So soon we say goodbye

I will keep it simple and short.

Thank you to everyone who has made my experience at AAS a wonderful experience.

To those at home, I have a few requests upon returning:
Taco Bell, Meijer, and quiet streets.

The Iron Fist

As a last hurrah of sight-seeing I went to Red Square again today. What a hassle to even get in during Lenin-viewing hours. Waiting and more waiting and then metal detectors. They don't take the metal detectors lightly. The guns come out if they suspect you're sneaking a dental filling. After much hassle and a little arguing with a lady who told me I had to wait twice (which I did NOT), I finally turned over my camera and viewed Lenin's body in the mausoleum. Guards are posted every ten feet to be sure you don't accidentally want to stop and actually take a look. I can say I saw him now, I guess. Along the way I also viewed Stalin's burial place, which is among many of the Soviet leaders'. I also videotaped a portion of my visit to the grocery store to show you what it's like. In English, the store is called Azbuka Vkusa, and it's a little posh - kinda like if Panera, Starbucks, and your favorite aisle in Meijer teamed up. For one aisle it has a lot: fresh bread, meats, dairy, produce, a separate wine section, a small coffee shop, a bakery, and toiletries. At the beginning I introduce you to the best buy in the store: smoked cheese. I liked that an American Christmas song was playing ("Chestnuts Roasting"). When I got to the end of the store the bakery woman got ticked that I would dare videotape her cakes. Heaven forbid it gets out that Moscow has cake and that I knew about it.

A Peek At Church

Here are a couple snippets of the international church I've been attending while in Moscow. The first is a worship song most of you will recognize. The second is the offertory (three Filipino women did a tambourine presentation). Every week is a different culture presenting, it seems. There is a large representation of Filipino, Nigerian, and Malaysian attendees.

Dry Water?

Day 3

Today I walked around the top of St. Isaac's colonnade, walked to the Peter the Great statue (you're welcome, Grant), and shopped within the large shopping district, Gostiny Dvor. I actually met some people from Ohio where I took the picture of the bride. After I saw the opera Carmen (where I tried caviar for the first time) this evening I met a mother and daughter from Wisconsin. I have also included a video of my neighbors in the hostel. I thought it was awesome that they were next door. Since you asked, I found out the name of the Russian instrument that I didn't recognize. My roommate says it's called a balalaika, and obviously it is of the larger kind; I'm glad he clarified that. Heaven forbid there be a LARGER balalaika than this one. Sorry that the video is sideways.

St. Petersburg

What a difference: Western, small, touristy.
Needless to say, St. Petersburg is much more enjoyable for an American than is Moscow. And if you come to St. Pete, you will be lathered - smothered - with historical sites. Yesterday I walked around the city, and the weather was gorgeous. I visited the Peter and Paul Fortress, which houses a cathedral that contains most of the Romanov line, including Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, and the remains of the last royal family (the source of the Anastasia myth). Today I visited the Church on Spilled Blood, which was built over the site where Tsar Alexander II was assassinated (it was the fifth attempt). The church's interior is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. In size, the entirety of the interior can be seen from one vantage point... but I stayed for an hour and a half taking picture after picture, looking for specific Bible stories on the walls. Everything is a mosaic - every piece about the size of a fingernail - and knowing that makes it even more beautiful. The church is an ironic story of restoration. It was built over the site of a death, left to rot, turned into a potato storehouse by the Soviets, bombed by the Germans, and later restored. The bombing was actually unsuccessful - thank God. The shell lodged itself in the largest of the domes during an air raid and rested within the church without exploding. What a testimony this church has. Built over the site of an assassination it has survived time, human neglect, atheism, and Hitler, and yet - and YET - it has been restored to display the power and glory and beauty of Christ.

I also visited the Hermitage. Thanks to Ron, the principal of the Anglo-American School of St. Petersburg, I was able to use a card that allowed me to skip the ticket line (picture below) and see a monstrous collection of world history and culture. Most notable are paintings by Da Vinci, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Monet, and so on. And that's only the paintings in a couple of hallways. Simply, the collection is overwhelming and exhausting.

Pictures: Interior of Church on Spilled Blood. 1) Left edge=Ten Commandments, Center=Christ as child?, Right edge=beginning of Resurrection scene. 2) The Immaculate Conception 4) The first receiving of the Holy Spirit (notice the tongues of fire on each apostle) 6) Horse outside Winter Palace/Hermitage ("I hate my job.") 7) Line to the Hermitage, as seen from inside. In both the cathedral in which the Romanovs rest and the Church on Spilled Blood I took video just walking around and looking at everything, if you'd like to see that sometime later.

Passin' and Putin

I noticed the street get quiet again this morning, so I decided to get out the camera and tape it to show you what it's like when the president or prime minister passes through. Notice the motorcade chooses to use both sides of the road. There's always a black limo in the center, and it appears around 1:41. (This happened three times throughout the day.)

I will be taking a train to St. Petersburg at 11:30 tonight (3:30 US time). The train arrives in St. Pete at 7:40 AM, and I will be there until Friday night. Here is the website of the hostel in which I will be staying.
http://www.graffitihostel.ru/en