Ringing out 2023

I almost forgot to do this until I saw someone else's online. And people say social media is a total waste of time! So what did I do this year?

I traveled. A lot (for me). Riding the high of my Ruskeala trip in the end of 2022, I decided to keep it up. I made day trips by car with friends, and took a couple of solo trips to Russian regions further from Moscow. 

First was a big May trip to the republic of Dagestan, in the Caucasus. I flew alone and joined a tour group to have one of the best experiences of my life. We were divided into 4 groups among different jeeps and driven to see the main sights, mountains, and of course go hiking. Before we went anywhere, we had our first of many lunches at a fish restaurant. Since i don't eat fish or meat, they ordered me... chicken! Once we settled that I also consider chicken to be meat, I had my fill of fresh vegetable, breads, dumplings, potatoes with mushrooms, and lentil soups. Then we headed off to the Sulakski canyon, which I zip lined across before we had a speed boat tour. 

Our main hub every evening was Gunib, where we had breakfast and dinner at a wonderfully cozy guest house with our group and guides. From there we drove across many mountains, hiked to an abandoned village, went into caves, splashed in waterfalls, danced in the rain, and pet some of the many cows roaming freely. We also went to a mill where they make something called urbech - think peanut butter, but made out of different nuts and seeds (you can have ones from apricot seed, flax, hazelnut, and cashew, just to name a few). We didn't make it to the Caspian sea, but that's just another reason to go back!

Next was a day trip to Kolomna in early June, where I saw the old Town and Kremlin, ate a special treat called kalach (sort of like a bread roll with a handle at the end. They normally come stuffed with some kind of pate, which I obviously passed on), went to a soap factory, and got to fly in a 2 seat plane above the city! I even got to steer a bit. 

My stop after that was a trip to Ekaterinburg, which was not the smoothest trip, but I still enjoyed it. I looked up the local weather forecast at least a dozen times while packing, and boy did it lie. It was about 10° colder than promised, and raining! Given that it was late June, I hadn't bothered bringing a jacket, so my first stop was the mall. From the hotel I took the metro, which was just as beautiful as Moscow's. After buying a jacket and eating in a great vegan cafe nearby (thank you, Happy Cow app), I walked what felt like the entire city until I thought I would drop. I saw the stone keyboard, the river, the circus, the dam, the museums, and the cathedral built on the spot where the Romanov family was shot that fateful night in 1918. The next day I visited the Yeltsin center and learned a bit of history, and did a lot more walking. The third and final day I visited the Museum of Fine Arts that displayed iron works, paintings, and stone works from the natural stones in Sverdlovsk region.

After this I thought I was heading back to Moscow, and I eventually did, after missing my flight seated at the gate right next to it, and then buying a new ticket which cost more than the original round trip. A first, and hopefully last, learning experience. 

Knowing that I went home to the US in mid July, you might think this was my last Russian summer trip. Guess again! I snuck one last road trip in with friends. We went to Plyos, a river town in the Golden ring where painter Levitan spent a lot of time - and being there, it's easy to see why! It's got a very relaxed atmosphere, music plays by the water front, and everything is so nice and peaceful. Here I had my first glamping experience, since we rented a dome with actual beds and a shower inside at a campgrounds. For dinner, we grilled. The next day we stopped in Kostroma on our way back to Moscow. 

Finally, then I headed back to America! I was there for the birthday/ gender reveal party of one of my oldest friends. Mom and I took our annual ferry trip to Port Jeff. Pop graciously let me drag him on many a hike, thanks to my Alltrails app; also sponsered by my new contacts, which I'd gotten a prescription for right before leaving Moscow with the goal of hiking glasses-free in mind. We watched all the Indiana Jones movies in order to prepare for the latest one in theaters, followed by all the Mission Impossible films. We took a father- daughter trip to Newport, RI, where we spent a lot of time going through the mansions of the Golden age and seeing how the other half used to live, in between lunches and snacks by the ocean. In CT there were lunches with uncle and brunches with friends, and a group trip to see the Barbie movie. It was a short but good trip back. 

