Don't Look Down

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I have a brand-new theory about life in Russia. It’s called “Don’t Look Down.” Yes, it is exactly how it sounds. I’ve found while living here that this country requires a certain amount of looking the other way, even if that means up. As a literal example, the streets here are awful, full of holes, covered in trash, puddles, and spit, and are in a fair amount of disrepair. This might incline someone to actually keep his eyes toward the ground in order to avoid such hazards. However, if you take the time to look up and around, the scenery is actually quite beautiful. The Russians have a flair for architecture, monuments, and they love their grand, stone buildings. So if you have a moment, I suggest taking in all the wonders of coming someplace like this (if you ever get the chance to). Yes, life here is harder. Yes, it’s often extremely frustrating (not even mentioning the fact that you have to speak a foreign language). But nonetheless, I am amazed by the fact that I am living in one of the oldest cities in the world, and it is absolutely gorgeous.

Along the same lines, I have another story with which to regale you. Today Mike and I were invited to a school to talk to some of the students in English and some Tatar, at least that’s what we thought. However, upon our arrival we discovered that we were actually participating in a Tatar business debate, and were on opposing teams of students. But this was not what one usually thinks of when speaking of a ‘business competition’. It started by Mike and I meeting the organizer and then mingling with the students while they asked us questions like how old we are, where we are from, and if we were boyfriend and girlfriend. It should be noted that in Russia, the girls at the school (16 year olds) are well-within the dating range of a 20 year old guy like Mike, and they cut right to the chase. After a while we took our seats at different tables and the competition began.

I was on a team comprised mostly of girls, and Mike had a team of mostly guys. To start the competition, we had to do intros of our name and one adjective about ourselves that started with the same letter as our first name. In English, this would be like me saying “I’m Meagan, and I’m marvelous.” I said I was angelic, mainly because in Tatar it starts with and M and my professor told me about the word on the way to the school. Next they showed a video about the school which was surprisingly high-tech for a Russian elementary school. Then they brought the teams up one by one and each person asked their guest American team member (me or Mike) about his/her life. So Mike and I in turn each stood in front of everyone and got drilled with questions about our hobbies, where we go to school, how old we are, about our families, etc. Then the teams had to make up stories about us and present them in Tatar (my team got a higher score by the way).

Following this, there were video presentations from each group about how to make different dishes. My group made kustubui (egg pancakes with potato filling), and Mike’s group made shekshek (small baked balls/sticks of dough rolled in honey). Each group presented the judges with samples of their dishes. It should be noted that Mike’s group’s video came complete with an intro with a 50 cent song. I laughed a lot. Next came the singing competition, and each group sang a song. After that there was the dancing. Seven guys from Mike’s group did a national Tatar dance, and three girls from my group did a dance. However, Mike and I were told to watch and try to learn some of the moves. I then noticed that there was another head-piece and vest on the table. A short quiz session followed where the teams could earn points by answering questions about Kazan. Then Mike and I were taken into the side room with our teams to learn the dances they had just performed. Mind you, we each had about a minute to learn our respective dances. So they put a head piece on me, and I got into my vest which wasn’t even close to fitting over my chest, and I went up on stage with the girls and we all did the dance all over again. Yes, I did a Tatar national dance on stage in front of a crowd of people with about a minute’s practice. I just wish I had had a skirt like the other girls. Then Mike had to go up with the guys and do his dance, but they only did a small portion and then stopped, but Mike still got to wear the awesome Tatar hat.

Then we all stood up in turn with our teams and wished the teachers and judges well. We all had to say one thing we wished them, and Mike and I were last in line on each of our teams (of course, this was all in Tatar). But all went well, and the scores were tallied. Magically, both teams got the exact same score, so everyone was a winner (Mike and I of course think it was fixed). Then Mike and I were presented with presents for coming, which consisted of postcards of Kazan; there were some really beautiful ones. After the competition ended and Mike got some of the guy’s phone numbers, we had to go for the obligatory tea with the teachers.

Mike and I had no idea that us coming to the school was going to be such a big deal, but everyone was really excited about us being there. And the teachers were no different. They took us into the Tatar faculty room and there was a large table spread with real tea cups, cheesecake, lemon cake, cheese, kielbasa, sugar, cream, lemon slices, and of course the obligatory jar of instant coffee (Russian always have this when entertaining Americans because they know how we love our coffee). To their surprise, Mike and I both drank tea. We talked about our host families here, what we thought about Kazan, and our lives in general (once again, all in Tatar). Then it was time to go and Mike and I took the bus back with our professor. When we got to the university it was half an hour before our class, so Mike and I went to do homework while Kadria Hanum (our professor) went to go teach. Overall, this was one of the best and most interesting experiences I have had here so far. I just wish I had brought my camera.

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Comments

[Kelly]

Camera
I wish you had brought your camera, too. More than that, I wish you would POST what pictures you have taken! :-P Love and miss!

[Mom]

Your Blog
I enjoyed reading your blog so much. Keep adding to it as we dont have time during phone conversations to talk about your daily life. Please continue to take lots of pictures! I love you!