history that it was purely a military base, and it was closed to all civilian life.

Today the city has already opened itself wide, and it is embracing diversity while maintaining its moniker “Europe in the East.” Vladivostok is poised to be Asia’s access to Russia, and likewise, Russia’s access to the Asian Century. The place beats with life and excitement and massive investments are underway to transform the city as a growth center. In fact, in preparation for APEC, new roads, hotels, bridges and buildings were built and constructed.

This development momentum reverberates in Vladivostok, and it aptly displaces those stereotypes I had for Russia. As a Filipino, I think that we are more similar to them than we are different – we face the same predicament to ply through today’s immense global economic and political challenges while constantly seeking to establish a unique identity and role as a nation. 

The wonderful people I met at the APEC Youth Festival were just like us. We are like-minded young leaders, students and professionals who worry about our future careers, then at the same time are seriously anxious about globalization and pretty much passionate/excited for our turn to lead our institutions and economies. For three days, we saw international cooperation and dialogue in action. You had China, Russia, United States and Australia, among others in one table and everyone was oozing with fresh ideas and solutions about various APEC agendas on small and medium enterprise development, energy, agriculture and trade. 

When in Vladivostok, one should see the Golden Horn Bridge. Inaugurated just a few weeks before our arrival and best seen from the Eagle’s Nest Hill, the locals told us that it meant so much for the people to finally have a beautiful bridge just in time when the world is looking at Russia as the APEC host. When it opened, the people joyfully lined up to cover the bridge’s length with hands held together. When was the last time we did something like this in Manila?

For history enthusiasts like me, you will see the Memorial to the Fighters for the Soviet Power in the Far East in Central Square in Svetlanskaya, a grand reminder of the city’s military history and indelible mark on Russian civic pride. The patriotic statues are set against the backdrop of quaint European-style buildings that roll with the hilly terrains of Vladivostok. Tsar Nikolai II also built the beautiful Triumphal Arc not so far from the square. The C-56 Submarine, one of the most successful ships of the Russian Navy, is also nearby. 

The Vladivostok Station along Aleutskaya Street ends the Trans-Siberian railway. The rails are like the umbilical cords of the city to Moscow, which may be 9,200 kilometers away but still commands loyalty and unity from this side of the empire. I am adding the Trans-Siberian train journey as one of my must-dos before I die. 

Finally, just in front of the station stands the statue of Vladimir Lenin. Oleg, my Russian friend who walked with me on our last day at the city, explained that all of Lenin’s statues point to a certain direction - the road to the “utopian society”. The locals joke about it that he’s saying, “We’re on the right way, comrades”, while pointing at Japan. 

Getting exposed in international conferences like this and visiting new places like Vladivostok should become a must for young Filipinos to acquire a global perspective and deepen our understanding of the rapidly evolving world we live in. Meeting diverse people from almost 14 APEC member-economies was an eye-opener to our commonalities and potentials, as well as a chance to reflect and dispel our biases and parochial dispositions.

Of course it was also a perfect opportunity to proclaim that “it’s more fun in the Philippines”. My fellow Filipino Chris was brilliant to bring a lot of Pinoy bookmarks, postcards and souvenirs for our new friends. I strongly believe this should be a habit of every travelling Filipino.