The new 'normal'

After being here for almost four months, a lot of things that were once new to me, are just ways of life now. Here's a list of the five biggest changes for me.

• The metro. Three months ago the metro was a brand new concept for me. I lived in the suburbs in America, and had a car since I was 17. Now, I go through the metro on autopilot. I know which part of the train to get on, and I don't even need to read the signs anymore to know where to go, as I take the same route every day. I don't need to hold onto anything anymore, although I tend to take my preferred place leaning against the doors. There's the most room back there, and you don't need to shuffle around any time people want to get on or off. I usually don't sit, because chances are I'll give up my seat for an older person 2 stops later, and by then my place by the doors is already taken!

• Having to go to three different shops to buy the foods I want. Yup, just another part of daily life now. It was annoying at first to have to stop at two or three stores just to get what I wanted, but now I'm used to it, and I plan accordingly (well, most of the time :-D) so that I don't have to go to the stores in the same day. The good thing is, they're all on my way as I walk to my apartment from the metro, so even when I need to stop, it's not such a big deal.

• Just because the food store has something one day, doesn't mean they'll have it the next time I'm there. This took a bit of getting used to, and it still frustrates me, especially when I'm really craving something, only to find that it's not there... Take note of the point above - it's not like I can just pop into another store, since they probably don't carry what I want. But for the most part, I've learned to just sigh and roll my eyes, remind myself that I'm in Russia, and then find something else to eat instead!

• Waste. Unfortunately, this has become a part of life. Everything is wasted here, there's no recycling or even re-using of anything. Everything goes into the trash - papers, glass, plastic, and cans. Glass bottles are at least salvaged by old or homeless people, as they get a tiny amount of money for turning it in somewhere, at least that's what I assume. They are always digging through the dumpsters to see what they can find. Many people (myself included) leave the bottles out of the dumpster so that can get to them easily. 

• Getting bumped into and/or pushed. This too, is just part of daily life now. You will get pushed, shoved, or bumped into at least once per day living in Moscow. And don't expect any words of remorse from the pusher/bumper - after all, you were apparently in their way, so it's your fault. The pushing tends to only happen in the metro, but the bumping happens everywhere - supermarkets, the street, and even art galleries and museums! I think that people forget that they're not still on the metro...

January/February update

To answer the question I proposed in my last blog entry - how hard is it going to be returning to work after nearly one month off? - the answer is it's HARD! I've never had a vacation that long in my life, nor do I want another one for quite a while. It's one thing when you're changing jobs, because then you have a new adventure to look forward to, and the time doesn't seem so long. It's another when you're simply not working for a month and then you have to go back to the usual daily grind... or in my case, a lessened daily grind due to lack of work.
I'm the strange type of person who absolutely despises having nothing to do. Now don't get me wrong - I certainly enjoy it every now and again - but not on a regular basis. Right now, my workload is extremely light, and I'm bored. I have lots and lots of free time, and nothing to do with it. I can't just sit around and read or study, or do something that doesn't require any activity. I blame it on the fact that I was a competitive ice skater for most of my life - I certainly never sat around when I was skating! Top that off with the fact that I used to teach ice skating as well, which is not a job where you sit around. In short, I've never had to just sit around until now. I'm not good at it :)
I know that in a few weeks everything will go back to normal, but that thought isn't really making this time period any easier. It's hard adjusting from life in the US to life in Russia. Even though I was only back in America for two weeks, I hadn't been in Russia long enough to not miss and long for some of my American comforts. This too will pass in a few weeks - but I'm just not enjoying the readjustment period. Stupid visa laws, this is all your fault!

For some good news - it's snowing today. We're certainly not getting snow like everyone was getting back in America - Snowmaggedon, as it was dubbed - but it's still snow nonetheless. It's starting to coat the layer of snow we've had since December, which was starting to get a bit shabby from the dirt and pollution. I must admit, I am very jealous off all the snow my parents and friends got this weekend. The year I'm not in America, it finally snows! Being in Russia, I shouldn't be envying the amount of snow back in America, but there's been more snow there than here!I would certainly enjoy a good snowstorm here.

