Today two of the other teachers and I went to a big park just outside Vladimir and went sledding. We, of course, weren't the only ones to have that idea, and we waiting almost an hour in line to rent sleds. After giving my passport to the lady at the rental desk (that's how they ensure you return your things), we hit the slopes. The hill was sort of a big bowl with lots of paths converging at the bottom. It was perfect for lots of collisions. We rented two innertubes and a mattress thing and contributed to the chaos of Russian sledding for a hour.

It was quite a scene, with ladies in fur coats pulling their little bundled-up kids around on baby carriages that have skis instead of wheels. There were people darting in and out of the crowd on cross-country skis, families with all their little Vladiks and Pashas in tow, snowmobiles whining in the distance, people making sashliki on portable grills, groups of guys (who maybe had had too much family time) drinking vodka and chasing it with pickles, and even some guy on a gas-powered hand glider flying above (I couldn't get a good picture of that). We managed not to get to banged up, and didn't even crash too hard into anyone. Here are some pictures of the whole scene: