Blogs from Russia, Europe - page 297

I went to lessons today, my first in five days. In Zhanna's class we made a list of adjectives to describe people's character, and with Aleksandr Ivanovich we corrected our translations. I need to develop my writing style in Russian, as I don't give constructions enough thought and everything I hand in at the moment is much simpler than I am capable of. I went to an antique shop in the afternoon. Getting inside was a puzzle, as there was a puddle of melted snow four feet wide all the way around the front of the shop. It meant I needed to stand on a thin ledge for five minutes while I thought of a method of getting to the door. I stepped on a stone in the middle of the moat, which sank as I ... read more

well, today we went to a palace. i have to say that i was getting so sick of museums and palaces that i was bored out of my mind. dad and tanya toured at their own pace while i kept up with a group of school children (of course the guide spoke russian, so i didnt understand it). i went into one room and there was a little babushka (old lady) who started smiling and speaking russian to me. she kept saying 'krasivaya' which means beautiful, and pointing around the room. i assumed she meant the room was beautiful, so i said 'da'. she looked at me a little strange and continuesd speaking russian. i told her to wait while i ran back to tanya to be my translator. the lady was telling me that i ... read more

Well we're here! First impressions of Russia were snow, ice and a fozen Baltic sea viewed from the 'plane! St. Petersburg loked quite industrial from above, also lots of tennement buildings. The temperature (-10) was biting on the short dash from the 'plane to the arrivals building. Passport control was the fastest either of us has experienced anywhere in the world! A very short queue and a glance at the passport and a smile and we were through - not at all what we had expected. The aiport building was amazing - a huge glass domed ceiling with sun streaming through. Russia was feeling better and better. After about 20 mins we were met by our driver called Dimitri with a name board saying Mr and Mrs McNally (still very novel) who took us to our ... read more

21 hours travelling in one weekend put paid to any ideas of going to classes today. I woke up at 2 in the afternoon. I spent the rest of the day in the internet room. While talking to (Tver) Michael about the elections in Belarus this evening I walked into the point of our kitchen window, which he had opened to let the smoke out as he was cooking. The right side of my forehead was swollen even by the time I touched it. It can't have just been the sore head that made me unhappy in the evening. My three thousand word project is in the front of my mind but not even started, and I will have to sacrifice a lot of things in the next five weeks to get it into a post ... read more

Well, today we set off taking the second deepest metro (subway) in the world. we went to Peterhof Palace, the former summer residence of russian nobility. the whole place was renovated after the germans attacked it to become a museum. a lot of beautiful art and material things to be seen around the decedant palace. most of the walls were sprayed with a thin layer of real gold. the layer is so thin that it is thinner than a single strand of hair. naturally, i was more facinated with the beautiful snow scenery outside. we walked thru the gardens and let me tell u- it is like a picture from Anistasia or something! you could see little kids sledding thru the park area. everyone around me was complaning about how it is so much better in ... read more