I also have a picture of myself after I getting out of the banya but I think that is more of myself than I would like to post on the internet. Instead, I bring you another awesome sunset from my uncle's balcony.
Wednesday, 18 July 2007
пирожки
Day after my birthday, they wanted to go to the river and I almost went but at the last second I thought about how hard it rained yesterday afternoon, how how it was today, and how perfect conditions it has become for mosquitoes. I told them I didn't want to go because of the mosquitoes and they didn't heed the warning. I had barely started reading the book my grandma gave me as a present before they returned complaining about the mosquitoes. On the things to do in Russia we still had to cook and eat some perojki and drink vodka after a nice hot banya (wet sauna). Unfortunately, I barely took any pictures so all I have is this picture of how perojki are made.
I also have a picture of myself after I getting out of the banya but I think that is more of myself than I would like to post on the internet. Instead, I bring you another awesome sunset from my uncle's balcony.
I also have a picture of myself after I getting out of the banya but I think that is more of myself than I would like to post on the internet. Instead, I bring you another awesome sunset from my uncle's balcony.
разменял третий десяток
"разменял третий десяток" is how one would say "I'm in my twenties" in Russian but it really means "I've changed into my third decade". The way I see it is "I'm approaching thirty." I guess it's time to get a move on because I'm sure before I know it I will be approaching a hundred and, yes, I'm confident I will live to be atleast a hundred. Got to believe it to make it happen. My family asked what I wanted to do for my birthday and I told them I just wanted to make it a normal day. Approaching thirty after being a teenager isn't anything I would want to celebrate anyways. I have to admit, it's great a excuse for a feast.
My little cousin made the dough.
The women sculpted (<=direct translation) the pelmini.
They even allowed a man operate the stove for this special occasion. He handled it like a pro.
They decided it would be nice to take a photo of me and my grandmas with my uncle's officer hat on.
Funny how just a few minutes later my dad's mom was explaining to my mom's mom how you can't treat kids like toys but I guess once its a two-way thing it's treating kids like playmates.
I think the hat suited my mom's mom much better.
A couple of real men putting real meat on real metal sticks.
Before.
After.
We sat outside for the occasion and everyone stood up to dedicate a toast to me. I've never celebrated in this fashion and I think it's quite fun. My favorite toast was from my dad, "Never stop trying new things."
Once again, the sunset looks awesome from Valera's balcony.
One more time.
I don't want to grow up! I like my youth. Why can't I stay this young forever? What am I going to do for money once my parental scholarship is over? Where am I going to go to make a dozen acquaintances an hour after college is over? Most importanyly, what am I going to do to vent stress when I can't senselessly throw myself rollerblades-first at urban obstacles anymore? I guess I'll have to use my frustration with the world in a more productive way. I'll be damned if I don't play escape artist for as long as I can though.
My little cousin made the dough.
The women sculpted (<=direct translation) the pelmini.
They even allowed a man operate the stove for this special occasion. He handled it like a pro.
They decided it would be nice to take a photo of me and my grandmas with my uncle's officer hat on.
Funny how just a few minutes later my dad's mom was explaining to my mom's mom how you can't treat kids like toys but I guess once its a two-way thing it's treating kids like playmates.
I think the hat suited my mom's mom much better.
A couple of real men putting real meat on real metal sticks.
Before.
After.
We sat outside for the occasion and everyone stood up to dedicate a toast to me. I've never celebrated in this fashion and I think it's quite fun. My favorite toast was from my dad, "Never stop trying new things."
Once again, the sunset looks awesome from Valera's balcony.
One more time.
I don't want to grow up! I like my youth. Why can't I stay this young forever? What am I going to do for money once my parental scholarship is over? Where am I going to go to make a dozen acquaintances an hour after college is over? Most importanyly, what am I going to do to vent stress when I can't senselessly throw myself rollerblades-first at urban obstacles anymore? I guess I'll have to use my frustration with the world in a more productive way. I'll be damned if I don't play escape artist for as long as I can though.
аллергия на первый класс
Andre and I agreed to wake up at 8 am today so he could go to work and I could go skate but when my internal alarm went off at 8am I really didn't feel like getting up. I got up anyways but nobody else showed any signs of life so I drank a liter of water as a preventive preemptive strike against a hangover and went back to sleep till noon.
