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Travel
Journal: Week Three
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Monday,
June 11, 2001
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Monday,
June 11, 2001 I have been having a lot of trouble sleeping, not only because of the white nights. There is a lot across the street with little sheds for people to park their cars. Every night I am woken up by at least three car alarms which go off for a good ten minutes each. Whoever invented car alarms should face public execution! (Am reminded of passage in Bridget Jones' Diary in which title character claims that car alarms actually cause break-ins by people trying to turn off said car alarm.) I finished my last English-language book, and have started reading Russian children's stories. Ugh. Even children's books are a lot of work! First I read, then I have to write down the words I don't know. After looking up the unknown words in the dictionary, I translate the section into English. It's a time consuming affair, to say the least.
Tuesday,
June 12, 2001 When he discovered that I am not feeling well, he was very concerned. He and his wife, Lena, came over right away. When they came in the door, he told me that they are pharmacists -- practically doctors. They brought milk and berries (Russians are fond of home-remedies) and lots of medicine. They took my temperature and then explained the medicine to me. He said not to worry, that I will feel better soon. But I already feel better, just as a result of their visit.
Wednesday,
June 13, 2001
Thursday,
June 14, 2001 Olga called after work and asked me if I wanted to go for a short walk. I thought it was a great idea. (I am getting really tired of sitting in the apartment by myself.) We walked around the neighborhood for about 20 minutes, and then she decided I should come to her apartment and meet her mother and grandmother. They were very nice, and didn't seem to mind having an invalid in the house. A little later we went back to Yulia's apartment. We stood on the balcony, enjoying the sunset (at 10 p.m.!) It has been raining all week, and it was so nice to see the sun. About a half hour later I got a sudden burst of energy and I felt much better than I had all week.
Friday,
June 15, 2001 I did get up at 8:00 and go to my 11:10 class. Everyone was so glad to see me. Apparently Father Jarrod was very worried about me. By the time class ended at 3 p.m., I was feeling great. I went to the bookstore and got my texts for the amazing low price of 120 rubles ($4!) After that I finally picked up my student ID card from SPBGU. Claire and I spent the afternoon wandering all over the city. (My feet have never hurt this much!) It was a gorgeous day, and I think I am finally getting the hang of where things are in relation to one another. We found the bakery and the market Yulia had brought me to. (I marked them on the map so I won't forget where they are.) Claire took me to the art supply store she had found, as we would both like to sit and draw. The selection of materials is horrendous. We spent nearly 20 minutes trying to find a suitable drawing paper. I bough a tablet with 40 sheets, 4 graphite pencils of various hardness, a set of 12 colored pencils, a pencil sharpener and an eraser for 205 rubles ($7). I think a beautiful drawing (or more!) might be the best souvenir I could give myself, not only for the end product, but the process, too.
Saturday,
June 16, 2001 I only got through the second floor of the Winter Palace, but it was incredible! I was more taken with the architecture than anything else. There was so much art everywhere that it was overwhelming. So I just breezed through each room, taking in the atmosphere. The state rooms were certainly the most opulent I have seen; one was covered entirely in gold! My favorite art of the day were the sculptures by Falconet. Fantastic. They looked so alive. I just stood and admired them from every possible angle. A close second was an exhibit of royal jewelry. (I guess that comes as no surprise, seeing as I am an avid beader.) All I have to say is, "Wow!" From the Hermitage, I walked to Sennaya Ploschad to meet Olga and Natasha. It was a lovely walk on a street I had never been down before. It was so beautiful, the weather was gorgeous, and I enjoyed the view as I crossed two canals. Natasha went home, and Olga and I slowly followed. We stopped in a park along the way, because my feet still hadn't recovered from the 15+ miles I walked yesterday. (I'm not lying! I measured it on the map!) As we got to Natasha's, Olga warned me that it was really bad. Natasha lives in a kommunalka or what we would refer to as a boarding house. After the revolution, the big, expensive aristocrats' apartments were divided up. Many rooms were subdivided into even smaller rooms. The entire floor shares one bathroom, one toilet and a kitchen. It was dark and dirty. But the worst part was knowing that entire families live in many of these rooms. It's hard for an American to imagine how incredibly depressing this environment would be to live in day after day. I told Olga later that I don't mind being in those places, because I understand. But it makes me very sad, and extremely grateful for what I have.
Sunday,
June 17, 2001 This evening I worked on an article for the U of M's International Student Magazine. My friend Ashish is the editor, and he has enjoyed the web site so much that he decided I should do something for the magazine. Its pretty exciting, because this issue will be 4-color, and he wants to print some of my photos. I got an email from Yulia. She and Kyle are enjoying their vacation in Cyprus. Apparently they are as red as lobsters, though. |
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