Excitement. New classes!

The most exciting thing that's happened this week was the addition of my 2 new classes. Well that's a lie, but it's pretty exciting to finally have my full schedule and actually have homework (of which I have a lot already....*sigh*) My new classes are 'Russian Space & Russian State' and 'The Post Soviet Economy'. They're both Masters classes but nothing I can't handle.

My Prof for RSRS is ironically called Prof Medvedev....but he's a Sergei not a Dmitri. He's a nice guy and has an interesting Russian accent - it's slightly americanized so sounds strange. The class is about the dichotomy between the vast Russian Space and the expansive (& meddling) Russian State and essentially the fact that problems in Russia can all be boiled down to State vs Space. I enjoyed the class a lot but it was a shame the classroom was a long rectangle shape because it meant that it was hard to hear the Prof & the Russians don't really keep quiet in class, they don't really pay much attention at all!

My second class was today and the Economics one. Our Prof gave us the choice of the "Official" course or the "Critical & Real" course. You can easily guess which course we opted for, but were asked not to mention our Prof's views or quote him directly. I'm hoping that this will be a really frank look at the Russian economy and I'm looking forward to it! Apparently a lot of the "official" data on the Russian economy is utter crap (excuse my language) & manipulated by the state and so this teacher promised to give us the real picture! The media was censored here in Russia during 2008 to make the public believe that the financial crisis wasn't nor wouldn't affect Russia, it was something that had affected the Western world & was bringing about their downfall. Sound suspiciously Soviet to you?

I have to write a book review for my politics class and do a presentation for my economics class but thankfully we're actually going to get graded for class participation!! The Russians have 2 systems, either a lucky dip exam at the end of a semester where you pick your exam question out of a hat OR a system of being graded during the semester for participation, attendance, presentations and an essay. I much prefer the 2nd system, it seems to work better and offer higher grades, it also means that people actually have to work harder during the semester!

Water

Briefly, I've been brushing my teeth with tap water for the past 3 days and so far I'm still alive!! Most travel advice for Russia says not to drink or touch the tap water but I'm fed up of looking like an idiot walking to brush my teeth with my water bottle when no-one else is doing so! Thus I'm using the tap water, I shan't be drinking it but so far I've not been killed or crippled by the tap water. 
Oh the joy of using myself as an experiment of the travel advice of Embassies & huge travel companies..!

Tuesday. Boy what a day!

For some reason Tuesday has become my day of pain! I have 3 classes on Tuesday and dance class too! I'm up at 8.15am to make breakfast & get to History class for 9.30am.Each of my classes on Tuesday are in a different location in Moscow! My History class is by смоленская station, Post Soviet Economy is at the HSE campus on покровский boulevard and Mergers & Acquisitions is at the Management Department on кирпичная улица by семеновская station. This means I do a lot of travelling on a Tuesday and ride the Metro quite a bit! 


Yesterday I stuffed myself with bananas and peanut butter sandwiches so as to make it through to the afternoon. I don't have much time to get lunch until about 2pm. I found peanut butter in the supermarket, imported from the US and probably the most expensive thing I've bought out here!

History class was interesting and we learnt about the 13th century and the Mongol invasion of Russia and a little about Genghis Khan (who fascinates me!). I'm sure I bleat on about this but I do love my teachers enthusiasm, makes the early mornings worth it and more bearable! 

Then after that I dawdled slightly to the subway and made my way to курская for my next class. It's a new class and part of the Kent University/UCL Masters programme out there. As I've said the number of classes in English are super small so I'm taking Masters classes. This new class is called The Economy of the Post Soviet State and was beginning this week. However we all turned up to class, in a classroom which was massive and resembled a dance studio and the teacher didn't show! We waited for half an hour and he didn't come. This was actually a good thing for me because it meant I could dash back home to my dormitory and have a quick bite of lunch! Also I didn't realize quite how cold it was outside so I needed to change in order to keep my body temperature up! 

I had a little lunch and then left for the Management Dept, it take about an hour to get there including the trek from the station. I think there must be a shortcut to the subway but I never have the time to investigate! Our class was in the computer room this week. They use old LG computers and the keyboards are ancient so make it super easy to hear who's using their computer! We were in the computer room in order to put into practice the "Event Study Methodology" we learnt last week & for homework.
Unfortunately I hit one important and large barrier: The computers & software were in Russian and whilst I know my way around Excel & Word, they used different commands and such so I was stuck! I couldn't do the classwork. Luckily my teacher understood and said I could sit next to a Russian and help them, I had 3 offers of someone to sit next to!
It was pretty complicated statistics we were plugging into Excel in order to find out the value of the merger of Procter & Gamble with Gillette. A lot of it went over my head but we tried and managed to get the right answers! I also got to practice my Russian and learnt some new words. The Russian all giggle when I say things and tell me how good my pronunciation is, they also don't realize quite how much Russian I can understand so I have to remind them that I can pretty much understand everything they're saying!! I did manage to get to grips with the Russian keyboard & how to switch between Cyrillic & English characters.
We also got set our homework and I've managed to get a group of 6 boys to work with!! Slightly daunting but they said that they wanted me in their group, especially because of my English which could guarantee them better grades! I'm just happy I've managed to make friends and got a group so I can do my homework properly! 

Then I rushed off home as class had run late, it was rush hour and I needed to get to dance class! I hadn't realized there was also a football match going on which meant the station I chose to change lines at was packed! Packed with football fans who were all singing and chanting - one of the things I got told to avoid in Russia were football fans, as they can be especially rowdy & violent. I was kettled into the queue to get up the escalator and just went with it. I decided not to go home and went straight to class instead. This meant I did my dance class in my jeans & strappy top and NO sports bra (big mistake!) but I would have been at least half an hour late so that would have been lame! I turned up on my own and actually arrived before my friends from the dorm so I had a good opportunity to practice my Russian. I spoke to a couple of my fellow dance class members and they were impressed (or seemed to be!). I told them я должна говорть по русски потому, что я изучаю русски язык  (I must speak in Russian because I'm learning Russian). 

Class was tiring and we were learning how to do spins. Due to my genetics I am blessed with incredibly low blood pressure - so low that when I was in hospital I was forced to get up & jump around before my blood pressure could be recorded because it was too low for me not to be in intensive care. This means that if I've been rushed all day, hardly had any food or drink and I'm put in dance class and made to do lots of spins, it doesn't give good results! I did about 2 spins and nearly fainted. I decided just to do them super slowly and got away with it. Though I had a niggling headache but I pushed on through and put on a smile! When class ended I was slightly glad and couldn't wait to get home and relax! I got home, changed into PJs, made myself a pasta salad of cherry toms, feta and dressing and watched Downton Abbey! I woke up late this morning to make up for my tiring day yesterday! 

My new friends

I've been in Russia a month now I think and I've made some wonderful friends so far. In my dormitory I've made a mixture of international friends, all of whom are lovely to live with & always brighten up my days and nights. I go to "Boogie Woogie" dance classes twice a week with my Math friends and we're enjoying learning this new style of dance. Having a Russian partner who doesn't speak English is slightly tricky but with dancing you don't really need to speak! We all have a giggle and make fun of each other and it's a fun experience. We all cook together and gather in the kitchen to chatter or in the laundry room and we're always sharing things with each other. It's a really nice environment in my dormitory and it's quite nice to have a roommate to talk to! 


In my academic environment I've made friends with a surprisingly large number of Russians! They are all so eager to help me and teach me Russian. One boy in my M&A class has said he'll teach me one Russian swear word per week and I have to remember it next class! They are all patient and listen to my broken Russian and encourage me to speak their language. If I don't know how to say something or want to learn how to say something they teach me. Apparently I have good pronunciation, but I think that's something I have with all the languages I speak, I strive to sound like a native. 

I love all the nicknames or diminutives that my Russian friends have for their names. Stanislav is Stas (станислав - стас) or Vladimir is Vova (владимир - вова) for example! I think it's so nice that they all have these and they're all super interesting. 

I've been so welcomed here in Russia by all the young people and it's such a great change! I even had a young gentleman give me his seat on the subway the other day, and not because he thought I was pregnant as I've had happen in London before. I was dreading my arrival as I landed at Domodedovo airport, but now I'm so content & thoroughly enjoying myself that I probably won't want to come home in December!

Hospitality

I have been utterly surprised by the hospitality of the young people here in Russia. The older people are a different story...but the younger generation seem to be super nice! They're all fascinated with us foreigners (though it does fuel my suspicions about them being sleeper cells/FSB agents but that's just my paranoia!) and are all eager to look after us. My 2 new friends I made in class on Tuesday messaged me on facebook almost as soon as I'd accepted them and offered to show me the city! 

I went out on Saturday with them and they showed me Moscow! We began on the outskirts of Moscow at one of the biggest commuter hotspots. From the subway station my friend pointed to the south and said, "that's Russia" and pointed to the north and said, "that's Moscow." To Russians Moscow is not considered to be real Russia, because it's so European - though to us Westerners it's not that European at all - but to them it's European!! We made our way back into the center of Moscow by taking a commuter train. They resembled the trains in India, big carriages, wooden benches for seats, a smell of cigarette smoke, beer and stale urine and scratched windows. I was informed that the Российские железные дороги (РЖД) - i.e. the First Great Western of Russia - is the largest employer of people in the whole of Russia & almost in the world! They employ almost a million people! 

We arrived at комсомольская station and exited. The Russian train stations don't have electronic timetable boards - just boards with writing on them and then pieces of paper attached if there are any alterations or cancellations. The station at комсомольская is one of the oldest in Moscow and was built by the Tsars, though Stalin managed to put his stamp on it but creating 2 massive Soviet murals on the walls, one with "soviet values" on it and the other with the names of the "golden cities" from the war & a warrior (oddly enough dressed as a Roman soldier...!)

We walked to the trolley car stop and admired the buildings. One of the ones we could see was one of Stalin's "seven sisters", a collection of 7 skyscrapers built in a gothic style that Stalin had commissioned for Moscow. They're massive and very impressive, but I also find them beautiful. I also saw a massive hotel building, now owned by the Hilton chain, but at the top of the main tower was a huge hammer & sickle. I chuckled very loudly at the sight of a Hilton with a hammer & sickle atop their building!!!

We took the trolley car down to the other side of the river to Gorky Park and talked about the weather & the impending snow. Apparently by the end of next week it might get down to 0 degrees! It should be 0 by at least the second week of October! Snow comes at the end of October/early November. Temperatures then decrease and by December it should be about minus 20 or 30. And this is Celsius. I'm TOTALLY looking forward to that....!

We walked along the река москва and crossed over the bridge and came to the church of Christ the Savior which resembles the Taj Mahal! It's massive. But Stalin destroyed the original in the 1930s (part of his crusade against religion) only for it to be rebuilt about 20 years ago by the then Mayor of Moscow, Luzhkov. We went inside and had a walk around, it's gorgeous inside and has massive high ceilings and beautiful murals all painted in gold leaf. There were also lots of pictures of icons & the Russians were lighting candles and saying prayers around them. There was even a queue to pray in front of the picture of Jesus.

We left the church and walked along the арбат street - one of the most touristy & famous streets in Moscow, which once again Stalin built a second version just to prove that the Soviets were better than the West/the Tsars.  We stopped for lunch in му-му which is a Russian chain selling cheap but good Russian food. I had борщ с сметана for lunch. Yum! After lunch we went to Red Square and had a quick peek in GUM to pick up some traditional Russian pastries - плюшчка. We also went inside St Basil's Cathedral and had a wander round. That's hundreds of years old and you can really tell that by the interior. It's also incredibly beautiful and intricate but I'm glad it survived!

I had a great day and really enjoyed myself. I was also massively impressed with my new friends and their gentleman-like behavior, they paid for my train, bus & museum tickets as well as my lunch! I was truely spoilt!

Though I was also massively tired by my day of adventure and was about to go to sleep when I got home but 2 of my friends from the dorm were going to the cinema and invited me along! So I went to the cinema and saw a film called "A Beautiful Boy" in English with Russian subtitles. Being able to hear english and read russian was actually incredibly helpful for my grasp of the language, but the russian language doesn't have quite so many descriptive words as the english language does. Pretty much every positive expression is just хорошо in Russian! Then I came home, had some tea (got to keep up the British habits) and went to sleep at 11.45pm (8.45pm UK time!). Lots of people were going out to the clubs here but I was far too tired to be bothered to dress up & I still haven't managed to rid myself of the snuffles so I definitely needed another good night's sleep. 

I've just spent today relaxing and also doing my first piece of homework! I did think it was only 5 pages of reading, but that turned into 30...! I wrote my summary of the article on "A Century of the Corporate Takeover Market: What have we learned & where do we stand?" which was probably the most interesting (not) article I've ever read. It was a snooze-fest to describe it properly! Tomorrow I'm going to finish off my other part of my homework but I think I've deserved a rest seeing as I spent 2 & half hours doing that!

Je suis malade

Despite my horrendous snuffles & temperature which ruined my sleep last night I have soldiered on today. I went with my Russian buddy to hand in my application form for my student Metro pass at александровский сад station. I'm glad I took my buddy with my as my Russian would not have withstood the barking of the old lady behind the counter! They have a full glass window with a few small slats to speak through so it's difficult enough to hear them! I'm not sure exactly how long it's going to take to process but I have to head back in about 14 days to pick up my card. This is Russia so it could take forever!

We then went for a walk around the Kremlin & through the Alexandrovskii Gardens to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The weather was pants and it шел дождь (was raining!), but literally this translates as "rain was going". I also learnt the Russian word for puddle which is лужа. We watched the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier which was all pomp & circumstance. 

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexandrovskii Gardens

We carried on walking and went past GUM & Red Square and headed in the direction of мyаcнитская street where our main campus is. We had lunch in the canteen & met up with one of my buddy's friends and her French exchange student. We had an interesting hour long conversation over lunch in which we spoke in French, English and Russian! We switched between the languages so as to better understand each other, but this just increased my headache! I left to come home & have a nap because I was feeling really too ill to be out & about. I just woke up and I'm still feeling horrid. I've got dance class later with my Russian friend Natasha which I'll attempt but I think I'll be going to sleep at 10pm if I can. :( 

Chores.

