The sea behind barbed wire: what surprises await tourists in Sochi

Novye Izvestia has written more than once about the problems faced by citizens of the country who find themselves on the Russian sea coast, regardless of whether it is the Far East, Crimea, or, as in our case, Sochi. Yes, yes, it is Sochi, the so widely advertised Black Sea resort, where the authorities invite Russians by hook or by crook to give up the Turkish or Bulgarian shores in favor of their relatives ... Are they really such relatives? It was repeatedly written about the difficulties of access to the Crimean beaches, which were literally grabbed by Russian officials and oligarchs, separated from the common people by fences with barbed wire and security cameras. And in Sochi? And in Sochi it's the same.

Journalist Dmitry Yezhkov spent three weeks there. And at first he really liked the city-resort, renewed for the Olympics. However, then an epiphany came:

“At first you see only what lies above. Then you start to see what is below. Then even lower. Two years ago, I even thought about buying an apartment in Sochi. Realtors even worked. And now I understand that - God forbid..."

"Why?" - you ask. Yezhkov replies:

“Well, in general, I have a couple of words about the Motherland. Scared? Well, right.

As soon as you become enchanted by your homeland, you also want to forget about it. I suddenly discovered that in Sochi it is impossible to get anywhere near the sea. It seems to be Sochi. It seems to be the sea. But he is not.

You can approach the sea on the Central City Embankment. She's not very big. You can get into the water if you don't care about the shields that prohibit you from doing it, and the people who are looking at you.

Then sanatoriums begin. Their beaches are fenced with barbed wire fences along the top. On the other side - eternal renovation. Also a fence and security. And when you find yourself next to the sea, you suddenly realize that it is easier to see this sea on TV.

And on the Red Sea, you can walk along the coast from the Israeli border to Sharm el-Sheikh. And in Hawaii, no one will stop you - unless, of course, you yourself fall from the smell of marijuana or stumble over naked people who are bored with making children in a separate room.

In general, you want to fall in love with your homeland and suddenly you feel how this vile State Department gets in your way and - interferes with you.

And I already want to go somewhere else..."

As one of the readers wrote:

“I wanted to go to Sochi after your previous enthusiastic post about him. Now I won't go. I knew there was a catch. We cannot do without this..."