So it begins… I actually got around to starting my blog. I’m pretty sure no one actually thought that I was really going to get around to writing one, lol. Although, Matty J has assured me that it is a hard habit to break… We shall see if this is really true! But in the long run, it might be a good thing that I waited because now I can write my overall general perspective since I have had two weeks to acclimate myself to the culture and my new living situation. I guess I can start off with a quick run-down of everything that I have been up to these past 2-3 weeks:
25 Aug. – I flew out of Pittsburgh to Chicago to connect to my overnight flight to London. It definitely didn’t hit me how long I was going to be away until I had to say goodbye at the airport. Cue emotional departure. Although, British Airways is a pretty decent airline for future reference. Although I think I still prefer Luftshansa :)
26 Aug. – Landed in London around 9:45AM. What an exhausting flight, although I did manage to get about 3 hours of dozy inandout sleep. Screaming two year old… not cool. I also watched Kick Ass on the flight, not quite what I was expecting. Ah well, such is the movie industry. The rest of the day was spent making friends and just wandering the streets of London near the hotel.
27 Aug. – This was our free day in London. So after they dumped us in Covent Garden, we were free to do as we pleased for the remainder of the day. I met up with my cousin, Jack, and we had a pretty good day. We went to the natural history museum and saw a full scale model of the blue whale. Those buggers are BIG. Sometimes you don’t realize how small you are… And that evening we went to the cinema to see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Also not quite what I was expecting, but it was entertaining. I see it as a movie with more of a cult following. Overall, pretty good day :)
28 Aug. – This was my first encounter with Russia. On the plane, I was actually seated next to a Russian guy around my age that happened to be from St. Petersburg. So a guy from my travel group and I befriended him during the flight. Cool kid. I was shocked at the size of the St. Petersburg airport… I expected something big and grand, well maybe not grand, but big at least. It was a very small and very dated looking airport. We were let off the plane onto the runway, no concourses. And it was so crowded and just very dated looking. We eventually made it to the dorms, and I’m pretty sure my suitcase broke trying to drag it up the front stairs, but oh well. The rest of the evening was room assignments and the like.
29 Aug. – Orientation day! Basic information about the building, what is available and how not to get arrested and stuck in a Russian prison, lol. We also had a pretty basic tour of the major tourist highlights of the city. We visited Peter and Paul Fortress specifically. It was a pretty cool place. Interesting architecture for sure.
30 Aug. – This was my first Monday in Russia, and we had a test! Always knew Monday wasn’t a good day… But it was just the placement test for your language level. I was pretty sure that I did terribly on the test, but everyone was sure they bombed it, if that is possible for a placement test. Following the test, we had a practical tour of the surrounding area to find things like the hospital and post office and how to use the metro, etc.
31 Aug. – So I found out that I was placed far higher than I had expected for my language level, and we had our first class. Should be quite a learning experience since the teacher will only speak to us in Russian and use English words very sparingly, only to teach a new vocabulary word. So based upon my grammar knowledge, I’m advanced, but when it comes to simply listening and understanding, I couldn’t have been placed better because that alone will be my big challenge. Listening, speaking and understanding a language is a completely different world to reading and writing it.
1 Sept. – Hermitage, the world’s largest collection of Western art. That was definitely an interesting trip. We also lucked out because the Hermitage is currently hosting a Picasso exhibition from the Louvre in Paris because they are doing some sort of construction or other so they put the Picasso exhibition on the road. And thanks to my student card, I get in free whenever I please! Which is good cause I heard it can take 9 years to see every single exhibit of the Hermitage Museum.
2 Sept. – The US Consulate came to visit us so that they could basically tell us not to do anything stupid and get arrested. And how to be safe in the city, as well as the services that they offer to American citizens abroad in Russia. They made sure to stress that they, in fact, cannot get you out of jail if you are arrested, they can only make sure that you are being treated the same as everyone else. Scary thought… I guess I’ll just do my best to stay out of jail.
