New Years Eve

So the night is only getting started, but we finished decorating the Tannebaum and cooking for the New Years Feast. All there is to do right now is wait until Babyshka and Dedyshka (grandparents) to come! Earlier today, sister, friends and I went ice skating in an open air rink. It was so much harder to skate there than at an indoors rink, but I think my ice skating skills are getting better now! Practice really helps. I feel more confident about skating since my friend Meike told me to just think of it as in-line skating. It feels good helping around the house today, and getting things done early. In a few days, Moscow camp will begin, so that's also something wonderful to look forward to!

Joyous Days of All School Days

Today was definitely a blog worthy day. I met people and had an amazing time every single hour, despite being slightly sick. The day started with sitting in Russian class with the 11th grade. After the lesson, we watched a puppet theater in the auditorium. It was very well conducted, and had lots of humor. Tasha, Pear and I were extremely sleepy and cold, sitting in the back of the room, but we noticed that most 3rd graders today wore costumes of princesses, ninjas and cowboys. The crowd resembled what could have been easily mistaken as a Halloween crowd instead. I suppose this is a "Novi God" (New Years) tradition in Russia. I definitely admire it. Proceeding the play, we congregated in the sports hall. The children paraded their exciting outfits, while mascots of Baba Yaga, Ded Moroz (their version of Santa), a Green Wood Nymph, Snegurushka and a cat led them. They also played their Russian version of the Hokey Pokey and "If You're Happy and You Know It" songs in the gym.

The girls and I left a bit early for lunch. It was 10:55 to be exact. Then afterwards, we did not have the usual 5 lessons that we do every Tuesday. Tasha went home to prepare for her piano recital later this night. Meanwhile, Pear and I headed to the Mega Mall to finish Christmas/New Years shopping for friends and host families. We were then later joined by Joe and Tamara. This mall has around 5 floors, and we spent 4 hours here. It's big, but not terribly exciting in my opinion...clothing in Russia is super expensive, so that rules out most of the fun that existed when my friends shopped in American malls. (In fact, it might be the second most expensive country to buy clothes in.)

But on the happier note, I met a 25-year old Russian woman. She finished university not too long ago, and has a Nepalese boyfriend. She's studied English for two years, but she speaks like she's known it much longer. But that's not what blows my mind...She's lived in Vietnam with her boyfriend, so she knows a bit of Vietnamese! During my stay in Russia, I never thought I would meet anyone who know even a glimpse of Vietnamese, but somehow this woman came into my life. She was working at the mall; we spoke in English at first, but she mentioned she lived in Vietnam for a while, and my instinct was to test her Vietnamese then I hugged her. We exchanged phone numbers too. I have so many questions to ask her about her years abroad; she seems very interesting!

I got home around 3. I ate, then napped for an hour, because the mall was a major energy drain. I needed rest anyhow, because I've got sinuses and a minor cough. Then later that night, I walked to school to watch Tasha's concert. There were adorable children playing the piano, accordion and even spoons. They sang as well. Overall, it was a very enjoyable experience.

My night was perfect too, because my host family had made dinner. I came to the kitchen flabbergasted because I saw what resembled burritos. My host mother seemed very amused about my enthusiastic reaction about the rolls. I asked my sister and mother if it was burritos, and they chuckled, "You know Spanish too?" in Russian, because I tried to tell them that in California, I ate Mexican food, including Burritos, nearly every day. Oh, if only I could tell them that the food's name means little donkey too...that would have been great! I never thought in Russia
I would ever be able to eat Mexican food. Albeit, the burritos weren't spicy, they were quintessentially sufficient!

Life is so darn awesome now. Break begins this Saturday!...And I wish I could tell them about how pomegranates relate to Hades. I must improve my Russian!

Hey, hey

So things are going well in general. I'm sorry for the lack of posts. There hasn't been much going on for a while, but maybe later this week some friends and I will watch a Russian comedy called Elki 2. I don't have much to say, but I decided to post...because I don't want this blog to die out so early.

Always By Your Side - David Choi

I also forgot to mention a really cool thing about McDonalds. No, it's not that the fast food here is actually much tastier. And no, it's not that here you leave your trays on the table for attendants to clean up later. I don't really care for that, and would rather dispose of my own food wrappers and such.

Instead, it's something much more ordinary. They were playing the discography of David Choi. It blew my mind that his music arrived to Russia, since it's not mainstream, but if someone could get onto Youtube and tell him, I'd be really happy. I wonder who brought it up, and decided to play it in restaurant. I love this. It reminds me of home and makes me rather proud to be Asian-American. This is truly a cross-cultural moment.

Spitballs

Yesterday, the exchange students handled some documents for the upcoming Moscow camp. At school 41, not much happened, so there is little to say about that except that we're planned to leave town January 3rd and leave Moscow on the 9th. After the meeting, we sat at the cozier McDonalds near school 41. Despite being a quiet crowd, we had spitballs aimed at us from two tables down. I'm not sure why none of us talked to management about the issue or even talked to the offender, but all was well. We had good laughs about this act. We joked that the other people would run out of napkins for spitballs, so they'd be throwing larger objects like shoes and Iphones next. But really, if they threw a shoe, I'd just pick it up and never return it. They'd be at a greater lost going home with a missing shoe, while I'd have two on my feet and one extra.

It's been wet and slippery on the roads. This used to be a problem with ice, but not recently. For whatever peculiar reason, it rained two days here. It's extremely rare for rain to arrive during Winter, and being foreign to the whole concept of cold winters and snow...I wonder if this will mean January and February will be colder months to make up for December. I don't know how Mother Nature works, and I'm clueless how to read the signs through weather. 

On the sidenote, most students have to pass an end-of the year Russian test along with two other subjects (not including English). I think it would be in my best interest to take French and Geography, because the vocabulary would be rather simple. During February, the three exchange students from school will give a presentation about our stay in Russia, so those are a few things we have lined up in the later months. And it's been forever since I talked to relatives in California......I don't know why.

Desiring Freedom and Better Weather

I noticed that the blogs from past exchange students tend to die out around this season. I don't know the exact reason, but it might be the critical milestone where emotions heighten. I am not as homesick as I imagined I would be. Yes, I miss my friends, family and the good weather in California, but I feel rather confident I'll find them again when I return from Russia. However, what I crave most now is independence....freedom. There's no point of staying out late during Russian Winters, because the streets become so cold and dark quiet early, but I miss having the good company of friends like the past. I miss the traditional hang-outs in a friend's warm home, where we all cook and bond over silly movies and fun conversations. I've grown to really appreciate the friends here, and of course the life-long friends at home (those outside of America too), but of course, nothing is the same. I would be lying to say that all is going well right now, but overall, it is pretty good. I'm doing well in classes. I'm memorizing a few lines, because I'll play a brave rabbit with the little grade school children later this week.