Another Andre, my mom's cousin, came to see us and have some tea at Raya's apartment.
He shared his plans for the future which included building his own house with the help of a new truck.
We caught a taxi to the Novosibirsk train station but missed the first train so we hid under some shade and drank juice to deal with the heat.
My mom bought first class tickets again despite the fact that I had terrible allergies on first class last time. This time was no different. Even the way my allergies completely quit every time I went to any other wagon. I would run to the bathroom to blow my nose but by the time I'd get there, my nose would stop running completely. Atleast I got a picture from the bathroom window.
After a nap at Valera's, we started making pelmini to prepare for my birthday. Didn't get any photos of us making pelmini but my mom did get a photo of me enjoying some right after the stroke of midnight.
My dad was returning with his mom at 3am, so I stayed up and tried to catch up my endless blog on my seemingly endless adventure. I didn't have internet so I was just writing to notepad and collecting photos. Surprisingly, their train was on time and everyone was glad to see each other.
Another Andre, my mom's cousin, came to see us and have some tea at Raya's apartment.
He shared his plans for the future which included building his own house with the help of a new truck.
We caught a taxi to the Novosibirsk train station but missed the first train so we hid under some shade and drank juice to deal with the heat.
My mom bought first class tickets again despite the fact that I had terrible allergies on first class last time. This time was no different. Even the way my allergies completely quit every time I went to any other wagon. I would run to the bathroom to blow my nose but by the time I'd get there, my nose would stop running completely. Atleast I got a picture from the bathroom window.
After a nap at Valera's, we started making pelmini to prepare for my birthday. Didn't get any photos of us making pelmini but my mom did get a photo of me enjoying some right after the stroke of midnight.
My dad was returning with his mom at 3am, so I stayed up and tried to catch up my endless blog on my seemingly endless adventure. I didn't have internet so I was just writing to notepad and collecting photos. Surprisingly, their train was on time and everyone was glad to see each other.
Thursday, 12 July 2007
с днем рождения райка
By the time I woke up, Andrey and Raya already left to buy groceries and other necessities for Raya's birthday party. They began cooking at around noon and it took them almost 5 hours. Andrey, Raika, and Veronica made a variety of beautiful and yummy appetizers and salads.
During that time, my mom and I went out to look for a birthday present. We stopped by the movie theater first because I had an urge to watch the new transformers on the big screen in Russian. It was over an hour to the next showing so we had plenty of time to shop around in the mall underneath the theater and elsewhere. The very first place we looked was a little mall stand selling all sorts of junk but we noticed a couple of elegantly designed and framed wood cuts that we both really liked but we decided to play it safe and walk around for another hour. We walked around till we couldn't stand the heat anymore and then ended up returning to the first mall stand we visited. Is it just me or does this happen to everyone? It seems like every time I'm looking for a present like this I'll find it in the first 5 minutes but wander around for an hour only to find out there is nothing better or I'll take 5 photos of something just to make sure I have a good one and four out of five times the first one is the best one. Atleast when shopping with presents the extra time spent increases your confidence. Wish I had a photo of it but all I have is Raya hiding behind the flowers we got for her after the wood cut.
I think she had fun posing with her presents.
So much fun we had to hold her down.
I was actually one of the last people to show up because of the Transformers movie but I got back just in time.
Vitka, the guy on my left was teasing me about my Russian-American background and kept pouring me vodka to the rim. I dodged many toasts by leaving to upload photos and work on my blog. Vitka would come grab me sometimes and everytime I would have a full shot of vodka ready and waiting for me. I never missed a step so I never refused but Raya was falling over herself within the first hour.
The others weren't far behind either. They started singing and a whole lot of them decided to rehearse an old pioneer song. Pioneers are the Russian version of boy scouts and girl scouts. Check out Andrey in the back keeping the spirit alive.
They provided their own entertainment with games and songs. In this game, the person behind the picture doesn't know what fairy tale character he/she/they are and they can only ask yes/no questions to figure it while everyone laughs at them. When they finally guess they get to make any person in the audience perform one of their wishes.