I did a bulk of laundry today. Unfortunately because I'm surrounded by Canadians & Americans I get mocked for saying "going to do my washing" so I'm using the term laundry instead. To most of the Math boys my British accent is a source of amusement, especially the word "water bottle". I am usually greeted daily with "Hello Governor" or "Hello Old Chap" by my friends in their fake British accents. Then I take my turn and use my American accent, which is perfect (thanks to my American Daddy) and I freak them out. I can switch between accents for each word I use in a sentence and everyone's fascinated by it!

Anyway. So I did my laundry. Only problem with doing laundry is that the washing machines are in Russian. No problem I hear you say. Yes well they're not like ones in the UK/US with dials and pictures so you kind of know what's going on. There's just a bunch of Cyrillic and buttons. Including the option of choosing how many spins per minute. Some of the Cyrillic is baffling but I can't bring myself to take my dictionary down to the laundry room just to work out which cycle to use! I've so far used the синтетика wash (Synthetics) which lasts for 72 minutes or 2 hours and you can choose between 30, 40 or 60 degrees. You get given a lot of choices with these washes so it's rather amusing watching the boys trying to figure them out & decide which wash to use. Once again I have to mother them and sort it all out for them! 

I timed 72 minutes on my ipod and returned to collect my laundry, only to find that there was still 20 minutes left on the machine! I thought surely not, returned in another 20 minutes and there was still 5 minutes to go! Something must have been wrong with the timer on my machine - typical that I should choose the broken one! I sat and watched it for the last "5" minutes, which actually took 15 minutes. They do say a watched kettle never boils, and thus I experienced this. But I got my washing eventually and it smelt delightful. The Russians have Tide out here which is my favorite smelling washing powder so I'm very happy. 

Only problem is a communal drying room on my floor, which also doubles as a bathroom with many sinks. There is no dryer. It's so nice to be able to hang all my clean underwear out on the drying racks for everyone (boys & girls - this is a co-ed dorm) to see. Thank goodness I brought all my nice underwear and not my usual granny pants!! Else that could have been super embarrassing! Nothing like a drying rack of Victoria's Secret underwear to improve my street cred. 

I'm looking forward to snuggling under my clean sheets in the next few minutes, whilst I can't actually smell anything courtesy of my snuffles, I'm sure the sensation of clean sheets will be enough!

oh & p.s. It's my Mother's birthday today - the 23rd AND my dog Busters too. So if you know my Mom make sure to wish her a Happy Birthday! :)

Sorting out my back.

I've been having massive trouble with my back recently, well since I got to Russia. I think it's a combination of my bed here & the satchel style bag I brought out. I thought that a satchel style bag might be safer & easier to deal with here so I left my beloved Longchamp to the care of my mother (much to her delight!) and brought a random satchel bag. Unfortunately it's completely messed up my back and my muscles have been screeching in pain for the past 3 weeks! 

Today was the final straw. I went to the big mall at киевская (Kievskaya) station and had a wander. This place is HUGE. It's set on 5 floors, including a basement and has a massive variety of stores. It's even separated into the Moscow Atrium, London Atrium and others just so that people can locate the stores! There is a mixture of Western shops like River Island, Topshop, Zara and Next to name a few, and Russian shops. I even saw a Kira Plastina! I might have to pop in there and buy something just because I love the brand - unless you read Teen Vogue you won't have a clue who she is! Also there's an American Eagle Outfitters, which makes me super jealous! 

The only problem with all the Western stores you find out here is that the prices are wayyy higher than they are in their home country. There's at least an extra £5-£15 added on top of what the item would cost in the UK/US. I know this because I researched AE prices before I left home today just so I could work it out, and the price tags in Accessorize have the £ & € prices on them too. 

After much store trawling and gasping at extortionate prices I found a suitable bag in Accessorize and used my debit card for the first time in a month! Gosh I've missed used it! It's so weird for me to be using cash all the time. I hardly ever use cash in the UK/US and just make use of my plastic. I guess this is a good way for me to become more aware of the money I spend so it's a good lesson for me! I'm sure my Daddy will be very impressed with me! 

The only thing is here the Russians are so suspicious of credit & debit cards! The lady in the store gave me the biggest evils when I proffered my plastic. I think its because they don't like or understand the concept of an IOU & owing money via a credit/debit card. Rather amusing really. I will say that I often find myself laughing or smiling at things I see here in Russia just because it's so funny. There's a store here, a mens suit store which claims to be from London, not that I've ever heard of it! Its name is "The Windsor Knot", which I find funny because of what it means. My Russian friends & other friends however didn't seem to understand why I was laughing.....!

Good news is that I found a Russian (but made in Deutschland) version of animal crackers which should keep me highly contented in terms of snacking whilst I'm here. Though I can never quite bring myself to eat the final animal, I always feel sorry for it!

Another busy day..

Yesterday was another busy day for me. It began with waking up at 8.30am to get to class for 9.30am! I didn't dress properly and made sure I put comfort above style. This meant wearing jeans and a massive baggy jumper. I was too sleepy & grumpy to be bothered with fashion! History class was good fun, we learnt more about the first few big cities in Russia, namely Vladimir, Novgorod and Kiev (yes I know Kiev's in the Ukraine but back in 1100 it was in Russia. So there.). I adore our teacher because he's so enthusiastic about everything and always says, "well I'll tell you this because it's funny" and laughs whilst he's explaining it! So sweet. He also has a fantastic knowledge of world & especially Russian history. He can pull names & dates straight out of his head! 

After that I came back to my dormitory and had a little time to myself. I took a small nap becuase I'd gone to sleep at 2am the previous night. It's so easy to stay up late here and just look at your clock and realize it's 2 or 3am!  Then I trundled off to my other class - Mergers & Acquisitions. It takes me approx 40mins or so to get there so I left in good time and strolled along. I didn't get lost this time and knew the best way to go, so as to actually have places to cross the road. As I've said before, I am pretty sure I shall be murdered here in Russia by a car whilst attempting to cross the road. It's probably doing horrendous things to my nerves and such.

The beginning of class was awkward as everyone sat down and most of the other students had groups of people they knew. Most people will know the daunting feeling of being new to school or class and the first weeks are terrifying. Imagine having to do that, but in a foreign country where your grasp of the language isn't enough to allow you to converse colloquially with your peers! I sat and doodled in my notepad and smiled at people and said привет (hi) as they came in! No-one sat around me which was slightly annoying but oh well. During the halftime break I had to help all the Russians understand what the Professor had meant with our homework. She's German and so English is her second language as well as theirs. This means that she doesn't know how to effectively explain things for people who struggle with English. Thus being the trooper I am, I stepped into the breach and explained everything simply for them all. 

