TMM Moscow News Update

     "And now to the weather report. Well, folks, here in Moscow today we've got temperatures around -11 Celsius (about 12.2 Farenheit to all you Farenheiters) with wind and light snow, which are currently working together to freeze the nose off of English teachers throughout the city whenever they try to poke that particular portion of the anatomy out of doors. Therefore, if you are an English teacher, or if you are a concerned family member, it is probably best to make sure that you or your relative stays indoors in bed next to a heater in the interest of facial preservation. However, I'm sure we'll have some foolhardy souls who will feel conscience-driven to fight their way across the park to their place of work; for these people we have a special warning message: If you feel obligated to go to work because you have a makeup class with a plagiarizing teenage boy who is making up his class because he was so late that the last time he missed his class entirely, then it's a better idea just not to bother - he'll miss his class today as well, and once again you will just be sitting in the classroom lesson planning for other lessons for the whole 45 minutes. However, compensation may occur in the form of a chance to teach a makeup lesson for your six-year-old student, who at the end of the lesson will decide that she loves you so much you cannot leave and will try to physically block your way out the door."
     "In other news in the past few weeks, many English teachers have been suffering from a lack of motivation coming off of the holiday; psychologists contend that the heavy snow, intense cold, and lack of sunlight may play some part in that problem. In an interview, one teacher expressed the opinion of many when she said, 'It's just unnatural to go to work when it's dark outside. When it's dark people should be sleeping. We should only work when it's daylight.' However popular this viewpoint might be amongst the English-teaching population, economists say that such a movement, were it to extend throughout Moscow, could have an extremely negative effect on the economy, especially considering that "daylight" in the middle of winter doesn't begin until around 11:00 and only lasts three to four hours."
     "And now to our correspondent in flat no. 409, with an update on the latest affairs of the three English teachers whom we've been following for the past few months. But first, a brief commercial break."
     *Commercial Break*
HELLO FOLKS! Do you ever worry about the chill of the Moscow winter? Do you ever wonder if maybe temperatures really will drop to -30 Celsius like everyone says they will? Do you ever doubt your own ability to cope with the cold? Well, we here at CoatzGalore have the solution! The all-new Closet Coat! This remarkable coat will keep you warm in the depths of winter...without you even having to wear it! The latest research by psychologists has shown that being "cold" is practically all mentality! With our Closet Coat, you can dress to impress without having to muffle it all up under heavy wraps by simply fixing your mentality. Here's how it works: First you install the trusty Closet Coat in your closet. Then, whenever you go outside, you dress in a lighter coat, something like our "Fall Wool" style, but you think about the heavy Closet Coat that is sitting back home. Whenever you start to feel "cold," just think how warm you will be later on in winter, when the temperatures are colder and you can start wearing your Closet Coat! The longer you can wait, the warmer you will be! Make "cold" a thing of the past! Buy a Closet Coat today!!!"
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: TESTS ON ENGLISH TEACHERS HAVE SHOWN THAT THE CLOSET COAT IS ONLY EFFECTIVE WHEN ACTUALLY WORN. TRYING TO WEAR A FALL COAT IN SUB-ZERO TEMPERATURES CAN BE HARMFUL TO YOUR HEALTH, EVEN IF YOU ARE TRYING TO SAVE YOUR HEAVIER COAT FOR COLDER WEATHER. IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. JUST WEAR YOUR HEAVY COAT. DON'T BE STUPID.
Welcome back to TMM Moscow, all news, all the time! Patricia, over to you."
    "Thanks, Bob. Well here I am, standing in the kitchen of flat 409, and well, I can't say it smells that great in here. In fact, I think something might be burning...ah, yes! It appears that someone put a sponge in the microwave in an attempt to kill the bacteria. She must have learned that trick from her dad back home. But, dear me! Was there really a need to put it in for four minutes?!? I think not. It's quite an original-looking sponge now, though, especially with that scorch mark in the middle." 
     "Well, I'll just leave the window open for a bit to let the smell out, and let's continue on to one of the other rooms, shall we?"
     "Ah, yes, and here's the room of our young teacher Hannah. She's out at the moment at the school, or perhaps looking for her frozen nose where it chipped off in the park, so we can speak with indiscretion. Hmm, Bob, have we heard anything interesting about Hannah lately?"
    "Let me check the files, Patricia...well, last time we reported on her trip to the Kremlin with her young neighbor, let's see, since then... well, she took a trip to the Novodevichy Convent with her colleague and friend Teya."
     "Oh, yes, that's right! Now, for our listeners, the Novodevichy Convent is a World Heritage site. Founded in the early 1500s, it has sheltered famous members of the Russian royal family such as Irina Godunova and Sophia Alekseyevna. It is still a working convent today, though at the moment the largest church is closed for renovation. One of the buildings has been turned into a museum of church history, which consists entirely of small pictures of churches in various stages of renovation and a few explanatory paragraphs. If you pay 250 rubles, you can go and see this dazzling exhibit. Our uncultured teacher found it quite boring and regretted paying the money to get in, unfortunately.

 the bell tower

 approaching the outside walls

 the main entrance

 the largest church, closed for renovation

 not yet frozen, still able to stand still and take a picture

 a smaller church, very ornate inside but not in the style of most Orthodox churches; it had a very 18th or 19th century feel to the inside with a lot of heavy gilded frames and a square, open interior hall without standing pillars and without painted walls

 except near the altar

 looking back towards the entrance

 a church erected over one of the entrances - also currently closed for renovation

walking (the long way around) the outer walls to get to the cemetery - it used to be a fortified convent

     Attached to the convent is a large state cemetery, where many famous personages of the Soviet Union are buried, including Galina Ulanova, Natalya Bessmertnova, and Igor Moiseyev, as well as Chekhov, Mayakovsky, Shostakovich, and Prokofiev. Unfortunately, our intrepid teachers only managed to find some of these graves, because Hannah had not dressed warmly enough and after three hours of walking around  in the sub-zero temperatures was so cold that she could not speak properly."

 Galina Ulanova

 Igor Moiseyev

 Chekhov

        Natalya Bessmertovna

     Undiscouraged, she ventured out alone several days later to Victory Park. The effect of the soaring central obelisk and grand granite walkway was somewhat marred by the fact that large, colorful stages were being erected for the celebration of the Orthodox Christmas on January 6th. However, despite the drizzle and the distractions, our teacher got in a good wander, and was particularly impressed and moved by the monument out behind the main building, "The Tragedy of the Peoples."

 Triumphal Arch outside Victory Park

 the entrance to Victory Park (commemorating World War II)

 apparently there are fountains in summertime

 statue of Nike at the top of the obelisk, which is ten cm tall for every day of the war (141.8 meters)

 St. George slaying the Nazi dragon at the base of the obelisk

 the church in the park

 the eternal flame

 hangar with WWII-era planes

 memorial synagogue

 part of the "Tragedy of the Peoples" Holocaust monument

 "Let the memory of them be held sacred throughout the centuries"

 another view of the church

 looking back down the walk

 the biggest Christmas tree yet

     The next day she went out gallivanting with the neighbors in their car. This was a novel experience for our young teacher, who hadn't driven through the centre of Moscow yet. The outing itself was a bit of a failure, because there was such a mist over the city that the view from the highest hill in Moscow - the destination of the venture - was not much of a view. I must admit, it was very amusing to watch Rinad (Lilya and Timour's father) trying to educate all and sundry about the history of Stalin's seven sister skyscrapers while Hannah listened politely and shivered and Lilya and Timour didn't listen and instead got into a contest to see who could blow their breath (visible in the cold air) into the other's face. The dinner afterwards was a great deal more enjoyable. Our teacher was feasted by the neighbors, and she bravely tried her first taste of холодец (holodyets), a gelled meat, which wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. Now, however, she is in a bit of a quandary as to how to repay a hospitality so generous that she stayed over at the flat next door for four hours!
    "Who are you?"
    "Oh, uh, hello, Hannah, I'm Patricia. I'm the correspondent for TMM Moscow, and -"
     "What are you doing in my room?"
     "Umm, well Bob, I think that's all the time we have for today, on Flat 409! This is Patricia, TMM Moscow, signing out!"
*Commercial Break*
     "Do you ever feel stifled by the Moscow city atmosphere? Do you ever wish you could escape the tower block surroundings in which you live? Then you need to make the trip to the Mitino Landscape Park! Here, we have all the joys of the wilderness* within convenient reach of home. Rediscover your primal self in this untamed* wilderness. Imitate the divine by walking on water*. View the beasts of the wild at play in their natural environment! Drink in the sparkling cold air and feel the sun* on your face! Special offer for large families and the elderly! Don't hesitate! Visit the Mitino Landscape Park today!
    * "wilderness is open to interpretation and is here interpreted as being limited to the following: 'mice, rats, dogs, cats, skiers, ducks, finches, crows, and the occasional naked man coming out of his homemade banya. 
     *  Some dogs are not tame. Mitino Landscape Park is not responsible for any injury mental or physical occasioned by contact with these dogs. 
     * Walking on water is possible only in winter when the pond is frozen. Thank you for your understanding in this matter. In summer walking on water is forbidden, as is swimming in imaginary water (see "Stating the Obvious").
     *   "Sun" is open to interpretation and may also be defined as "clouds".

 the brief appearance of the sun - it looks like morning but it's 1:00 p.m.

 birches on the edge of the pond

 Ok, who wants to jump off the pier into the water?

 looking out across the pond

 signs of "wildlife"

 the clouds are moving in

    Welcome back! You're listening to TTM Moscow, all news, all the time. Well, at least most of the time. Theoretically, once a week...or once every two or three weeks... Anyways, let's hear the news from the home front! Sally and Jim- over to you!
    " Thanks, Bob. Well, in current NC news Dad A. is still out of a job, to the surprise and consternation of all and sundry, though he is following several promising leads."
    "Genius is never recognized in its own time, is it, Sally?"
    "Have to agree with you there, Jim. Mom A.'s health has improved since last month, and she has been spotted at the ballet school recently with her young daughter, the promising ballerina S.A.. E.A. has seen the arrival of an impressive new bike, and he has promised not to fall over the front of the handlebars and break his shoulder and give everyone else in the family a heart attack like he did with his last bike. S.A. is exploring the capabilities of some technological gadget that at the moment I can't remember the name of, G.A. and W.A. are showing their academic brilliance as usual, and O.A. and D.A. are asleep. All is as it should be, if Dad A. could just find a job. That is sure to happen soon."
    "And, Sally, don't forget the great performance of Alice in Wonderland that took place at Meredith College this week."
     "Of course! Well, unfortunately this event was closed to the press, but by all accounts it was incredible as usual. Alice in particular was impressively played, along with all the other parts played by members of the English department. No, we're not at all biased here on TMM Moscow."
    "And in an interesting case of parallelism, this very week our teacher here in Moscow saw the arrival of a new student, a small, bright young girl with blonde hair and blue eyes named Alice."
     "You're joking!"
     "No, I'm quite serious! Well, I think that just about wraps it up for N.C. news."
    "Jim, you're right. Back to you, Bob."
    "Aaaand that looks like all we have time for today on TMM Moscow! Have a great week, folks, and be sure to tune in next week for updates on dancing, buying Bolshoi tickets, learning Russian, and all the other trials, travails, and triumphs taking place here in the capital city.
This is TMM Moscow, and your host Bob, signing off." 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!! / С Рождеством и С Новым Годом!!!

     Wow, it's hard to believe it's already 2012! It seems like the last year really flew - a friend of mine once told me that when you are very young, time seems to move slower, then when you get to be in your late teens and in your twenties the pace speeds up, and that after that it doesn't slow down until you're over fifty! Of course, I don't know if she was just telling me this because I was eight years old at the time and fretting over the fact that some holiday - I think it was Christmas - was taking forever in coming, or whether it is all actually true...but I can definitely vouch for the increase in pace when you get in your twenties!!!
     The last month has certainly flown by. I think that is the reason that Thanksgiving and Christmas have separate months - it really feels like you've stepped into a time warp where everything speeds up when you try to have Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations in the same month! It felt like I'd just finished washing dishes after Thanksgiving dinner when it was already time to start thinking about Christmas decorations. Of course, finding the Christmas tree ready and waiting out on the balcony was a big help, and so were the ornaments in the closet - Christmas decorating can get expensive really quickly! It also helped that the neighbor kids came over and helped me make some paper ornaments - Timour even made me a beautiful paper star for the top of the tree.  And I found a great deal on tinsel at Billa, and since I decided not to make gingerbread this year (the thought of trying to find molasses, and both types of corn syrup, and nutmeg, and some equivalent to pumpkin spice proved too daunting) I had all of these whole cloves left over from the pumpkin pie recipe that I wasn't going to use. So I took some mandarin oranges and paper clips and made ornaments instead!

 Lilya's ornament

 Timour's ornament

 a couple of my ornaments

 my beautiful Christmas tree!!!

 lights in my bedroom window :)

However, I'm pretty sure my piece de resistance (at least in terms of Christmas decorations I have finished setting up; more on that in a minute) has to be the Advent wreath - not for appearance so much as for the effort that went into putting it together. I already wrote about my unfruitful search for purple and pink candles and the resultant painting. But that only gave me candles - I still didn't actually have a wreath. Well, about five days before Christmas it started to snow....and snow....and snow... I have never seen so much snow except for once before in my life (remember the two feet we had around 1999?). And it was so beautiful. I can see why some languages have many different names for snow; there are so many different kinds! When it first started, the flakes were big, soft, wet, and fluffy - they clung to everything. As soon as it got a bit colder, though, it changed to the sand-like snow I've written about before. A couple of days later (yes, it was snowing almost ceaselessly for four days!) it alternated between tiny ice crystals and the most beautiful snow I've ever seen, snow I don't think I've ever seen in North Carolina: some of the flakes were almost four millimeters in diameter; it was like a master crystal-cutter had specially designed each one. And it sparkled! I've read about sparkling snow before, and some of the snows back in North Carolina have sparkled a bit I think, but this was like watching sequins fall from the sky - they glinted whenever they caught the light. And it was all so quiet. Sometimes I think that's what I love most about the snow, the way it hushes all the day-to-day sounds. Of course, it wasn't as quiet here as it would have been back home (I think Muscovites have a similar resolution about weather that our post office does, but the Russians stick to theirs more faithfully than our post office does today! - "Neither snow nor rain not heat nor gloom of night can stay us from our swift attempts to drive our cars on the roads.") So it wasn't as quiet as NC would have been; there were still people driving, but since they were driving through at least a couple of inches of slush, even the traffic sounds were muted. And at this point you're probably wondering what all of this has to do with my Advent wreath. Well, I knew I wanted greenery for my wreath, real greenery to make up for having a fake tree, so I decided to steal some for the park I walk through to get to work. So on the twenty-third I put on a double layer of socks, laced up my boots, and trekked off through the snow...it was some of the most fun I've had since I've been here! Just a wealth of snow! I took my camera, and I must have taken dozens of pictures. At one point I started running through the knee-deep snow just for the fun of it...and promptly fell over. It made me realize I haven't run just for the fun of it since I've gotten here; I need to do it more often. (In fact, I think it wouldn't hurt a lot of adults to take a random sprint now and then.)

 snoooooowwwww!!!!!!!!!!

 winter birds :)

 funny little snow caps on the dried flowerheads 

 the frozen pond

 if it's possible to be high on snow excitement, then I'm pretty sure that's the state I was in

Anyways, I had a lovely time stealing fir branches and the beautiful red berries that hang off of the trees around my flat - I don't know what these trees are called, but they have bright red berries that hang in bunches off of each branch, and the snow piles up on the bunches in funny peaks. So Christmas Eve night found me frantically trying to assemble all of my decorations - I was still trying to finish decorating the tree, I had to put the wreath together, I was planning to make sugar cookies, and I was having Jenny and Andrey over for dinner.

In the end, I just had to nix the idea of sugar cookies, and the tinsel and mandarin orange ornaments had to wait until Jenny and Andrey had left. So I stayed up decorating until at least 1 in the morning, and even then I didn't finish - I still haven't finished my nativity scene! I can't remember if I mentioned it in my previous blog, but I think not. Anyway, I decided that I needed a nativity scene in my apartment - it's one of the Christmas traditions I really didn't want to do without. But since Christmas isn't all that big a deal in Russia, they don't sell nativity scenes in the shops, at least not in any of the ones I frequent. So I decided to make my own. Therefore, it's not finished yet. So far I've got the stable, the donkey, and the midwife and her apprentice finished, and the shepherds are about halfway done, but as of yet there is no sign of the Holy Family, or the three kings, or any of their entourage, and no angels to speak of! But I figure that as long as I finish it before the end of the Christmas season, it won't be too disgraceful.

 the stable in progress

 finished stable

 midwife and her apprentice; donkey

     As for the actual celebrations of Christmas and New Years, they went better than I thought they would. I was afraid, especially at Christmas, that I would suddenly be overcome by a huge wave of homesickness. Back home, we have so many special traditions and fun ways to prepare for Christmas, and I just knew that at some point it would hit me that I was celebrating Christmas without my family, almost on the other side of the world. However, my Christmas was so different this year that it really didn't feel like the Christmases I am used to at all. It was still good, it was just different. On the 23rd we had a party at the Mitino school, and that was a lot more fun than office parties usually are, I think. The school is so small, and we all get along pretty well, so it was fun to celebrate together. Then on the 24th Jenny and Andrey came over to my place and we made a nice dinner. It was really sweet of them to come and celebrate, it helped make Christmas Eve seem special, which I especially needed after working all day. (Speaking of which, I'm of the firm opinion that working on Christmas Eve should be illegal. People should get off on the 23rd and then have a day to prepare before Christmas.) Anyway, we didn't really do much of anything except cook, eat, and talk, but it was really nice and low-key. And since Andrey was tired from work, we spoke Russian practically the whole time, which was a really good way for me to practice - there wasn't any pressure, and if I was stuck for a word I could use the English one. So all in all it was fun. The only downside was that I was up til 1 or 2 trying to finish decorating! But even that was nice because I skyped with my family while decorating.
     It sure was hard prying myself out of bed Christmas morning, though! I had to get up early to go to Mass, and that was the only point when I felt a funny pang, opening my door and seeing the Christmas tree - back home, we kids have a special tradition on Christmas morning: the first person to wake up has to wake all the others up, and no one is allowed to go downstairs until everyone is awake. Then we all go down together, and turn on the lights, and wake up Mom and Dad, and open presents. But I didn't have any time to get depressed; it's an hour to church on the metro, and I had to hurry. Mass was beautiful - the whole church was ablaze with lights, and at the base of every column there was a Christmas tree dazzling with tinsel and ornaments and lights.

 didn't get many good pictures, unfortunately!

The singing was wonderful, and many of the songs were Christmas carols/hymns we often sing translated into Russian. So for once I knew the tunes, and could really sing. We did "Silent Night" and "Oh, Holy Night," and "Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful". I was particularly thrilled with "Oh, Holy Night"; it's one of my favorite carols. So Mass was beautiful, and then I had to catch the metro up to Marina Rosha station to go to dance class - like I said, it's a normal day for most Russians, so everything went on as usual. Class was so much fun - we did a ballet barre, and learned the first variation from Carmen (which I've done before, and it was so great to get to do it again), and then we put on character shoes and worked on a Moldavian dance, which was a new style for me and so interesting. After class, we had an impromptu party: Lena bought food and we all sat and watched the dvd of their latest recital. It was great fun, and it was really nice to spend a little time with the other company members outside of the studio.
     By the time I got home, it was 8:00, and I was absolutely exhausted, but happy. I skyped with the fam again, and went to sleep. Aaaaaaannnnd that's almost all I've done this entire past week: sleep. It has been wonderful! However, amidst all the sleeping I did find time to go see a movie with Liliya, a New Year's comedy called "Yolki 2" ("Christmas Trees 2") which I actually understood! (It really does merit an exclamation point; it was one of those films where there are about six different plot lines and they finally all tie together but until the very end you have no idea how.) And on Friday we went together to see the Kremlin. That was so cool - also really cold! We had had a thaw a couple of days before, so there wasn't much snow on the ground, and the temperatures weren't even that far below zero, but I just didn't wear enough layers so I was freezing! The inside of the Kremlin was a lot smaller than I expected. I think because we stayed in the Sobornaya Ploshad (Church Square) and didn't walk around very much, I didn't get a true idea of the Kremlin's size. But I loved seeing all the old churches - they are all so beautiful, with the rich, dark colors, and the gleaming metal accents on the icons, and the vaulted ceilings. I also saw Ivan the Terrible's tomb, and Dmitri Donskoy's, which in my opinion were a lot cooler than seeing Lenin! (Which I haven't done yet and don't plan to.) We also saw the Tsar's Cannon and the Tsar's Bell, both of which are enormous. Apparently the Tsar's Bell was never rung; when it was removed from the mold a huge chunk fell out of it, which is sad because I can't imagine how beautiful such a huge bell would sound. It is amazing to imagine casting such a huge bell such a long time ago, though...even today, with all of our scientific advancements and technology, it would be a mighty feat. Anyway, it was really neat, and it is one of the only places in Moscow where it is really easy to imagine yourself back hundreds of years - nearly all of the buildings are so old; there is a real sense of history there.

 entering the Kremlin: Troitskaya Bashnya

 inside, approaching Sobornaya Ploshad

 Sobornaya Ploshad

 Blagoveshenskiiy Sobor

 Liliya and me in front of Uspenskiiy Sobor

 the Kremlin New Year's Tree

 the bell towers

 the small, beautiful Tserkov' Rizpolozheniya

 entrance to the Uspenskiiy Sobor

 the Moscow River from the Kremlin walls

 Bolshoi Kremlevskiiy Dvorets (literally, "Big Kremlin Palace") and the Blagoveshenskiiy Sobor

 Tsar's Cannon

 the Tsar's Bell

We also walked around Red Square briefly; it is all aglow lights right now, and there is an ice rink set up in the center of it! It was all very festive and fun, a really neat way to spend the day.

 the eternal flame near the entrance to Red Square; we got to see the changing of the guard, which was really cool! 

 Red Square!!!

 looking across Red Square in the other direction

     Yesterday was fun as well. My partner in crime from the Mitino school, Teya, came back from Denmark, and we celebrated New Year's together. I love Teya because she is so fun and crazy; she was the perfect person to see in the New Year's with. First, we both decided to get really dressed up, and then she came over and we started the evening with tea and sugar cookies. Then we walked over across the way to Shokoladnitsa and had dinner. Shokoladnitsa is basically the Russian equivalent of Starbucks, but with more hot chocolate options, so it was pretty fun to go in and order when we were dressed up like we were going ot the opera! After that, we walked back to the flat and had shots of vodka - well, I had about half of a shot and that was all; it still tastes like shoe polish to me. Teya had this trick she'd learned where you drink vodka accompanied by a piece of brown bread. First you sniff the bread, the you take a sip of vodka, then you eat a piece of the bread. But then it just tasted like eating brown bread with shoe polish...I don't think I'll ever be much of a drinker! Afterwards, we watched The Irony of Fate, which was great fun. If you haven't seen this movie, I would recommend it; it's quite funny! But it's also quite long, so don't try to watch it in a hurry - it's probably best for a long evening when you don't have anything planned. You can watch it on youtube with English subtitles; the link is here:  http://www.youtube.com/movie?v=lVpmZnRIMKs&feature=mv_sr
     Afterwards, we still had about half an hour til midnight, so we chatted and Teya got the champagne out. Five minutes til midnight we turned on the television to see the Spasskaya Bashnya clock ring at the Kremlin. I have to admit, I think that's a much better tradition than our ball drop - even as kids my siblings and I didn't really see the point. After all, nothing really happens! It would be much better if they actually dropped the ball, at least! I was explaining that tradition to Liliya, and she didn't really see the point of it either. Anyway, Teya and I rang in the New Year's with the Kremlin bells and singing...and then the most beautiful thing happened. People started shooting off fireworks all over Mitino, and there were some right in our courtyard! And almost as soon as the Kremlin bells stopped ringing, it started to snow - that most beautiful kind, with the huge, sparkling flakes.

 fireworks in our courtyard!

     So much has happened for me in 2011, both bad and good: my dad lost his job, my little brother got held back in school, one of my dearest friends moved to Washington, D.C., and I realized that joining a dance company across the ocean is not as easy as I'd hoped it would be. But I also got to travel to Italy - twice! - both times with some of my best friends; Sophie and I got to make our first trip to Washington; I graduated from college; I got to see my younger siblings really grow and develop; I got to play the Evil Queen in the ballet Snow White, we all made it safely through a tornado; I got to assist teaching Russian language with a wonderful teacher, and I moved to Moscow, where I'm learning so much about other people, my faith, and myself every day. I don't know what 2012 will bring, but I hope it will bring a job for my dad, good health for all my family and friends, and that God will make his purpose for me in this next year very clear. Lots of love to everybody, and Happy New Year!!! May it bring you joy. :)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

     Well, looks like I need to play catch-up again. But that is not such an unpleasant thought to an English major stretched out on the floor in her fuzzy flannel pajamas, with the colorful Christmas lights blinking in her window and the ground covered in a blanket of snow outside. We had our first real snow the other day - the other ones were all just "pretend" snows, because here it takes a lot of snow to actually cover the ground. Because the temperatures stay below freezing, the snow isn't wet and doesn't stick to the top of the grass; it sifts down between the blades like sand, and it has to accumulate like sand before it gets high enough to hide the grass. It is nice to have everything so beautiful and white again; this past week we had a thaw and all the snow melted and all of Moscow turned into one huge muddy mess. Every time I went walking anywhere I had to come home and wash my pant legs in the bathtub - I'd have mud splatters all the way up to the backs of my knees!

yes, those are people walking on the pond!

     The week before that, though, was quite snowy, and it was odd to be preparing my belated Thanksgiving feast when it was snowing outside. Speaking of which, I must pause here to state my appreciation for mothers everywhere who make Thanksgiving dinner for their families each year - it is HARD! I like cooking, so I enjoyed it, but I was literally in the kitchen all day. The great endeavour began the night before, when I came home from work and made up my list of all the food I would need to buy at the grocery store. Then I sat down with my dictionary and looked up the Russian names for all the random foods they don't teach you the names of in college - ginger, cloves, cranberries, etc. That being done, I mustered up my energy and marched over to the grocery store. It was 9:00 at night, and I was tired, but I was determined to buy everything I would need so that I could spend the whole of the next day purely cooking. However, despite my good intentions and an hour and a half spent in the grocery store (at least half an hour of which was spent staring at the spice shelves and trying to will powdered ginger and thyme into existence - it didn't work, and I ended up buying "Hmeli-sumeli" instead...which I'm pretty sure translates as "hmeli-sumeli"...and sticking a piece of ginger root into my cart at the last minute) my mission was doomed to fail. When I was checking out, the grumpy lady at the cash register (I can't blame her; it was 10:30 at night) sent me dashing back to the vegetables section because I had forgotten to get a weight sticker put on the onions, and I'm pretty sure that while I was gone she stole my piece of ginger, because when I got home it was definitely not in my bags. For a few moments I entertained the wild notion of trying to jump-start my sleepy brain to tell my legs to march back to the shop and buy the ginger then and there, but my brain just rolled over and started snoring again. So I reluctantly surrendered and made a second trip in the morning. Then it was time to dry the ginger in the oven, and then to cook the turkey and simultaneously chop onions for the stuffing...and then chop more onions for the stuffing...and then chop more onions for the stuffing...and then get lost in a fog of onion-created tears, feel blindly for the window, and crank it wide open so that the snowflakes could drift gently in and make little puddles on the floor while I finally finished the blasted onions and started on the celery...then make the pumpkin pie...then realize that my mom was right when she said the filling was enough for two pies and make more pumpkin pie... then make mashed potatoes...which turned into pureed potatoes because I was really excited that I actually had a mixer which my friend had lent me and got a little carried away...then chop more onions (*%$^*) for the sauteed squash. It was quite a masterly maneuver if I do say so myself, especially considering I only had one oven pan for almost everything, so baking times had to be strategically planned. But I finished, and I finished everything on time, and everyone came, and they all ate everything, and nothing was burnt and nothing was raw, and besides some jokes about the soupiness of the potatoes, the food part seemed to turn out all right. And the conversation flowed pretty well, and a couple of people brought champagne and wine, and overall I think it turned out well for my first real hostess endeavour (in my whole life, a fact which I was pondering right before people started to arrive: "This is my first time trying to cook a dinner for a whole group of people...my first real event as a hostess...why did I have to decide to start with a Thanksgiving dinner of all things?!?" But the heavens smiled down on me and there weren't any major disasters!
     I can't say I did much of anything else that weekend except sleep to recuperate from the cooking marathon, and my next week was not marked out by too much of anything special save for the fact that a number of my students were absent. It's sort of the reverse from NC with sickness and snow here. If you're sick in NC, you might miss a couple of days of school, but then you get on some antibiotics or some other medicine and you're back in class. But if a single snowflake falls from the sky, all the schools and even some businesses immediately shut down. Here, as one of my students put it, "The snow doesn't stop anybody...I like driving in the winter actually. Everyone drives until the stupid people have accidents, and then they stop driving and leave the roads clear for us." (I didn't ask him how he defines "stupid people"!) But if someone gets sick, then the turnaround time is a lot longer. One of my students came down with the measles of all things, and he developed complications and an infection and ended up being in the hospital and missed three weeks of classes. He's alright now, thank goodness, but it was so weird because kids just don't really have that same sort of thing happen in the U.S. - heck, I'm pretty sure nobody even gets measles anymore.
     The other remarkable thing that week was that suddenly Christmas decorations started showing up in all the stores. Except they are not for Christmas...they are for New Year's. The Russians don't celebrate Christmas like we do, I think in part because of being communist for so long and also in part because the Russian Orthodox Christmas isn't until January 6th, I think. So instead of "Christmas trees" they have "New Year's trees." Regardless, seeing all the lights and decorations was really making me feel the lack in our flat, and it was creating a wild urge in me to dive into the first store I saw and buy loads of ornaments, lights, and even a plastic tree. However, common sense took hold and I decided to look around our flat first before I made any major purchases...and I'm really glad I did... I found an entire Christmas tree in a box out on our balcony, and glass balls in the closet, and even a strand of lights! It wasn't a little tree either; it's as tall as I am!

I dusted off all the balls, but I decided to nix the lights...they were from 1991, and some of the bulbs shone just a bit too brightly for my taste. So I splurged at the store and bought three strands of colored lights, and now they are twinkling merrily all around the flat. I'm not completely done decorating yet, so I think I will wait to post pictures until it's all done. The other thing I splurged on was Advent candles. I had been keeping an eye out for them ever since Advent started, but the only colors I could find were silver, gold, and blue - they don't seem to have the pink and purple tradition here. Finally I bought some silver candles and painted them...I think they turned out really well! Of course, it's a bit silly because I haven't even burned them yet, but at this point I think I'm going to save them for Christmas Eve night.

     I have to figure out what I'm doing on Christmas, because both of my flatmates are leaving so I will be alone in the flat. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing, but I need to think of ways to make Christmas special for myself since I won't be with my family and it would really stink to spend Christmas moping around because I'm not at home. Right now I'm thinking I will go to midnight mass, and probably on Christmas day I will make some hot chocolate, light the Advent candles, say a couple of rosaries, and skype with my family later in the day when Christmas morning arrives for them. The way I see it, the two things that make Christmas really special are 1) duh - the birth of Christ and 2) time with family, and since I can't have the second as much this year I'm going to make the most out of the first. I don't know what it says for me in terms of intelligence, but little things really make a difference for me, and having a Christmas tree with beautiful ornaments and lights and having lights in the windows does so much to brighten my mood that I think if I make sure I've prepared enough for Christmas it will still feel like a really joyful special day even if I can't celebrate it at home.
     This past Friday was charged with frenetic excitement because I found out that Evgenia Obraztsova was coming to perform La Sylphide at a theatre in Moscow in January, and I was planning to buy tickets. Unfortunately, after trekking all the way into the centre and wandering about through the snow until I found the theatre box office, the tickets in my price range were already sold out. But I will see Obraztsova dance live someday!! Speaking of which, I am attaching a clip from her Romeo and Juliet here - in my opinion she is one of the best Juliets of our time, and if you haven't happened to see her dance before please watch this clip and just disregard the bits where people are talking - the most important part is seeing her telling this story with such passion and vibrance! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKd5xgcFk0o&feature=related

So anyways, I was disappointed not to get tickets, but it was a good wake-up call - I need to get in gear if I'm going to see ballets here! I had no idea tickets sold out so far in advance, so I'm glad I know now!
    Friday night I got to hang out with some friends and see my co-worker's flat for the first time - it is definitely a cut above ours! But I really like our flat just the way it is, and any thoughts of jealousy were wiped from my mind as soon as one of Teya's flatmates opened her door and a putrid cloud of cigarette smoke drifted throughout the house - I just don't understand how some people can enjoy that smell! I stuck it out for an hour, but then I begged off due to the lateness of the hour and the fact that I had work the next day - it was almost midnight, so it was pretty late - and bounded gratefully out into the freezing air, taking deep gulps to try to cleanse my lungs.
    Saturday night was fun in a quieter way - I invited my neighbor's two kids over to help me make ornaments and decorate the Christmas tree. I don't know if I mentioned Lilya in any earlier posts, but she is a really sweet fourteen-year-old who lives next door and who is really eager to learn English. She and her younger brother Timour came over, and I pulled out the glitter and markers and stiff paper and made banana bread and tea, and we supplemented the rather meagre array of glass balls with some beautiful paper ornaments. I was really glad they could come - it wouldn't have been any fun to decorate by myself, and besides, for me Christmas is linked with kids having fun, so it was cool that they could come over to help. Again, I will post pictures of the tree soon; for now here are some of the ornaments we made.Well, I was going to post pictures, but at this point my internet is being really flaky so I think I'll just have to wait til next time.

    Today I went out to Mass and then went to watch a rehearsal of the dance group I am GOING TO JOIN!!! I made my decision and I'm really excited to start with them this week - I think it will be a good place to dance and that it will be a lot of fun. I can't WAIT to do character dance again! Which is probably a good thing - not being able to wait will stir me to do some classes on my own in the flat this week so I don't make a complete fool of myself on Friday. If you want to see pictures and stuff of the group, the link is here: http://www.sokolovteatr.ru/youth

    And that's about all I have to report for now...Only two weeks until vacation and I'm SO excited. I'm going to start putting together a sightseeing list to make up for my appalling lack of activity in that area thus far, but I'm also going to spend at least two days doing absolutely nothing but SLEEPING, reading, and possibly having a cup of hot chocolate IF I'm motivated enough to get out of bed. :) However, there are still two weeks of teaching, and oh, yeah, Christmas cookies! Which thankfully won't mean chopping onions, but I do see whole ginger and cloves looming menacingly in my future....well, I say BRING IT ON!!!