"Life is the most precious thing a person possesses, and each person has only one life. A person should live it this way: when looking back on the past, they should feel no regret for wasting their years, nor shame for accomplishing nothing; so that, at the moment of death, they can say: I have devoted my entire life and all my strength to the most magnificent cause in the world—the struggle for the liberation of humanity."
Standing in the narrow bedroom, with a narrow camp bed beside him and a colorful Bohemian-style rug spread across the dark floorboards beneath his feet, Su Ming recited that famous passage in fluent Russian.
This was the villa the upper ranks of the Polar Bear had gifted Ostrovsky in 1935. The writer had spent the final years of his life here, cared for by his mother and sister.
After his death in 1936, the upper ranks reclaimed the villa in 1940 and turned it into the exhibition hall open to visitors today. A museum three times its size was built to the left of the villa to display the master's various personal belongings, while a newly constructed photography studio and ticket office stood on the street side to the right.
Touring the villa was free, while the museum charged admission. The photography studio required a ticket, but it did come with a postcard full of period charm, which was rather interesting.
Unfortunately, none of the three could leave behind photographic evidence. Safety came first.
The three left Sky Ring and arrived in Sochi early enough to discover that it was not yet lunchtime. Natasha suggested taking a stroll around the small city.
Although Sochi had a small population, its area was not small at all, fully embodying the Polar Bear philosophy of vast