When 40+ North American Citizen Diplomats & Context Training Volunteers get schooled and humbled. (excerpts from the memoirs of Michelle Sherman)

 October 31,1988

We had just landed in the dead of winter on a stopover in Moscow, Russia, on our way to Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Three dozen of my favorite people and I were embarking on a Citizen Diplomacy exchange between the sister cities of Seattle and Tashkent, exactly half-way around the globe from one another. We were there to gain permission from Zynania, the educational arm of the of the ruling communist party, to share an adult educational program on creating excellence in life.

Once we landed at Sheremetyevo airport, we took time and care to pass through customs. Upon Arriving in the cold and gray city, we saw huge buildings with enormous banners of Stalin and Lenin decorating them like warm winter coats. We had been culturally briefed, told not to smile too much. Our Russian hosts were taught that only fools smile for no reason.

We were promptly delivered with our guides to the Intourist Hotel across from Red Square. All foreigners visiting Moscow during the Soviet Era were assembled and permitted to reside at the Intourist facilities where foreign currency ruled. Many of the finer crafts, liquors and cigarettes were only sold or exchanged at the Intourist Hotel retail stores. Locals were prohibited from possessing any of the foreign currency that their government required in trade for those needed goods or services. Dollars were extremely valuable, but illegal for the locals to possess.

We surrendered our passports to the front desk, put our bags down in our assigned rooms and met our team at the top-floor restaurant for a late evening snack. This was October 31st.

As we sat enjoying our delicious fare, we started to hear thundering noises from below in the street. When we arose to see what was making such noise, we witnessed an alarming sight - a long procession of tanks,missiles and weaponry lining the streets near Red Square. We sat dumbstruck, wondering if we had arrived in time for a declaration of conflict with another country, perhaps the US?

It took but a few minutes for our translators and guides to discern our distress at the arsenal show of force many stories below. We sat,gathering ourselves for a few minutes until we were reassured that this was simply a rehearsal for the parade commemorating the November Revolution in 1917. Being A citizen diplomat has its ambiguous and dicey moments. This was just the first of many adventures and surprises experienced in 1988 as a bold and brave Citizen Diplomat.

Hear a bit more about Citizen Diplomacy and their contribution towards creating peace on the planet.