NOVOSIBIRSK: At the edge of the Siberian capital stands a huge housing project that looks like so many around Russia – one row of identical high-rises after another.
Within each such housing district are several schools. I went to visit one on a Saturday evening to watch basketball practice. The school was dark as there were only a few people inside on this weekend night.
From another room in the school, we could hear music playing and we went to see what was going on. Inside the room, a young man – no older than 25 – was teaching a middle-aged couple ballroom dancing. It was a private lesson.
Judging from their moves, this couple had been practicing for a while. The instructor was halting them from time to time to make the slightest moves to their arms or head.