Not long ago, I celebrated Thanksgiving with real American mashed potatoes—in all its butter-laden pleasure, texture and goodness. It was not the typical “kartofel pure” that they serve in the cafeteria. Then I'm also happy that I got to celebrate my friend's birthday here with the other students; so the festivities are here. I don't know what will happen around Christmas, but our Italian friend here has a birthday too! I hope it will turn out great.

Updates

Sorry for the rather unoriginal title. What can I say? There hasn't been that much going on. Students from Klin are planned to visit Cheboksary later today, so there are a few optional camp activities lined up for the weekend, but I don't know if I'll be allowed to attend all of it or if I am supposed to stay at home/school. I would be overjoyed if we went on the Kazan excursion on Saturday. There has been some news though; I watched and completed my first Twilight movie ever. The recent filrm had almost no action, and way too much over-exagerrated love scenes. At least it was an educational experience watching it in Russian. Thanksgiving is coming up. I hope the Americans will celebrate it together. And this Sunday is Mother's Day in Russia, but I don't know why it's not a very popular/celebrated holiday. Perhaps it's a rather new holiday.

Oh. And the snow in town is wonderful. I love the white clean flakes. It's much easier to walk through Cheboksarian snow than those in Lyantor. The streets are cleared every so often. Sadly though, it will get colder here than in Siberia, because we have a humid winter due to the proximity to the Volga River. So far, it already feels colder than the Siberia's dry taiga climate. I will have interesting stories to tell about Winter in January and February I believe.

Fire and Ice

By Robert Frost

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

This poem does not make up for the lack of posts, but I felt that it is rather suiting to the situation, or at least the weather here.

Need to catch up

We came back from Siberia on 11/11/11 at 11am to Kazan by train. Then we had a long bus ride from Kazan to our town. The fall camp was a brilliant experience, which totally was worth the long voyage. Back in town, I am a bit sad that I hardly have Internet access. At school the majority of websites are blocked, so that I cannot even work on college paperwork and contact much people back in America. At the house, I have my laptop, but I cannot go online for very long. I feel a bit upset about this all, because I cannot complete my work with Mochi Mag. There are so many tasks that need to be done, and I am frustrated for not being able to finish everything. What ever happened to being on top of things, and super responsible? 

In addition, homesicknesss does not help to this fact. I miss the freedom of going out and being in charge of college coursework. Friends and family of course; I don't mind the physical distance, just the conversations. I want some downtime, some idle time to think, reflect, create art, where I can be be alone for a while. I realize that this post sounds rather gloomy, but I am sure things will be better later. I will need to find some sort of acceptance to my surroundings. I want to feel productive and industrious, not simply completing busy-work. That might be what I miss the most?

Ghosts, Witches, you know the usual

School vacation (ka-nik-koo-li)has arrived! On Saturday, I spent a day at the Mega Mall catching up with other exchange students and friends, but it really makes me wonder where do students hang out in Cheboksary? Certainly, the downtown Mcdonalds is always a hotspot, but I don't know of many places where you can just sit down and chat with people. Cafes aren't much fun unless it's around mealtimes and the people are actually hungry. But...I digress; compared to other exchange students, I have a rather strict curfew usually at 5:00-6:00pm. This does not leave me much time to go out when school ends at two, and I get home at 3:30 or go out and have to carry a heavy bag. This concept frustrates me a bit, but maybe in the future, things will be more lax. I really miss being able to go out whenever like in America, and having all this freedom. I don't really see the other exchange students from other schools due to the curfew.

On the happier note, Halloween celebration was great. Our host siblings and the exchange students were there, even Anika (from Germany), who came from Kirov, came! We bobbed for apples and mummy wrapped our buddies. There was a great gang of zombies at the party, and I must say, they were one of the coolest and prettiest zombies ever! Thanks to the girls who decorated for the party; it was a great success and lots of fun in my opinion.

Repeated, sorry B

It is hard to type right now, cause I sliced a good portion of my left middle finger off when I peeled potatoes today. Usually I only have minor cuts, but today it just wont stop bleeding. Thank goodness I brought bandages. Otherwise, it has been a good day. Pear and I watched the city's puppet theater today. It was great entertainment, and I understood most of it out of context. The theater was very close to the downtown McDonalds. There, the Americans planned to meet at 2pm to discuss our country presentation for the Surgut/Siberian camp. The theater would have been a great place to simply stay, but we had left our bags back in the classroom, so we had to drive back to school to retrieve those. Too bad, it made me late for the McDonalds rendre-vous, but all was well. We talked more about Russian experiences more than about the actual presentation.

News around the Kitchen

A birthday package was on the way from California all the way to Russia. I was already certain the container's contents: Mama noodles. What I didn't expect was the abundance, it was literally a whole box full of ramen noodles. Thanks to my caring aunt and cousin who shipped it overseas. I just wish they didn't have to pay so much for shipping expenses. In addition was a nice sweater and my favorite Thai tamarind candy. So tonight, I cooked the Mama noodles with cabbage and egg. It was a plain egg drop soup with the extra spice condiments and a little lemon. Knowing from experience that most Russian can't handle spicy Thai food, my sister and I watered down the broth, so that no one would be red faced for dinner. The good news is that my family liked it. Afterwards, I washed the kitchen floor. My sister made a beautiful tea bouquet of tiny strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and some sort of herb/tree twigs. I can't wait to try the chai tomorrow. It seems like the berry combination would be really delicious.

I still haven't started cooking class. It was cancelled today, and I won't attend until after break and Siberia. I was antsy about it, because I rather dislike domestic work, but I wanted to appease my family and the Russian people here. I thought I should change my attitude to at least try being more "house-handy/helpful", and be more enthusiastic about things--especially cooking. Cooking is okay, and cleaning isn't as tiring as it used to be. The change in point of view really helps. Positivity works.

Tongue Twisters

Today, we presented at our home school. It was a success for the most part. This time, we spoke to 9th and 10th graders about English tongue twisters. We figured that they would be too old to care much for nursery games, so we had to think very quickly again on what to talk about. Luckily, the students at our school understand English fairly well, although they are shy to speak it. Our pupils were really active participants, so it made our job easier. We asked them to repeat after us, translate and then try to quickly pronounce each word in each tongue twister

Try this one out for size:
If you understand, say "understand".
If you don't understand, say "don't understand".
But if you understand and say "don't understand".
How do I understand that you understand? Understand!

Translated into Russian (disregarding grammar):
Если ты понимаешь, скажем, "понимаю".
Если ты не понимаешь, говорят: "Не понимаю".
Но если ты понимаешь, и сказать: "не понимаю".
Как я могу понимаю, что вы понимаете? Поймите!

