Monday, June 4, 2001
Yulia left for Dneipropetrovsk this morning before I got up. I'm on my own until June 25. It added a bit of stress to my day to navigate the city by myself, but I did just fine. I got the marshurtka to Kupchino Metro Station and managed my subway transfer quite easily. Then I walked about a mile to Smolny, through a park. I didn't get lost at all. (Thank God for detailed maps!)

Two new students joined our class today. The first is a girl named Claire from Hamburg, Germany. We had lunch together, and I found out that she is a design student, specializing in illustration! We shared a big hug over the coincidence. The other student, Lance, is American, but I'm not sure from where.

I got home just as easily as I got to class. On the way I stopped to buy shaving cream, without any trouble. It's lonely here. I don't even have Vanya for company, because we left him at the dacha. I just sat on the couch, working on my website and watching Kto Khochet Stat' Millionarom? (Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?) The Russian host is so much better than Regis.

While doing the laundry and the dishes, I discovered that they've turned the hot water off. For three weeks. I guess they're running some sort of tests. I can't wait to take a shower tomorrow...

Tuesday, June 5, 2001
Today was great! I had so much fun in class. I really like my instructors and the other students. It has a wonderful, rich atmosphere. I am not just learning Russian and about Russian culture, but also Japan, Germany, and South America (where Jarrod has worked for the past 11 years) and everything else that comes up in conversation. Plus I learned a new word which is the longest Russian word I have encountered thus far: dostoprimechatelnosti, which means "sight-seeing."

I am a bit frustrated because I still haven't been able to buy the text books because the bookstore remains closed. Apparently the person who works there is ill, but to an American, it seems inconceivable that the store would be closed for days at the beginning of the term.

After class, Claire and I went to Nevsky Prospekt and then Sennaya Ploschad She had a few errands to run, and I just sort of tagged along. I tried to take her to the market that Yulia showed me, but I couldn't find it. So we just explored the market outside the Metro station. Claire was glad to discover this place because apparently the prices are sky-high near the dormitories.

While we were sitting on some steps enjoying the day, we saw a couple of guys get beat up; perhaps by the police. We didn't really understand what was going on, but I am tempted to believe that it was Mafia. I the police would arrest first, and beat later. But these men bound the hands of their two victims, so Claire thought they were police. Whatever it was, it was frightening.

After all of this excitement, I had to go to McDonald's for dinner. It was so popular that there was a man working the door, controlling the flow of people. While I was in line, they came to take my order on a piece of paper. When I got to the cashier, I simply gave the paper to her, paid my 63 rubles, and got my food (Cheeseburger Royal, fries and a Sprite), which was delicious. And yes, the rumors are true, it was better than Mickey-D's in America.

Wednesday, June 6, 2001
Wednesday is my "Library Day," which of course means that I should do everything except stay home and study! So this week I decided to go to Tsarskoe Selo, an old imperial estate about 16 miles south of the city centers. The great thing about going there is that the train stops at our local Kupchino station.

I slept later than I had intended (10 a.m.), and ended up running about an hour behind the schedule I had set for myself. I had a few things I needed to do before I left, such as paying for more time on Yulia's cell phone. I didn't get to Pushkin (the town where the estate is located) until 1:45.

I got off the bus one stop before the palace, and stopped in the park with the famous statue of Pushkin. There I met a sweet old man who was selling books out of a suitcase. He told me that he used to be a professor of mathematics and physics, and now to supplement his meager pension he was selling books from his personal library. We talked for a while, and I ended up paying him about 350 rubles for three books and a set of postcards. I am such a softie! But he was such a nice man...

From there it was a short walk to the palace. Actually, there are several palaces in Tsarskoe Selo, but the main one is referred to as "Catherine's Palace." Commissioned by Empress Elizabeth and designed by Rastrelli, the original palace is a testament to baroque excess. Later, when Catherine the Great inherited the palace, she added on and remodeled in the Neoclassical style of which she was particularly fond.

