A Month of Adventures

Fact: I am terrible with blog post consistency.
Also fact: I'm not too terribly concerned. I'm having too great a time to capture in words and photographs.

Here's a quick recap of the last month.

I've given three Russian toasts.

My face when they told me I'd be making a toast (that would also be filmed).

I wished luck in life to all, because I didn't know what else to say.

We went on a weekend excursion to the cities of Vladimir and Suzdal' (Владимир и Суздаль).

I swear, Russia is so panorama friendly.

Forever representing THE Ohio State University everywhere I go.

Blue on white on blue.

Taking on Vladimir, one selfie at a time.

I took a 14 hour train to and from Nizhny Novgord to explore the magical city of Saint Petersburg (Санкт-Петербург). I didn't ever want to leave.

My travel mates, Adam and Katya, and I.

Walking where the great Russian writer Alexander Pushkin once walked

I love me some Russian writers. This is Ivan Turgenev.

Probably my favorite picture of the trip,
at The Church of Savior on Blood.

Me + Hermitage + Neva River = perfection.

I played beach volleyball and soccer with other people on my program and became a champ.

Soccer champs!

Our soccer/volleyball group! + my host family and a couple other Russians.

There has been SO much more (like another dacha, making a Christmas ornament, the planetarium, etc), too much to put in one blog post (probably why I should have been more consistent with it in the first place...). There are also a ton more photos where that came from - maybe I should make a photo blog also...

We're off to Kazan' (Казань) today on four-day river cruise. This is the trip I've been most excited about (except perhaps Petersburg). Kazan' is the capital of Tatarstan, which has a massive Muslim population. I'm excited for the mosques, for a different perspective of Islamic culture, and to see how the four major religious groups (Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist) peacefully coexist. So, until next time!

Stop #1: Semyonov and the Russian Countryside

This banner was fitting for my first stop on my search for the Russian Soul. It's
like they knew I was searching for it. 

Stop #1 on my search for the Russian soul was the town of Semyonov (Семенов) and the Russian countryside. Semyonov is known for its traditional handicrafts and matryoshka dolls.

The town is known for its matryoshka dolls. This one is rather large.

Even Russia has biker gangs.

We also went to the Dacha (Дача), a Russian house in the countryside which many families have and go to in the summer time to relax.

Katya's host family's dacha.

Us before everything went south.

I learned some lessons on this trip, the most important of which is that you should ALWAYS bring bug spray to the countryside. Always be prepared. I did discover however, that the bugs don't really bother the Russians - they are used to them and have their own ways to deal with them (like using small tree branches to swat them away). Ah well, there's always next time.

You don't know what it took to get us to stand still for this picture.
We were being eaten alive by камары (mosquitos, and flies)

My Russian papa is the cutest.

We survived, despite the bugs, hot and humid weather,
sunburns, no a/c on the train, etc. I even got flowers.

A Few Observations

A few observations, пожалуста.

1. Russians love mayonnaise. With everything. And I do mean everything - soup, salad, sandwiches, meat, everything. Oh, and also dill. Dill is life here, especially in the summer time.

2. Russians are very blunt and direct, and really couldn't care less about your feelings (if they don't know you that is). For example - a lady yesterday on the marshrutka (it's a type of Russian public transportation) was pissed off at me because I accidentally didn't let her off the marshrutka (my bad). And she let me know it. And the driver basically closed the door on my leg. Classic Russia.

3. Air conditioning doesn't exist on the bus (or anywhere for that matter). Even with 30 people on board. Also - students who have been sitting in class all day get cranky on hot buses. Myself included. Not a good mix, fyi.

4. Americans smile a lot in public. Russians never smile in public. But their hospitality is ON POINТ. *Are you just stopping by to drop something off? Here - have some tea. No, I really insist. I don't care where you have to be. Sit and chat for five minutes and have a cup of tea.* I'm getting the impression that a Russian friend is a friend for life.

5. Russians drink a lot of tea. Like, A LOT. They drink tea like we drink water. Since I've come, I've had at least 2 glasses per day, and am averaging at about 4-5 glasses per day. I might become an addict by the end of this program.

There are so many more observations I have, but all in due course.

I couldn't think of a great, witty name for this blog (which will consist of less writing and more photos) so instead I decided I'm going soul searching. Only I'm not searching for my own soul (because who even does that anymore?), but for the Russian Soul (Русская душа), which is engrained in Russian culture and defines the works of Russia's great artists, such as Dostoevsky and Tolstoy.

This is my Russian story.