Today we were professors

Being an exchange student doesn't just mean staying with a host family and attending class every day, but also giving back to the community when possible. The exchange students from the school went together to present interesting lectures about our national country's cultures and language. It's always a difficult thing to figure out what to present about American culture, because it has already spread globally, and we never know what our audience already knows. We had in mind an audience of 13-17 years old, so Tasha and I wanted to speak about American slang/English idioms. We worked on a PowerPoint a night before the presentation, since we were given only a day's notice before presentation date.

Instead, when we arrived at the "Astronaut school", we changed our game plan. We scrapped the technology after the first class. There were a few classrooms where the pupils only started learning English. They were aged around 5-8 years old. We needed to think our our feet, so we demonstrated short nursery rhymes and games like "London Bridge" and "The Itsy Bitsy Spider". We spoke shortly on Halloween as an approaching holiday, and to the eleventh graders we spoke about English slang. The younger children were a joy, because they were active participants. They showed that they were really interested in the games we introduced. The older class, I must say- was very quiet. It was quite a joy to be there. We had lecturers from Azerbaijan, Greece, Poland, Germany and other cool countries.

We were also interviewed by the local Russian news station, but I don't know when it would air. I seemed to forget the ability to speak in front of that huge camera and blinding record light. It's no big deal, because I'll probably never see the newscast anyhow. Tomorrow we were scheduled to go to the neighboring city, Novocheboksars for presentations, but being an hour away...we asked to present at our school instead to save time. It would have been great to visit the town, but our school is already stellar. We also didn't want to risk getting lost too.

Progress and Chores

As for learning Russian, I was previously frustrated in the first two months about how slow class was going, but now I realized this is not so bad. I'm speaking to friends and adults in Russian, and it's not as bad as I thought it would be. It takes quite a bit of time to hand-wash the floors, water the flowers and cook from day to day, but I still find time to create art...so I'm a happy kid. I should start art school, outside from Art classes soon.

"Kvass, looks like soysauce, smells like beer/bread, and tastes like bubbly soda. Odd!" was the exact thing I told my host family after trying it during dinner. I made a small joke of switching the soysauce with the kvass, but of course, it would be impolite to play such a prank. Today was our first snow day, which had me really excited because I have not seen snow in 16 years. It never snows where I used to live in California, so I have only seen photos of my father and I in Kansas with snow and tractors in the field. I owe a friend a nickel, because I thought it would never snow this early. It's only October!

I went ice skating last night. Initially, the rink looked minuscule compared to the popular one in my hometown, but as we got on the ice, it seemed just as big and even more crowded. It seemed like everyone already knew how to skate. I really liked skating here because it's cheap (less than $5) compared to the $8-10 back at home. Renting skates we had to give our IDS to the service person, to ensure we would return the skates later. Returning the skates was a bit difficult, because there is no such concept as a tidy line in Russia, and there was only that tiny booth to pack around 20 people. I think I might head back there today with some school friends too.'

We headed to McDonalds for 30 mins before home. Talked, but most people were rather tired. As my sister and I excited the building, some rude teenagers mimicked some bad Chinese, but it was so bad I almost laughed. There was no reason to get very mad about it, so I just said "Yo, whatsup? I understand and SPEAK Russian you know."---po-russki.

Paint. Bears, Chicken

Where do I start? Life has been kind for the past week. I cooked a chicken without making any fatal mistakes or poisoning anyone. Sorry, if I offended any vegetarians with this post..I do eat meat. Later that day, I was really fortunate to catch up with ED and Mahri from BFSIA via Skype. I still talk to some alumni from the summer camp of 2010, but I miss them so much. There are many times I wish I could go back and meet everyone there. But...being in Russia has been a great gift, because every day there's something that reminds me of my friends there. When someone asks me why I want to study Russian, I remember BFSIA friends, family members who studied Russian, and the overall feeling of accomplishment. I am learning something, because I want to, not for any tangible purpose. It's mostly for me, and not because I am required. I love this feeling. I'm also really happy that the language connects me back to people I hold dear.

The rest of the day, I played with paint, oil pastels and color pencils like a giddy little kid. Art supplies here are so cheap compared to ones in America, so I've had the chance to complete many art projects here. I feel so lucky. Maybe I should put some photos of the work here. At night, the family went to the market. A group of older teenagers noticed me as a stranger, and thinking I didn't understand Russian, jokingly asked how I was doing and where I was from, but I just calmly answered them back. "Normalno, spasiba". And there was that "O_O S*** she knows Russian" face. I love suprising people by speaking Russian to them.

Yup, all is well. I must have gained weight while in Russia, because I no longer fit into my blue jeans. Sadly, the belt button flew off when I tried to button the pants. It didn't just fall off, no...it FLEW. At least the extra fat will be good for the upcoming Winter and Siberia. I'll be like a winter bear, except I'm not allowed the lesuire of sleeping all day during hibernation. I told my host mother this, and she laughed hysterically. She teased me by saying that I should eat less, but then said it about all the girls, haha.

At the Language Institute

We met more interesting people around town. There are a few very fluent English speakers here, but you would never know it since they speak Russian more often than English. No worries, about that...This is a better chance to speak Russian. I'll be better off learning the language, rather than expecting people to accomodate me with English. Anyhow, I think many people speak English rather well, but they feel too self-conscious about their speaking abilities. Really, accent are totally cool in my opinion. Accents show that the person knows more than one language, which is always a positive thing in my opinion.  

Tuesday, we passed copies of our documents so our residency visas could be extended. This was an easy experience, because our volunteer is always well composed for this situations. We missed class for part of the day to go to the processing office near the Lenin statue. It lightly rained that day. Otherwise, the whole excursion was relaxing and absolutely a perfect break from the mundane of everyday school life. School is wonderful, but yes, the routine does become repetitious from day to day. It is always nice to have some variety to the schedule.  Later that night, there was a meeting at a foreign language insitute, where we were informed about an upcoming language festival in town. The concept was the present the diversity of languages around the world, and also promote Esparanto. As you might already know, Esparanto is a country-neutral language, which does belong to any nationality, but is a artificial language combining many Romance words and grammar structures. Its creator intended to promote peace by creating an easy to learn language for international communication. It is quite an interesting concept, so look it up if you're interested. It may be suprising about how you might understand a huge majority of Esparanto already.

And...my birthday is next week. People have asked, but I do not know how to celebrate it. Maybe bowling would be a good idea? Lately, I've been worried about speading too much money outside of school and food, but I suppose it is good to look up the costs and learn. There is also the concern about when reimbursements arrive, because we weren't told of the time, but I've been told to relax for a bit. I tend to be a worry-wort. I overthink, and earned the royal title of "Katherine the Resposible" by one of my favorite high school staffperson.

