Even in badly damaged, clearly unsafe buildings, I could see signs of habitation. For example, a building could be only partially standing, pockmarked with war damage, without a single pane of glass, and yet have laundry hanging out a window. The day of my visit was unusually mild for December, and people were out and about, shopping at sidewalk stands, which offered mostly food and clothing. There was no evidence of stores in the conventional sense functioning inside buildings. Civilians are not the only presence felt in Grozny.
Russian soldiers maintain a constant presence.
There are checkpoints at every turn. Closer examination of street corners reveals machine gun nests, tanks, and bunkers. Driving throughout the city, I saw few glass windows. Nor, however, did I see plastic sheeting, a sign of emergency humanitarian aid. In fact, I saw no evidence of reconstruction, even temporary, of damaged housing.