Thought it may be a tidge strange, I have decided to comment on the strange/unusual/fantastic/dreadful hairstyles of the Russian people. People here have interesting ways of coping with the climate, and its inevitable destruction of every hair on a person’s head. Some give into the pressure and cut their hair all off. In fact, some people in my program have already done this. There are a lot of unisex buzz cuts walking through the hallways right now. Personally, I do my best to maintain my long hair, since I have the (dying) hope that it keeps warmth in a little bit longer. Coloring one’s hair is also popular, and pretty much every woman over the age of 35 has some unique, for lack of a better word, hair color. Though a sort of maroon would be the most popular, some of these middle aged ladies have taken the bleached look farther than I have ever seen or even gone over to the greens and blues. Of course, there are plenty of women with long, natural, thick hair that they braid or style in strange and beautiful ways.
Then, there is the opposite situation. I would say that about 50 percent of the men here possess the most luscious mullets of the whole world. Whereas the United States may have disdain for this hairstyle of the 70s, Russia has taken it to whole new levels. I would not hesitate to say that a large portion of men take better care of their hair than me. The stringy, dry stuff that grows out of my head is embarrassing when compared to the average Russian 20 something’s hair.
I barely know how to simply braid my hair, but the girls here have skills that I find incomprehensible. French, dutch, fishtail, flower, and waterfall braids are commonplace, and the average 6 year old girl (they all have about 3 feet of hair, by the way) can do any or all of these on their own. I always thought their mothers assisted them, but following some research (asking ALL my Russian friends and acquaintances), I discovered that many little girls learn to braid even before they are old enough to go to school. They certainly have more coordination than I do. I have been learning some hair tricks from my host brother’s girlfriend, of all people. Natasha always has some fancy snake-like braid that I am pretty sure I will never master, not that I have given up trying yet. She has taught me how to fishtail braid, but if I ever want a really cool hairstyle, I can go to one of the sidewalk braiding stalls (yes, they exist), to one to the many salons, or I could attempt learn via YouTube…. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFsTlLH3Uu4
Another thing, people here go to all sorts of lengths to ensure healthy hair, either by spending thousands each year on hot oil treatments or using what I would call disgusting home remedies. I have heard of people buying satin pillowcases or “bonnets” to protect their long hair at night while they sleep. Or washing their hair with oil, eggs, mayonnaise (It’s good for everything!), sour milk, molasses, baking soda, and vinegar. I recently asked my host mother about her hair routine, and she takes vitamins (A and B complex) on a daily basis to prevent her hair from turning into, well, what mine has turned into.
Though this might not be the most insightful look into Russian culture, I hope you enjoy hearing about the strange and wonderful world of Russian hair!
