Drinking, Bears, and Gypsies

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Last night was the last night for everyone to be in the dorm together so we had a huge party. I got drunk for the first time in my life. Gabby and Erica turned up the boom box as loud as it would go, playing Cher and Brittney Spears. They danced in the room and Alex thought it was hilarious so he joined them for a while. There are video cameras in the hall and apparently the guards were watching them from the cameras. When Erica left to go to a club the guards commented that they thought she would have been sick of dancing already.
Today we went to the huge outdoor market at izmaylovski park. As we came in we saw tame bears. The trainer had the stand up and clap their hands. When he gave a treat to one of the bears the bear licked him on the face.
The market had the widest variety of things that I've ever seen. Some of the more interesting things included authenic Nazi Uniforms and pins, posters from the Soviet Union trying to get Russians not to drink, and beautifully painted dolls. I bought some gifts for friends and also a mink hat. The vender originally wanted to sell it to me for 5,000 rubles. But I bargined him down to 2,400 ($90). It is a really beautiful hat and will come in handy during the cold Russian winter. The guy that sold it to me was creepy though. When I bought the hat he smiled. And I smiled back, being the American that I am. Then he gave me a hug and patted me all over. I didn't mind the hug so much but the patting was definitely not something I appreciated. Then he asked me if I had a boyfriend. My answer to this question for all Russian men is yes. If I meet a great guy through my host family then maybe I would date a Russian guy. But only then. They are not nearly as respectful as American men and I wouldn't want something bad to happen.
On the way back some Gypsy kids played a harmonica on the train. They were very good. For once Russians were sympathetic for the Gypsies and gave them money. Russians universally hate Gypsies because many make a living through stealing. Some make a decent living through being cab drives. But last year there was a huge fist fight between the Russian cab drivers and the gypsy cab drives. The Russians won so there are very few Gypsy cabs any more.
On red square sometimes very young gypsy kids will suround someone and expertly take all the money they have. Russians advise to kick and punch the kids when they try to do that. Luckily I haven't had trouble with the Gypsy kids yet.
I bought a beautiful chess set a couple days ago for just 700 rubles ($30). I've already spent hours playing chess with Jason. He's better than me, but I'm learning. I beat him for the first time yesterday. I think by the end of my stay in Russia I will be very good at chess. It is one of the most popular past times in Russia and since I don't have regular access to a computer or tv, i'm going to spend a lot of my free time playing chess.
Tomorrow I move in with my host family. I can't wait to meet them.

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Photos

Russian Wedding Party
All the men started dancing around the bride and groom

Playing Chess with Jason
This is before I got drunk