I don’t usually spend a lot of time at malls—they’re just not exactly an attractive space for me to spend my time in. Anyway, one of these huge buildings with a futuristic appearance opened in my district recently, and to my surprise, it became one of my usual spots—I go there at least once a week. I am not going to Okhta Moll (the Russian way of writing “mall”) for the clothes stores or the fast food restaurants, but to visit Okhta Lab, a small cultural center that’s run by the Mayakovski library.
Here it’s possible to find conferences, meetings and exhibitions, all in a contemporary and young ambience. Since the entrance is free I usually take some book to spend some time lying on the huge red couch that reminds me of a wave and just be surrounded by other readers. There is also a piano waiting to be played by anyone and computers for people who need some co-working space or just to check some digital material of the library.