Then I sat back down and immediately 2 boys shuffled over and introduced themselves to me. They said "do you have a group yet?", to which my reply was no. We have to do a group business proposal as part of the class and I've been so worried I wouldn't find anyone to group up with. These boys however said they wanted to have me in their group and so I agreed! Phew! Now I don't need to worry about that one! One of the boys also helped me with getting into the HSE wireless system so I could add them on facebook. Sweet really. They seemed like really nice people. From further emailing it appears that a lot of the Russians are fascinated by me, especially because I'm from England, though a lot thought I was American..., but they think their English is too poor to speak to me, which is exactly how I feel about speaking in Russian to them. But I've decided next class I'm just going to man up and speak my best Russian and attempt to get to know more people! Basically that was a great class and I felt really contented that I'd managed to make friends, introduce myself to other class members and got my group sorted for the project!

Then I came home, via the rush hour packed subway & having crossed numerous packed roads. I literally fear for my life everytime I cross a road. No sooner had I got home than my friends said we had to go to dance class! I stuffed my sports kit in my bag and left almost 5minutes after I returned from class. 

Dance class was more fun and easier this time because I was in proper sports kit! I couldn't really muster the energy to join in with all the spinning & pirouetting that they did. A lack of food & water during my busy day meant I was feeling weak & nursing a headache. I tried my best to smile and push on through class. We learnt some more holds and dance steps and got to practice with partners. I had 3 different Russian partners and 2 of the Math boys also. I even got to dance with the instructor himself! Though the turn we were doing involved me running my hand across his back & down his arm.....which were both sweat-a-liscious. Yummy. We kept being told to smile, but it's hard to smile when you're concentrating on getting your feet to move the right way & in the correct pattern. I think as the classes progress I should definitely get better but that's me hoping & praying!

Bad news is that I'm getting ill! Everyone on my floor seems to be getting the snuffles and I thought I'd protected myself with overdoses of vitamin C. Alas this morning I woke up with a sore throat and sniffles. Luckily I did bring an entire pharmacy with me so I should be able to cope, but it's just a tad irritating!

я думаю, что...

......я лублю россию

For those of you unable to understand Cyrillic or can't be bothered to google translate. The title and top line mean "I think that I love Russia." 

I'm beginning to warm up to Russia! Obviously I've not been utterly blinded, I know that it's a tremendously fragile country with a horrendous record on a number of issues, including human rights, democracy, corruption...etc...the list goes on! But the culture, way of life and perks of living in Moscow are definitely making me happy. 

Whilst none of the Russians will ever smile at me on the subway nor willingly stop their cars to let me cross the road, the respect that they show for their elders & for women is amazing. Young people are always leaping out of their seats for their elders, and most of the time they don't even sit in seats so that they avoid giving it up entirely! Women are treated respectfully and supported for both choosing to be mothers or to be working women.

I can walk along the street feeling comfortable (apart from my niggling uncomfortability when passing a policeman) and safe. There are no groups of youths congregating on the street making ordinary people feel like victims. The number of times I walked home past youths along the Holloway Road and feared for my life! 

Young people and middle aged people I've approached for help with translations or other such small things have been willing to help me, especially if it means practicing their English! It's only the older people who are a tad disgruntled to help you out (perhaps they think they're still living in the Cold War...). Even my route from the station which has no street lighting doesn't faze me. 

There is also a deep respect for the value of the family here and family is key to everything. Russian's have large families and are all tremendously close to one an other and gather together often. They're also willing to welcome new people into their family and look after guests well! Their hospitality is wonderful. 

I guess I'm experiencing a slightly jaded view of Russia because of the fact that I am a foreigner. I'm different, I've had a different life and so Russia seems different to me, and I'm utterly sure I'm also treated in a different way to regular Russians. Afterall, on December 23rd I get to leave and return to the land of the free that is England. I realize I used the word different wayyyy too much in that sentence, but you get my point! 

I'm definitely enjoying Russia a whole lot more and it's a lovely country. It's such a shame that they make it so difficult to get inside! I'm so glad that I've been given this opportunity to discover such a lovely country, I just wish that more people could open up and see everything this country has to offer. It's not just the country of corruption, cheating Oligarchs and human rights violations, it's so much more. It's just a shame that all its negative aspects are so great that they block its positive aspects!

Busy as a bee!

Gosh today was a busy day! Although I had a little lie-in to 10am, I was still rushed off my feet until at least 5pm! Moscow's SUCH a big city that doing even 2 or 3 tasks takes quite a long time! Also you have to walk a while in the Metro to change between lines. So any task just racks up the hours!

Firstly I made my way to the new offices of the International Team here at HSE. A slightly longer walk from the subway as there is no direct road so you have to go a long way around. I'm sure there's a shorter way down some suspicious alley but I shan't be trying that out! I had to wander around a little to find the right entrance and the security guard seemed miffed at me when I tried to speak Russian to him. Yes I know you speak English Mr Security Guard but I want to practice MY Russian. Cuh. Anyway found their office which is much bigger and nicer! A new boy had just arrived so they were organizing him. 

I had an unusually friendly welcome from the team, perhaps because I'm not on the "blacklist" of students from the dormitory (some people are just so naughty!). I collected my student ID and filled in a list of my classes for the office. They were definitely friendlier than usual and asked me how I was settling in etc and other questions. I stayed for longer than expected just chatting about my experience so far and telling about my few problems! 

 

 

Excuse the photo, the IPS requires you to look like a murderer..else no passport!

Then I went off to the main HSE building on мясницкая street by лубянка station. It required 2 changes and unfortunately I messed up which station to change at so had to wait for another train. My iPod Metro map app wasn't working so I had to rely on my knowledge of the Metro. Therefore we can learn my knowledge is less than perfect! 

There I once again wandered around looking for the "Social Office". The Russians have picked up the French habit of having lunch from 1-2pm which means that all offices are closed during that period. I arrived at 1.50pm so had to hang around a bit. Whilst waiting I met 3 fellow exchange students from France and a Russian student who spoke Russian, French and English! I picked up an application form for my student Metro pass and filled it in (in Cyrillic!) with details like my passport number, issuer, name, address etc. Having to translate IPS into Russian was interesting....as was translating my home address in England. There isn't a J or W in the Russian alphabet so Jennifer becomes дженнифер with a D in front! I filled it in correctly first time around (albeit with a little help from some of the Russians also filling it in, the words ты гoворишь по английский?  (you speak English?) were immensely helpful! My dictionary in my phrasebook didn't have some of the words on the form so I was a little perplexed! 

I didn't actually get my Metro pass because I was warned by my dorm mates to take a Russian with me as they take away your passport for a little bit and apparently it can be scary if you don't speak enough Russian to understand what's going on. Whilst my Russian is ok and I think I'd cope, I'd much rather have my Russian buddy with me just in case of problems! I'll probably pick that up on Wednesday!

Then I went to Fili to go shopping and had a good browse round the store. I think I was the only person who actually had a shopping list in the entire store and it's massive! It must not be Russian culture to write shopping lists! I picked up all the products I wanted, and treated myself to some peanut butter. Expensive for Russia, but still pretty cheap for the UK/US. Only problem is lugging back all your shopping via the Metro to the dorm! I am considering in investing in one of those wheelable trolley things that you see older ladies toting. It might come in extremely handy! 

