Maria Grigoryan
Alexandra KostromitinaI was just 17 when I met my Croatian husband-to-be by chance. I was visiting a Croatian classmate in her homeland. I was studying journalism at Moscow State University, and he was at the University of Zagreb, where we met. We waited four long student years to finally be together, and we haven’t parted since. We did everything possible to see each other at least once every 2-3 months – I even decided to write my graduate thesis about Croatian television
During my five years in Croatia, besides my
Interviewing the mayor of Zagreb
Maria Grigoryan“Russian dinners” has a funny backstory. I suggested the idea quite by chance to the owner of the posh restaurant Lauba. He agreed straight away and asked me to organize everything. I invited a female friend of mine from Moscow to be the chef. She couldn’t
In Croatia, I have to drink a lot of coffee. Coffee for Croats is sacred. It's considered bad form to discuss business matters without a cup of coffee. My record is nine cappuccino in one day! We Russians love tea, but in
I have to fight the stereotype that all Russian women are “easy.” This is the most unpleasant and unfair stereotype. If you’re a Russian woman, it means you’re only interested in men and money. When I first started working for a Croatian TV station, that's precisely what everyone thought courtesy of the editor-in-chief. It took two years of hard work to prove to her that diligent, respectable Russian women do exist
If you’re Russian, you’re probably a spy. That’s what they think here. And if you’re a Russian journalist, there’s no doubt! I’m used to friends and foreign relatives calling me “our KGB girl” or “Russian spy.” I don’t blame them because in Hollywood movies the bad guys are always Russian
Maria representing Russia Beyond on Croatia journalist award
Maria GrigoryanThis is an updated version of the article that previously had a couple of inaccuracies. We apologize if the previous version caused offense to any of our readers.
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