Our People Abroad. Visiting the Turks

Nikolai Alexandrovich Leykin was once a famous Petersburg writer-humorist, journalist, and publisher. His popularity was colossal: the poet A. Blok called the end of the 19th century "the era of Alexander III and the writer Leykin." A. P. Chekhov considered Leykin his "godfather": since the early 1880s, Leykin published his own magazine — the humorous weekly "Oskolki," in which he attracted the young Anton Chekhov, revealing his talent. "Our People Abroad" is one of Leykin's most famous works. A cheerful narrative about the travels of merchant Nikolai Ivanovich Ivanov and his wife Glafira Semyonovna, about amusing adventures and various misunderstandings that occur with the heroes in foreign lands, was so liked by readers that Leykin wrote several sequels. As the title of this book suggests, the Ivanov couple decided to visit Turkey. On their way to Istanbul, they will visit the "Slavic lands" and spend several days in Belgrade and Sofia. Leykin's readers see the world through the eyes of his heroes, — and this somewhat naive perspective highlights the characteristic features of national cultures and traditions. The merchant couple awaits new meetings, discoveries, and real trials