My mom and Raya have been getting along greatly for 30 years.
At midnight, all the guests had left and my mom and I started cleaning. It didn't take long and afterwards we continued the party with just the four of us. My mom went to sleep at 2 but Raya, Andrey, and I stayed up until almost 5.
During that time, my mom and I went out to look for a birthday present. We stopped by the movie theater first because I had an urge to watch the new transformers on the big screen in Russian. It was over an hour to the next showing so we had plenty of time to shop around in the mall underneath the theater and elsewhere. The very first place we looked was a little mall stand selling all sorts of junk but we noticed a couple of elegantly designed and framed wood cuts that we both really liked but we decided to play it safe and walk around for another hour. We walked around till we couldn't stand the heat anymore and then ended up returning to the first mall stand we visited. Is it just me or does this happen to everyone? It seems like every time I'm looking for a present like this I'll find it in the first 5 minutes but wander around for an hour only to find out there is nothing better or I'll take 5 photos of something just to make sure I have a good one and four out of five times the first one is the best one. Atleast when shopping with presents the extra time spent increases your confidence. Wish I had a photo of it but all I have is Raya hiding behind the flowers we got for her after the wood cut.
I think she had fun posing with her presents.
So much fun we had to hold her down.
I was actually one of the last people to show up because of the Transformers movie but I got back just in time.
Vitka, the guy on my left was teasing me about my Russian-American background and kept pouring me vodka to the rim. I dodged many toasts by leaving to upload photos and work on my blog. Vitka would come grab me sometimes and everytime I would have a full shot of vodka ready and waiting for me. I never missed a step so I never refused but Raya was falling over herself within the first hour.
The others weren't far behind either. They started singing and a whole lot of them decided to rehearse an old pioneer song. Pioneers are the Russian version of boy scouts and girl scouts. Check out Andrey in the back keeping the spirit alive.
They provided their own entertainment with games and songs. In this game, the person behind the picture doesn't know what fairy tale character he/she/they are and they can only ask yes/no questions to figure it while everyone laughs at them. When they finally guess they get to make any person in the audience perform one of their wishes.
My mom and Raya have been getting along greatly for 30 years.
At midnight, all the guests had left and my mom and I started cleaning. It didn't take long and afterwards we continued the party with just the four of us. My mom went to sleep at 2 but Raya, Andrey, and I stayed up until almost 5.
иван купала
Today is a special day. It's 7/7/07 but more importantly its еван купала, a Russian holiday that is celebrated by an all out free-for-all water fight between everybody. I prepared the night before by placing a water bottle next to my bed but luckily my uncle forgot what day it was when he woke up. Two minutes later, he remembered and got me good but I still had my defenses up and got him back.
We caught the train to Novisibirsk and I found out I'm allergic to first class, seriously. It didn't stop me from enjoying an old fashioned train ride on the Siberian railways. It also didn't stop the passengers on the passing train from spraying water into our open windows and getting us wet. I told you it was a free-for-all.
Andrey and Raya met us right outside the train and after a 10 minute metro ride and a 5 minute walk we were at their place. I don't know if I've ever used the Novisibirsk underground before but it certainly beats San Francisco and London in every respect. After a light lunch, we caught the bus to the Novisibirsk zoo and on the way there I saw a boy standing on the corner with his mom spraying passing car after passing car with his water gun.
In addition to animals, they had wooden and stone sculptures at the zoo.
This is a stone sculpture of a bull with a basket of flowers hanging off his horn.
We saw some very exotic animal but I swear this bird couldn't possibly survive in the wild cause it looked like its colors were painted on.
King of the jungle.
This is the coolest monkey I have ever seen. Not that I've seen that many monkeys but I am a monkey so I should know.
I admit that I was very depressed at first. I couldn't help feeling terribly sorry for all the animals in cages. Some drunk bastards were going around spraying animals with water guns too.
Atleast the animals still have each other.
I forgot all about the pity I felt when we got to the feline section of the zoo. I'm definitely a cat person. They are just such gorgeous creatures.
I hope I'll be a cat in my next life.
This is a liger, the offspring of a male lion and a female tiger. Ligers look badass and they are the biggest cats on the planet.
Andrey and Raya's cats are still my favorite cats in Novisibirsk.