Then it was back to work, where I got a promotion this year to Phase Leader of secondary school! After waiting 2 months for every member of the team to arrive, things have been chaotic - new building, new schedules every day, new journal which doesn't work. On the plus side, things have been much smoother with my students, and my 5th graders won first place at the Christmas concert! 

I'm now cruising through a well earned break until January 9. Lots of reading, walks through the city looking at decorations, cooking, training, seeing friends, playing with dogs, and lighting candles. I went to a concert on Thursday, and the last kickboxing session of the year Friday.  I've cooked a big curry, bought lots of food, and will be heading to friends later to have a very cozy new year's eve. Wishing everyone a calm and peaceful 2024!

Goodbye 2020

Sitting at home in my Christmas socks, I've got just enough time to squeeze in a year-end review for 2020, as if any of us will be able to forget.  Nevertheless...

It actually started off really well - at a cabin in the woods with a great group of friends. In February I spontaneously ran off to Armenia for a few days, where I had time to tour the capital, Yerevan, and see the mountains and lakes of some nearby regions.  One particularly amazing site was a monastery carved into the mountains and surrounded by cliffs.

But then March came and things changed fast.  I spent my 30th birthday alone in my kitchen eating cake on a zoom call.  My new roommate and I started working from home and ventured out for groceries as if going into battle.  The floor was lava and the air was poison.  

So I started brushing back up on my Spanish.  I took 7 online courses on different aspects of my profession - teaching online, teaching children, assessment, IELTS, TOEFL, and a few others.  All voluntary, most helpful, some even fun. 

There were still some adventures. In August, one of my good friends visited Moscow.  Later that month, my coworker, Irina, and I wound up at a summer camp in Kaluga Oblast for kids from regions of the Russian Arctic and Far East. 

For 2 weeks we lived in a yurt and worked off wifi in the woods.  We walked around the ethnographic, educational-recreational complex Etnomir rowing boats, going on museum tours, watching fire shows and shamen, and taking lots of pictures. In October, we continued adventuring - this time to Russian soccer games, courtesy of our company's work teaching English to referees. 

By Thanksgiving the cooking and online shopping phases everyone went through in the spring finally hit me, and I stocked up on things for my home office (and sweatpants, the newest work attire). 

Of all the challenges this year has brought, from changing the way we work and socialize to the constant "Am I dying from covid?" scares, the toughest has been not knowing when I can visit home.  My June flight was predictably cancelled, but even now I'm a bit stuck; if I leave Russia, I can't re-enter, as their borders are still closed to US citizens.  So for now I write, call, and wait.

It wasn't all bad, though.  I'm thankful for my friendships, family, and work. I'm glad I had time to learn and relax (so much Netflix).  I'm relieved that Trump is 20 days away from being out of the White House. And I'm proud of a few milestones: kickboxing for 2 years, vegan for 2.5, and in Russia for EIGHT YEARS. 

Everything got turned on its head in 2020.  So here's to looking forward, crossing our fingers, and getting this thing over with!

Happy happy new year!

It's time to stop being lazy and write about my year, for the friends and family who've asked me to! We'll brush aside the fact that this is the only thing I've bothered to write in 2017. I think I can manage to stop eating cake just long enough to get this all down...

January: The temperature went down to -33C/F (it's pretty much the same at that point).  Luckily we were all on vacation and didn't need to go outside.  Which we didn't.

(skipping months where nothing much happened and moving on)

March: Steve announced that he was ABANDONING ME to find his own place.  But then I found Masha, who is even more awesome.  Also I turned 27 surrounded by close friends (or as I like to say, celebrated the 2nd anniversary of my 25th birthday).

May: We had nice summer weather for the May holidays, followed by snow.  First attempt at a business trip to Tatarstan foiled by Moscow traffic.

June: There was more snow, but I dodged that bullet by going home! Attended my best friend's engagement party and said yes to the bridesmaid dress.  Visited Williams for my 5 year reunion, which was everything I expected and more. Had another mini reunion in NYC, and attended my first Pride parade thanks to Ben and Bill.  Was home for both my mom's birthday and Father's Day for the first time in 5 years. Spent a lot of time on the beach.