I realized when I got home that I'd only eaten a banana for breakfast and hadn't had any lunch! Massive fail on my part. Only problem was I'd left my key in my room and my roommate was out at the Botanical Gardens! I had to wait about half an hour in my friends room waiting for her to return so I could get in! Won't be forgetting my key anytime soon!

I also received a slip from the babushka which told me my post from my Mother had arrived at the Post Office! Nothing more than a USB cable for my blackberry, but POST nevertheless! I trundled off to the Post Office with my passport (you need your passport for everything here...) having received directions in Russian from a helpful dormitory handyman! I had to fill in the back of this slip and finally received my package. It was sent from Stoke Row on September 3rd, reached Russia on September 14th and I only got the slip this afternoon! Pretty quick actually. However, my package had been opened!!!!! The customs officials in Russia must have been annoyed to find my package merely contained a USB cable and a forgotten postcard. Hah! Serves them right for snooping in my post! But this confirms my suspicions that they STILL search (and potentially censor) all foreign post coming into Russia, I don't know if they do the same for outgoing post from Russia. An interesting experiment nonetheless!

p.s. Tomorrow I have class! Yay! Terribly excited. I guess having such a lack of class makes me want it even more. How sorry I shall be when I'm laden with essays & other homework come mid-October!

Dance Class

Last Friday I went along with some of my new friends from the dormitory to a "Boogie Woogie" dance class. Now anyone who knows me know that coordination when dancing is not my strong point. However well I can play hockey, play piano & do other tasks requiring coordination, when it comes to dancing, it's a whole different kettle of fish!

The building the class was held at wasn't far from us and we all trotted off. From the outside it looked pretty dodgy, well, most buildings in Russia look extremely dodgy from the outside and rundown, but they're modern inside! We ventured inside, climbed 4 flights of stairs and were greeted by a friendly face once we reached the dance studio! A quick change of jumpers & coats and mumbles from the boys about appropriate shoes/clothes.

We decided, the 3 girls, to wear dresses and skirts so that we could dance and look pretty too! Only problem was that this wasn't a regular dance class. Our leader was an ex ballerina from the Bolshoi Theatre! His class involved a gymnastic warm-up before dancing began. This meant we had to sit, giggle and watch everyone else - we weren't about to flash our knickers to any unsuspecting Russians!

The boys had all decided to wear shirts and chinos with sneakers or deck shoes. So they weren't suitably attired either and looked lovely sweating all down the front & back of their nice shirts! 

The dancing was interesting but the music was fun. We learnt some basic steps as well as the double step. Then we partnered up and practiced spins and dancing the double step as a couple. Only awkwardness was when we switched partners round the room and ending up with a subdued, non english speaking Russian who held me rather feebly!

Obviously the class was in Russian but one of the studio dancers stood near us and helped us a little with some of the translation. It's pretty easy to take a dance class in a foreign language because you just have to follow the instructor and commands like sit down, stand up are easy to grasp after a few barks! I'm debating whether to return or not. It was a fun evening, followed by a few drinks in a nearby pub, but I don't know if I can cope with the coordination and things. I do get rather frustrated if I can't get something right first time, something about being a perfectionist Wycombe Abbey girl......sigh. Watch this space though!

ZOO!

Yesterday we went to the Moscow Zoo! It was an amazing experience and I got to see my first Polar Bear!! We walked around for about 3 hours and saw so many wonderful animals!

We only paid 200 roubles entry - £4 or so and so I was highly suspicious that I would have my heart wrenched by seeing animals in small cages but the Russians managed surpass my low expectations - I think the Zoo gets a lot of government funding, as well as outside conservation funding, especially for the endangered animals like the Polar Bear, Arctic Wolf, Snow Leopard etc. The signs at the zoo with information on the animals often had corporate sponsorship plaquards - Google was one of the big sponsors! Some of the runs/enclosures looked better than the ones at London Zoo!! With lots more to do for the animals - especially the tiger enclosure & primate enclosures.

The variety of animals was different to any zoo I've been to before and they had a lot more Asian/Siberian animals. So Siberian Tiger, lion, Indian Elephant, Polar Bear, Arctic Wolf, Snow Leopard, Sloth Bear, Asiatic Black Bears, Wolves in general....errrr....lots of animals - it's hard to remember specifically! They also had a massive lake with lots of birds/ducks/swans etc living on it. The Black Swans were very beautiful. They also had different types of Asian Eagles including massive Sea Eagles. In the Reptile area they had gorgeous snakes and a lot of crocodiles! Some of the crocodiles were massive but also incredibly stunning! I find there's something calming about crcodiles, I know they're killers but the way they look and stay still, it's very peaceful. They also had Mountain Goats - including a tiny little baby and lots of horses! I managed to teach a few of the Russians the reason why the horses were trying to lick their hands was because they like the salt residue on our hands! Snaps for me for using my Russian at the Zoo!

 The Polar Bear was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's the first polar bear I've seen ever!! He was SO beautiful and graceful and HUGE but I fell in love! And his partner was sleeping in the cave! So cuuute!! I love Polar Bears and I don't agree with Russian law which allows them to be hunted up to a certain number. I think that Polar Bears need to be protected because we're the ones who are ruining their natural habitat, especially if we encroach on their home with expeditions and such. It's only natural that Polar Bears will begin attacking humans if there's a lack of food for them caused by melting of ice caps and over fishing. It's a viscious circle which only leads back to a human cause. But anyway, enough of the lecture, the Polar Bears were incredible!

Janis, Ricardo and I also went to the "Dolphinairium" and saw the show there! It was only 20 roubles entry (40 pence) and we saw a Dolphin and a Bulga Whale perform!! Obviously forcing animals to perform tricks like that it quite cruel, but it's amazing how intelligent Dolphins are and the things that they can do! In the grand scale of things I think humans are quite stupid as a species! We also saw their massive Walruses in their grand tank and it made me think of Alice in Wonderland!

Overall the Zoo was an amazing experience and I'm so glad that I was comfortable with the condition that the animals were kept in. Kudos to the Russians. Something positive for once!

Welcome to the 80's

I've realized what modern day Moscow reminds me of - 1980's America. 

During the period after Stalin's death, the USSR opened itself up a little to Western influence and 'american denim' & Rock 'n' Roll was all the rage, then when the USSR collapsed in the early 1990s and the Iron Curtain fell they embraced Western culture more. Not fully, but the West gradually encroached. However, Moscow 2011 definitely reminds me of 1980s New York City (not that I was alive then, but from what I researched & heard about it)

The evidence is simple & everywhere. I need only say the word Mullet and it screams 80s. Most young & middle age men AND even some children have mullets. I sat behind a guy in class yesterday with a lovely mullet specimen. The clothing is also reminiscent of the 80s, and the trend for wearing trainers with jeans is super popular. I haven't seen one person (bar myself) wearing Converse though. 

The subway trains are large, plastic-y and again resemble those of 1970s & 80s NYC. They have lino floors and fading exteriors. They jolt and rattle and definitely sound aged.

