This weekend is the half-way point of the program. We have three more weeks of living in Yaroslavl, and then it's time to head to Moscow and fly home. It's really weird...the past three weeks have gone by so fast, and we've only been here for three weeks, but it seems like a lot longer than that. Anyway, it's the halfway point. This week I didn't do the greatest job of recording what I did each day, so in addition to the summary of my week, I'll try and include a bit extra about some insights and such about Russia and Russians.
-09/07/2012- This day we went to a different restaurant than usual for lunch, since our usual one was closed for some reason. We spent 20+ minutes walking around trying to figure out which one we were supposed to go to, but we eventually got it figured out. Classes were normal. We also had Хор(choir). It was marginally better than the last time we had it. The teacher is very nice and funny and very talented.
-10/07/2012- We had Театр. We spent the entire time practicing the opening dance thing, since noone could remember how it went. It wasn't too bad. I'm still really not looking forward to performing it for our host families. That's going to be extremely embarrassing. Classes were yet again nothing special. After classes a few students from Group 2 and I went to the Traveler's Coffee that was having an opening day special of a free dessert. It wasn't all that great, and the service was terrible, even by Russian standards. It took me over an hour to get the bottle of Coke I ordered.
-11/07/2012- We had an excursion to a museum just outside of Yaroslavl devoted to the first female cosmonaut, Valentina Tereshkova. It was very interesting and enjoyable. The orignial capsule that she went up to space and came back down in was there, which was cool. There was also information and exhibits about the development of Soviet space travel and its history. The museum had it's own cat that lived there, which joined us for part of our tour. Classes were yet again(suprise!) nothing all that crazy or new. After I got home Nikita and I went and played football in the drive in front of our building. We passed the ball for a while, then played some one-on-one. It was fun.
-12/07/2012- Class was fine today, except for Грамматика, which just killed me. We had a double period of it, and it was the longest two hours of class the entire time I've been here. It had been fairly hot all this week, but there was a storm in the afternoon and it cooled down considerably, which was nice. After classes we went to the theater to get wigs and stuff for the play. I'm playing a Tsar, so I've got a beard. Got some great photos of some of the others with their wigs on.
-13/07/2012- Classes went back to being just fine. We had "mid-terms," which weren't too difficult. We had Хор, which was fairly fun. After classes I went to the cafe МЕ100 with a couple of other students for the first time and enjoyed it. It has good prices and fairly good service, and the cafe itself is nice. I had a Coke(cold!) and blinie filled with bananas and covered in chocolate. It was delicious. We spent about two hours there eating and having deep discussions on a variety of topics.
-14/07/2012- We had an excursion to a famous poet's estate. It was interesting and the estate was very beautiful. The poet(his name escapes me at the moment) was friends with Tolstoy and Dovstyevsky, as well as anyone who liked to hunt. He was "a poet of the people" because he wrote in normal, everyday language about normal people, but he also was incredibly rich. He gave his hunting dogs a pension and crystal water bowls. After the tour we spent some time playing Russian outdoor games. It was very fun. After we got back we went to a Tatar celebration for a bit, then went to see Spider Man in 3d in Russian. It was a good movie, and there was a little kid who started making comments and jokes towards the end of the film that were funny to listen to. I went to МЕ100 after the movie with most of Group 2. Nikita left for Greece in afternoon. He's going to be there about a week with his performing troupe.
-15/07/2012- I had an amazing day. I slept in until 10, then got up and fixed myself some breakfast. After eating I studied for a bit then went downtown to meet friends from Moscow, Lena and Natasha, and Lena's mother. We met at Red Square around 12:10 and then Lena, Natasha, and I walked for about 3 hours and went to МЕ100. We then went to Дом Книги to meet with some of the other American students and Ruth. I introduced everyone who was there, Ruth talked some with Lena and Natasha, then we left them and went to visit Elena. We spent around two hours at the flat talking and looking at photos and then Lena and Natasha left for Moscow. After that Elena left for work and I spent some time studying and typing this up.
Now I'll try and write about some things that have stood out to me here and why they did, and Russians attitudes about certain subjects.
-09/07/2012- This day we went to a different restaurant than usual for lunch, since our usual one was closed for some reason. We spent 20+ minutes walking around trying to figure out which one we were supposed to go to, but we eventually got it figured out. Classes were normal. We also had Хор(choir). It was marginally better than the last time we had it. The teacher is very nice and funny and very talented.
-10/07/2012- We had Театр. We spent the entire time practicing the opening dance thing, since noone could remember how it went. It wasn't too bad. I'm still really not looking forward to performing it for our host families. That's going to be extremely embarrassing. Classes were yet again nothing special. After classes a few students from Group 2 and I went to the Traveler's Coffee that was having an opening day special of a free dessert. It wasn't all that great, and the service was terrible, even by Russian standards. It took me over an hour to get the bottle of Coke I ordered.
-11/07/2012- We had an excursion to a museum just outside of Yaroslavl devoted to the first female cosmonaut, Valentina Tereshkova. It was very interesting and enjoyable. The orignial capsule that she went up to space and came back down in was there, which was cool. There was also information and exhibits about the development of Soviet space travel and its history. The museum had it's own cat that lived there, which joined us for part of our tour. Classes were yet again(suprise!) nothing all that crazy or new. After I got home Nikita and I went and played football in the drive in front of our building. We passed the ball for a while, then played some one-on-one. It was fun.