Hello 2010!

For me, the new year began by watching fireworks over Red Square. My first moments of 2010 were spent surrounded by friends, looking at St. Basil's Cathedral and the Kremlin, taking photos, and dancing to live music. For me, that's perfect. It was also snowing - an added bonus! It's all great, really. I'm living in Moscow and I got to start my new year in the center of the city. I've never done anything like that for New Year's before - I usually just go to a party and we all watch the ball drop on TV (a US tradition - it's a ball made of lights that is lowered down a pole to countdown to midnight). This was definitely something different - and it's my favorite New Years Eve to date.

My friends and I in front of Saint Basils - officially 2010!

Not a bad sight for the beginning of a new year, is it?

Sorry it's a bit blurry, but one more of St. Basil's, a bit of the Kremlin, and the concert stage.

I'm very ready for the new year, and I'm excited to see what is has in store for me. My only resolution this year is to find at least one way to be happy every day. I've found many things to be happy about today! Number one is the fact Moscow feels like home now, and that's truly a wonderful feeling. I know exactly where to buy good fruit and veggies, which store has good bread, good prices, plain yogurt, etc. Taking the metro is second nature now, and I even know which part of the train to get on depending on where I'm going most of the time. I don't mind the time I have to spend in the metro now either, as long as I have my iPod touch to play with or something to read, the time actually passes pretty quickly. All in all, I feel settled, and that's the best feeling in the world.

Tomorrow I'm going to Izmailovsky Market with some friends - it's rumored to be the best place to get souvenirs and traditional Russian stuff in Moscow. I'll get in some good Russian practice, which always makes me happy. I savor any opportunity I have to speak in Russian - teaching English doesn't really lend itself to much Russian speaking!

One Month in Moscow

As of today, I've been in Moscow for exactly one month. In some ways, it feels like so much longer, and in others it still feels like I've just arrived. I guess I'm unpacked, but since my suitcases are serving as my closet right now, I'm not sure if that entirely counts as unpacked or not! I've learned how to light the stove without burning my fingers - woohoo!!! I've also learned that not only does the oven work, but the temperature indicator works too! I don't have to guess what the temperature is when I want to bake something, how great is that? Small luxuries.

Teaching is going very well. I'm enjoying all of my classes, and I love the feeling that I get when my students are able to speak more and more in English. I have one student, a complete beginner who I work with daily, and he's making so much progress. Maybe I'm a complete loser, but it's the greatest feeling to listen to him actually speaking in English! To be able to give someone a language is pretty awesome, and it's a gratifying experience, to say the least.

It also appears that nowhere in the world is safe from kitsch. I'm sitting at my usual cafe (they're playing Christmas music again, ugh) and outside there's a woman dressed as Snegurochka handing out flyers for something. Snegurochka is Dyed Moroz (Russian Santa's) helper/granddaughter or something like that.

I'll leave you with a picture of a winter-y and cold Red Square, complete with ice rink and New Year's tree.

Things I've learned in a month

#1 - Eating dinner at 10:45pm is not good at all! Last night, I made myself a nice dinner of pasta with homemade sauce and stir-fried veggies, and had some bread with cheese to go with it. Great meal, and I was nice and full. You know how you always read about not eating big meals before bed, because it disrupts your sleep pattern? Well that's true, based upon how I slept last night. I managed to go to bed around 1:45am, but I woke up a few times, and when my alarm went off I felt like I hadn't slept at all. Previously, when I've been lazy and just had salad and bread with cheese for dinner, I've slept better.

#2 - Temperature is all relative. On Monday, -14C/7F felt absolutely freezing. Fast forward to Tuesday and Wednesday, and it's -20C/-4F! Today, it's -14C again, and it feels quite tolerable. I actually walked around a bit before needing to seek out some warmth!