Culture note

Russia life is different than American. In America, we rely on much technology and food of convienience: vacuum cleaners, washer machines, plentiful fast food restuarants, and 7-11 convienience stores. Many of these concepts are new and scarce in Russia, so we hand-wash the floors, hang-dry wet clothes and prepare our meals at home, which demands more labor, but the work is also very rewarding. Meals are healthier, clothes and floors are treated more carefully. The abundance of home chores requires a person to be hard-working; there is no time for a person to be lazy here. We have some leisure time to simply relax, read books and enjoy movies, but most of the time is spent talking to family. Famly is very important in Russia. It's not what I'm used to, because we're louder and more social at home, but not in public. The public remains rather tame. It's not common for family members to sit idly at home in front a computer screen (like my life in America), but we must talk to each other and share house work. Life revolves more around the domestic sphere.

"It's not worse, it's not better, simply different"...the motto we will stand by this academic year.

Test Day two

This might have been one of the more difficult tests taken in Russia. I felt a bit tense when I saw that we needed to form new verbs with these new prefixes, because we did not learn these concepts in class. It's ironic because I asked to cover the meanings of several prefixes during class, but our teacher said we didn't need to know it yet. "We have the whole year ahead," she said in Russian. Thus, the experience was salt added to the wound. The dictation part of the test was easy, and overall, it was not a very tedious test, but I felt rather nervouse during the oral section. The topic was family, however, this is always dificult subject for me in any language, even in English. I can never say much about family, because I don't have the conventional mom-dad-sister-brother dynamics going on. I had prepared more to talk about the school day, so I was caught unexpectedly by the oral topic. I was quite nervous and a bit discouraged following the verb-creation exercise.

The test took two hours, then we spent another long duration of time discussing camp options. There is nothing much to say, but the inside joke would say "That is all". Then the girls went to Cafe Cherry, where we had some inexpensive, burning hot chai tea, and small desserts. We all wanted to sty longer, but it was getting dark. On the way home, I had my third encounter with a drunk Russian person. Some obnoxious man kept trying to get close to Pear and I, so I strictly said "Don't talk to us." in Russian. But no, he wouldn't give up. Fortunately, there was a nice college-aged guy who helped stand up for us. He engaged in an arguement with the man, but he had to get off to his stop not long after. I wish I could just say more than thanks; it's comforting to know that there are still people in the world who would stand up when they see a problem.

So I pretty much decided, I don't want to go out too late often, because there's a higher chance that there will be drunk. unfriendly people. Most Russians are nice or won't harrass the foreigners, but there are a few complaints about the rude ones. My sister and I were standing at a bus stop one day, when a drunk teenage stranger leaned over and just rudely put his drunk face near ours, and laughed at our confused reaction. Still, don't take these examples as representation of anything. There were just a few amusing, odd and memorable moments when we were out of our comfort zone. Nothing dangerous happened at these incidences, and they were rather tame; it just reminds us to be a bit cautious when we go out in public.

Movies! Vampire

Watched Fright Night "Noch' Straxi" in Russian, and surprised to say, it was the best movie I have watched in Russia...EVER. Both funny and thrilling, I would totally call it a fun movie to see with friends. I absolutely adore David Tennant too! Lately, there's been more homework, so there isn't as much free time to go on the computer. Also, I've been helping out more with housework and cleaning. Life is good.

Last Saturday, Pear, Tasha and I cooked sushi, cookies and Thai noodles. It was delicious. I really missed spicy food, so the Thai food made up for the lack of heat in recent cuisine.

Socially

One thing that surprised me about Russia is the hangouts. Young people walk around the streets, enjoy nature, the scenery and talk, but back at home, my friends and I rarely did this. Yes, California has better weather, however, we don't go on walks for fun. Instead, we sit around at a friend's house, cook, eat, watch TV, play games and talk. It's nice, warm and cozy. Or sometimes we go to a restaurant for dinner, walk about the mall, or hold short summer BBQ parties...but we're usually inside. For this strange phenomenon, I have no explanation. Perhaps, I just made friends with people who weren't so active.

Schools here seem to be one tall building rather than a campus with multiple two-storied complexes like from San Jose. I think that is due to the colder winters, students and teachers rather avoid the cold as much as possible. I remember that in Virginia, indoor halls were rather common too, while complexes were limited. The weather here has been rather nice, still nothing cold yet, but I imagine it will come within two months. And then, I will wonder how young people "hang out". Ice rinks, theaters and malls?

Malinki - small

My youngest sister's birthday party was yesterday, so from 6pm to 9pm, we played kiddie games and ate delicious food at Love Kafe. This was the same venue for my other sister's birthday, but this hosting room's theme was castles. I regret not bringing my camera, because the decor was fabulous. The wall was hand painted with Shrek characters, Russian 3 Heroes and Baba Yaga. There was a 3D cottage and castle.

Today, Pear, Tasha and I gave lyrics and MP3s of our respective national anthems to an English Teacher. It was the Day of International Dialog, so we had a small balloon ceremony with blue AFS balloons. I liked the small break from classes. The students from our region received an e-mail about upcoming AFS camp at the end of October to the beginning of November, so autumn camp is definitely something to which to look forward.

Internet v. Immersion

Due to the inability to express myself, I cried a bit when my parents suggested I use the Internet yet. Upon reflection, it sounds a bit ludicrous, but I suppose it was an instinct. I felt a bit overwhelmed, because a close friend at home pointed out that I did not have time to catch up with family and friends in America. It's mostly true, because there is a 11 hour time difference and obstacle from Skyping/chatting often. However, there was nothing to cry about. My parents were simply relaying a message from someone else, that families should limit the amount of online time of exchange students. They were concerned that the foreign students would lose precious immersion time in Russian, and not pick up the language. It's a good reason, I was just scared it was a personal criticism. I thought that I had two parties upset at me, but this wasn't the case. I do have an Internet addiction, but I'm sure I can find another form of cheap personal entertainment, and find time to communicate to my loved ones in America...I just need to try harder.

So for now, if I don't post as much as before, this is the reason. Sorry. I wish there were more hours in the day to get most things accomplished and talk to everyone I miss so much, but I have the greatest home that there will be time! Somewhere?

Oh, and in Russia, there are Crab and Bacon flavored Lays Potato chips.

A part of Home

It's a bit wild, but by immersing myself in Russian...I am also remembering my mother tongue Vietnamese and also my third language French at the same time. Last night, little words started popping up in my head in Vietnamese. Phrases which I thought I had forgotten and things I used to say as a child. It's been a month since I've been at home, or heard my family speak Vietnamese, but it's nice to know I still remember the language. I don't have the chance to speak the language in Russia, yet it's suprisingly here in my head.

