Ufa

This weekend was our free weekend, meaning that there were not any planned excursions and many of us used the weekend to travel Russia. While many of our students went to the capitals of Moscow and Saint Petersburg, I decided to travel down to Ufa and see my host-sister and one of my friends from UF.

Friday, was a regular Friday. I went to class, took my exam and did my presentation. After class, I returned to the apartment, took a shower and made some purchases at the local grocer. I had decided to try to dehydrate myself because I was frightened that the bus might stop at a rest stop and leave me behind. Since, I am writing this blog, you can guess that my fears were unfounded. My bus was scheduled to leave at seven p.m. from the Kazan’ bus station. As we were lining up, to have our tickets checked, I noticed quite a few drunks preparing for their trip to Ufa. I was hoping and praying that my seatmate would not be one of them. Thankfully, my seatmate was a lovely older woman, who nick named our drunken companions the “happy grandfathers.” The happy grandfathers, much to my joy, drifted off to sleep, without incident. The first hour and a half was murder. There was no air condition on the bus and the sun was still shining brightly, the bus was akin to an oven. Once the sun went down, it was fine, and even a little cool. We did stop three times for a rest break, and I did get up and use the facilities and managed to return safely to my bus.

I also, somehow managed to sleep on the bus. How, I have not yet figured out. I did have a window seat, which helped matters, I could rest my head on the window frame, but I felt every bump in the road from Kazan’ to Ufa. We actually arrived in Ufa early. I woke up about five thirty just in time to see us pass the sign for Ufa. The bus pulled into the station at six-ish and I went in and purchased my return ticket before texting and waking Inna. Inna picked me up about seven. It was great to see her, but we were too tired to have a decent conversation. I got to the house, had a little breakfast, met the kitten (who is the subject of most of my photos), saw Brittany briefly and then took an hour nap. I woke up at about half-past ten, feeling much more like myself and went out to spend time with Inna and Brittany. Brittany is in the same program I was last year, CLS Ufa, and we began Russian together at UF. I finally heard how Inna ended up with Brittany as her student this year. She saw that we were from the same state and chose Brittany based on that. After making her choice and returning home, she checked Facebook and found my message, in which I told her Brittany was coming and that I wanted them to meet.

So, what did I do on my free weekend? Well, I went on an excursion with the CLS Ufa group. We went to a lake, outside of Ufa and stayed there for eight hours. The lake was beautiful, deep and freezing. I was not brave enough to take a dunk, but many did. We also each got a chance to make blini over an open flame. That was fun and I managed not to burn mine.

Inna

It was interesting sharing my experience with the students of CLS Ufa and they, in return, shared their experiences with me, and asked me about Aygir. Yes, that children’s camp, that I mentioned in my last Ufa post, but never expanded upon. It is beautiful, located a few hours outside of Ufa in the mountains, in the middle of nowhere. It would also be great for a weekend, but sticking twenty-odd American students in the wilderness for a week, without privacy, with a constant supply of alcohol and expecting them to learn, is a fool’s errand. I tried to be positive, and give them advice on what to expect and what to bring. Not surprisingly, they had already come to much the same conclusions that my own group had come to prior to going to Aygir, and those conclusions, were mostly right. I also had a good conversation with Oleg Alexandrovich, the Russian director in Ufa, I guess he is in the works with a US university, to set up a sister program of sorts, and was curious to know how our program is being run here. He also offered me a job at the same camp in Aygir teaching Russian children English, next summer. I may take him up on that.

We returned home about eight and I was finally able to take a much awaited for shower. There had not been water pressure that morning, so we were lucky to get it in the evening. In Ufa, I used to get up at six because of the possibility of a hot shower with decent pressure. I also was able to see babushka. She was quite happy to see me again and we sat up, with Brittany and Inna, till past midnight talking before I begged out and headed to bed. I woke up at seven-thirty and watched mama-cat, Kisa, and the kitten play before going to wake Inna. Babushka packed my up lots and lots of fruit, an ice cream tub full of cherries, a jar of raspberry preserve, and half a two litter bottle of raspberries. Inna and I headed to the bus station and Inna saw me off, as I began another ten hour ride back to Kazan’. I, by some luck, managed to get the seat that the air from the roof vent managed to blow right on me. I spent the ride reviewing vocabulary words and reading Game of Thrones. About two hours outside of Kazan’ we began to pick up people on the side of the road. I assume they were return to Kazan’ from their dachas. I am also confident that the fares that those people paid went to our drivers and not the bus company. We returned to Kazan’ about six and I headed home and relaxed. It was an early night for me.

