Katerina Mukhina
Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

Katerina Mukhina

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

  • Katerina Mukhina

     Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

Katerina Mukhina

 Writer. Researcher. Adventurer

Top stories

Cape Scott Lighthouse: Bears, Flat Tire & Moonlit Beaches

A midnight flat tire on Vancouver Island's loneliest road. Rescued by a bear hunter. We hiked more than 50km - with a bear trailing us, and more - a cub peeking from behind a tree. We followed wolf tracks, slept beneath lighthouse skies, and watched the sunset blaze over the coast. Well, even the "Graveyard of the Pacific" has a...

read more

Hot Water Outage

This piece explores how bathing differs across Canada, Russia, and the UK. It brings back memories of five-minute cold showers under the watchful eye of a landlady in London, prison-style rules from a Canadian corrections officer, and even the odd excuse to start a romance during water outages in Moscow. Because every summer in Russia, hot water disappears.

read more

Intensive care

Rushing from Canada to Moscow to visit Dad in intensive care — unrecognizable after just a month. Hiding shock behind forced stupid jokes. The storyteller in a spacesuit trying to trick death. Collapsing into a stranger’s arms. The sterile air, skeletal hand, Mom’s silent vigil—none of it feels real. Only the guilt remains: fear of the body that used to...

read more

Gagarin in Canada and the Cocaine Romeo Next Door

She’s convinced she’s special - a student who came "temporarily" but secretly plans to stay. Yet there are thousands like her. And instead of triumph, she’s met with harsh reality: bureaucracy, job hunting, and a drug-addicted neighbor she has to share a bathroom with.

read more

In August, we set out from the small coastal community of Bamfield, following the rugged trail toward Cape Beale Lighthouse—the oldest staffed sentinel in British Columbia. The journey would take us through dripping forests, over broken boardwalks, and past the ghostly shapes of abandoned boats, until the path ended at the edge of the continent, where waves and wind rule.

A stopover in Istanbul, a walk along cobblestone streets, Turkish cats - heirs of great Constantinople, Dad’s guidance, Turkish coffee causing a terrible headache, humiliation of women, the injustice of the whole world — and it all ended at the police station.

Life stories that normal people never experience – told with humour and a dash of smart analysis

  • All
  • Stories
Ordinary life of a normal person
August 11, 2025

exploring life before and after medication, the loss of intensity, and the strange calm that follows. A journey from madness to mellow. Bittersweet trade-off between wild intensity and calm, ordinary life.I still ask myself what I need more—to be with the man I love or with the son I love. What is the cost of this freedom?

A Bug Zapper
August 3, 2025

Love is… A quest for a bug zapper while the beloved is frozen in terror - insects all over the house. She rushes to rescue him. While he always rescues her - from bears and her nightmares. She tests limits - he survives. Growth through mutual, manic devotion.

Island of Freedom
June 28, 2025

What are the reasons to stay far from home and family? Freedom. The freedom from our parents: mine - from my parents, my son’s - from his. So we all live in different places. I still ask myself what I need more—to be with the man I love or with the son I love. What is the cost of this...

Book chapters

Step inside the story – explore a selection of powerful chapters from the books.

  • All
    •   Back
    • Rescuing dad
    • Moscow - Vancouver One-way Ticket
    • Terminations
    • Love Between OCD and Bipolar
And no one to ask
January 20, 2025

A movie about Dad through his music is made —Simon & Garfunkel to Piazzolla, Vertinsky to Zaz. His soundtrack echoes across generations. The daughter reminisces about the music they loved - songs that shaped her taste and funny stories about mispronounced lyrics and kindergarten runaways.

So many Goodbyes
January 17, 2025

The village church overflows with mourners as the narrator confronts the crushing weight of her father’s absence. This is his legacy: a life spent collecting both rare treasures and fractured souls, now reduced to silent artifacts and unanswered questions. What is now left? His cluttered office, his unfinished plans, and her mother’s clenched fists in an echoing, empty house.

Dad is sleeping
January 8, 2025

They tiptoe around the word 'coma,' draping it in euphemisms. They say: 'He’s sleeping' - shared incantation against the unbearable. A mother moves into a small room near the ICU. Her world shrinks to hospital halls and the sound of church bells. Fall turns to winter unnoticed. We know - dad may never wake. Faith remains.

News, reports, interview, opinion, travel

  • All
  • Articles
School Holidays all over the world
August 15, 2025

Discover how school holidays differ worldwide. In Canada and Australia, students enjoy extended breaks with opportunities for reading challenges and early work experiences. In contrast, the UAE offers shorter vacations but emphasizes extracurricular activities and family time. This article explores these diverse approaches to school holidays.

At the Edge of the World: Hiking to Cape Beale Lighthouse
August 14, 2025

In August, we set out from the small coastal community of Bamfield, following the rugged trail toward Cape Beale Lighthouse—the oldest staffed sentinel in British Columbia. The journey would take us through dripping forests, over broken boardwalks, and past the ghostly shapes of abandoned boats, until the path ended at the edge of the continent, where waves and wind rule.

Tofino – Canada’s Best-Kept Secret on the Pacific
April 16, 2025

On Vancouver Island’s remote west coast, Tofino blends vast beaches, ancient cedar forests, and rich Indigenous heritage. Reached via winding roads and free of cell service, it offers world-class surfing, wildlife encounters, and rugged beauty. Over a holiday long weekend, we explored misty shores and rainforest trails, leaving awed, restored, and longing to return. When Canadian and Russian families flock...

Research

Thought-provoking research on what fascinates me most: tourism, cultural differences, human behaviour and wellbeing.

  • All
  • Research
Research Methods
August 20, 2025

As a researcher, I deploy targeted methods to get actionable insights: Surveys (personal/QR-code/social media-enabled to understand visitor feedback and quantify trends), In-Depth Interviews (uncovering local stakeholder perspectives and reveal ‘why’ behind data), Field Research (direct observation of real-world behaviors in tourism settings to capture authentic interactions), and Controlled Experiments (testing interventions like volunteer programs or application of new tourism attractions).

Social & Culture
August 20, 2025

Social and cultural dynamics, focusing on how people interact, form communities, and navigate identity within diverse contexts. It also addresses how traditions, norms, and cultural practices influence human behavior and societal development.

Tourism as Region Driver
August 20, 2025

This paper examines the remarkable transformation of Siberia's Priiskovy region, where winter tourism development overcame political resistance to become a catalyst for social and economic revival. Seven years ago, visionary entrepreneurs recognized the untapped potential of Priiskovy's pristine wilderness, initiating snowmobile and cat skiing operations despite government indifference. Their success story reveals how tourism can revitalize post-industrial communities while reshaping...

Articles

Book chapters

Stories

Research

Events

Golden Hinde hike

September 16-18

Quote of the day

“What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it.”

Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Tags

Social media

Scroll to Top