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You gotta love a Western economist who is up-to-date on Russian idiomatic expressions. Barcelona-based Edward Hugh may just be one such polymath–well, at least he says he has seen his share of Russian movies.

While his recent article on Economonitor has little to do with his apparent love for Russian culture, knowledge of the idiom came in handy when Hugh looked for the appropriate metaphor to describe the economic and demographic plight of a country that has long been considered (perhaps, unfairly) as Russia’s poor cousin to the west: Ukraine. The expression he picked was ‘suitcase mood’ (чемоданное настроение) which, broadly speaking, describes the mood of someone who has had enough and is thinking of leaving a place.

Why is this expression fitting? Ukraine, says Hugh, is simply winding down. More»

The city of Paris is about to begin a multi-year renovation of one of its most cherished landmarks: the 82-meter-high Panthéon (5th arrondissement), which is visible from much of Paris, will be receiving a thorough, decade-long face-lift. More»