Disclaimer: This may be boring.
Hear an obnoxious alarm. Turn it off with zero intention of moving in the next 30 minutes.
30 minutes later...check iPad and read iMessages received from people in the states overnight (...due to different time zones.)
Realize I have 30 less minutes to get ready. Skip a shower. Hair in ponytail.
Play a documentary on Vikings in the background while I get ready.
Consume a hard boiled egg for breakfast. Get dressed. Brush teeth. Throw "Go, Dog! Go!" and the pixar DVD "Cars" in my purse, and head out the door.
Enter my questionable elevator on the 9th floor. Ponder if that smell inside is from either body odor, or an onion sandwich.
It is cloudy and chilly outside. But I wear my sunglasses anyway. I'm tired and don't want anyone to look at me, or approach me.
Making eye contact gives people the opportunity to think they can ask me for directions. Then stare at, and/or follow me because I'm a foreigner.
Pop in my headphones and listen to this song over and over until its not stuck in my head anymore.
Briskly take the 10 minute walk to my metro station.
Enter my metro station at Ulitsa 1905 Goda (location of the start of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1905..). Appear to be angry. I'm not really angry. I'm content, but it is all part of my "I see drunks stumbling home from their night out...so I look unapproachable" plan.
I hear my train coming while I'm at the top of the escalator. Decide not to run to catch it. Unlike the fools behind me who push and shove their way to the train...I'm in no hurry.
Enter the train. Two options: Stand....or sit in the corner seat by that sleeping man...who seems to be producing an unpleasant odor.
Stand.
4 stops. Transfer to another train. This time, Ive got a seat elbow to elbow with a little old babushka.
Observe an armless man in the next carriage with a bag hanging around his neck. Predict that he'll be on my train next. I'm right. He enters and stands at the end of the train to a sing a few off key lyrics. Couldn't catch what any of the lyrics were in Russian....but wonder where his arms went, and how he gets his money out of the bag around his neck. He walks down the train and receives a few coins here and there.
Exit armless man. Enter hunched over woman with broken shoes and crooked feet. Sits near me until the train begins to move again. She stands and vocalizes a plead to the passengers on the train. She spoke with much passion, and all I understood from her speech was "I need bread". She hobbled down the train with her hand out. No one gave her coins.
Pass the metro stop called "Leninsky Prospekt". There is a mall at that stop. Decide in that moment that on my way home later, I'll make a pit stop.
Arrive at the metro stop near where my favorite Russian child, Anton lives. We have an English lesson for an hour a half today.
Cross the busy street to the apartment building the only way I can...walk right into moving traffic. Trust the cars will stop. Its best to cross right behind a babushka. Less chance of getting hit.
Get to the apartment building. Call up to the wrong flat. I'm told by the voice on the other end that he doesn't know me. Whoops. I don't know him either. I call up to the correct flat, and enter the building like normal.
Enter the building, get in the elevator and realize that some nice individual must have painted over the swear words that were previously decorating the walls.
Talk to Anton's mom about my trip to Odessa. Proud that Anton is asking his mom for water in English. Start my lesson with Anton.
Tell Anton that if he gets five smiley faces today for doing a good job, he will be rewarded with the movie "Cars" in English. He responds "Oh! This a very good surprise!"
He was exceptionally well behaved during the lesson.
Had trouble remembering to say "a" when learning to form sentences such as "I am a boy"....but tried hard nonetheless.
Anton's mom brings us tea and sandwiches.
Anton puts his finger up his nose.
Make a note not to eat that piece of cheese Anton has touched.
We review our five sense from a few weeks ago. Anton tells me that we smell with our ears.
Impromptu re-teach session on the five senses.
Suddenly during the lesson there was a peculiar odor. This odor is followed by Anton telling me that he needs to use the toilet. This happens often. I knew before he came back into the room to get toy lego cars....that he was going to do that. I also knew that for the next five minutes, I'd hear a Russian version of the Indy 500 coming from the bathroom.
To end our lesson, I read one of my favorite childhood books to Anton, "Go, Dog! Go!" I'm proud that Anton understands the book in English well enough to laugh at the lady dog who continuously asks the man dog if he likes her hat. Anton expressed, that like the man dog, he too did not like her hat.
