Final Hours as a Muscovite

Today is our last day in Moscow. Last of the last. It's bittersweet to be sure, but I definitely won't miss the walk to the metro but I will miss living in such a historical and grand city. The packing is done, lessons have been learned, and the final Russian dinner is being made. I'm greatly looking forward to my peanut butter in the airport terminal (thanks, mom!) and being home. In 12 hours, the bus will be here to take us to the airport and then we're all homeward bound!

Hannah and I wrapped up our last day here by people watching in Alexander Garden outside the Kremlin and visiting my favorite place in Moscow, the Red Square, one last time. We drank Coke and talked loudly in English, not caring a single bit. The highlight of today came when a group of young Russian soldiers walked by and Hannah experimented with the surrounding population by yelling "DAT ASS" to the general vicinity. And no one noticed. We thereby concluded that we we're the only Americans in a decent radius.

I've lived here for 10 weeks, learned lots, and become a little bit more Russian than I was before. This was a fantastic experience, but now it's time to head back to American soil! 

See you all on the other side!

(12 hours left in Russia!)

Greetings from Saint Petersburg!

Hello one and all from the city on the Neva! After 15 hours of intense sleepless travel, I have finally arrived. I'm still not quite set up yet and all I want to do is sleep, but I guess that's what jetlag does to a person. I'm staying with a lovely woman Anna Akimova on the Gulf of Finland in a typical Soviet apartment building. Go figure. Walking down the street is intimidating and I'm floundering a bit with the language, but I think I'm doing okay for the first day. 

Tomorrow I need to convert money and buy a local cell phone since there's no way in hell that mine will work here. And as I write this, I'm sitting in an internet cafe where Anna left me and I think she's coming back. Hopefully. To tell the truth, Russia is scary right now and I hope I fit in. Though nothing takes the cake quite like the most terrifying little Russian man ever behind bullet proof glass in the airport doing passport control. I was literally shaking. Those Soviet style military police hats are damn intimidating! 

But my visa got me into the country and now I'm here! I can't wait for classes to start and I need to finish unpacking. Last but not least, a big "hello and I love you and I'm alive" to my loving parents who saw me off at 11am yesterday, a HUGE thank you to Meghann for looking up my emergency numbers as I sat in JFK fearing for my Helsinki-St. Petersburg connection because of ash-cloud delays, and to Paula who texted me until the minute I had to turn my phone off to take-off in JFK. And Katherine, we're on the same continent now! Yay!

I love you all and I'll be home in 3 months with stories and pictures!

I love airports <3

Just got through security at RDU and now I'm awaiting the first leg of my 15 flight to St. Petes! I've got my copy of Foreign Affairs and my last cup of Starbucks for the next 3 months and I'm good to go!
I'm going to miss everyone at home but now its adventure time!!!
XOXO

Davai idyom v Rossii!

Tomorrow is the big day. It's finally here. Twelve hours from now I will be on a plane to the motherland! I'm nervous and excited and rambling in gramatically incorrect Russian in my head. I don't have any abroad experience and I'm flying solo. My girl friends tell me it's a piece of cake.

So here's to a safe, fun, and comfortable flight across through Atlantic and Europe! Time to change those dollars into rubles!

To Saint Petersburg!!!