-12/07/2012- Class was fine today, except for Грамматика, which just killed me. We had a double period of it, and it was the longest two hours of class the entire time I've been here. It had been fairly hot all this week, but there was a storm in the afternoon and it cooled down considerably, which was nice. After classes we went to the theater to get wigs and stuff for the play. I'm playing a Tsar, so I've got a beard. Got some great photos of some of the others with their wigs on.
-13/07/2012- Classes went back to being just fine. We had "mid-terms," which weren't too difficult. We had Хор, which was fairly fun. After classes I went to the cafe МЕ100 with a couple of other students for the first time and enjoyed it. It has good prices and fairly good service, and the cafe itself is nice. I had a Coke(cold!) and blinie filled with bananas and covered in chocolate. It was delicious. We spent about two hours there eating and having deep discussions on a variety of topics.
-14/07/2012- We had an excursion to a famous poet's estate. It was interesting and the estate was very beautiful. The poet(his name escapes me at the moment) was friends with Tolstoy and Dovstyevsky, as well as anyone who liked to hunt. He was "a poet of the people" because he wrote in normal, everyday language about normal people, but he also was incredibly rich. He gave his hunting dogs a pension and crystal water bowls. After the tour we spent some time playing Russian outdoor games. It was very fun. After we got back we went to a Tatar celebration for a bit, then went to see Spider Man in 3d in Russian. It was a good movie, and there was a little kid who started making comments and jokes towards the end of the film that were funny to listen to. I went to МЕ100 after the movie with most of Group 2. Nikita left for Greece in afternoon. He's going to be there about a week with his performing troupe.
-15/07/2012- I had an amazing day. I slept in until 10, then got up and fixed myself some breakfast. After eating I studied for a bit then went downtown to meet friends from Moscow, Lena and Natasha, and Lena's mother. We met at Red Square around 12:10 and then Lena, Natasha, and I walked for about 3 hours and went to МЕ100. We then went to Дом Книги to meet with some of the other American students and Ruth. I introduced everyone who was there, Ruth talked some with Lena and Natasha, then we left them and went to visit Elena. We spent around two hours at the flat talking and looking at photos and then Lena and Natasha left for Moscow. After that Elena left for work and I spent some time studying and typing this up.
Now I'll try and write about some things that have stood out to me here and why they did, and Russians attitudes about certain subjects.
- Smoking- There are many, many more people here who smoke than in the United States. It is much cheaper(less than a dollar per pack at most places) and is socially acceptable. The only place I've seen a "no smoking" sign is on the bus. There are cigarrette butts almost everywhere on the ground when you are in public areas, especially if they are not maintained well. It is very easy to get them, even if you are not of age, because most vendors will not ask you for identification to verify your age.
- Drinking- It is not uncommon to see a Russians(usually men) carrying a bottle of alcohol(usually beer, at least in my experience) on the bus or on the street. Alcohol is much more available here than in the US and it is much more common to see in public. Althought the drinking age is 18 (21 for hard liquor), as with cigarrettes, most vendors will not ask you to verify your age before selling you anything. According to our resident director, Ruth, often if you're tall enough to see over the edge of the counter, most vendors will sell you whatever you want.There is also more public drunkeness.
- Dress- Russians often dress in tight clothes that show a fair amount of skin.
- Men wear: Jeans, tight jeans, polos, t-shirts(often with nonsense English), dress shirts, spandex tank-tops, tennis shoes, "Russian" or "European" shoes, swim trunks, short shorts, man-pries, and go shirtless(if it's hot)
- Women wear: Dresses, skirts of varying length(usually short), blouses(often semi-transparent), t-shirts(often with nonsense English), tops of varying types(often semi-transparent), high heels(very common), sandals, "Russian" or "European" shoes. Clothing is, especially for women in their late teens and 20s, is generally fairly tight and there often isn't a lot of it.
- Driving/Vehicles- Driving here is, for the most part, a free-for-all. While there are often lanes and traffic signs, they are rarely followed. Most intersections don't have stoplights and stop signs don't exist, so crossing the street can be hazardous at times, although most drivers will stop for pedestrians. Almost all drivers are very aggressive and will tailgate or pass if the vehicle in front of them isn't going fast enough. Traffic laws also don't seem to be enforced very well.
- Gays- Many, probably the majority, of Russians are very anti-gay. One student said her host mother went on a rant about them and about terrible they are and how there are only five of them in Saint Petersburg, althought there are certainly more.
- Minorities- Ethic minorities are not uncommon. There are a fair number of people who look like they are of Tatar descent or from the Caucuses. There are very few blacks. I've seen maybe 4-5 black men since I arrived. Unfortunately, many Russians are also racist and see minorities as second-class citizens and not true Russians.
- Homelessness- I've seen a decent number of homeless people in Yaroslavl. Most of them are ethnic minorities, and the few that aren't were wearing army uniforms. Ruth explained this, saying that they were either involved in fighting in Chechnya or Afganistan or another warzone or that they were victims of extreme hazing that often occurs during training and ended up with PTSD, which makes it difficult for them to get and hold a job.
- Infrastructure- Many buildings aren't up-kept very well and aren't in very good shape. There are also skeletons of apartments and factories scattered around, mostly on the outskirts of the city. These are primarily Soviet-era buildings that have fallen out of use and just sit there.
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