Post Cards
By V. Galiatsatos
Spotlight on Russia
By far the world's largest country, Russia is almost twice the size of the next largest country, Canada. Russia sprawls across eastern Europe and northern Asia. Four-fifths of the people live in the European part of Russia, west of the Ural Mountains. Moscow is the capital of Russian and cultural hub in the heart of European Russia.
The lifestyle of Russians depends to a great degree on their income levels. For Russia's poor, life is a daily grind of survival and many people spend hours each day selling their belongings or other goods on the street. The lifestyles of wealthier people have become Westernized to a very high degree.
In 2003 U.S. citizens adopted 5,209 children from Russia. Children available for adoption include boys and girls, ages 7 months and older, healthy and with special needs. These children reside in orphanages and represent a variety of ethnicities such as Asian, Roma, Mediterranean, and Caucasian.
Spotlight on Guatemala
The Republic of Guatemala lies in Central America and is bordered by Mexico, Belize, the Caribbean Sea, the Pacific, Honduras and El Salvador. Guatemala has a population of 12.3 million people and the national language is Spanish. More than 60 percent of the population live in rural areas.
In 2003 U.S. citizens adopted 2,328 children from Guatemala. Children reside in orphanages or foster care.
In Guatemala, as in other developing countries, disease, poor diet and hygiene and inadequate medical care are factors contributing to a high mortality rate. Children often cannot go to school.
There is great variety in Guatemalan lifestyles, marked by differences between ladino and Maya ways and urban and rural areas. In the capital European culture and fashions have long been dominant. More recently North American styles — in cinema, music, politics, business,
even fast-food franchises — have become a powerful influence. In urban areas the ladino culture is a mixture of indigenous and Spanish traditions often blending the clothing, music and food of the two cultures.
Guatemalans enjoy various holidays and festivals throughout the year, when the marimba, a wooden drum played with sticks padded with rubber, can be heard. Cofradías (religious fraternities dedicated to a particular saint) offer a variety of recreational and leisure activities to members. The most popular sports are soccer, basketball, and volleyball.
