Franklin Dean
In 1988, Bernie Sanders, then the mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and his wife, Jane, travelled to the Soviet Union. The trip was an official government visit to establish a sister-city relationship between Burlington and Yaroslavl, a Russian city on the Volga River. Although the trip was not a traditional honeymoon, Sanders himself jokingly referred to it as a very strange honeymoon and a quiet, romantic honeymoon.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of the person who went to the Soviet Union for honeymoon | Bernie Sanders |
| Year of the trip | 1988 |
| Duration of the trip | 10 days |
| Cities visited | Moscow, Yaroslavl, Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) |
| Purpose of the trip | To establish Burlington's "sister city" in the Soviet Union |
| Trip funded by | Sanders and his companions paid their own way |
| Trip members | Sanders, his wife Jane, and about 10 others |
| Trip mentioned in | Outsider in the White House |
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What You'll Learn
- Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, visited Moscow and Yaroslavl in 1988
- The trip was not a traditional honeymoon
- Sanders described the trip as a very strange honeymoon
- The main purpose was to establish Burlington's sister city in the Soviet Union
- Sanders criticised the US while praising the Soviet Union
Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, visited Moscow and Yaroslavl in 1988
In 1988, Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, visited Moscow and Yaroslavl in the Soviet Union, shortly after their wedding. The trip has been referred to as a "honeymoon", although it was primarily an official government trip to establish a "sister-city" relationship between Burlington, Vermont, and Yaroslavl. The couple was accompanied by a delegation of around a dozen city representatives and officials.
Sanders, then the mayor of Burlington, was a self-described socialist with a keen interest in foreign affairs. The trip to the Soviet Union was his most significant foreign venture at the time, and it drew much notice due to its timing and political context. The United States' relations with the Soviet Union were in a state of transformation, with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev pushing for openness and reform.
During their visit to Moscow, Sanders and his entourage walked through Red Square, saw Lenin's Tomb, and visited Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). They then travelled to Yaroslavl, a city of about 500,000 to 600,000 people located along the Volga River. In Yaroslavl, Sanders and his companions attended a banquet where they enjoyed a sauna, vodka toasts, and Russian folk songs. Sanders, in a towel and bare-chested, sang the Woody Guthrie socialist classic "This Land Is Your Land" to his hosts.
The trip to the Soviet Union has been a notable episode in Sanders' political career, often referred to as an "extraordinary" and "little understood" chapter. Sanders has used the experience to explain his views on foreign policy and has cited it during his presidential campaigns. While critics have accused him of Bolshevism and moral obtuseness, others have defended the trip as part of a broader effort by Americans to reach out and build relationships with Soviet cities during a time of potential change and openness.
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The trip was not a traditional honeymoon
The trip Bernie Sanders took to the Soviet Union with his wife, Jane, shortly after their wedding in 1988 was not a traditional honeymoon. The main purpose of the trip was to establish Burlington, Vermont's "sister city" in the Soviet Union. The couple was joined by a 12-person delegation of city representatives and officials, including Jane, who was the director of the Mayor's Youth Office. They visited Moscow, Yaroslavl, and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg).
Sanders, who was the mayor of Burlington at the time, had an unusually large interest in foreign affairs for a mayor. He was a self-described socialist, and the trip was his most significant foreign venture. It was also notable given the context of transforming U.S. relations with the Soviet Union, with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev pushing for openness and reform.
The trip included meetings, interviews, and diplomatic functions. Sanders combined business with pleasure, meeting "ordinary people" from everyday walks of life (carefully selected by the Communist Party) and visiting historic sites. He also attended banquets, where he criticized the United States' interventions in other countries and praised some aspects of life in the Soviet Union, such as the lower cost of housing and healthcare.
Sanders himself referred to the trip as a “very strange honeymoon” and a “quiet, romantic honeymoon,” indicating that it was not a traditional honeymoon experience. The couple had a more traditional honeymoon in St. Lucia in the Caribbean the following year.
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Sanders described the trip as a very strange honeymoon
In 1988, Bernie Sanders, the mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and his wife, Jane, travelled to the Soviet Union. The trip was an official 10-day visit to establish Burlington's "sister city" in the Soviet Union. The couple had married just a few days prior, and the trip has since been described by Sanders as "a very strange honeymoon".
The trip to the Soviet Union was Sanders's most significant foreign venture at the time. It was also notable because US relations with the Soviet Union were in the midst of a transformation. Reagan had recently travelled to Moscow for a summit with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who was pushing for openness and reform. This timing drew much notice, and the journey has been described as an "extraordinary" chapter in Sanders's life.