#3 - I heard more Russian my last month in America than I do here. I get maybe one or two chances to speak in Russian each day, and that's just ordering food, or sometimes giving directions on the street. Mondays and Wednesdays are better, because I speak a bit more, but I find it harder each week, since I'm getting no practice or even exposure. I don't have a TV or internet on my computer in my apartment, so I only get to hear Russian at home if the people that live above us have their TV turned up loud enough. It really sucks, and I've got to find a way to change this!

#4 - I can't get away from Christmas music, even in Russia. I'm sitting in a cafe right now, and they're playing a Christmas song... Russians don't even celebrate Western Christmas!! *edited 5 minutes later* Oh great, now they're playing another... and it's a combination of a Christmas song with a rap chorus... what the hell???

#5 - The joys of having hot AND cold water at the same time. In my apartment, you have to choose :) The water is either boiling hot or ice cold, nowhere inbetween. If we leave the hot water on, the cold and hot taps both run boiling hot. Boiling, as in fill up the electric teapot, and the water is at a full boil in 40 seconds! That's painful. The solution is to turn off the hot water when we don't need it, which isn't perfect, because now the water is like ice, but anything is better than scalding hot! I give myself full credit for that solution, since two plumbers came out to look at the pipes, and they both said they couldn't do anything, and we would just have to live with the hot water only! Perhaps I could have a successful career as a Russian plumber?

3 Weeks

I've been here for 3 weeks now, and I'm finally feeling almost completely settled in. Life is interesting, to say the least. Something unexpected happens pretty much every day. We've had snow since Monday, and it won't be going away anytime soon. I still don't have internet in my apartment, so I'm spending ridiculous amounts of money at this one cafe, McD's just really isn't working for me anymore. At least the cafe is nice, and I can spend a while there.

I'm happy with my apartment, and it's nice to actually like the place I come home to every night! It's a giant step up from the first apartment I was in when I was here. It's rather sparsely furnished - I'm currently using my suitcases as drawers!  Eventually I'll drag my butt to IKEA to get some kind of wardrobe type thing... but it's a huge pain the butt for me to get to from where I'm living. Plus, the suitcases are free, and a wardrobe costs money :)

As of this week, I have a full teaching schedule. It doesn't allow me much free time, and I'm quite pleased with that. I could wish for a bit less travel time, but such is life. I've mastered standing on the metro without holding onto anything, so I just bring a magazine and read, like most people do. As long as I'm reading, the time passes fairly quickly. I can't say I'm completely adjusted to getting home anywhere from 10:00-10:30pm, but it starts to feel more normal every day.

Overall, I'm really enjoying life here. I spend my weekends wandering around the city, discovering new places everywhere I go. I've even managed to find a couple of the churches that I've been wanting to see since I was here in 2007! It's feeling very winter-y here - there are New Years trees popping up everywhere, and buildings are being decorated with lots of lights. There's also a nice layer of snow on the ground, and it snows a little bit every day now.

A handful of photos from my facebook: Moscow Nov-Dec 2009

On the move again

I've been in Moscow for exactly 1 week now, but it feels like so much longer. I think that's due to the fact that I've only had 1 free day since I've been here. Even that wasn't entirely free, as I had three lessons to plan for Monday. I didn't even get the chance to unpack, although that turned out to be a blessing in disguise - I'm moving again tomorrow!

The apartment I'm currently in is about an hour and a half away from the main school that I'm teaching at - which is a real problem when my classes finish at 9:15pm, and I'm not home until sometime around 11:00pm! I've been eating dinner at 11:15 or 11:30 almost every night. The new apartment is only one metro stop away from the school - and I'm actually hoping there's a bus, since the school is still a 15 minute walk from the metro. I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

I'm not looking forward to having to repack my suitcases - my room right now looks like something exploded, due to the fact that I've had to dig through one or both suitcases whenever I wanted to find something. I really can't wait to get to the new apartment and unpack for good! I know I will feel a lot more settled in once everything is in its own place, and I can tuck the suitcases away.

I'm not sure if I'll have internet at my new place, so it might be a few days until you hear from me again.
Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American readers!