Have you heard? There's a rumour in St. Petersburg

So, the bad thing about being neglectful, is now I have to remember everything that has happened in the past few weeks.
The weekend of Oct. 1-2, we were in St. Petersburg. And I have fallen in love with another Russian city. St. Petes is kind of like a smaller version of Moscow. Which means that there is the hustle and bustle of the city- its just not as crowded. But you can't only spend two days there, because there is far too much to see and do. We left on Friday night, taking an overnight sleeper train- which was a lot of fun. But then again, I love trains...and sleeping. We arrived at 5 in the morning and quickly headed to our hostel. This was my first time staying in one. And it was not at all like I expected- which is a very good thing, I don't know where I got my imagined layout of a hostel, but it was definitely something from a long time ago and I never changed the image. That Saturday, it was tons and tons of sightseeing. Church after church after monument after building after statue, after museum...you get the picture. But all of it was gorgeous. Russian architecture is absolutely incredible. And, except for some of the decrepitly beautiful castles in Ireland, they are the oldest buildings I have ever seen. I think that is the coolest part about the buildings in Russia, because people have been standing in the exact place and looking at the exact thing that you are, for months, years, decades, centuries, and so on.

My Dear Dear People

That just happens to be the mantra for Friday because our lovely tour guide in Vladimir and Suzdal said it about every 10 minutes. Now, I like being a dear dear person, but it got a little annoying when- God Forbid- we take a picture without her telling us about our surroundings or the buildings first. (Now that that little rant is out of the way...)
Vladimir and Suzdal are two [маленький] Russian cities with a ton of history, churches, and specific limestone architecture to the time in which they were built. Now- I cannot tell you half of the things the guide said, one reason being, it was a very long day and she talked a lot and by the end of it we all just wanted to chill out and have somе Медовуха- which is a alcoholic honey type drink. I guess it is similar to mead. Peasant drink... Can't afford the водка. Second being my mind has never been great at absorbing vast amounts of detail quickly and without being read. So needless to say, tours aren't that great information-wise for me, I need to see it in print. But if you are really interested, you could always Wikipedia it, because they are actually very interesting cities.
Anyway, the churchs were magnificant- so much detail and extravagence that I don't even have the space (or your patience) to describe. Also, it was 100p to take pictures inside, but I didn't do that, so, I will just let your imagination wander about the beautiful art and dressings of the insides of the buildings. Or- you can google it. One of them is called The Assumption Cathedral. Between the two cities, there are tons of old buildings and a monestary, and more churches, and replicas of towns, and so many other things. They were pretty cool. I couldn't live there, a little too boring. Its like Rome, but with more trees and farms- if you can imagine such a thing!- very picturesqe and I could go there for a vacation, but I am too used to drag racing and car horns as the melodic track while I am falling asleep, plus birds in the morning...not exactly my favorite thing in the world. This is my conclusion for why people went bird shooting for sport. They are far too annoying (sorry to all you bird-lovers out there).
Let's see, what else. Oh yes! The bus ride. A four hour drive each way half of each trip was spent getting through Moscow. We probably could have been there in maybe less than half the time. I slept there. But on the way back...it was too much sleep. Even for me. Needless to say, it was a very very long day. Enjoyable, but at the end of if I was glad to get back to my room.
As for the paperwork in Russia- this is probably what has me the most on edge. America should be thanking Russia, because now they will make a ton of money off me when I get home and check myself into an institution. Because it is making me a little mental, and frustrated, and totally and completely confused. There are roughly 3257 different offices to go to, each with its own set of paperwork- sometimes it not even ready for you to do anything with it- so one needs to go back a couple weeks later to see if they have their shit together. Then you have to take that said paper, make a copy of it, then go to another room hand it to some lady, who obviously knows you are from the США therefore treats you like an idiot because you are American and can't speak the Russian language [well]. Then after she finally writes everything down for you and gives you one document, you have to take those said documents to a different room, where they give you more paperwork. And it goes on and on and on. Am I boring you yet? See, I would be bored too, if it wasn't driving me insane.


My dear dear people, I am out for now!
<3

La vie en Russia

We started classes last week. It is quite intense. The language classes are 3 hours long for 4 times a week. Then I have 2 other classes and a seminar-type thing. Should be an interesting semester. There are only 5 of us in my language class- so that means attention for all of us. YAY![?] But I can already feel my Russian getting better. The unfortunate part is when I am in the real world, people speak much faster and much quieter. As my friend Michael quoted from somewhere [in Russian], "You can't hear a Russian speak from 10 ft away" or something to that effect. Which is very true. It isn't that I don't understand- its that I can't friggen hear them! Which- of course- still makes me feel like an idiot by their reaction anyway. Oh well, more practice...? But as for the other two classes- they will be an experience. Mass media and history. History will be same ol' same ol', but I am a little worried about mass media.
On another note, last weekend was absolutely fantastique! [I can hear drunken Russians outside my window- they sound lovely]. And the second night I actually got back to my dorm at a reasonable hour. So, friday night, the people I was originally going out with ran into another group of exchange students outside the dorm. Therefore, I met some new people and for some reason [not sure the idea was thought through] we all went out in a huge group. I swear there must have been 20 of us. We couldn't find the place we originally wanted to go to (after some classic wandering through Moscow), and through the course of the night, we all split up anyway. I met some lovely Europeans from Italy, Spain, Bulgaria, Hungry, Austria, Germany, and so on and so forth. We ended up at a place, at long last, called Bilingua, which I would like to visit again earlier in the evening when it might be more crowded. From what I could tell, the music and the beer were good. Which are the top two priorities when going out, in my opinion. [I feel like that could be a potential "Duh." statement]. The next night some of my new European friends (I just love saying that!)and I went to a place called Kvartiira 44 and that was a lot of fun too. Before we went in though, we got hungry and went to Kroshka Kartoshka- which is like fast food baked potatoes. They were quite good, but I don't want to know what was in it, and I wouldn't tell you if I knew. But, it is the equivalent of Americans going out for pizza after getting completely smashed. Quick, easy, and pretty good. There were only 5 of us, which I think is a good number for going out. A tip- one should probably always meet up with people inside a venue if you are a group larger than 5. For some reason, they don't let you in. This place was pretty small anyway, and we decided on the "When in Russia..." mentality and had a shot of vodka with our .5L beers. The Moscovite [older men] were impressed saying in their thick accents, "Beer and vodka is very good. Very good." Except our waiter thought we were silly foreigners and gave up speaking to us after he spoke fast and low, and we had to keep saying "Shto?" and just started gesturing, like weird ones, like thumbs up and stuff. Things got pretty funny after a couple of the drunk customers starting singing, dancing, and playing the piano. We got serenaded. It was a very nice song. And we were told we were loved about 578 times. I think- I may be off a little on the number. It was my favorite kind of evening. Good company, good atmosphere, and drinks- but not excessive. And we got back at around 2- instead of 7.
This last week has been absolutely beautiful weather, which is making me fall more and more in love with the city- before it turns on me and gets frightfully cold. It is just as beautiful in the day time with the changing leaves, the perfect 16* weather with the occasional breeze, and the smell of rotting apples in the air, while at night, its cool and crisp with the city lit up and still alive. My not so favorite part, is probably the drag racing that goes on almost 24/7.
This weekend is a group excursion to a town called Vladimir. hahaha, group trips...[for some reason, I flashed back to Fort Stanwix and we are going to Herkimer Diamond Mines....] I am told that something important went on there. And excuse my naivete, but I don't know what. But I will after Friday! So I won't be unaware of this particular site for much longer. I will probably wikipedia it before I go anyway. It should be fun. I like bus trips.

Пока! Всё любовь моя!

And so it goes

A couple of poignant things happened today- just keep in mind I am a very boing person, and it really isn't that exciting...
-I saw white pleather go-go boots- actually on a person, not just in a store or on Jane Wiedlin or something.
-I went to my first Russian language course. (GULP)
-I got a lighter so now I can make food. (gas communal stove)
-I wore flip-flops and a skirt. (a rare occasion in Moscow when it is not between the months of May and August)
-I found Ramen. In Russia. Its not bad and its about $.35 a packet. No wonder it is the choice of college kids everywhere [literally].