Sanders and his companions paid their own way, and their first stop was Moscow, where Sanders walked through Red Square and saw Lenin's tomb. They then went to Leningrad (now St Petersburg) and Yaroslavl, a Russian city of 600,000 people on the Volga River. Sanders was enthralled by the hospitality and lessons that could be brought home. He wanted to take the "strengths of both systems" and learn from each other. He also criticised the cost of housing and healthcare in the US, while praising the lower prices in the Soviet Union.
The trip was dotted with diplomatic meetings and functions, but it also had its lighter moments. Sanders and his wife were seen dancing to live Russian music, and Sanders exclaimed, "I brought my special dancing shoes!" He also expressed interest in developing a Russian studies program in Vermont high schools. In another instance, Sanders and his Vermont companions were treated to a visit to a sauna, followed by many toasts of vodka and Russian folk songs. A bare-chested, towel-clad Sanders then sang the Woody Guthrie socialist classic "This Land Is Your Land" to his hosts.
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The main purpose was to establish Burlington's sister city in the Soviet Union
The main purpose of Bernie Sanders' trip to the Soviet Union was to establish Burlington's sister city in the Soviet Union. Sanders, the mayor of Burlington, Vermont, at the time, took a delegation of city representatives and officials, including his new wife, Jane, on a trip to the Soviet Union. The trip occurred in June 1988, shortly after his wedding, and has been described by Sanders himself as a “very strange honeymoon".
The sister city relationship was established with the city of Yaroslavl, a Russian city of about 500,000 to 600,000 people located along the Volga River. The choice of Yaroslavl was made by Sanders, who rejected the initial proposal of Kaunas, Lithuania, due to the historical killing of thousands of Jews there by the Nazis in 1941. Yaroslavl was chosen for its similarities to Burlington, including its "forest and dairy" environments and comparable university.
During the trip, Sanders and his companions first visited Moscow, where they walked through Red Square and saw Lenin's Tomb. They then travelled to Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) and Yaroslavl. The trip included meetings, interviews, and diplomatic functions, such as a banquet where Sanders criticised the way the United States had "intervened" in other countries. The delegation also experienced Russian culture, including a visit to a sauna and Russian folk songs, and Sanders participated in a gift exchange with his Russian hosts.
The timing of the trip was notable, as it occurred during a period of transformation in US-Soviet relations, with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev pushing for openness and reform. Sanders' trip provided an opportunity to foster dialogue and build relationships between the two countries, demonstrating an interest in learning from each other's strengths and encouraging citizen-to-citizen exchanges.
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Sanders criticised the US while praising the Soviet Union
In 1988, Bernie Sanders, the socialist mayor of Burlington, Vermont, travelled to the Soviet Union with his wife, Jane, for what he called a "very strange honeymoon". This trip was Sanders's most significant foreign venture at the time, and it drew much attention due to its timing just after Reagan's summit with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in Moscow. Gorbachev was pushing for openness and reform, and Sanders praised the summit as "a major step forward for humanity".
During his 10-day trip, Sanders criticised aspects of the United States while praising certain features of life in the Soviet Union. He criticised the cost of housing and healthcare in the US, contrasting it with the lower prices available in the Soviet Union, although he did not praise the quality of Soviet provisions. At a banquet attended by about 100 people, Sanders blasted the United States for intervening in other countries, upsetting one of his companions, David F. Kelley, who walked out. Sanders also made no mention of Soviet interventions since World War II, including the erection of the Iron Curtain, the crushing of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the suppression of the Czech rebellion in 1968.
Sanders's trip to Yaroslavl, a Russian city on the Volga River, included a visit to a sauna and many toasts of vodka and Russian folk songs. He was inspired to sing the Woody Guthrie socialist classic "This Land Is Your Land" while bare-chested and draped in a towel.
Sanders's comments about the Soviet Union have been criticised for ignoring and minimising the country's crimes. However, others argue that his remarks should be understood in the context of the country's steps towards democratisation under Gorbachev, reflecting a desire to challenge stereotypes and end the Cold War rather than support authoritarianism.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Bernie Sanders and his wife Jane went to the Soviet Union for their honeymoon in 1988.
No, the trip was not a "honeymoon" in the traditional sense. The main purpose of the trip was to establish Burlington's "sister city" in the Soviet Union.
Bernie Sanders and his wife visited Moscow, Yaroslavl and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). They walked through Red Square, saw Lenin's tomb, and visited a sauna. Sanders also gave a toast and sang "This Land Is Your Land" to his hosts.
Bernie Sanders' honeymoon lasted 10 days.
Bernie Sanders has described the trip as a "`very strange honeymoon"` and a "quiet, romantic honeymoon".