Lesson is over, Anton gets a sticker, the movie, and five minutes to play solitaire with me on my iPad. No, he doesn't really know how to play. But he pretends.
Head back to the metro. Witness a man whose head was nearly taken off by a pigeon...immediately followed by man who completely wiped out while running up the stairs. That didn't slow him down. He was up and running again in no time.
Realize I need to pee.
Get off at the metro stop "Leninsky Prospekt". Shopping, remember.
While walking to the mall, wonder why there is a statue of a transformer or whatever over there.
Wonder if there is an age and weight requirement to play in these.
As I pass this overcrowded supermarket which I hate, these thoughts run through my head:
"Thank God I'm not going in there."
"Why are there so many people?"
"Don't look at me."
"What do all these people do?"
"Where are the sales?"
"I'm in Moscow, there are no sales."
"I'm shopping anyway."
Enter a shop.
Buy a cute green top, after trying on an array of items in many different sizes as I am still not completely sure what all the sizes mean here.
Enter another shop.
Enter the fitting room to try on a slew of cute dresses. As soon as I'm naked, the power goes out.
So I open my iPad for light, and go about trying on my clothes.
I hear an announcement that the lights will be back on in five minutes. I can't see my outfits well enough, become bored, don't feel like waiting, put my normal clothes on, and leave.
The whole top floor of the mall is blacked out. I walk down the non-moving escalator. Sit on a bench. An odd little child dressed head to toe in snow gear perches next to me. Why so bundled? We're inside, and its like 50 degrees out (Fahrenheit).
I try counting how many pieces of merchandise a store is sporting with the American flag on them. Socks, shirts, bags, more shirts.
Decide I'm done at the mall because:
1. I'm overcome with hunger and a headache.
2. What did my wallet ever do to me?
While exiting the mall through the rotating doors, I think "How come no one here understands personal space? As soon as I'm home, I'm translating how to say "get out of my bubble" into Russian."
The intensity of my headache was increased in the metro station as I was walking and reading on my iPad...and had a head on collision with this thing:
I'm not as short as I thought.
Conclusion:
I talked too much about odors in this post...
-Gina
Hear an obnoxious alarm. Turn it off with zero intention of moving in the next 30 minutes.
30 minutes later...check iPad and read iMessages received from people in the states overnight (...due to different time zones.)
Realize I have 30 less minutes to get ready. Skip a shower. Hair in ponytail.
Play a documentary on Vikings in the background while I get ready.
Consume a hard boiled egg for breakfast. Get dressed. Brush teeth. Throw "Go, Dog! Go!" and the pixar DVD "Cars" in my purse, and head out the door.
Enter my questionable elevator on the 9th floor. Ponder if that smell inside is from either body odor, or an onion sandwich.
It is cloudy and chilly outside. But I wear my sunglasses anyway. I'm tired and don't want anyone to look at me, or approach me.
Making eye contact gives people the opportunity to think they can ask me for directions. Then stare at, and/or follow me because I'm a foreigner.
Pop in my headphones and listen to this song over and over until its not stuck in my head anymore.
Briskly take the 10 minute walk to my metro station.
Enter my metro station at Ulitsa 1905 Goda (location of the start of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1905..). Appear to be angry. I'm not really angry. I'm content, but it is all part of my "I see drunks stumbling home from their night out...so I look unapproachable" plan.
I hear my train coming while I'm at the top of the escalator. Decide not to run to catch it. Unlike the fools behind me who push and shove their way to the train...I'm in no hurry.
Enter the train. Two options: Stand....or sit in the corner seat by that sleeping man...who seems to be producing an unpleasant odor.
Stand.
4 stops. Transfer to another train. This time, Ive got a seat elbow to elbow with a little old babushka.
Observe an armless man in the next carriage with a bag hanging around his neck. Predict that he'll be on my train next. I'm right. He enters and stands at the end of the train to a sing a few off key lyrics. Couldn't catch what any of the lyrics were in Russian....but wonder where his arms went, and how he gets his money out of the bag around his neck. He walks down the train and receives a few coins here and there.
Exit armless man. Enter hunched over woman with broken shoes and crooked feet. Sits near me until the train begins to move again. She stands and vocalizes a plead to the passengers on the train. She spoke with much passion, and all I understood from her speech was "I need bread". She hobbled down the train with her hand out. No one gave her coins.