To be honest, I was not terribly impressed by the palace itself. I think it's sole purpose was to show off the enormous wealth of the Tsarinas. The interior was excessive; one room covered completely in amber (it was really ugly) another paneled floor to ceiling with paintings. I was so relieved to finish my tour and escape to the gardens.

The gardens were fantastic. There were many trees and shrubs, and in between lakes and ponds. Sculptures were nestled throughout the garden, most of them mythological characters, but there were a few busts of members of the royal family.

After leaving the palace, I decided to walk to the train station. It was a lot farther than I thought, but the town is so charming that I didn't mind. I had to ask for directions a few times, but in the end I found the station without much trouble, except for having really sore feet!

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Thursday, June 7, 2001
I did not sleep well again last night. I have been having a hard time falling asleep with the nights continuing to get whiter. It doesn't even get dark anymore, only dim. I decided that I needed a rest day, so I stayed home from class.

I spent a lot of time watching TV, and I find that every day I understand more. The other night there was a black and white movie on, probably from the '50s, and I understood every word of it.

I made pasta for dinner, which was sort of an interesting experience. They don't have spaghetti sauce, and they don't have seasonings in jars or cans like we do. So I bought a jar of stewed tomatoes in tomato juice, and a packet of pizza seasoning. I cut up the tomatoes into little pieces and put them in the pot. Then I added some pizza seasoning, salt and pepper until it tasted about right. It was good, but I wish I could have chosen which spices I wanted instead of using the pizza packet.

After dinner I decided it was time to iron my pants which were finally dry. It took about an hour and a half to do 4 pairs. I wish I could just throw them in the dryer and be done with it!

Friday, June 8, 2001
Today was an early day of classes. I hate early days, not only because I have to get up early, but because I have to travel during rush hour. Rush hour on the metro is horrible. Everyone pushes and shoves and packs in like sardines. It's worse than the campus connector or the 16 during rush-hour. I think I'm becoming claustrophobic.

When I got to class this morning, Claire told me some horrible news. A Korean girl in the dormitory was murdered last night in her room. They aren't sure what happened; all the doors were locked. I keep having recollections of Gauladet. Between this and the violent beatings I witnessed the other day, I'm starting to fear for my safety.

Saturday, June 9, 2001
My plans to go to the museum today with Olga were foiled by the big national holiday on Tuesday. Apparently, because everyone gets Monday and Tuesday off, they had to work Saturday. Of course, when the plans were made, everyone had forgotten about Independence Day.

During the day I cleaned the apartment finally sat down and sorted out everything in my room. It's really nice to get the suitcases out of the way. Later, around 8 p.m., Olga, Lena, Olga's friend Natasha and Kolya came over. We had a nice time, and I am enjoying my increased understanding of the conversation. Olga and I both had sheets of paper where we were writing down new words, hers in English and mine in Russian.

Sunday, June 10, 2001
Today was the St. Petersburg Beer Festival. Believe me, Russians take beer festivals very seriously! I have never seen anything even approaching this magnitude before. The size of the event was probably similar to the Minnesota State Fair including the actual physical area of the festival and the number of people. Except that here the entire purpose revolved around drinking beer. And since beer is not included in the drinking age, it was an event for all ages.

They came from all over to drink some of Russia's best beer, at prices that couldn't be beat. I didn't see a single glass over 10 rubles. And considering that most of these beers were around 12% alcohol (I had one that was 14%!), you can imagine what people were like around 8 p.m. Actually, I really enjoyed the entire day because it was a chance for people from many different backgrounds to come together. We spent a long time sitting with people who worked at the Stepan Razin brewery. They were fully enjoying their day, celebrating their craft and generally just having fun.

I learned my lesson: never, ever tell a drunk Russian that you are an American. They get very, very excited and make a huge spectacle. Pretty soon, everyone finds out that you are American and wants to take silly photographs with you. And you just have to sit there and smile while they slur something that you don't have any possibility of understanding.

See the photos