It feels like Russia missed the evolution of capitalism & Western culture throughout the Cold War period and so they're just now playing catch-up. They're living in the American '80s and have a way to go to be on a cultural par with the UK & US. It goes a way to explaining a lot of the quirks I've discovered out here in Russia & also the differences in their way of life.

Class 2...

I finally managed to go to class yesterday!! Snaps for me. It was so exciting. I felt like a little giddy school child. I packed up my notebook, my Doctor Who pen (got to have a bit of British in class!), my banana (classes are between 2 & 3 hours long so I needed energy) and I trotted off!

My first class which required me waking up at 8.30am was History of Russia. The early wake up was definitely worth it. Despite the slightly dodgy building, uneven stairs and funky smell I utterly enjoyed my first class. The professor is a Russian Historian who seems like a sort of hermit & smells a little like my gardener, BUT he's so enthusiastic about his subject and this enthusiasm brushed off on the class. The 2 hour class went past in a flash! We're starting in 800AD and working our way through to the present day. I also managed to show off some of my limited English history when we discussed 1066 & the less famous battle at Stamford Bridge! It involved Tostig (brother of Harold) seeking help from a Hungarian Prince who was married to a Russian Duchess......hence the link to Russian history! 

The classroom contained hooks for our coats and the chairs were pretty tiny but the desks had funny panels in the front so I was constantly bashing my legs. I guess the price one pays for long legs! Plus the Professor was using chalk to write on the board! He wrote all over the entire blackboard and continued to write on top of other things he'd written, such that he drew a map of the Balkans & Caspian sea on top of the list of Dukes of Kiev! It was a wonderful class and the Professor lit up when we asked questions. I think I'm really going to enjoy it, as well as be interested in certain aspects of Russian history from a Russian perspective!

My second class was a Masters class called Mergers and Acqusitions. I was the only undergraduate in the class, as well as being the only English person. I think my fellow Russian classmates thought I didn't speak Russian so it was nice to overhear them talking about me, the англиская девушка (English Girl). The class was again taught in English and the Russians seemed a little bit miffed about this.

It was a fascinating class which I thoroughly enjoyed. I did have a little difficulty finding the building. Russians have this thing about not naming streets in obvious places and not having road signs. I wandered around and eventually found 33 кирпичная street - after walking down some rather dodgy streets but nothing a tough Wycombe Abbey girl can't handle. The building google maps had sent me to was the wrong one, dang google maps. Luckily I found probably the only friendly security guard in Russia who directed me to the correct building (even though he didn't speak english and I had to use all my powers of Russian language).

We learnt about what Mergers & Acquisitions are and their history and the patterns of M&As in the US Market. It was all highly interesting stuff. The class is supposed to be aimed at Business Masters students, those who want to work for companies advising on M&As or people who just want to be CEOs! Not sure which category I fall into but I'm just glad to have found an interesting class which I actually seem to know a lot about. We have to do a number of group projects during the semester but our overall grade is made up of lots of different components and not just the exam alone. I'm hoping I'll find some friendly Russians in the class who are willing to be my partners!

Only 2 awkward moments in the class were my ink cartridge running out (yes people I use a fountain pen, I'm old school) and managing to get ink ALL over my hands. I like to use permanent black ink because I'm cool like that. Oh and when I pulled out my bar of Milka chocolate to have a snack during break and all the Russians stared at me.

I did have to walk back to the Metro station from class in the rain. The drowned rat look is ever so attractive. However, skipping along, avoiding the puddles & holes in the street, and listening to Brandon Flowers makes all the difference. I might need to buy an umbrella, it's just such a shame that my nice umbrella counts as a weapon according to BAA.

Never Forget

I'd also like to take a moment to reflect on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. We should never forget what happened and should commend those who sacrificed themselves to save others on that day, those who helped save lives on that day, and those who to this day put themselves in danger to protect our freedom.

I will never forget.

Class

I should point out that now I've been in Russia for 2 weeks and I haven't started class yet. The bureaucracy & inadequacy of the programme here is unreal. We were told we'd be given a list of classes, to be taught in English, the day after we arrived and that we could choose about 5/6 and then they'd start on the 1st September. We were also told we'd have a full orientation session and be welcomed to Russia.

What actually happened was we were expected to make our own way to the offices at HSE (on the other side of Moscow) via the subway, somehow make it inside the building, find the right office, hand over money for dorms & other charges, and then go home. We were thrust into life in Moscow without a helping hand. Luckily a few of us actually spoke enough Russian to be able to buy subway tickets because those ladies in the station certainly don't speak English!

I've spent the past 2 weeks emailing, phoning and visiting a number of different departments and Professors all in the hope of being able to find classes I can take. I want all my classes to be in English so that I can actually understand what's going on. I'm not bothered if they're MA level because I don't actually have to pass anything for UCL, I just need to take class. It's a shame that this whole fiasco has negatively affected my experience here in Russia. I came here raring to start class and still haven't yet! 

I've finally managed to sort out ONE class - Mergers & Acquisitions - (which is a 3rd year MA level class for specialist business Masters...) for Tuesday as the Professor's an American and he was nice and helpful. I might have another 2 on the cards, but one of them is a History of Russia class with the Math guys and the other is Russian Space & Russian State (the class I totally wanted to take above all) but it's not all set in stone! Grr!

I'm supposed to be in Russia to study and not to sit around worried or watching movies! I guess it's cool I've been able to wander around Moscow a bit but it's not that fun to do alone and also not realllllly that safe as a girl either. Hopefully by the end of this week I'll have all my classes sorted out and I'll be in a proper routine. Lets hope & pray. Seriously please do.

Fun on a Friday

Friday turned out to be a fun day, but the weather didn't reflect this! Grizzly and drizzle everywhere. I visited the bank firstly and checked out the ATMs. Because of the large denominations here in Russia you can take out 1000, 5000, 8000, 10000, 15000 or 25000 roubles. I saw a lady take out 10,000 and she got 2 crisp 5000 rouble notes. SUPER COOL. 

After this excitement I met up with my russian "buddy" (or sleeper cell as some family members helpfully put it). She's a lovely, sweet girl and she's even taller than me! Her English was good and we spoke in Russian & English. I explained to her all my stresses about class and she agreed to help me out. 

We went to campus and had lunch in the canteen. First we had to find the canteen which was hidden away in the basement of one of the buildings. I think we asked about 4 or 5 people for directions. The food was pretty plain and only a few choices and there weren't even sandwiches on offer! The concept of pre-made sandwiches just doesn't exist here, people have proper meals for lunch at work. Sort of sweet really. The canteen was stuffed with students all nattering away, some even sang and cheered for a fellow students birthday. 

She took me to the Faculty of World Economy & World Politics and we spoke to a couple of professors who said that their classes are all in Russian but there is the MA programme starting on September 19th & 22nd which I can join. So whilst we didn't manage to sort out classes for me, I at least got to meet the people who have been sending me emails (and being unhelpful...). 

