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Блог 11
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| Bijan's first day in the square by the Hermitage. |
I
am all packed and ready to head to the airport and even now I'm running into
problems that can only be answered with, "because it's Russia…" To
get to the airport I have to go to the mainland over a bridge. Of course, I
need to get there around 4:00 a.m. and guess when the bridge is closed? My host
mom doesn't believe me that the bridges go down for only 30 minutes between
2:45 and around 3:15 and then I'm stuck until 5:00, so if I go I have to go
before they open the first time. It's like arguing with a brick wall that knows
better than you do- but they really don't. Personal experience has me in the
right, backed up by the power of the internet and my program coordinators. Of
course the bridges open at 1:25, so I'll be at the airport for a while. It's
Russia…
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| Inside the Church of the Spilled Blood. |
So
these last two weeks!!! Lots of goodbyes, lots of cultural stuff, and best of
all Bijan. He spent the week here while I had finals and said goodbye to this
extremely beautiful city. We did the whole thing- St. Isaac's, the Church of
the Spilled Blood, Hermitage, Peterhoff, food, boat tour around the Neva, walks
down Nevsky Prospekt, and
Dostoyevsky's grave. If I'm any judge, I'd say Bij had a good trip, and I
really enjoyed having him here. I am glad to be coming home to end our long
distance trend, even if just for a little while. From what I could tell, he thought the city
was beautiful, more European than he expected, full of grumpy Russians, full of
too much walking, and too many churches. I couldn't agree more.
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| A lot of gold and blue, a lot like the rest of Russia... |
Here
are some extremely big generalities that I have decided about Russians (my
opinions in no way reflect the views of those around me- this is just my
personal perspective). At least in St. Petersburg, the people here are inherently
good. They just act like everyone else in the word wishes they could. They are
grumpy and frowny on the metro because they had a long day at work, it's
cold/hot/raining/smells funny and they are annoyed- so they glare. I always
feel the need to pretend to be happy at stores or on the light rail/bus toward
other people, lest they see my bad mood. Here- they don't hold back. On the
other hand, they always want the best for you. I've had more friendly
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| The Bronze Horseman and St. Isaac's in the back. |
people
here give me a hand or help me in some way than I could really ever have hoped
for. They take a crappy situation, like inches of ice on the ground for
six-seven months out of the year, while in the other months the sun doesn't
bother to go down, and make it work with them. They do like to remember their
suffering, and the city helps them do that, but I think that they genuinely
care about other people and are overall good at heart.
The
goodbye ceremony for my program, after finals, was on a boat with pictures and
champagne and a certificate of completion, and it was actually charming. I am
not one for goodbyes, but it was one last hurrah with some really awesome
people. Bijan also got a free boat tour around the Neva so yay! Had to say bye
to my best friend, Alexa, though,
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| These wonderful girls! Alexa, Anya, Emma, Jena, Bianka and Lauren! |
which was not awesome. She may come out to
visit (fingers crossed) so everyone else can experience the crazy that is
Sasha! We also went to Peterhoff which was pretty much amazing! The weather
wasn't great but it wasn't hot so we counted it as a win. I was mildly disappointed
when we figured out that the trick fountains are man operated, but the palace
and fountains were breathtaking and we got to take a hydrofoil there. There's
not much else to say about the last two weeks. Finals, Bijan, goodbyes, walking,
packing, oh my god where did I get so much stuff, etc. I think I gave myself a
proper sendoff.
My
conclusion from these four months is: I could not be luckier. I am lucky to
have had this opportunity, parents to push me out into the world and help me
get there,
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| Red Heads last ride. |
Bijan's visit, a host mom whose schedule and habits were perfectly
compatible with mine, meeting a new and most amazing best friend, and diving
into a language that I truly understand in a culture I really just get.
We are surly, sarcastic, and don't always like other people, but at
heart these people always mean the absolute best. Sure they are all very focused on their own destinations and
goals, but they'll always help out when you need it. We've had a few nights
where we meet new Russian friends and go to a bar with them, and they always
make sure we get home safe- no matter how recently we met them. True signs of
good people. I will miss Russia, my walk to the metro, my view and my balcony
and my favorite bars and cafes, but I'm
pretty happy to be coming back home.
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| Peterhoff! |
What's next you ask?!?!
Well!
That is a fantastic question………… ummmmmmmm…… I'll let you know!
No, but seriously- I have one more class
that is four weeks long and then I am DONE with undergrad as long as my study
abroad credits transfer properly (everyone send competency vibes to my college
advisor- she needs it, seriously!). After that I'm taking a "year
off"- you know to explore art and music… No- to find a job and get a foot
in the professional door.
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| SO MUCH GOLD! |
I am applying to graduate school for news-broadcast
journalism at CU Boulder and am hoping to start that in August of 2014 (not
entirely by choice- apparently they don't accept students in January :-/). I
hope to continue my Russian, maybe find a tutor or something, become more
active like learning krav maga or something awesome like that, and generally
figure out in which direction I would
like my career to be headed other than up. So, goals: JOB in my field, continue
Russian, support myself as much as possible and overall don't screw up!
Thanks all for reading this for the last
four months! Not only does it save me from telling and retelling all my stories,
it also helps me to remember and filter out all my experiences to the most
interesting and important! I can also now tell who my real friends are by who
actually read it ;-)!!! Just kidding (kinda). Hope you all enjoyed reading it.
Who knows, I may start another one to break into the right spheres.
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| My amazing host mom Larisa Sergeevna <3 |
See ya'll soon!!!!!!!!!!
P.S. What am I supposed to do with the vodka on my bedside table, now?
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