Vladimir and Bogolyubova

I don't think I need to remind you, dear reader, that Moscow is a big city. Although no one knows for sure, some people estimate there are at least 13 million people living in the metropolitan area, and some estimates are higher. As thrilling as city life is, sometimes it can be overwhelming. Everywhere you turn there is chaos, noise, people, cars.

Although many people love the city life, I have to admit sometimes I just want to run off somewhere where there is nature, and I can get away from the traffic and chaos of the Metro that I ride at least several hours every day. Which is part of the reason why my friend Luke and I found ourselves in Vladimir on a Monday morning, with our gear, unsure of what would happen next. Don't worry, we weren't ditching school, it just happened to be a holiday.

What followed was a pleasant surprise: as usual, with my low expectations, I was amazed at how beautiful Vladimir was. Like many of the other small towns outside of Moscow, the wealth of history is incredible, and the architecture can be breathtaking. When the town is tiny, with modest buildings that are only a few stories tall, the churches always stand out on the horizon, to impose themselves on the newcomer. As we drove by each town on our 3 hour bus trip, it was hard to decide which church we liked best. Each time we were sure that "that one was the prettiest," another one would show up on the side of the road, and we'd have to rethink our decision.

But by that evening, we had our answer. We knew quite well that there was one church better than the rest. Above all, Luke was determined to go to Bogolyubova. "Bugah what?" I had to ask a dozen times at least, the name was so ridiculous and impossible to pronounce. The town was so tiny, even in comparison to Vladimir. But nothing was as tiny as the church. It was probably the most humble four square church I had seen in Russia thus far, perched on its tippie toes on the corner of a frozen lake. It was so modest, so simple, yet as the sun began to set as the backdrop to a silent flurry of snow over this silent lake, we knew. What this church lacked in size in grandeur, it made up in natural beauty. The serenity and and simplicity of what was outside was 100 times more potent than anything could have been created by man. "If there was a time to believe in God, it would be now," murmered my new friend Diana, as we stood in awe, watching the sun set. All I could say was, "I love Russia. What a beautiful country."

Perhaps one of the best surprises was the people we met in Vladimir. Full of energy, our new acquaintances quickly became our friends, as eager and energetic to see their hometown through our tourist eyes. I realized, not for the first time, that as usual the stereotypes were wrong. Russians aren't always cranky and serious, like the ones that push me around on the metro every morning. In fact, these people we hardly knew eagerly shared their town with us, and invited us to dinner and to stay in their house! As we sat listening to Tchaikovsky on a record player in an old Soviet style apartment, I couldn't help but smile. This is the Russia you dream of, full of laughter, philosophical conversations, and Tchaikovsky. And that's when I knew that my adventures outside of Moscow could be some of the most rewarding experiences, bringing me closer to understanding a Russia outside of that big ever consuming universe that is Moscow.

The bill battle and Women's Day

I often wonder what it was like to be a woman in the past, even a few generations ago. We've advanced so much in modern days to try to make gender equality a reality. In America everyone seems to be so proud of how much power women have now, in the working world, and just about everywhere outside of the house. Although I'm proud of how much freedom I have as a woman, especially in America, I can't help but get confused at times over little things like paying the bill at a restaurant. It's true that back home I know that all of my guy friends are virtually broke and I always pay my way when we go out. But it's funny how much discussion has been brought up by this sore subject in Russia. "Men always should pay for a bill," stated my Russian girlfriends, "it's their job!" But I couldn't help but laugh in pity for my British and American guy friends who bemoaned their new task. "I don't want to pay for her, it's too expensive as it is in Moscow!!!!" And it's true, Moscow is REALLY expensive, especially if you want to have a nice dinner in the city center.

Coming from a girl who has always been raised to be independent and self-sufficient, it's no surprise that I'm somewhat shocked at times by the somewhat "old-fashioned" gender roles you see around Moscow. boyfriends can be very affectionate towards their loved ones, helping them over patches of ice, tying their ice skates for them, holding them close for warmth. It's no surprise that in Moscow "Women's day" is a huge hit.

It lands on the 8th of March, for International Women's day, which is conveniently a few days after the celebration of spring. Everywhere you walked that day you saw people dressed up in their best, and men waiting impatiently at every metro station with flowers in their hands. Even I got gifts from my students, and my housemate's flowers filled up our kitchen. As nice as it was, I couldn't help but wonder, what is the purpose of this day? Does it truly advance women in any way, or is it just a chance for men to "have an excuse to express their love to women," as my friend explained to me. I suppose it can't be a bad idea at least. I'll still pay for my half of the bill anyways.

The Beginning of Spring

When I woke up on March 1st, I could tell something was changing. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the snow was slightly melting...oh, and best of all, my students all had smiles on their faces. In Russia, it was the first day of spring, and there was no arguing about the science of it. To be honest I think it's more that people want it to be spring here, and the desire to feel like you have conquered winter, once and for all. I just went with it, since I admittedly liked that sense of waking from hibernation, to open my eyes wide and see the world bright and new, just as I left it so many months ago. It's almost like waking from some strange dark, snowy dream. Only to see more snow. But at least it's sunny.

And of course, leave it to the Russians to celebrate. Everyone loves Maslenitsa week: "butter week" in Russian, to celebrate the beginning of spring. The purpose of the week is simple: eat lots of pancakes, which in Russia look like delicious crepes, that you can add anything to, from dried fruit to condensed milk, to sour cream, to salmon. On the last day of this week there are big celebrations in virtually every park, where there is music, concerts, people in bright colors, and of course, lots and lots of pancakes. In the end they burn a scarecrow, as a final goodbye to winter. And no, this is not a celebration run by the church, its roots run much deeper, from ancient times.

My friends and I were pleasantly amused at the huge collage of a bright sun at the Maslenitsa celebration behind St Basil's Cathedral. The sun was a lit up with flickering lights, with a huge smile on its face. We sort of bounced to the cheery music thinking happy thoughts about the spring, but by 20 minutes later we realized it was still cold!!!! As we ran off to the nearest warm place, we thought of how silly the whole thing was. It's a lie! there's still snow everywhere, and it's still below freezing. But nobody around us seemed to notice, they were so happy, and could you really blame them?