pictures

Damn wireless internet broken at cafe, dragged laptop all the way here to work on fellowships.

Here are latest pics from last few weeks including neighborhood, family and whirlwind tour of city with Zhenya on Sunday.
I just realized that there probably hasn't been a picture of me without a hat in quite some time. My hair is getting pretty long....for me.

New pictures here

Dancing the night away

Two observations: 1) damn, its freakin' cold outside right now 2) I REALLY miss my cable modem connection at this particular moment.
Okay, on to the narration.

Sorry I've been relatively incommunicado these days. I only get online every other day or so, and I spend most of that time just taking care of email and other essential things, but while I'm typing this today, I've got the dial-up strained to its limit uploading pictures for everyone.

The library is closed today, as are the archives, so I have a free day at home to finish those stupid grant applications that keep plaguing me. Since I just committed to a room in Charlottesville in Laura's house for next year, I figure I may as well find a way to pay for it. So yes, I'm not running off to the woods or Lake Baikal or whereever for at least another year.

I worked most of last week, except when the system was working against me and doing everything it could to challenge my attempts to be productive. DON'T get me started about the archives here, I don't want to talk about it. Let's just say at one archive, it is going to take them 2 WEEKS to fill my next order of a mere 5 folders.

Thursday night Alina and I went shopping to find me a skirt. It was decided by collective family decision that I needed one. At one store I even tried on one of those short pleated plaid things that I mock all UVa undergraduates for wearing. Alina thought I should buy it, but my common sense won out over that one. I eventually found one I liked. Nothing exciting, but its above my knees at the very least. At home I then experienced a lecture about the fact that I have very nice knees and should show my legs off more often. Umm, hello, this is winter in Russia people. I wear long underwear everyday. Anyway, the whole point of getting the skirt was that Alina and I were going to a club on Friday night, hopefully with Dave and Christian if we could convince them to come along.

On Friday morning Dave and Christian arrived from Moscow for the weekend. Christian's never been here, so we gave him the walking tour of the main highlights etc. I attempted to get work done at the library, but my book order got lost. DON'T ASK. They came over for dinner that night, and then we 4 left for Club Griboedova from there.

The club is located in one of the many bomb shelters that are located in various courtyards across the city. Just about the only hills you'll find here are the bomb shelters. The club was awesome. I would never go out in Moscow because everyone there is so freakin' image conscious and too many places have face-control and its just a mess that I don't care to deal with. But this was more laid back. And Alina and I danced like a bunch of 20 year olds who know how to dance. Okay, so she is 20, and she does know how to dance. I've improved lately it seems, thanks to the hip rotation exercises I'm doing at home to help my back. :-) Christian got sufficiently inebriated to dance with us eventually but Dave was having none of it, preferring to find random strangers to talk politics with. Around 3am he got this glazed look in his eyes, and we decided to go home.

Alina flagged us a car and when we got in, Dave insisted that we take him to McDonalds or he would kill us all. I was relieved when we left the boys at the hostel. Geez. Then we went home and happily went to sleep. Unfortunately Saturday I felt the after effects of a very late night mixed with alcohol. Not a lot of alcohol, mind you, but my body just doesn't bounce back from nights like that. Marina, Alina and Sasha went to visit Marina's dad for the weekend, so I basically did nothing. I gave Christian a walking tour of my neighborhood, the 3 of us had dinner, and then I went to bed. Wish I could have slept though, because I had to get up at 5:45 to go meet Zhenya at her train.

Zhenya also came up this weekend, but only for a day because her company in Moscow sent her on a last minute business trip to the Amur River, near China. Poor thing had to go the OTHER side of Russia for the weekend. That's like me flying back to Washington, for the weekend. Despite being Russian, she had never been here either, so we spend Sunday walking around, seeing some of the highlights while the boys went off and tried to meet some skinheads for an authentic Russian experience (I swear, they are not right in the head). But it was really really really cold out, so we basically spent the day in various cafes drinking tea and eating cakes, punctuated with brief bouts of walking through the city! I can now recommend several tasty, but affordable cafes. Our goal for the evening became to find a restaraunt which served gluhwein!

Man, having people visit is expensive. Christian asked me on Saturday what I do here when I'm not in the archives. I hang out at home. Its a nice apartment, cozy, welcoming and the people are great. If they were miserable, I'm sure I'd be making some sort of effort to make other friends, but at the moment I don't see the need.

