Gerogian Pasties. Mmm. Not.

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This morning was foggy and rainy and the metro was more rammed than usual. Luckily I was squashed between two fitties which made for cheap thrills. Not sure if they saw it the same way. Still, everyone was in the same boat. Or train, so to speak. Another horrific queue for the mashrutka has put me in mind to arrive ten minutes earlier and walk tomorrow, weather and organisation depending. Today we had phonetics with Nina. As usual, she was very enthusiastic, but I can’t help feeling that focusing on nuances of the language for 2 out of 10 lessons a week would be better spent improving our basics - like trying to buy metro tickets!

After another very difficult translation lesson with Oleg we went for lunch in the little Georgian café around the corner from the school. We had rice with bits of meat in it and some suspect salad. The lady tried to flog us the pasties we had had before (which, looking back weren't that nice at all - it was just beginners' enthusiasm!). Afterwards, we watched a film at the school. I had kind of assumed that, seeing as this was a voluntary thing, it would be a modern(ish) film - but it was an ancient film adaptation of a fairy tale! Luckily it was amusing - Russians teach their kids some interesting morals (such as the fight or the scene where the hero shoots a goose out of the sky so he can have a feather). It was certainly no Disney film!

Leanne, one of the students from Manchester, had agreed to meet with one of the girls from the Christian Union for some mutual language learning. She walked the entire way to Sennaya Ploshchad only to be stood up. She phoned the girl to be told that her washing machine was broken and would therefore not be coming. She caught a mashrutka back and watched the film with us. However, being stood up had brought various frustrations to a head and so our group decided to go back to Sennaya after the film to find a café. We sat in one for quite a few hours and had a really good chat. I got home at about 7 for supper, which was cooked by Ekatrina’s husband today (Fried macaroni and some really good soup). I’m planning on sneaking out to the bar with Firmin (my neighbour) shortly, so I have to do my homework!

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Photos

The Church on Spilled Blood
as seen from Nevsky Prospekt. I never realised how many cables and wires cross the canal until I saw this! Luke's pic.