Pass the metro stop called "Leninsky Prospekt". There is a mall at that stop. Decide in that moment that on my way home later, I'll make a pit stop.
Arrive at the metro stop near where my favorite Russian child, Anton lives. We have an English lesson for an hour a half today.
Cross the busy street to the apartment building the only way I can...walk right into moving traffic. Trust the cars will stop. Its best to cross right behind a babushka. Less chance of getting hit.
Get to the apartment building. Call up to the wrong flat. I'm told by the voice on the other end that he doesn't know me. Whoops. I don't know him either. I call up to the correct flat, and enter the building like normal.
Enter the building, get in the elevator and realize that some nice individual must have painted over the swear words that were previously decorating the walls.
Talk to Anton's mom about my trip to Odessa. Proud that Anton is asking his mom for water in English. Start my lesson with Anton.
Tell Anton that if he gets five smiley faces today for doing a good job, he will be rewarded with the movie "Cars" in English. He responds "Oh! This a very good surprise!"
He was exceptionally well behaved during the lesson.
Had trouble remembering to say "a" when learning to form sentences such as "I am a boy"....but tried hard nonetheless.
Anton's mom brings us tea and sandwiches.
Anton puts his finger up his nose.
Make a note not to eat that piece of cheese Anton has touched.
We review our five sense from a few weeks ago. Anton tells me that we smell with our ears.
Impromptu re-teach session on the five senses.
Suddenly during the lesson there was a peculiar odor. This odor is followed by Anton telling me that he needs to use the toilet. This happens often. I knew before he came back into the room to get toy lego cars....that he was going to do that. I also knew that for the next five minutes, I'd hear a Russian version of the Indy 500 coming from the bathroom.
To end our lesson, I read one of my favorite childhood books to Anton, "Go, Dog! Go!" I'm proud that Anton understands the book in English well enough to laugh at the lady dog who continuously asks the man dog if he likes her hat. Anton expressed, that like the man dog, he too did not like her hat.
Lesson is over, Anton gets a sticker, the movie, and five minutes to play solitaire with me on my iPad. No, he doesn't really know how to play. But he pretends.
Head back to the metro. Witness a man whose head was nearly taken off by a pigeon...immediately followed by man who completely wiped out while running up the stairs. That didn't slow him down. He was up and running again in no time.
Realize I need to pee.
Get off at the metro stop "Leninsky Prospekt". Shopping, remember.
While walking to the mall, wonder why there is a statue of a transformer or whatever over there.
Get inside the mall. Find a toilet. Remember the reason that it smells gross is because instead of flushing toilet paper down the commode, people throw it in the trash bin.
Stroll through the mall.
Take a minute to watch this silent Charlie Chaplin film.
"Thank God I'm not going in there."
"Why are there so many people?"
"Don't look at me."
"What do all these people do?"
"Where are the sales?"
"I'm in Moscow, there are no sales."
"I'm shopping anyway."
Enter a shop.
Buy a cute green top, after trying on an array of items in many different sizes as I am still not completely sure what all the sizes mean here.
Enter another shop.
Enter the fitting room to try on a slew of cute dresses. As soon as I'm naked, the power goes out.
So I open my iPad for light, and go about trying on my clothes.
I hear an announcement that the lights will be back on in five minutes. I can't see my outfits well enough, become bored, don't feel like waiting, put my normal clothes on, and leave.
The whole top floor of the mall is blacked out. I walk down the non-moving escalator. Sit on a bench. An odd little child dressed head to toe in snow gear perches next to me. Why so bundled? We're inside, and its like 50 degrees out (Fahrenheit).
I try counting how many pieces of merchandise a store is sporting with the American flag on them. Socks, shirts, bags, more shirts.
Decide I'm done at the mall because:
1. I'm overcome with hunger and a headache.
2. What did my wallet ever do to me?
While exiting the mall through the rotating doors, I think "How come no one here understands personal space? As soon as I'm home, I'm translating how to say "get out of my bubble" into Russian."
The intensity of my headache was increased in the metro station as I was walking and reading on my iPad...and had a head on collision with this thing:
Conclusion:
I talked too much about odors in this post...
-Gina
