A new star has emerged on Russian Instagram, PolyaizDerevki (Polya from the village). The account is run by 27-year-old Polina, who for over two years has been living in a village located five hours by train from Moscow. Her parents and friends often come to visit, but Polina lives alone, so for security reasons she does not disclose her exact whereabouts.
Polina posts incredibly funny videos about her life in the country, especially mocking city life with all its creature comforts. For example, she shows the village equivalent of a spa – a washbasin and a trough - and presents an ordinary village bathhouse as a luxurious suite.
Polina started her Instagram blog in May 2017. At first, she posted videos only for her friends to give them an idea of her life in the country. They liked her videos so much that they persuaded Polina to keep posting. Gradually, she got more and more subscribers, and after hitting the 5,000
In her videos, Polina says she wants to keep up with city life. "I have numerous forms of entertainment here: I can slide on a wet bench, chop firewood, gather all sorts of rubbish in a pile, wait for an ant to bite me. All kinds of pastimes are available: a spa, a barbecue, a compost pile - half of you probably have no idea what a compost pile is."
Polina posts photos and videos of herself digging,
chopping logs,
posing with goats,
singing,
eating apples, with a twist.
Thousands of viewers are attracted by Polina's ability to poke fun at people who are obsessed with modern trends, be it fashion, fitness, a healthy lifestyle, or one's looks.
“I want to keep up with the latest Moscow trends: you know, toned butts, lunges, squats. Girls, dears, what are the current terms in use? You need to lift weights," says Polina in a video showing rusty scrap metal. "And do not forget about healthy nutrition: all those goji-
She also makes fun of the popular Instagram motivation slogan: "Get out of your comfort zone."
Her bio on Instagram is based on a quote from a song by the popular band
Polina used to live in different cities: Vladimir, Moscow, and Nizhny Novgorod. She studied and did some temporary jobs. One day, however, she spent a holiday in a village and realized that this is exactly the life for her. "For me, it was not a difficult decision or a necessity. I just came, liked it here and I stayed."
In addition to the obvious benefits – fresh air, slow-pace of life, no traffic jams or crowds of people – the main attraction of country life is the scenery, says Polina.
Polina does not look like your average village bumpkin and prefers street fashion over old baggy sweatpants. That said, she points out that locals are not bothered about what is "fashionable" and what is not, and do not pay much attention to what they wear.
"To them, I’m just a good neighbor. We visit each other, we talk, everyone knows each other by name and we all live in peace."
For a long
"I just wanted to tell a little about myself, so that people will see me from a different angle, get to know me better," she explains.
Polina has plenty of advertising offers. "I’ve already placed advertisements and I do not respond to all the offers. But I do like making my own ads and I treat it as a creative process," she says.
With the money earned from
"For foreign readers, I will say one thing: life in the Russian village is the best."
If using any of Russia Beyond's content, partly or in full, always provide an active hyperlink to the original material.
Subscribe
to our newsletter!
Get the week's best stories straight to your inbox