I can't believe February is almost over.

Sasha, the crazy 9-year old 

Nostalgia, part II

Greetings all. I am writing to you from my bed, because my telephone cord won't reach the desk. This situation, does not, however, help my back at all. Oh well.

The other night, I was able to witness a fascinating event which cast further insight on Russia and the crazy Russian culture we all know and love. Thursday nigth was Marina's birthday. So to celebrate she bought theater tickets for a group of her family and friends and I was also invited. The play we saw was called "Never have I seen such a country...Or a short histor of the VKP-b in 2 parts" The first part is a really bad translation on my part of the Russian title, which is actually the first line in a famous Soviet song from the movie "Circus," sung by Liubov Orlova. The second part of the title refers to the book, " Short history of the Communist Party (Bolshevik)" allegedly written by none other than Joseph Stalin himself (VKP-b is the Russian abbreviation).

Yes, we went to see a musical about the history of the Soviet Union. And the musical used popular songs that everyone knows to tell its story.

It was fascinating. It started with Old Russia, and a group of characters representing the old aristocracy and then the Whites in the Civil War. And in come your enthusiastic young communists with new ideals, etc. A young girl though, falls in love with a bad NEP-man who gets arrested and she falls in love instead with an upright young communist. But this is the Soviet Union, so he is arrested during the Terror and sent off to a camp. The war comes and they free him to fight on the front but arrest him again when its over. (Incidentally there is no way I can do this play justice, I'm just trying to summarize a little.) The really interesting part was the 2nd act, when we get to the 1950s and Khrushchev's secret speech denouncing the cult of personality of Stalin. The performers starting singing a parody of some song and they start singing about Trotskii and Bukharin. At which point, and old man (and I mean old - WW2 veteran) in the row in front of us starts yelling at the stage, accusing them of anti-Soviet slander and sabotage. I mean, this guy is really upset. His wife keeps trying to cover his mouth to get him to be quiet and other audience members are getting out of their chairs, threatening to beat the crap out of him if he doesn't shut up. (Russians have this amazingly expressive way of shaking their fists at someone!) Well, this guy won't have it, so he gets up, plow out of his row and leaves, with his wife trailing behind.

Wow.

The play continues. The guy who was arrested comes back and is reunited with his wife, but you can see the gap between the people who were freed from the camps and the rest of Soviet society. So he immigrates. It was hilarious when the 1980s and Gorbachev arrives because these happy communists (the chorus would change its outfits to reflect the passage of time, and the outfits were hilariously stereotypical) are singing a song about Brezhnev when a bunch of punks rush out onto to the stage. A very interesting part came when the main woman starts to sing the Komsomol (Communist Youth League) anthem and is singing right to the audience. Many, many people were singing along and many people stood up, and not all elderly people, but people in their 40s who were already adults before the Soviet Union collapsed.

And it all ends up with the Russians selling out to Hollywood. :-)

The play was hilarious, even though I didn't get all of the nuances, I know the context. Marina and her friends (who are in their late 30s and early 40s) loved it. Many times Marina has said to me "how did we live then? Why did we live like that?" But they did and it was their lives. And those were their songs and their stories.

Desi has an ultrasound

....and its a boy!

Ha ha ha ha. Yeah, that's not actually funny. :-)

No, a few days ago, I noticed that my ribcage hurt on the left side when I would turn my body at the torso. Not much, but I noticed it. Each day, I noticed it even more, and it hurt to lie on my left side too. I started getting worried and thinking about what it could be. It was right where my kidney is, so I thought I might have a kidney infection (thanks to Heather having one not too long ago, that was one my mind!) or a kidney stone. I didn't have a fever, but my intuition (or paranoia?) told me that something wasn't right. I don't drink enough water here, etc.

So yesterday, I forfeited my token of life to the archive to go to the American Medical clinic. Had my blood taken, peed in a cup and had an ultrasound. Turns out my kidneys are just fine. Turns out my back isn't. The ultrasound showed inflamation of several vertebrae in my middle back which was radiating pain around my ribs to where my left kidney is. This is not, thankfully a fully-herniated disk! I just need to take some pain medication for a while to reduce the inflamation, and actually to be more active. 6500 rubles later. (you do the math) Besides walking to the archives, I'm basically sedentary here, compared to everything that I did at home. Slumping over books all days is hazardous to one's health! Graduate students of the world revolt!

It still hurts, and will probably get worse for a little while, but Marina is actually trained in physical therapy and has prescribed back strengthening exercises for me. This woman never stops surprising me! She and I also had the exact same knee surgery and were comparing scares the other day.

(actually on Tuesday night, after a long day, Marina, Alina and I sat around with a bottle of Finnish liquer and stayed up until 3!)

In the meantime, my former landlord in Moscow is being a bastard, but that's another story!

"American conquers snow drift on Red Square. Story at 6." 

hooligan

Hey all. I'm finally online at home now, so I should be able to check email and things more regularly now.

I'm settling in fine here with Marina and the family. In one of those crazy Russian situations, I find myself living in Marina's bedroom, while Marina and Alina, her 20 year old daughter share her very small bedroom. And Marina keeps asking if she can go into my room to get something - and I'm not paying them rent! Russian hospitality is one of a kind. They are great though. I could not have ended up in a more perfect place, in terms of finding myself with a bunch of outdoor enthusiasts who like yoga and eastern philosophy. Sasha the 9-year old is crazy. She is INSANE. I have never seen a child with so much energy. I babysat for her last night, which was comical to say the least. She is ADD to the max. Alina is great. So not a typical Russian girl which makes me very happy. She speaks English very well, so we just converse, without any formal lessons.

I"m already at work here. I have to be, since I have such a short time here. So much to read! I work in 3 archives - one is open Mondays and Thursday and I can only order 5 folders at a time. Another is open Mondays and Wednesday (yeah, they clearly did NOT coordinate those schedules, bastards) and I can only order 5 folders and only if they give me the little token giving me access to the reading room because it is so small and too many people want to use it. This one is also a 30 minute walk from the nearest metro in a really not nice neighborhood. The other is closed. Yup. I have to try to make "emergency arrangements" with them. Poor St. Petersburg. They don't get enough funding. But the Russian National Library rocks my world. The main branch is on Nevskii Prospect in a building at least 200 years old, and it feels like it. But its nice, and although bureaucratic, its a good atmostphere. Comfortable to work in. The second branch is not in the center. I went there yesterday for the first time and it was like going to Russian-library Mecca. Its a new building, beautiful, well-built. It has sofas you can sit in and read, a nice cafeteria and not-as-scary bathrooms. Its like a library in America. I very much enjoyed it.

The title, hooligan, refers to Ritchie, the talking parrot. This is one of his favorite words. He sits and talks to himself when no one is around. He can say "hooligan", "hello dear", "Where's the money? What money?", "Come here", "eagle", "Moor", (the cat's name) and other such things. He attacks my head alot.

I"m going to go now. I need coffee and breakfast, and then there is an exhibit downtown I want to see. More about my neighborhood next time, its really cool.

the death train to st. petersburg...or "chelovek!"

I live in St. Petersburg now. I am never using the train to move again. Ever.

Where to start? I spent my last day in Moscow quite happily. I recovered quickly from my party, and on Sunday morning I got up and went snow shoeing in Izmailovskii park with Alana. She wanted to come and document the event. It was great because there was about 2 feet of fresh snow and it was just....beautiful. Alana got some great pictures, including one of me doing a face-plant in the snow while trying trun with snow shoes on. But that's on film so you'll have to wait to see that one. She even tried them out.

After that we went to Red Square because I wanted her (being a photographer and all) to take a good picture of me for my parents, because all they want in life is a decent picture of me with St. Basil's in the background. We decided to do a themed picture, with the snowshoes. So we got to Red Square, I put them on, got out my poles (thanks again mom and dad!) and climbed up a snow drift and posed like it was Mt. Everest. I couldn't believe that I was doing it (and that Alana almost got hit by a snow plow - twice). Most of the pics are on her camera but she got a good one of mine that I'll post the link to soon. It was hilarious! When I got home, my mom called and asked "are you all packed" and I informed her that I hadn't even started!

So I spent the rest of the afternoon making some tough decisions about what to take with me and what to leave behind. Snow shoes came with, yoga mat stayed. Trail shoes stayed, ski pants came, etc. How did I get all this stuff??????? I mean, where the hell did it come from?