3 Sept. – First Friday, and first low-key day. We went on a river cruise on the Neva in the evening with live jazz music. Good friends, a beer and good jazz music made for a pleasant evening :)
4 Sept. – Peterhof is probably one of the most gorgeous places that I have ever been to, if only for the grounds. While the palace was absolutely amazing, and the fountains were breathtakingly beautiful, I would be perfectly content to have grounds as nice as Peterhof to wander around in. Plus, its hard to compete when you have squirrels that will gladly leap right onto your head and chill. Or ducks practically everywhere, including some that will pose for the camera :) And then to top it off, Peter the Great is totally the man because the place is riddled with joke fountains that will spray you if you trigger them. Peterhof for the win!
5 Sept. – Some friends and I just hopped onto a bus and got off at the first stop to explore. We found a pretty spiffy little restaurant and coffee shop within walking distance of the dorms. Best way to find places.
6-10 Sept. – Classes continue as per usual in addition to elective classes. I am taking History of Russian Art, History of Russia: Kieven Rus to 1917 and History/Political Science of Russia: Perestroika to Present. In language, we encountered our speech teacher for the first time and that was a trip and a half. I was only just getting used to the cadence of our grammar teacher when I was suddenly overloaded with a Russian who speaks extremely quickly. Well, I guess no better way to learn than to dive in head first, eh?
9 Sept. – HOCKEY! CKA St. Petersburg vs. Dinamo Riga (Latvia). It was a pretty epic match, especially being surrounded by hundreds of screaming Russians. I did have to snicker at the Latvians who were surrounded by the police for the entirety of the game for their own safety. Though I suppose it was the best because CKA lost in overtime, 4-5. Although CKA is responsible for overtime with a goal in the last 10 seconds of the game! :D
11 Sept. – Siege of Leningrad tour. Now that I think about it, it was a pretty fitting day to be visiting memorials, even though it was for something completely different and on the other side of the world. We first visited a huge memorial cemetery that was built to commemorate the 1 million people who died during the 900 day, 900 night siege of Leningrad during World War II. It was a gorgeous cemetery and it was a very humbling experience. Even when its not your home country, it makes one proud to know that there are people who are willing to give everything they have for the protection of their country and its citizens. We also saw the huge memorial in the center of town, which was pretty spectacular. I guess it just makes me feel good to see a city/country really appreciate their soldiers.
12 Sept. – A couple people from our group, along with myself, met up with the afore mentioned Russian friend that we made on our flight over to St. Petersburg. He and a friend from his university took us to the artillery museum for the afternoon. It was a pretty cool place and the building and basically surrounded by tanks, missiles and cannons from world wars. Not to mention the amount of related things inside the building. Definitely another place that will take a few more visits to see in its entirety.
13 Sept. – Monday again… Nothing dreadfully exciting happened, although I was pleasantly surprised to realize that I did, in fact, understand the majority of what the cashier said to me at the grocery store. Even after only two weeks, my comprehension has improved significantly. Win!
14 Sept. – or today… Enjoyed a pretty relaxed day. After class today, our teacher took us to a different classroom where we were instructed to say something about ourselves in Russian to Russian students, and they were to do the same to us in English. It was a good experience, and I think we all hope that such exercises continue for practice in a less intimidating environment. Then I went to the coffee shop that we discovered the previous weekend and just enjoyed a latte while drafting this very blog and people watching with friends. We did see one boy across the café with his hands taped together in the process of tried to light the lighter he was holding between his knees in order to light the cigarette hanging out of his mouth… definitely entertaining. People watching may have to be my favorite sport! So another afternoon of good people, good conversation and a good drink.
** So I did have more planned for my blog entry with my overall impressions on a lot of different things, but I think that I may be saving that for tomorrow or the next day because this post is about 3 pages long and if you actually made it this far, kudos to you! Until next post… до свидания!
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