After the zoo, we went home for dinner and waited for the temperature to drop before venturing outside again. Outside their apartment are two junked cars sitting on top of a garage. Nobody knows why but they looked pretty cool in this lighting.
About half past 7, Andrey and Raya took me to the Novosibirsk "skatepark". On the way there I saw people get whole buckets of water dumped on them from a bridge.
It was actually a bikepark because there were cracks everywhere to get your wheels stuck in. It wasn't skate friendly at all but there was a grind box off to side about 10 meters long that provided me with grinding pleasure for two solid hours until I couldn't jump anymore. The park sat on the river and provided a beautiful view of the other side of Novosibirsk.
I was shot the butt by a kids water assault rifle when taking this photo. His mom tried scolding him for it but I was hot as hell from skating so I encourage thekid to soak me completely.
Maybe it was all the adrenaline from skating or the festive spirit in the air but I was feeling really grateful for my Russian roots that brought me here on this lucky day of 7-7-07. Its strange how in America I'm Russian but in Russia I'm American. It's like neither culture will ever fully accept me. Even though I spent most of my life in America, I know I can never be American. It's nothing against America its just not who I am. It finally hit me that this is my true home. I was born here and I was raised by this culture and I'll be damned if I don't spend more time here, learn my culture, and find out what it means to be Russian.
We caught the train to Novisibirsk and I found out I'm allergic to first class, seriously. It didn't stop me from enjoying an old fashioned train ride on the Siberian railways. It also didn't stop the passengers on the passing train from spraying water into our open windows and getting us wet. I told you it was a free-for-all.
Andrey and Raya met us right outside the train and after a 10 minute metro ride and a 5 minute walk we were at their place. I don't know if I've ever used the Novisibirsk underground before but it certainly beats San Francisco and London in every respect. After a light lunch, we caught the bus to the Novisibirsk zoo and on the way there I saw a boy standing on the corner with his mom spraying passing car after passing car with his water gun.
In addition to animals, they had wooden and stone sculptures at the zoo.
This is a stone sculpture of a bull with a basket of flowers hanging off his horn.
We saw some very exotic animal but I swear this bird couldn't possibly survive in the wild cause it looked like its colors were painted on.
King of the jungle.
This is the coolest monkey I have ever seen. Not that I've seen that many monkeys but I am a monkey so I should know.
I admit that I was very depressed at first. I couldn't help feeling terribly sorry for all the animals in cages. Some drunk bastards were going around spraying animals with water guns too.
Atleast the animals still have each other.
I forgot all about the pity I felt when we got to the feline section of the zoo. I'm definitely a cat person. They are just such gorgeous creatures.
I hope I'll be a cat in my next life.
This is a liger, the offspring of a male lion and a female tiger. Ligers look badass and they are the biggest cats on the planet.
Andrey and Raya's cats are still my favorite cats in Novisibirsk.
After the zoo, we went home for dinner and waited for the temperature to drop before venturing outside again. Outside their apartment are two junked cars sitting on top of a garage. Nobody knows why but they looked pretty cool in this lighting.
About half past 7, Andrey and Raya took me to the Novosibirsk "skatepark". On the way there I saw people get whole buckets of water dumped on them from a bridge.
It was actually a bikepark because there were cracks everywhere to get your wheels stuck in. It wasn't skate friendly at all but there was a grind box off to side about 10 meters long that provided me with grinding pleasure for two solid hours until I couldn't jump anymore. The park sat on the river and provided a beautiful view of the other side of Novosibirsk.
I was shot the butt by a kids water assault rifle when taking this photo. His mom tried scolding him for it but I was hot as hell from skating so I encourage thekid to soak me completely.
Maybe it was all the adrenaline from skating or the festive spirit in the air but I was feeling really grateful for my Russian roots that brought me here on this lucky day of 7-7-07. Its strange how in America I'm Russian but in Russia I'm American. It's like neither culture will ever fully accept me. Even though I spent most of my life in America, I know I can never be American. It's nothing against America its just not who I am. It finally hit me that this is my true home. I was born here and I was raised by this culture and I'll be damned if I don't spend more time here, learn my culture, and find out what it means to be Russian.
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