Then we took a stroll around the neighborhood of my university. The architecture is very French and there aren't any buildings made of red brick like in England. We spoke about a number of things. She said she really wanted to visit London but the British visa restrictions on Russian tourists were super high and that it was rare to get a visa. Her friend who was supposed to be studying in London was rejected! Apparently they have to give finger prints and all, and I thought having an HIV test was bad! But we did discover a gorgeous little church tucked away, it was painted a bright aqua color and had a large & 2 small golden domes. Very pretty! 

So that was a nice day and I came back to my dormitory to have a "welcome dinner" with the HSE crowd. Basically a dinner of smoked salmon, crepes, caviar, cucumber and ravioli. Interesting to say the least. We had a talk from the Director (useless man) welcoming us to Russia and to the programme and were reminded again not to drink excessively.*

*SOME students here have found the cheap alcohol very attractive. The MA students have a stash somewhere and have all been super drunk and rowdy a lot of the time. We had a talk about it and had to sign agreements to be good & not get too drunk. Some people. Cuh.

p.s I survived eating my first apple here! AND today I ate half a tomato!! I'm thinking I might slowly introduce the tap water into my routine. I wash all my plates & cutlery in it & rinse my toothbrush in it too. My friends have been using it to brush their teeth too. I'm probably just being parnoid, however I do like to follow advice that the Embassy gives me. :)

On a side note........

About the Metro. It seems clear to me that the concept of deodorant, especially amongst the middle to upper age group of men, is a mythological thing indeed. The Metro has this deliciously pungent odor of BO, which is made more severe when the train is packed. I might carry a travel perfume bottle and just spray it if I smell something gross - as I have done in class at UCL before.

Further. Having sterilized my apple with boiling water I am having my first Russian apple and hopefully I won't die. They're MASSSSIVE apples and taste pretty good. I have just been warned by every guidebook and Embassy not to touch raw fruit. But I think I might survive. Haven't drunk any tap water yet either. Sticking to using a water bottle to brush my teeth. It's fun.

Weather....snooze...

I can't believe I haven't posted about the weather yet! I am clearly lacking in my small talk abilities. Must practice.

The day I arrived in Moscow, at 7.30pm, the weather was balmy. It felt like a summer evening in France. The next few days were also lovely. Hot and sunny, mildly humid and the Metro was wonderfully sweaty. Then we had a day of grizzly weather and since then the weather's been up & down. It has been sunny and warm, but not excessively hot - certainly not hot enough to tan with, but then also overcast, drizzly and slightly colder. The evenings are definitely dropping in temperature gradually. I imagine by the end of September the evenings will mandate a coat. So far I've been surviving in hoodies and my Zara jacket. I did wear my pea-coat & scarf to the fireworks on Sunday but over heated in the subway pile-up and felt a littttttttle bit silly. But I'd rather that than get ill, so there.

I can't wait for it to get cold here. It's just the sort of cold that I like, much like the North American cold. It's crisp cold, with snowfall all round and the sun still shining, not the drizzly wet cold we get in England where all the snow turns black instantly. I'm very much looking forward to rocking my gorgeous winter boots and testing their waterproof-ness. I also think that the Russians are much better equiped to deal with the snow, unlike my best friends BAA at Heathrow. If my flight gets cancelled because of them on December 23rd I will throw a hissy fit unlike any they have ever seen.

However, I did read an interesting snippet on RT.com that last year Domodedovo (one of 3 airports in Moscow & where BA flies to and from) ran out of de-icer around Christmas time and that 10,000 people had to sleep in the airport. Further this week there were threats of a 'no fly rule' because they were running super low on jet fuel. Whilst the Russians may be good at dealing with snow & clearing it off the runway/roads etc, they may lack certain things which will enable them to be totally efficient. However, that's how they do it here in Russia. Gotta' love it. Not. 

PDA

I need to get this off my chest because it's a massive problem here in Moscow. I don't know why, maybe it's because of the repression of their past, but young Russian couples engage in SO much PDA (public displays of affection for those over the age of 25). Everywhere and anywhere they can, they're at it! It's quite irritating, especially on a packed metro train when you have no where to look but at them. But their peers and elders don't seem to take much notice. It's highly creepy. Also I realize as a "stiff upper lip" Brit I could just be being prudish about it all, however after much analysis, it's not just me who has a problem with it and I'm only 20 so I couldn't really count as a prude just yet.

Update

Thought I'd let you know that I had my first car stop for me and let me cross at a pedestrian crossing. I felt this was quite a big deal. Also yesterday I had a Russian come up to me and ask me for directions to my university here!! That was surprising. I managed to mumble in Russian about where it was, luckily it was only round the corner! 

Shock horror. They have Topshop here in Russia. Will I ever escape that store? Not only do they have it in America now, but here in Russia? Hurr. Definitely won't be visiting there. Western stores here double their prices so it's even worth it for me to buy anything out here clothing wise. 

A random piece of good news was that my friend from England has come to Moscow for a week! It was so weird to see his facebook status as being in Moscow. We went for a drink last night near the библиотечка имла ленина and it was nice to see someone I knew here! I told him all about the dos & don'ts of Russia, some of which he didn't realize. He's here for work and also to be part of David Cameron's delegation next week. I'm terribly excited that DC (my hero) is coming to Russia for his first visit. I think it's a super important event because it should help heal the rocky relationship between the UK & Russia. DC is a really good ambassador for the UK and makes our country look much better than previous Prime Ministers.

Shopping

Went on a little shopping excursion for more food as I have lots of pasta & rice, but I didn't have any vegetables or meat. I was less than logical in my food choices! I took the Metro to фили and found a supermarket there. Auchan - the French export! I also popped into the post office to pick up some more stamps. I'm not sure quite how long post will take to get to England, and they don't have an int'l box separate from the regular mail like in France....so it could be interesting!

Anyway. Shopping. I picked up all the food I wanted. Bananas are ridiculously cheap, I got a large bunch for 30 pence!! I managed to get a kilo of chicken breast for about 200 roubles, which is about £4.30. If I'm thinking correctly that is also very cheap. I got some generic 'yellow cheese' which could be interesting. I found goats cheese for a low price too - 100 roubles - so £2 or so. Also very cheap. 

My only problem was with getting my fruit & vegetables. In Auchan they have the French (& Waitrose Henley) system of weighing your own fruit & veg before you get to the check out. Just so the checkout girls have even less to do, because their job is THAT taxing. I'm used to this due to the fact my little brother used to always fob off the weighing on me when we were in France. Unfortunately I was unable to distingush between the different breeds of tomato in Russian and I mixed a yellow pepper in with a green pepper. This meant I had to do the walk of shame TWICE back to the veggie counter to re-weigh my vegetables. I held up the people behind me who gave me the evils (well most Russians look like they're giving you the evils because they don't smile, so I guess it was nothing unusual). I mean the sheer laziness of it all! It's bad enough that she babbled at me in Russian, sent me off, and didn't even do the nice thing and maybe help by packing my shopping. Oh no. Left it all there so I had to stuff it all in hurridly and squish my bananas. Cuh.

THEN I had to lug it all back to my halls. But that was worth it because of the cheapness of the food. I don't want to sound like a scrounge, but the supermarkets around me are pretty expensive because they're smaller and have less choice on offer. Seeing as I'm likely to only spend my money on food and the Metro, I'd rather buy more for less if you get my gist!