Clothes Hangers

There are just a few words that we never will learn in the conventional foreign language class, yet they are the most basic, essential things that we often overlook. For example, clothes hangers. If you know the word "clothes hanger" off the top of your head in any language, I imagine that you must be pretty fluent in the language or had some memorable experience that will never permit you to forget it. I also assume we never learn this word in my past language classes, because it's something that is readily available in hotels and many homes. It's a word you learn from experience, which helps me understand why I'm here in Russia, rather than just sitting in a classroom again...but then, I digressed.

Back to the point, Pear and I looked for clothes hangers in one of the shopping centers ("togorvi centre") near School 41 before we had to head to music practice. It was a good learning experience in communication. The Thai-Russian dictionary failed to provide the word, so we gestured, then we whipped out Pear's drawing for a store assistant. (A note to that, she didn't know the word in English either, so she drew a clothes hanger to illustrate her point earlier at school.) Indeed, a picture might be a thousand words. By my description, it might sound like we had to put in a lot of effort to purchase clothes hangers, but it was actually enjoyable. It would have been a lot quicker to take out the picture, but we wanted to try out best speaking Russian first.

So, I guess the phrases "for clothing", "triangle", and verbs of necessity weren't good enough to demonstrate our need for clothes hangers, but one day we will have the words. Shopping is always fun. One distinction about Russia is the abundance of shopping centers, they are literally at every corner: supermarkets, pharmacies ("apteka"), news stations and more. Instead of walls that divide the shops like American malls, the division is just the booth register. It's different and cool. I can purchase a pastry for 7 rubles, then take a step to buy school stockings for 59 rubles. It's very convenient.

How it Goes

I have homework from here to there. Sometimes, I wish class would go faster, because my summer class at UCLA covered so much material already, that I am a bit bored that during individual lessons we are covering genders and possessive pronouns. So to counteract the doldrums, I try to be supportive of the other students. I also give my best effort into learning new vocab and composing complex sentences with the words ("slova"). My sister went over them today, correcting the grammar. I feel like I have learned a lot, but I still need this year to hone into the correct usage of the cases. So, I guess everyone during this exchange process will learn something new. I know, and I hope I will learn much.

After school, my sister and I took the trolleybus home. There, I had a hard time reaching for my wallet, so I asked my sister if she could cover the fare, until I sat down. The attendant overheard us, so she approached me and asked, "Excuse me, but are you from America?". I was taken back a bit because her English was accent less for a woman of around 50 years, but more so, because most Russians weren't as direct as she was. I answered affirmatively, and then she introduced herself as Galentina. She proceeded to tell me how she studied in an American institute to learn English. I really enjoyed listening to here, even though we only spoke for 10 mins. She inspires me to keep studying languages, so perhaps one day I will speak Russian/French as well as she spoke English.

At home, I helped with chores, like watering the plants and clothes. It's a good thing, because I often find myself with too much free time. I shouldn't go on the computer much, because I want to be immersed into more Russian than English. For the first time, I went to my sister's room to look over homework, so I supposed I should do that more often. Some of the AFS students went to McDonalds after school, but I didn't feel like going because my sister and I needed to look after our youngest sibling.

Saturday School

I miss having Saturday free. In Russia, we have a full day of school, where I am studying. Some other schools have half days, while others are not in session at all. So for the first time, I attended this class labeled as "Texnology". However, the class' name is rather misleading, because it was structured as an Home Economics class, despite sounding like their "Informatika" class, where students actually learn about computers. We prepped Salad Olivier with the 7th graders today, then sat down for tea and cookies.

Later that day, I came over Tasha and Nadia's apartment, where I chatted a bit with their nice mother. Then, we were a bit late in meeting others at the downtown McDonalds. We sat there for a good three hours, but I was more tempted to eat pizza nearby then fries or burgers. There was also a cute brown cat that sat between Paige and I that day. We named her Latte, and she had a comfortable nap on Paige's lap afterwards. There are many street cats in Russia, which are much more sociable and friendly than the cats in America. I can say the same with the pigeons here. They aren't afraid of humans here unlike in America; instead, they don't need to exert the energy to fly unless there is person chasing them, like this fun Thai friend we have here.

I came home late that night, perhaps around 8pm, when it was rather dark, because I believed no one was at home. There's a national curfew for minors at 10pm in Russia, but I really don't know if I will ever stay out that late. It would not be fun to be stuck at night, sledging through the snow, trying to get home.

Cookies, then 5th French

Tasha and I went to French during 5th period, where we were completing an exercise on self reflexive verbs today. (Funny that I blogged about it earlier) Even though it was 10th grade, this aspect of French grammar seemed harder than the passe-compose we studied with the 11th graders last Saturday. Still, I completed the exercises, and the students were surprised to discover than I knew French. I helped go over the answers today, then my ego expanded just a tiny bit. I gave the right answers, but I had trouble explaining French grammar in Russian. I need to know more words. One day, I think I will be better at that. During that period, we ate our great Alphen Gold chocolate strawberry cookies with great satisfaction. I will miss those pastries; they aren't sold as abundantly in America.

I saw an advertisement for the circus earlier this week, and thought of some events that might have been exciting to go. I haven't been to the circus since 8th grade, when my best friends snuck into the tent that day. Also, my sister and I have been speaking about ballet recently. It's our goal to see a ballet performance together!

Street Smarts

School has been busier, since I have homework nowadays. I spent more time with the other AFS exchange students, because we have a inter-scholastic concert on September 24th. We are singing Katuysha, a folk song about geese, and perhaps the Cheburashka Birthday song (as it is informally called). After practice, the girls and I sat at the playgrounds and caught up on each other's school and overall Russian experiences. Some older school girls approached us, because they were curious if we spoke Russian, and were absolutely delighted to chat. They were curious if we smoked and drank like they did, but I told them no. We wanted to respect our host family's wishes. They understood, and accepted our choices. They were nice about it!

As Tamara and I were walking to the bus stop after practice, we encountered a black-cladded group of teenage boys called goopniki, or the Russian hooligans. I asked Tamara to be quiet and inconspicuous for a moment, but we already made eye contact with the group. Already alert, I expected an obscene stare or a confrontation for being foreigners, but nothing bad really happened. Instead, one of the adolescents attempted to pickpocket my coat, but I simply smacked his hand away. It was one of my proud "Gotcha!" moments. I was a bit happy that I played it smart by not putting any valuables in my pockets; the most he would have gotten is my JetBlue sleeping mask. I keep it there for good memories and good luck. (In Russian, good luck would be "Udachi"!) Still, I was fortunate this time. It might have been bigger trouble if I had to face them alone. We went home safely without interruption after that incident!

However, the teenagers I have mentioned above are more of the exception than the rule. Most students I have met are very kind, curious and friendly. Friendly, that even during one day--when I flew into my friend's lap as the marshrutka halted--she did not mind. Talk about a funny experience....and Newton's laws.

