Here are a few pictures from the first day of my family's visit to Russia. The first day was rough for them, of course, because they had been travelling for about 24 hours, and my job was to keep them awake until at least 9pm. We found our hotel, they quickly got cleaned up and changed clothes, and then we got dinner and went to Red Square. It's amazing that you can be in Cleveland, Ohio, one day and standing on Red Square in Moscow, Russia, within 36 hours.

Just got off the train from the airport. Welcome to Moscow!

Red Square

The parents in front of St. Basil's. 

And the siblings

The Kremlin walls 

View from our hotel window

A great trip with a bittersweet end--that's how my family's visit to Russia just finished. They were here in Russia for ten days, and we saw a lot. From the hustle and bustle of Moscow to the tsarist grandeur of St. Petersburg to the ancient, bucolic town of Suzdal, we had a varied look at Russia. Their opinions and observations on the country I've been calling home sharpened my own understanding of Russia and the Russian way of life. I think they really enjoyed their trip, and I know they learned a tremendous amount. I can't wait to see their photos and hear their reflections on the trip. 

I took them to the airport this morning. There were some tears as we stood on the threshold of customs control, they heading to their gate and the plane back home; I remaining behind. I already miss them. 

Sentimentality aside, it was a wonderful trip.  Though it's not the temporal mid-point of my stay here in Russia (that was in June I think), this trip stands out as the logical halfway point: I finished one year of teaching in Vladimir, and I have one more school year to go. I'm excited to get back to teaching, and it will be great to meet my new co-workers, who arrive on August 8. I feel refreshed and ready to take on the new year, and that's more than just the Starbucks coffee talking (Starbucks is my tradition when going through Moscow--it's the only decent coffee I can find). 

I'll post pictures from the trip in the coming days. 

One of the harder parts of living abroad long-term is that the only way to see friends and family is through Skype, which, while a heck of a lot better than a letter or a phone call, is no approximation for seeing people in real life. I haven't seen my parents or sister in more than 11 months.

But that all changes tomorrow. My parents and sister are coming to visit Russia for ten days. We'll be in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Vladimir. I can't wait to see my family again and show them around the country I've been calling home for the past year. I've missed them a lot, and it'll be great to see them again. Their plane takes off in a few hours, beginning the 16-hour saga that will take them to Moscow. As the Russians would say, Счастливого пути! 

The Handshake

It’s little differences that define cultures. One seemingly small difference between American and Russian culture is the handshake. Americans, think about the occasions when you shake hands. In America, I feel comfortable shaking hands during formal introductions, at the closing of business deals, at the end of little league games, at the closing of serious father-son talks, and during the passing of the peace at church (I think that’s a Protestant thing). Other than that, I don’t really shake people’s hands. There is nothing more awkward than the rejected handshake offer, after all.

It’s a completely different story here in Russia. Men shake hands at pretty much every meeting. That means that—in addition to all the American instances--you shake your friend’s hand, you shake your classmates’ hands (this sometimes causes a bit of a disturbance during my classes—the guys make the rounds to shake hands with all the other guys), you shake your host dad’s hand, and you shake hands whenever you meet anyone, even if it’s an extremely informal setting. You also shake hands when you say goodbye.

Notice that I said men shake hands; women never shake hands with other women, and it is unusual for a woman to shake hands with a man. To be honest, I’m not exactly sure what you’re supposed to do when you first meet a woman, especially one who’s older than you. You definitely don’t hug or kiss (although that is common among friends), but a handshake would be strange as well. I think the accepted thing to do is say zdravstvuite and maybe a few nice words and move on.

I've become pretty used to the Russian culture of handshaking, and now it’s actually quite strange for me when a woman initiates a handshake. Americans come fairly often to the American Home, and they come expecting standard American handshake norms. For example, a woman professor recently visited, and she took time to ask us teachers about our experiences here in Russia (I think she is planning a new study abroad program to Russia). At the start of out interviews, she extended her hand, expecting me to reciprocate. I froze up for what seemed like an eternity. Here’s a woman who wants to shake my hand—what is happening? I snapped back and of course shook the woman’s hand, but I was surprised by how thoroughly Russian cultural norms had affected me in 10 months.   

Moscow

Nothing like a weekend in the big city. I went to Moscow for a few days to visit some of my colleagues who just moved there, and we had a great time. The real pretext for the trip was visit to a doctor, but after that was over, I had three days with no obligations in one of the world's largest cities. We visited all kinds of restaurants and bars, walked all around the city (I can't imagine how many miles we logged), and even saw some fireworks on the Fourth.

Moscow feels completely different from Vladimir. There is palpable energy in Moscow, and people dress differently and act differently. Whereas Vladimir is kind of a sleepy outpost that rolls up the sidewalks at 11pm, Moscow is constantly active, perpetually on the move. There is diversity; there are options; there is stuff to do. Of course, Moscow is very expensive, and the relentless pace and noise can wear a person out, but the converse--provincial boredom--is, in my opinion, worse.

Being in Moscow definitely gave me some cause to pause and think about getting the heck out of this little, grey city, but I do enjoy living here in Vladimir. It's easier to get to know people here, and the city is more human-scaled, if often ugly as sin. My measly paycheck doesn't get devoured here, although I see my friends who moved to Moscow making three times more than I do, and the cost of living there is nowhere even close to three times more. The nice thing is that the big city is just a three-hour train ride away, and now I have quite a few people to visit there. The next time I need my Starbucks fix (it's the only decent coffee in a 1,000-mile radius) and and bored to tears with life in Vladimir, I can easily get to Moscow even for just an afternoon.

Anyway here are some pictures of my trip:

 Went to a concert at cool bar right in the center of town. 

Appropriate wear for the Fourth of July

Really nice park 

You don't see this in Vladimir

Enormous mall

Giant martryoshkas in the huge mall  

Fountains at VDNKh 

We rented a little cart thing and a bike a VDNKh--good way to spend a warm afternoon 

Red Square was all closed for a concert 

Bike rental along the Boulevard Ring. This is a new thing in Moscow, and the city planner in me loves it. 

Statue to Esenin  

Barge moving up the Moscow River

Cathedral of Christ the Savior  

Some sort of yoga/Buddhist thing. Definitely don't see this in Vladimir 

At Gorky Park 

Hanging out by the lake 

A beach--Moscow style 

The "not boring" garden

Watering the garden 

Dedicated area for CrossFit? I love this city.  

Happy Fourth!

Happy Independence Day! Obviously, people here don't celebrate the holiday, but we're going to try to. I'm off to Moscow today to see some friends and enjoy the big city. Moscow is a lot more like America than Vladimir, too. Everyone in America--happy Fourth. Have a bratwurst with stadium mustard, drink a Great Lakes (or whatever good beer is in your area), and set off--or at least go and see--some fireworks for me.  

End of School Year

It's hard to believe that my classes are over. My colleagues and I made it through a 10-month school year at the American Home, and, in general, it went very well. I now know how to describe the use of the present perfect so that non-native speakers of English can understand, which is pretty cool because I hadn't heard of the present perfect (or any other English verb tense) a year ago. I have to say that hardest day I had was the first time I taught the difference between "before" and "until." I had no idea how to answer all my students' questions, and was struggling to find a decent explanation (I got it down in my next two semesters).

We had a farewell lunch last week. My colleagues are gradually leaving; some have left already, more will leave in the next few days. I'm staying here in Russia for my five-week vacation (we start working again on August 8). My family is coming to visit, and I imagine I'll do some traveling and a lot of relaxing here in Vladimir. Here's a shot of the lunch table in the backyard of the American Home: