москва!

         The past few weeks have been busier than Kazan traffic at rush hour! Among the highlights was a brief trip to Moscow. Although Moscow is such an international city, I like to think that, at it's core, it is a distinctly Russian city. If you stand in one spot and ignore the cyrillic script on buildings and billboards, you can imagine that you are in any western city--Washington D.C. maybe. What sets Moscow apart from more western cities is the disorganization and chaos that is so characteristically and endearingly Russian. Rather than a grid system, the streets winded around the city in rings as it developed. Of course, we had a chance to drop by all of the Muscovite highlights--Red Square, the Kremlin and the Armory, Tretyakovskaya Gallery, and GUM. I could spend this post on my impressions of these classic sights, but I fear that my observations are so similar to the tired accounts you must have heard a million times that I might as well copy and paste a Wikipedia article. I will spare you. Instead, I would like to write about a delightful little place called Му Му кафе-- a cafeteria style restaurant who's name transliterates to "Moo Moo Cafe". The cow motif is apparent throughout the eatery, and the food was rather tasty! The best part was the life-size cow sculpture outside. Perhaps my favorite memory from the trip is stopping to listen to an impromptu poetry slam in front of the cow one evening on our way back to the hostel. The fact that we travelled to and from Moscow by overnight train was the cherry on top of a wonderful weekend.
           To my friends and family back in the states, and American exchange students all over the world, I wish a happy belated Thanksgiving! While I haven't seen a single turkey in Russia, my host family decided to surprise me with a giant, frozen solid one at 7:30 in the evening on Thanksgiving. After various attempts to put it in the microwave, oven, sink, and refrigerator (in that order), I was able to rescue the turkey and convince my family that there is no harm in celebrating Thanksgiving a day late. It was a wonderful surprise and I am certainly thankful for being welcomed into such a fabulous home.
        Well, I am going to sign off now even though I have much more to write about. I am currently in the middle of taking the TORFL exam (which is a blast, let me tell you!) and I have some last minute cramming to do before the speaking portion tomorrow.
спасибо!
аббй

The Shirtless Guitar Player

        Before leaving for Russia, my mother and I had a small disagreement about the appropriate number of wool socks I would need to bring. I don’t know who “won” or “lost” that argument, but I’m glad I didn’t bring any fewer than I did. The Russian winter is here and I’m pretty sure it won’t be going anywhere for a while. Today we had our first real snow; a dusting of powdered sugar now covers Kazan. Over the weekend we saw the sun for the first time in a while, but the clear days were even colder and whipping winds ripped through hats and scarves and flesh straight to the bone. I know this is only the beginning of my first Russian winter, so I hesitate to complain and, hey, if the shirtless guitar player can handle the chill, so can I. That’s right folks, the shirtless guitar player. When the temperatures reach below freezing, he stands on the main pedestrian street and serenades the masses for fifteen or twenty minutes at a time…topless. I interpret this as a sign that even in the dismally dark, frigid winter months, there is joy to be had.

            A few nights ago, I was offered an extra ticket to the ballet Anyuta (based on Chekov’s short story) at the last minute. I showed up severely underdressed and still carrying my book bag. Though I felt conspicuous at the time, I was later reminded of one of the most important lessons that my father ever taught me: always carry a good book. To say our seats were in the “nosebleed” section would be an understatement. Our seats were in the depths of the sinuses. Since the house was not sold out my friends and I decided to attempt to sneak into a better section. Little did we realize that Russian ushers are militant about their work. We tried every trick in the book from pretending we knew exactly what we were doing to pretending we couldn’t understand the word “ticket” in Russian. We were almost triumphant, but were foiled by a family of latecomers. Forced back to our original seats, I had an excellent view of the chandelier. I spent most of the first act reading. I was able to see the second act a little bit better thanks to the young woman sitting in front of me who left at intermission, and from what I could see it was fabulous!

            When I was applying for this program, I had two main reasons for wanting to participate in a long-term exchange. I wanted to end the program with a good control of the language, and I wanted to live in the country long enough to feel “at home”. I could write all day about what it means to be “at home”, but I think that feeling comfortable enough to trust Russian sushi (which is extremely popular, by the way) explains plenty. One benefit of being here for such a long time is experiencing the holidays. Last Sunday was the Muslim holiday Eid and, because approximately fifty percent of the population here in Kazan is Muslim, classes were cancelled! Eid is a holiday about giving thanks for what you have and helping others who may not be as fortunate. Traditionally, those who can afford to do so purchase a lamb, bless and slaughter it, and give away the meat. I cannot reiterate enough that the coolest thing about Kazan is the mélange of Tatar and Russian cultures. I am so lucky to live in such a diverse and peaceful place.

Much love to my friends, family, and fellow exchange students around the world.

Спасибo!

абби