July: 24 hours after arriving in Moscow I was on my way back to the airport for Kazan, where I was a speaker at the FISU (International University Sports Federation) volunteer training academy. Then I went onward to Aktanysh, ie the middle of nowhere, to observe lessons at a summer camp and speak with some of the children (many of whom had never met a native speaker before). 

August: Our friends from Aktanysh came to Moscow for a week of training seminars that I got to help lead.  Then I fulfilled my long-time dream of travelling to Barcelona! More beach time, plus great food, amazing people, and all the Gaudi architecture my little heart desired.  We also managed to visit the highest point around at Tibidabo. 

October: The memory that sticks out most is Halloween, which I hosted at mine before heading to a club.  I did my Pinterest best and introduced the Russians to worms in the mud.  I was also responsible for the Halloween event one of our clients requested, where we discussed and then planned extreme pranks 💀

November: Thanksgiving! As usual, we celebrated twice.  This was the home stretch until Christmas.  But first...

December: ...I got really sick for a couple of weeks.  What's winter without being out of commission for a week or two? But thanks to the internet I was able to get all of my Christmas shopping done and watch loads of movies.  Speaking of which, STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI. We celebrated Christmas with 2 feasts as well, and I lead a whole bevy of Christmas events for the companies we work with which was actually really fun.  I showed them how to decorate Christmas cookies American style, and then got shown up by them. My lovely students gave me tons of cake and tea and chocolate that I'm currently working my way through.  I've walked around plenty and seen Moscow in all its New Year's glory.  Now all that's left is to wait for the New Year and see what it has in store for all of us!

2016: the good, the bad, the mundane

It's been noted that 2016 wasn't a great year for the world - take your pick of natural disasters, wars, terrorist attacks, or elections as an illustrating point.  However, I've decided to end on a good note by writing down some of the highlights from my year, starting from the last post.  So, before it's too late, my 2016:

- My friend, Brendan, came to visit from Connecticut and found my 10 tips super useful.  We had a cultural tour of Moscow which consisted mainly of food, but also included museums, parks, and a visit to the Bolshoi where we saw the opera Katerina Izmailova.

- My translations for an exhibition at the Jewish Museum in Moscow were published in a bilingual book! And my name was printed! I did not buy the book.  It was expensive.  Instead, I took a picture of the book.

- I went on a field trip to a cheese farm run by an American guy and his family.  There were over a dozen kinds of cheeses, wines, and meats, and I got to befriend the goats!

- There was the annual America trip with the traditional food, New York stop, beach time, and shopping.  Also the Olympics!

- I voted in the presidential election.  It was a really complicated process, but it was important to get done.

-  I finally had the opportunity to travel to Sochi in October, at first for work and then for play.  I spent a day in the botanical gardens, made friends with a monkey, and jumped off of a boat into the Black Sea.

- After that, I got to travel to Kazan twice, this time to train FIFA volunteers ahead of the Confederations Cup in 2017.  I saw the sites in one day and spent the rest of my trips eating Tatar food.

- I had a very American Thanksgiving in that there was an all-you-can-eat buffet with every traditional dish, and eat it all we did.

- There was one weekend where I was without my phone, and I first realized, then accepted, that I am rather useless without it.

- Last weekend we celebrated Christmas together, and it was nice enough to make up for my having been sick with the flu for the past week.

So, 2017: here's to more interesting projects, more laughs, more learning, more love!

In memory of Gene Wilder, a great man and a personal friend - we will never forget you or your kindness.  

An overdue synopsis

I have no excuses for my prolonged absence, so I'll just jump into a brief update since...what, October?
Thanksgiving was spent the same as last year's - diner dinner on the day of in a large group, followed by a Saturday potluck with a slightly smaller group.  Christmas was spent working, and New Year was spent in the north of England with friends.

Volgograd got bombed, but Moscow is literally closer to Poland than to Volgograd, so we were just fine here.  The Sochi Olympics have come and gone, wrapping up in a few weeks with the end of the Paralympic Games.  My friend Nic came for a visit after volunteering on the alpine track, and we watched the closing ceremony with a nice Williams representation.  Speaking of the Olympics, I'd like to note that they were incredibly well executed, especially taking into consideration that everything had to be built from scratch, unlike several previous sites.  Was it perfect? No.  Was it remarkable, to say the least? A resounding yes.

And now for the biggest news item: the current situation in Ukraine.  I think this is a nice summary of what's been happening since late December (for those of you who don't feel like reading in depth articles from legitimate news sources).  Things have carried on as usual here in Moscow, though people are starting to discuss it more and more.  This is also a nice piece on what's currently happening.  Interestingly enough, the only people I really hear talking about it at all are expats...I supposed it makes sense in some ways, since the ruble's rapid decline is making our money worth a lot less and our salaries suddenly much lower in real terms (since we'll need to exchange those rubles for dollars/pounds/etc at some point, and the exchange rate is increasingly against our favor).  Everyone is (obviously) also really hoping war doesn't suddenly break out, but for your peace of mind I will say that I'm registered with the embassy, I have the embassy's number saved in my phone, and my flatmate and I have an emergency plan just in case.  

In less interesting and less exciting news, the state of CT is being a real pain as they simultaneously inform me of my upcoming license expiration and summon me for jury duty...sorry, I won't be able to attend.  I'm busy being an expat in Russia, which had me ice skating, eating blini, and burning effigies for Maslenitsa today.

Slacking

You know you're slacking too much when several people (including but not limited to my mom) call you out on your lack of blog posts.  Anyway, a lot has been going on around here:  -28C weather jumping up to +2C and then back down again to -17C; Christmas stuff; New Year's stuff; VACATION in St. Petersburg; realizing I have to be a real person and return to working for a living. At least I've got all of this youthful energy or whatever it's called to help me handle all of it.

The cold finally got to me, and after walking around for almost an hr in -28 weather which caused me to get a little sick, I broke down and bought a coat.  A real, puffy, long, behooded, Russian winter coat.  My life improved immediately and I can't believe I was that stubborn for that long.  Actually, I can believe it.    

So, Christmas holidays have come and gone...I'm going to give you the Reader's Digest version because I'm still busy (again, read:lazy).  I like Christmas a whole lot, and since I was away from home I decided to go with the flow by celebrating it 3 times.  Once at the EF Christmas party on the 22nd, which was catered with Georgian food and included way too much wine/vodka...yes, still in Russia.  Once on Christmas Eve, when I went to a potluck that some friends were hosting (this is where the walking around in the cold came from...I struggle with directions pretty hard & therefore couldn't find the apt to save my life) to eat, drink, be merry, and get home on the last metro because I still had work the next day. And once more on Christmas day, which I spent working (by "working" I mean "doing Christmas worksheets and watching movies), going to (and being disappointed by) the Strausburg Christmas fair on Manege Square with Uliana and Vanessa, eating Chinese food like a Jew, and meeting some friends for a drink at the bar.  There was snow EVERYWHERE and I hadn't bought the coat yet, so that was...fun. 

Our holidays from EF started on December 29th, so there was a fair amount of chillaxing before the New Year celebrations began.  I planned to go to Red Square (like a crazy person. Every single Russian I know said DON'T DO IT and I was like BUT I WANT TO DO IT) and then go somewhere else, but I ended up staying at Nick's place with him, Lyuba, and Martin to celebrate and be comfy. This is the Russian tradition: watch the Irony of Fate (we did), cook olivier salad, eat way too much of everything (olivier, caviar sandwiches, potatoes, chicken, regular sandwiches, pickles, tangerines, chocolate...I feel like I'm forgetting something), drink champagne, and watch fireworks.  Not a bad way to bring in 2013!

On Jan. 2nd, I threw some things into a suitcase & boarded the Sapsan (fast train) to St. Petersburg to see my other half, Jackie.  Our vacation together basically consisted of eating, sleeping, and partying, as any proper holiday should.  Especially when it's the two of us, and especially about the eating part.  I parted from Piter on Jan. 5th at 645am (we didn't sleep that night.  Life is hard sometimes) and got back home around 1130am to be united with the roomie since he & Uliana had been in Riga for a few days before I left.  We started work again on the 9th, and I got a surprise day off today (1 student is on holiday in Malaysia, the other called and cancelled.  Happy late new year gift). I think that's everything important, so I hope this keeps you busy for now.