Also. I don't know, but for some reason I feel like I have the word FOREIGNER stamped on my forehead and all over me. I guess I must look differently both in terms of clothing and face structure to Russians. But does that mean that every Russian has to stare at me? It's mildly unnerving.

Metro

Here in Moscow they have their own version of the underground, aptly named the метро (Metro). It's a melange of different colored lines with interconnecting stations. The lines are named by number from 1-10 and each has it's own different color. 

• The color of the line you see at a station does not necessarily correlate to the color of the line you want. You need to look out for the number of the line and not the color.
• Each Metro station is a palace in its own right and is grandly decorated. They all have high ceilings, classical music playing on the escalators and policemen at every station keeping the peace.
• The trains are larger than those on the Underground and quite basic. The seats aren't that comfy but as a young person I'm not expected to sit down, unless I'm the only girl and then all the young men proffer their seats at me.
• If you're travelling into the centre of Moscow the voice over the tannoy is a man, and if you're travelling out of the centre the voice is a woman! Kooky huh?
• They have a sort of similar Oyster card system here but you pay for a certain number of rides in multiples of 5 or for passes for a certain number of days (60/90) but I'm holding out for my student card on Sept 14th which should guarantee me a super cheap pass (I'm hoping!). A month pass here is about £40 which seems a lot cheaper than the London Underground, but for Moscow, that's still pretty expensive.

• The most perplexing thing about the Metro is that each line has different names for different stations, even if they're the same station. So алехандровский сад is библиотека ленина is арбатская. But they're all on different lines. So Alexandrovskii Stad is on line 3, Bibliotecka Lenina is on line 1 and Arbatskaya is on line 4. Which means you can get confuzzled when you're trying to find your way around. You're trying to find your way to somewhere on a certain line but you have to remember the name of the station as that line calls it. It's strange. 

It would be like Kings Cross/St Pancras, with its 5 lines having 5 different names and one for each line. Confusing right? I guess the citizens of Moscow must be used to it by now. But boy oh boy is it confuzzling for us poor tourists!!

2 fun facts for today.

1st) I put my milk in the fridge, but it's a fridge with a freezer inside it. So I put the milk too close to the freezer and now it's totally frozen. There went my idea for a big bowl of cereal for breakfast/brunch.

2nd) However, I can do dry cereal. In my munching of my dry cheerios I discovered a MUTANT cheerio. It was a cheerio with no hole. I think it was one of a kind but it was soon eaten.

С Днем Рождения москва!

Happy 864th Birthday Moscow!

Well it was yesterday, but the celebrations occur over 2 days so I'm not sure which of the 4th or 5th is the actual birthday. 

We ventured out in the evening to watch the fireworks, sponsored by альфа банк (Alpha Bank) from the massive sports park. The backdrop for the fireworks was the massive мгу (Moscow State University) tower block, which is an enormous gothic building with 3 towers. There was an impressive lightshow with various images of snow, butterflies, rain and other things projected onto the building and afterwards the firework display. 

Without a good camera, my Sony does not match up to the SLR Nikon's of my friends, I was unable to get good shots of the fireworks. But then again you kind of need to be there to experience fireworks, pictures don't do it justice! I might be able to nab a photo off Chris, who is in possession of a professional camera, just to prove to you how cool the мгу building is!
The police were out in large force last night which was slightly unsettling. Most of them were standing around chatting or smoking or playing on mobile phones. But they did shut one subway station so as to contain the crowd, not that it helped! As I've mentioned before, Russian's don't have any idea about Health & Safety. In London had such an event occured a large number of tube stations would have been closed or made exit only. Here the tube was open and the trains were stuffed to the gills. Had an accident occured it would have been a massive loss. It appears that they don't have a real care for safety. We were pushed onto trains and squished together, which made it difficult to breathe. When we reached the larger station on the way home where we were going to change lines we were once again pushed out onto the platform. It would have been easy for someone to have been tripped up and then be crushed. That was the only scary thing about last night. On the other hand, there were no menacing groups of youths loitering around, as there might have been in London, so I felt personally safe and Russia had deployed the army to keep the peace around the entrance & exit to the park. So in terms of walking around I felt totally safe!

Recycling update

Just to let you know, the Russian's have redeemed themselves minorly in the league of recycling. Whilst they may not be big on actually separating plastic from regular land fill. They do charge you 6 roubles, yes you heard me 6 roubles (that about 0.13 pence) for a plastic bag in a store. So that is somewhat of a start towards becoming an eco friendly nation I guess. I think they have a long way to go...

The past 2 days

I've been up to a lot in the past few days. I've been making friends with all the Math guys and we've been on a number of excursions. 

Yesterday we visited парк горьково (the Gorkava Park) right next to the река москва (River Moscow) and had a wander. We discovered and experienced some fun things. Firstly it's the 864th birthday of Moscow on Sunday and so there have been fireworks every night since I got here. First time I heard it I thought I was in the midst of gunfire - not a fun welcome, but I soon realized it was fireworks. There are posters up all over town advertising the день pождения москба.

It started raining whilst we were in the park and we saw a TRIPLE rainbow! Yes 3 rainbows. And no we weren't stoned - see the youtube video for the reference. Also one of the rainbows was inverted which made it even more amazing. We continued with our wander and found 2 beautiful fountains and a space shuttle (which looked american and stolen...if Atlantis is missing we know where it is) randomly positioned at the edge of the park by the river. Strange location. We took lots of lovely pictures because it was sunset time and so everything looked lovely. We did a big loop and walked past lots of buildings which obviously had been commissioned by Stalin (noting the date of construction, style and emblazoned CCCP & Hammer and Sickle). We ended our evening in a jazz cafe with extortionately expensive drinks and lots of fun conversation.

Today we took a walking tour of Moscow. Also in the rain. Our guide, a math professor from HSE said that we'd had bad luck in Moscow and were experiencing Petersburg weather which he grumbled about. We saw lots of lovely churches which during the Soviet period were used for a number of other things like a bakery or library. History lesson #1: the Soviets (i.e. сталин/Stalin) were NOT fans of religion and the only place religion survived minorly during the period 1930-1990 was in Poland.

We saw the Kremlin buildings all with the Kremlin star atop and many large and ornate buildings in a very French style (cudos to Catherine the Great who brought the French Enlightenment style to Russia with her marriage). After an exhausting few hours trudging about in grizzly weather we split up at the metro station and some of us went to an Art Gallery and I went to the supermarket & big mall at киевская (Kievskaya) station with some of my friends. It's a super big mall and the supermarket was a large hypermarket style so we had lots of choice. Good news is I picked up a plate for 50 roubles (approx £1) and I've "borrowed" a small bowl from the kitchen which no-one was claiming, perhaps due to it's unique shape and cat decoration.
Altogether a fun and interesting day but very tiring too! Looking forward to celebrating Moscow's birthday tomorrow and maybe having a lie-in. Went to bed at 2.30am and was up at 9.30 today for our tour!!

Peace out y'all xxx