Backtrack

In individualized lessons, we were instructed to read a short story about a boy named Fredya Ribkin who attempted to do his homework one winter day, but was distracted by the radio. It was slightly discouraging that the verbs (glagoli) were so challenging to read; there were many intimidating "ya-l-c-ya"s reflexive verbs, and so on...with plenty of unfamiliar vocabulary, but only through practice will our reading skills get better.

Through the day, we focused on the passage. It was a bit sad finding out last Friday, that we would sing only a small portion of Katuysha in Russian, because it's an amazing song in Russian, but at least all the AFS students will work on the performance together. We spend time together, and that's always a good thing. Also, who knows? Perhaps the song will be more fun when sung in different languages.

Back to today's events, we had an unexpected surprise in the English classes today. It was a flashback to 6th grade. Avril Lavinge's "Sk8ter Boi" played today, while the 8th graders analyzed the lyrics. I found it funny, because this was the song I wanted to originally sing during my 6th grade talent show, but the principal banned it because she believed it talked about teenage pregnancy...no comment on that. Anyhow, the 8th graders read their Oxford English textbook while an off-beat cover of the original song played. I found myself humming along.

Afterward, the 10th graders had their English class, where we spent a period just conversing in English. They were really friendly, although a bit shy. It's natural, I suppose, but the students speak English very well--better than they think they do.

However, my favorite part of the day was time with my sister Ira. In Russia, they have convenient electronic kiosks where you can pay for your internet, phone, TV, and misc bills. There was one located in a supermarket, and another in a bank. Ira helped me add money to my phone balance after school, and then we spent a good hour walking around the neighborhood. Sure, the skies were grey and it was cloudy, but we had a nice break from the recent rains.

All is good. I miss Grammar.

I have nothing to complain about. The food here is good, and it is not cold. Sixty degrees weather is good in my opinion (Fahrenheit, of course). My friend back at home says if the food is good, then I should be fine for the rest of the year. I guess that explains my priorities. No, but really, I am also happy about my progress with the Russian language. I am picking up new vocabulary despite not learning more about the grammar...for now at least!

Please, oh, please, let us get to the grammar rules! The cases are important, and I want more than at-home-review study time. So tomorrow or Monday, I will propose this idea to the teacher. The teachers at school are very accommodating to exchange students, who speak very little Russian already.

Very Cute Friends at School

I noticed that I spend a lot of time in the school library. Even though there are loud school children in there from time to time, there is just a simple piece of mind and peace when I can read a small Russian picture book or textbook from the library--"biblioteka" (similar word in Spanish apparently). The exchange students shared a good chocolate Alphen Gold snack there once with the librarian and a few "wkolniki" (elementary school children).

School has been pasting by more quickly now that we have more variety with our schedule. Also, we have also been to the computer labs a few times, but honestly, I do not do much in there besides try to listen to the Digital Information class, because I feel more comfortable using the Internet at home and my own laptop. It seems like a fun class. They were designing a Russian "Diplom" (Certificate) on Microsoft Word the other day, and I helped my sister figure out how to rotate the page into landscape.

In additional to AFS specific language instruction, we also sit with the 2nd graders to learn Russian handwriting. I am a bit anxious to start learning grammar and skip handwriting, but socially, it is fascinating to see the little children. They are very nice and well-behaved students. They take their class very seriously, raise their hand straightly and stand up to respond to questions. I love seeing their excited faces when they are called upon during class. During breaks between classes, they love to run about the second floor like little balls of energy.

I have made some nice friends with the second graders. I love them! They speak to me in Russian, because they have not learned much English, and I like speaking with them. They ask about America, my opinions on Cheboksary and the cutest things about speaking English. I am so happy that they talk to me, and are understanding/patient with my Russian. When we pass each other in the corridors, the little second graders wave hello. And today, on my way out of school, one of them hugged me! They are so friendly! I feel like I would learn more in a higher grade level of Russian language, but will the students be as nice?

Bonjour and Privet. Confetti and Les Bon-Bons

It feels pretty darn awesome when I don't need to use English. I want to rid myself of speaking English unless absolutely necessary, because I don't want to use English as a "fall-back" language or clutch onto it. Today, we spoke to the French teacher only in Russian and French. While I did relay some words to English to a friend, I liked that I used Russian as translating "middle" language when I spoke to the French teacher. It made me feel really proud about my knowledge in languages. I was also very comfortable speaking in those two languages, although I admit...I am beginning to forget French, while replacing the words with much more Russian nowadays. I haven't touched French since May during the IB examinations!

At home, I mainly speak with my host parents in Russian. While they are curious about how to say certain household items in English, our conversations are mostly basic Russian. I try to maintain good grammar when speaking in Russian, but when I don't have the right words to say, I don't mind breaking a few rules to communicate better. My family consists of amazing people: a mom, dad and two sisters--of 14 years and 7 years. They teach me new Russian words everyday, and make me feel comfortable in the house.

A Small Visit

Today we, the three AFS students from Gymnasium 1, visited School No. 46. We've accomplished a big feat by guiding ourselves through the public transportation by ourselves! We knew just enough Russian to get to our school to the next by marshrupka. It was a proud feeling that we did not become lost! It was an even better feeling to see the other Americans for a while. It's only been a week since we last saw each other, but it was nice to play catch up for a little bit. Their school is very nice, and I am a bit jealous that they have such wonderful, young volunteers there.

I lost my red jacket in the McDonalds nearby their school on Sunday, but now there's nothing much I can do. In addition, I left my yellow shirt near my laptop once at camp, but when I returned, the shirt disappeared. Sigh. I cannot be too upset about losing items; it just happens sometimes when I'm careless. I would just like to think someone else will be putting that item into good use. Anyhow, on a more exciting note, that particular McDonalds is famous! I saw that the regularly run commercial was filmed in that restaurant. I think the interior decor is gorgeous, hip and comfortable. It is less crowded than the two floor downtown McDonalds despite being smaller.

Don't Touch the Moonstones

Downtown Cheboksary is lovely. The buildings are so pretty, and there are also many shopping centers. One of them has a big cinema, where Ira, Tasha, Nadia and I watched Apollo 13 in Russian voice-dub. It was a funny experience that the Americans were "speaking in Russian" and complaining about Russian cosmonauts in space. Tasha and I found it very ironic when the Americans asked where the Russians were on the Moon, but maybe it's just a bad joke between us. We looked around . I gave her a funny look and whispered, "Well...they're right here. They're all around us/"

Surprisingly, it was very easy to sit through, and although the plot was rather sad and plain; the Russian was easy enough to understand. The ending where the ill-fated astronauts said "I am going home" in English was translated over to Russian "I am flying to you" = "Ya lechy tebe" instead, so not all of the film was direct or literal translation. The vocabulary was fairly simple: "moon"="luna", "Russian"="russki", "astronaut"="kosmonaut", etc.

Earlier in the day, the family and friends had a backyard barbecue when we came home from school. Sadly, the rain and "veter" (wind) hit us like Niagara Falls, even our little tent could not prevent us from the damp rain. We rescued the dishes and leftover meat, and evacuated to the garage to finish our meal. We were on a good laugh when I started eating one of the still-raw meat without even realizing it.

September 1st

The first day of school was a ceremony rather than class, so the foreign students shortly introduced ourselves, then gave flowers to teachers. I had a great time watching the dance and song performances of the grade school children; they were very well coordinated. Afterwards, I spent time with Tasha and Nadia. For lunch it was Pizza-Nitza--super crowded today afterschool.

After, we went to the shopping center across from downtown mega McDonalds to browse. Then, we walked to amusement park near the Volga River. The ride was slightly scary, but to everyone else, it was a child's show. We also bumped into Pear, our third AFS student in Gymnasium 1, there!

After grocery shopping, the family went to the sushi bar near the house. Of course, there was a great deal of mayonnaise in the rolls. I still find the love of mayo fascinating and strange to my taste buds, but never the less, I found myself very full off "Kalifornia Maki", "Kappa Maki" and "Filadelphia Maki". On the side note, "Smetana" means sour creme, and it is also very prominent as a condiment in Russian cuisine. Go dairy!

My host family drinks kefir sometimes, which is a bit like sour liquid yogurt, but they don't mind if I abstain. I've never liked it before. For everything else, I have eaten or drank. There is also a drink called "kampota" which is similar to watered down apple juice, where the fruits flavor the water. Still, the most popular drink is hands down "chai"--tea! Food and drink in Russia is 10 times better than I had expected, especially since my mother is a skilled/magnificent cook!

Return of the Breakfast Monster

I woke up at 6AM, early so I can add a quick post before my First Day of school. I hope it will be a fun day, although I probably cannot understand most of the Russian for today.

On a lighter note, I was reminded of camp during the last two breakfast meals. During camp, students had to dip their hands in soup to find a secret message, afterwards we cleaned our hands in a nearby stream. It was already uncomfortable, but then we had another food-related task.

We dug our hands into a bucket of brown rice, and after ate a handful of "kasha". Normally, I wouldn't mind grains, but I worried too much about sanitation. The fact that I had to put my hands into the bucket with other people's hands was very off-putting to me. I was over-thinking the task, and managed to gross myself out. Still, I finished.

However, breakfast was an entirely pleasant experience. Kasha was served on a plate with butter. I ate it, and it was delicious. I guess it was just my mind-set that told me that I felt sick. Brown rice is actually quite yummy.

A Steamy Tradition

So today, I spent time with my sister's friends at McDonalds and the nifty shopping center next-door to it. Apparently, there's an arcade there, which I find really cool. There's a teddy-bear kid version of DDR to children's songs like "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "London Bridge". There were several racing games, and the classic table hockey stations. I am so happy about the latter, a familiar game.

I also caught up with Tamara for an hour, which was really nice, because I began to miss conversing in English. She told me she felt the same way about Italian. While we sat outside the cafe, there was also a small incident with 3 middle school-aged boys. I suppose they found our lack of Russian conversational skills funny, but it was a bit annoying when they pulled out a cellphone to record us. I am not sure whether they were trying to be friendly or menacing, but either way, there was no harm done after all. Hopefully, their video clip stays offline.

Later that day, the girls in the family headed to the Banya! It was much hotter than expected, that I could only spend maybe 2 minutes in the steam room each time, and the tradition about beating the birch tree and bay-leaf branches to simulate the blood---yes, that was totally awesome. My youngest host sister loves the banya, and I would have to agree; it's more than an extended shower and more than a sauna. I would say that it is also a lot different from a Western style spa; here, you service yourself rather than having attendants wait on your whims. What a great experience!

МакДоналдс

Woke up early to chat with some people from home, then went back to sleep for an hour. Breakfast was great, we had some leftover blini! Today the sisters and I watched another Disney film with Adam Sandler and some other famous actors called “Bedtime stories”; the film might not have fared well in sales, but I do like it. There's a weird googly-eyed guinea pig there named Bugsy too. I like the way it works, the audio is in Russian while subtitles are in English. Although the words don't generally match, I think I am getting the gist of the scenes.

Afs students had a short excursion around town today. Our mode of transport? A yellow marshupka, or taxi van. We visited the hilltops to catch views of Orthodox churches and the Volga, then went to the World War Two (Great War) monument. After, we sat in Gymnasium #46, where three of the awesome exchange students are attending later, and where we spoke of educational obligations of the school year and some logistics about camps/optional excursions. Around 1pm, our host siblings came with us to the smaller McDonalds near #46. Students exchanged numbers and socialized.

The “chicken shake” that we feared, was not like advertised. The Americans thought it would be some sort of weird milkshake, but it was more similar to a spiced chicken nugget invented by the Japanese person who missed boba tea snacks. It only took me a iced tea and fries (kartowska frites) to fill me up, since I normally avoid eating McDonalds in the States. Afterwards, my host sister Irina and I took another marshupka to the larger McDonalds near home, where Papa picked us up.

School starts on September 1st, a national day of knowledge. I am not sure what to expect, but I have heard many things about flowers for the teacher and dressing up for some sort of ceremony. I am anxious, yet also excited. I've been really happy lately because my host sisters and I have helped each other learn English and Russian.

At the Destination!

After an ultra-comfortable train ride for 12 hours, we arrived in Cheboksary. I was nervous to meet my host family, but I immediately felt their warm spirit as the students disembarked the train.

Today might be the first day living without the other exchange students from camp, but nevertheless, it was exciting. I loved the small tour of the city as my family drove to the house. Cheboksary is quite beautiful, and much cleaner than Moscow and definitely more so than New York. I saw the famous Volvo river today, and we actually snacked on pizza near the embankment. For Russian pizza, mayonnaise replaces the ordinary American tomato paste. We shopped for picnic groceries as we waited for the pizza; the Russian supermarket lines are tidier and very cool-looking. Another thing I noticed was that lunch (obed) was a heartier meal than dinner (uxin) for Russians.

I learned the word for bridge (most) in Russian today. The term might be mentioned a lot since we live in a city nearby the river. There were a lot of graffiti from teenage couples who wanted to declare their love through writing on the bridge. It's a bit of a funny notion since my hometown, San Jose, seriously battles blight and graffiti with a passion. I should know, since part of my sophomore internship stressed the Blight Control and Anti-Graffiti hotline.

I suppose my family was impressed that I knew Russian and other foreign languages; I would say the knowledge really helps me communicate. I think I can understand 80% of what my host mother and father tells me. So far, I have been on their good side, and I hope I will continue to make them happy. I imagine the task of taking care of a foreign exchange student requires much patience—especially when language is a barrier.

I am still a bit anxious about attending class with instruction in Russian, but I suppose, I will learn a lot of new vocabulary there. Ira and I walked around the neighborhood today. It was rather tiring because the weather would randomly change from hot to cold and vice-verse. Still, I am excited about attending Gymnasium No.1, the school is mostly indoors and the gym is well-sized. I hope I can take physical education class, so I can stay healthy and fit in Russia. I also hope I can take their advanced level English class, because I will really miss conversing in English with my fellow foreign exchange students and Americans.

Yes, I miss the comfortable life in California, but there are many things to be learned here too. It's not better, it's not worse in Russia; it's simply different. Some things remain similar to America; there are several parks, pizza shops, public transportation and a McDonalds, and I hope once my fascination with this new town slowly evaporates, I will feel some other wonderful emotion instead.

8-21 First Impressions of Camp

Currently, it is 5:40AM in Moscow as I begin this journal entry. I awoke because of the loud falling rain. The sound is prominent, but soothing. None of the roommates are awake, and I tried to find a way to type without disturbing their rest.

I am having a really good time right now. Here, I live in the moment instead of over-analyzing things like I tend to do in America. I am not afraid to cooperate in fun games, make language mistakes or act silly during this Russian camp. The camp is located near the edge of Moscow, and there are students originally from across Europe, America and Asia right now. We all have an accent when speaking English, which reminds me of last year's summer camp at GMU, but it all works well regarding communication. I am more happy when I conversed slightly in Russian and French with the students here.

The first day of camp only finished yesterday, but I can already see my progress with the Russian language. I recently learned the names of colors, a concept which we rushed through during the only 8-week summer Russian course I took. But more importantly, we learned grammar terminology in Russian with its English equivalent. I assume those terms will be essential for learning Russian in the future. Anyhow, in that previous sentence, “we” was defined as the Americans and I, but already, I can identify myself with other international campers too. At camp, we are all foreigners except for the native Russians; we speak too much English, but I am sure next time we meet, we will attempt to communicate more in Russian. For the latter, I am very excited.

I am not sure why, but here, I am not afraid to make mistakes while speaking Russian. Most of the time, I get my message across without repeating sentences, but I still believe I should practice my pronunciation and learning where the stressed vowels are. I remember Miss OK politely advising me on practicing more before I left the US. Perhaps it is because people know I am a foreigner that they expect less of my language skills, but when I was in a classroom setting, making mistakes was frightening. I stressed over saying things correctly or not at all, which discouraged me from learning as much as I could. Yes, that was not a good thing, but I was sincerely intimidated. The relaxed environment here is very nurturing, kind, open and friendly; I have bonded most with the American girls, but I am also making many other friends from other countries too.

I think I will really miss the camp's international atmosphere, and the chance to easily speak English. In many ways, it still feels like America, because English pop songs play, we speak English mostly, I see the American girls for most of the day, the activities are conducted into English, and the Russian spoken here is reduced to my level of understanding. I can only imagine life will get more complicated and much more confusing when we leave camp. People will expect me to speak better Russian and will not be as friendly or accepting as the people here, so I want to make the most out of being here. I want to clear all my insecurities away before I enter the “real Russia”. I also want to make AFS proud by respectfully representing my country and NSLI-Y.

Near the end of the day, we had an activity called “Map of the World” where everyone sat as shown on a world map, then sang with their country delegation their national anthem or another song to represent their nation. Although we debated heavily over song choices, the Americans did a fabulous job with “America the Beautiful”. We were all in tune. Actually, I believe all the countries sang well. It must have been difficult for the smaller delegations; some sang solo or with only 2-3 people. The American group was only 6 people itself, but any smaller would have made this activity harder.

On that mention, the Americans are all grouped together during camp language lessons, but separated during smaller activities, in that way, I meet several more people. Working back reverse chronically, dinner was delicious when we were served chicken, rice, mayo salad and raspberry yoghurt. At first, the table was very quiet, as most of us did not speak English well. I was able to practice Russian with two girls there, and two calm Italians spoke some English too. I was proud of my attempts to converse, and people seem very receptive despite my limited knowledge.

We also dance many times during camp. It requires a lot of energy to keep up with the tempo and moves. Near bed time, I was actually a bit hungry because we moved so much throughout the day. There were many highs throughout the day, which even the slight rain could not ruin. I feel very thankful now for this opportunity to be in Russia, and glad I came. I used to be scared of the myths I heard of Russia: land of no smiles, cold perpetual Siberian winters, excessive alcohol, but I will learn the better truth, the good parts of Russia during this year. And when I return to America, I am excited to debunk these highly exaggerated preconceptions!

Arrival to Russian Soil

Due to weather problems, we stayed an additional 2.5 hours on the plane as rain poured, lightening smashed and thunder boomed. This lengthened our original 10 hours flight from DC to Moscow. This would be my last time in Dulles and American soil for quite a while--10 months, I suppose? The in-flight dinner was good, and our seats were nice with extra legroom. The flight instructions were mostly in Russian and English. Every time the crew chimed in with "Captain", I thought I heard my name instead. On the small screen, I watched Disney Pixar's "Cars" in Russian and also listened to American pop songs when I could not sleep.

Customs was easy. We all wore our blue AFS t-shirts, and there were no problems. My luggage handle doesn't work, so carrying the bags was a bit tedious, but at least, that is only a short period of time. Camp is on the outskirts of Moscow, with an hour's van ride away from the airport. We had a nice view of the country-side, or what appeared to be the fields during the trip toward campgrounds.

The first night at camp was nice. All five of the American girls share a second-floor room and five beds. It still has not occurred to me that I am in Russia. I am still in my comfort zone by hanging out with the Americans, and speaking too much English.

Day before Russian Soil

Orientation has been a great experience. Although my original flight from SJC to JFK was cancelled due to bad weather, JetBlue arranged me with seats on a Boston to NY connection. The seats had extra leg room, and the TVs/radio were great during the travel. Having an extra hour to hang with family and friends was also a plus, but time at my hometown airport moved fast. Before I knew it, I was sleeping in a plane to Boston, then to New York, then I was at orientation.

The other students with NSLI-Y were extremely nice people. I felt more comfortable being here. Before, I was extremely anxious about leaving 10 months to Russia, a country that seems very foreign and strange. However, during the months in Russia, I hope that I gain enough language skills to read magazines in Russian and maintain simple conversations. I also hope that I will have a better understanding of Russian culture, and finally find an explanation for why smiles aren't that popular in public.