Dave came over for dinner before we left for the train, and Alana was so sweet because she went out and brought back sushi for dinner! So I finally had sushi in Moscow, although the Russians even insist on using mayonaise on their darn sushi. I tell you. My ride came and 11 and we all piled into the car. Of course Dave's back was hurting him, so I still carried most of my stuff. He was still helpful though.

We were travelling 3rd class (or hard class) because I am cheap, and who can pass up a $17 train ticket? We were at the end of the wagon with another woman and this guy, Sergei, who offered Dave one of his many beers. Sergei's friend, Sergei, who was in another wagon came and sat with us and they tried to make conversation. I was tired and Sergei #1 was so drunk and his accent was really heavy (not from Moscow) that I couldn't really understand him. I did understand the part when he said that America has no culture. Go figure. I go and pay 120 rubles for my sheets and Dave's, come back, make the beds (during which drunk Sergei spills beer on me, my coat and my pillow), go to bed. I had the bottom bunk, Dave was above me, and Sergei #1 was in the upper bunk across from me. It was hard for me to fall asleep, but eventally I did (I mean, we had vodka and wine before leaving for the train station, so I needed to sleep that off). At some point in time I wake up. I'm not sure if it was the loud "THUD" that woke me up or the fact that there was suddenly someone else in my bed with me. I was really disoriented and confused, and apparently the only thing I was able to say was "chelovek, chelovek, chelovek." In Russian this means "person". It was drunk Sergei who fell out of his bed, hit the table on the way down and landed in my bunk. He was not, however awake, so despite the calls of "chelovek," he wasn't going anywhere. Dave was awake, climbed down and I realized it was drunk Sergei, who I pushed out of my bed onto the floor. He remained unconscious. Incidentally, NONE of the other people around us, including the woman on the other lower bunk did anything. We keep trying to wake Sergei up, but he won't. Dave and I try to lift him into my bunk, but we can't. Eventually he stirs and stumbles into the bathroom. Dave and I assume that whenever he comes back, he will probably try to sleep in my bunk again, so I climb into Sergei's. So I end up on the top bunk (which I hate, its oppressively hot up there) with no sheets or pillowcase while drunk Sergei will get mine. Dave is across from me and he occasionally bursts into giggles, repeating "chelovek, chelovek" and finds this very funny.

When the lights come on in the morning, Sergei is indeed passed out on my bunk and remains so until about 5 minutes for the train stops. He apologizes to everyone else in the cabin except for me. He also refuses to move until everyone else is off the train (my bags were under the bunk and we couldn't get to them). So Dave and I are last off the train and I officially feel like ass for lack of sleep. It was so hot in the train that at one point in time, I went out to where the doors are and the floor and walls are covered in ice and snow. I take some of the snow and rub it on my face and neck to cool down.

Marina meets us and St. Petes is in the middle of a blizzard that is crippling much of north western Russia. We hire a sketchy cab and manage to cram all 3 of us and my stuff in it and head off.

But I have to say that although I now live in a crazy house, its great. Marina has a really nice apartment, that is half-way rennovated on Vasily Island. The building is from the 1870s I think. Maybe earlier. Its big, has high ceilings, and as Dave said, its the most "normal" looking apartment he's ever seen in Russia. There is also a tom cat named "Mur" who likes to piss on everything, and a talking parrot named Richie who speaks Russian almost as well as I do. Marina has 2 daughters, Sasha, who is 9 and Alina who is 20. Both are awesome. Alina speaks English well and I will be her native-speaker practice, and I'll be helping Sasha with her English homework and talking with her in English some as well.

I spent yesterday getting settled while Dave went to visit some relatives, and got to know Marina and her family a little better. I could not have ended up in a more perfect place. Marina's husband - who doesn't live with us, long story - is a competitive rock climber and alpinist. Some years ago he and Marina summited Mt. McKinley in Alaska and they've trekked through Nepal and India and other places. Alina used to climb but now she snowboards. They even have climing holds in their hallway! Sasha is a crazy 9 year old, but really sweet. And after Jack, I've got 9 year olds mastered. We all had dinner at home last night and I think Dave may have been traumatized by it all and will enjoy going back to his calm Moscow apartment. Anyway, I think they'll be a lot of fun and I don't anticipate having a bored moment here in Petersburg.

The next few days I'll be ordering documents and getting the archive process here rolling. They have dial-up at home, and I don't know how that will work with posting pictures and stuff, so I'll probably be a little less in touch, but I'll keep up.

Address and phone number info to come soon.