Joseph Werth in Novosibirsk in January and February of 1994. Father Bitz can be reached at 302 1st Ave. 0n the way home to Novosibirsk, we stopped at the Academic City, which has a Super Value grocery store. It is just like a store in America. It was started by a young, Russian-speaking entrepreneur from Minneapolis.
Prices are the same as in the American stores.
Generally, there seems to be a lot of gloom, doom, and despair in Siberia. Since the change to privatization, the mafia really has taken over. Many people have lost their jobs or if they have jobs, they have not been paid in two or three months. There is food on the shelves, but it is very expensive. Crime is very high.