On that note, the grocery store is pretty awesome. It is a French chain called Aushon or ашан (Emma, you might have heard of such a place). Shopping in the supermarket is very hard when you have no fridge and its not quite cold enough outside for your windowsill to act like one. Or you don't know exactly what you are buying. For instance, I couldn't find соуc/sauce so I bought some 'chair de tomate' which looks like tomato sauce but translates to 'tomato flesh' [or pulp, but flesh sounds more dramatic]. Okay. Good. I still don't know what the hell that is. I can't buy anything that will go bad, and if it is fresh, I have to eat it within the day. And there is no microwave, so to reheat things, you need to go back to the communal kitchen and heat it up in your pot. This isn't a huge catastrophe- just a pain in the ass on occasion. Also, if its supermarket brand, I have to be careful what I buy. Its not like Central Market at Price Chopper... The no name brand water is fine though- its a big bottle and its cheap [1.5L for 8 rubles]. Water is water. Except you can't drink out of the tap without boiling it first, or filtering it- which is why I am getting bottled. But since it is getting towards winter time, I am probably just going to be drinking a helluva lot of tea anyway- so boiling comes with the territory. And I love my electric tea kettle. I want to take it home with me, but 1) it probably won't fit and 2) the plug is not for America. какой ужасно!!

Then there is my Russian class. It has 5 students, including me. Yay for more focused (only one 's' looks weird) attention on my ineptitude to speak in front of people. If it is the one thing I hate in foreign language classes, it is being called on. When you say the wrong answer, everybody is whispering their own- most likely correct, or less wrong answer- around you. And then, 2 seconds later when someone else says the correct answer, you go "ugggghhhhhh duuuhhhhhhhhh I knew thaaaaaaaaat" or maybe that's just me... Either way, I have never been great at oral presentations, tests, and even "no pressure, its okay if you are a dumbass- this is a learning environment" situations anyway. But, I can feel my Russian getting better. Hopefully we work on grammar though. That is what I really need. I haven't had my other classes yet. But they should be be tolerable at the least. The soundtrack for Anastasia keeps going through my head. How a propos and cliche. Its a good thing I like the movie.

I honestly don't know what else to write. Other than being in Russia, I am really the same boring person as always. Just with better stories (that hopefully don't turn into 'Elise stories' via internet, too).

I'm out for now!
Пока!!!

It's very wet here- including me.

So the last couple days have also been very hectic. More registering, pre-course test, crash course on Russia, 3 hour [walking] tour, and nightlife. I am hopefully officially signed up for classes, but Russia being Russia, I am not 100% sure yet of my schedule. And the lady I needed to talk to was 45 minutes late for work so I had to wait around before I high-tailed it for the exam. After the schooling, we had free time, which I used to set up my internet, watch True Blood, and nap. Saturday morning was the walking tour, which was actually really quite fun. Learned a lot, forgot some of it, but was intrigued by almost everything the guy had to say. Although, it would have been better if it hadn't been raining. My poor hair is now back to its curly, jewy, unmangable self, which I do admit, I kind of missed. After the tour, we had lunch, and I was a party-pooper and went back to the dorm. Where I proceeded to nap and fool around on the computer, again. Although this time, it was actually a nap.
After I woke up, the group congregated again, and decided we would go out. (It is now about 11 o'clockPM at this point) and the GREAT part about going out in Moscow is that the metro closes at 1AM and opens again at 5:30AM. And when you are still learning your way around the city, there is no way in hell that you are making the 1am cutoff, espcially when you start at 11-12 at night. For those of you that have never gone out with me- I am a fan of happy hour. In at 5PM, out at midnight, half priced drinks, and ride the buzzzzzz; no getting wasted, sloppy, inappropriate, or foolish. No such luck with a big group that consists of young adult, vibrant individuals who will not have youth wasted on the young, therefore, we stay out allllll night. (and just in case you were wondering- yes. I did just get in and the sun is rising and I am really pruney...). The first place we went to was pretty awesome, great atmosphere, though it was pretty dead. We spent about 2-3 hours finding it though, at night, in the pouring rain, and only a couple of us fluent enough to get around. We eventually found it, and are eager to go back and try again- now that we know where the god-forsaken place is. The second place we went to had a lot of potential, but it was 4 in the morning and the bouncer wouldn't let us in. So, we went to a 24 hour coffee house and waited until the metro opened up again. I had an espresso- hence the being up and writing this. The rain got worse on the way to the station and it was buckets by the time we got off. It literally took all night, but the drinks were good, the company was most delightful, and overall, I did have a good time.
Now it is 7 o'clock on Sunday, and we have an optional museum tour at noon. I feel bad for missing it, but 1) I will probably not get up, and 2) I have 3 months to go see this museum when I am not exhausted and will actually be interested in it. I think the espresso is wearing off. Either that or it is being over-powered by Lynchburg Lemonades and the need for sleep.
Dos fydanya for now!

