- The Dolgopolov Mountains: : Humour Poem by Alessandra Liverani

The Dolgopolov mountains are fierce and forboding
Balashkabav River descends them, icily flowing
Chernogolovka Peak rises spectacularly into the mist
Forming part of the Chasm of Chemanzhelinsk

The Zheleznogorsk Pass is a shocking misnomer
Only Gorbatov goats'd be game to roam her
Flisselburg Falls dropp into Volokolamsk Lake
Its freezing waters the home of the Skovorodinsk Skate

The slender Slyudyanka tree bows to the Gundorovka Gale
In its branches are the nests of the Quarovsky Quail
Who migrate to Khibinogorsk at the first hint of snow
And are swiftly followed by the Chesnokovka Crow

Inside the Gubkinsky Glacier lies the Chapayevsk Crevasse
On its sheer sides grow the hardy Gavrilov grass
Munched on by the mysterious Mednogorsk Moose
And if you believe all of this you're a Gelendzhik Goose

(Sydney, Australia - 2011)