Getting to know you

So, here I am sitting in the lobby at 3 in the morning. It is the only "online hotspot" in the building. Nobody is here- except for me because I am an American and it is only supposed to be 7 at night. Also, I haven't figured out the internet in my room- the instructions are all in Russian- who'da thunk...? Jet lag goes in and out- but mostly I am just trying to convert my sleep time. I took a nap at 6 today only to wake up to the realization that it was very late. And I am officially crazy with the thought that I would actually only be taking a nap. My body is rebelling after lugging about 90 lbs of crappola through the city of Moscow. And we walk everywhere! Culture shock has not set in yet and I am having quite a great time. I get a breath of fresh air by meeting new people (not that I do not love all of those that I am already aquainted with!). The bad news is that they are not used to my height- like the rest of you are- so, here we go again with the arm rest on my head and the short jokes... I take it in stride to avoid being the bitch right off the bat. I forget how easy it is to make friends and that people as a whole are willing to be friendly. [Even the Russians- so I just want to put it out there- Russians are awesome. They get a bad rep and I apologize to them. They can be quite fun, especially in bars- just like everyone else]. Most of the people I am hanging out with are older and frankly- its wonderful. I like the mid to late 20s aged people. They are still tons of fun but don't feel the need to go overboard. My suitemate on the other hand...nervous laughter... I am not homesick just yet, but I do think about everyone at home a lot. Its strange not hopping online and being able to talk right away. And apparently NO ONE is on at 7 at night because we all have to wait until 9 at night not to be considered absolute computer addicts...
It has been a crazy schedule the past few days. Getting aquainted with the city, the group, the metro, and of course, Russian beauracracy. All Russians do is wait in line. I don't know what the huge hold up is but no one gets shit done quickly. It took 5 hours to get checked into the dorms, 5 hours to pre-register, tomorrow it will take another 5 hours to actually register. Not to mention all the random waiting. Like at the metro, at the supermarket, which yes, are usually busy, but Russia takes it to a whole new level. Rubles are about 28/1 which sucks. Because now I have to do math. I went to the ATM and it spit out a bill with the number 5000. For those of you that are just as bad as I am in math, that is over $100. And the only place that really takes them, are the supermarkets. (p.s. there is a beetle doing laps across the floor. it seems really determined to keep going back and forth.) Anyway, we took the metro into the Red Square today. And let me tell you. St. Basils Cathedral is the.most.spectacular.thing. I have ever seen. Its one thing to google it, but in person- it is breathtaking. We also saw the parliament building, the Goom, and everything else that occupies Red Square. It was so amazing to actually be there. Its all a little surreal. Tomorrow/today is the proficiency exam. HAHAHA. I am gonna go study.

In Preparation

As of this moment, I am working on last minute packing, printing out documents, and squeezing in the last of familiarities like food, texting, and tv(even though it is rumoured that Moscow has all three of these)... But that hasn't stopped my brother and my father from reassuring me that all I will be eating for three months is Borsht and sour cream. Thanks, guys. And now the nervousness and anticipation are all starting to settle in my stomach and its getting to me. I make lists in my sleep (baby, what's my sin?), dream in Russian, think about what I need to bring, and all sorts of other problems that really don't need to be worried about. Stupid things like, how much tylenol should I bring? or Will I have a roommate? Although I know I will most likely be fine, there are still worrisome aspects to studying abroad that, I am sure, will get easier in time. Things mostly like immersing myself in the culture, language, and politics- aka not being sent to a gulag, not mixing up words, and not being an obvious American. They would know anyway. Apparently the two dead giveaways of Americans is that we smile too much, and we don't sware enough. Although I do love being from the USA, some other countries do not like it, we'll see how the Russkis react. T-30 hours until take-off.