Only three more weeks to go, and next weekend we head to Nizhniy Novgorod.

Until next week,

Оля

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed about the CLS Ufa are not the opinions of American Council or the State Department

Sviyazhka

17^th July 2011

Yesterday, we traveled to Sviyazhsk. This island town, in its rich history, has been a monastery, a GULAG, a psychiatric hospital, an orphanage, a correctional school and again, after its re- consecration by Patriarch Alexei II, a monastery. The town was founded on May 24^th 1551, by Ivan the Terrible, in his quest to defeat the Khanate of Kazan’. The original structures were wooden; they were build up river, numbered, disassembled, and transported down the Volga, in great secrecy, to be reassembled on the island.

There is only one wooden structure remaining from that time, a church that is under renovation. We were lead first through one of the monasteries, which is also under reconstruction. The original structure of the church is from the time of Ivan the Terrible. That structure was covered in stone in the following centuries and an entrance hall and a porch were also added. Within the original structure, there is a fresco of the Tsar, supposedly from his lifetime. Unfortunately, we were not able to see it, because it was on the backside of a pillar and scaffolding prohibited us from getting a view. We did however get to see a fresco of St. Christopher the dog headed, or horse headed, one of three that still exist in Russia.

Our guide then led us to the part of the island that had been the guard’s barracks and the administrative center, during its time as a prison. Now the administration building is a three-room museum of photographs and some artifacts. They had pictures of some of the other churches that had once existed but were blown up by the Soviets. For me, I loved the four-hundred plus year old book. The book had once been a part of library of St. German, the monk who founded the monastery. Second best thing in the museum, the fact it had a toilet with toilet paper and soap. Oh, the simple joys in life.

Let me tell you a little about the island's population. It is home to a about two hundred people. They are currently building new houses for many of the people on the island to replace the old dilapidated wooden cottages and crumbling brick structures. I am sure the upgrade will be appreciated, but I am sad that the older buildings will be destroyed. They have this simple charm about them.

We continued around to the other side of the island, where we visited the other monastery. It is in this cluster of buildings where the only completely wooden structure from the time of Ivan the Terrible still exists. The wooden church was closed to visitors, but apparently most of the icons that were there are now in the museum I visited last Sunday with Masha. We went inside the only church that preforms regular services. The most religiously important artifact in the church is the reliquary with the remains of St. German, the monk who founded the monastery. All the other icons within the church are copies.

After the tour, we ate lunch and a few of our students went swimming in the river, before we got off the bus and returned to Kazan’.

Saturday night, I finally was able to watch Harry Potter. It was fully dubbed in Russian, but between having read the book and my understanding of Russian, I was able to comprehend most of the film. I loved it, and cannot wait to see it again, in English.

Today, I woke up early, despite my best efforts to sleep in and studied for several hours. Then Lena and I went to the Zoo with Ira. I had guessed that I was not going to like what I saw, and I was right. I suppose that I have been spoiled by the American concept of zoos and the humane treatment of animals, but it was heartbreaking for me to see the animals in their tiny cages and enclosures. I left with a bad taste in my mouth.

I do not know when I will update next. Next Friday, when I would usually update my blog, I will be taking a ten-hour bus trip to Ufa for our free weekend.

Until next time,

Оля

It All Ends: The First Half

July 15th 2011

We have now reached the halfway point of our program. Four intense weeks have flown by with still another four to come.

This week, I must confess will sound somewhat boring. I blame it on the fact that it was midterm week and the majority of my time was spent in review.

On Sunday, I went out an art museum with Masha. It was rainy and miserable and I looked rather like a drowned cat by the time she arrived. The museum had a large collection of older Russian icons and strangely, enough, an exhibition on antique fans. Speaking of fans, I bought one and felt like such a tourist doing so. I am now the proud owner of a fan with pictures of Kazan’s major landmarks that I pull out every time it gets too hot and stuffy, especially on the bus. It is probably a dead giveaway that I am a foreigner.

Monday after class, my professor, Gulnaz gave us a lecture on tourism in Russia, followed by a Jeopardy style game, which my group spectacularly…lost.

Monday, was also Lena's birthday. Birthdays in Russia are huge, lasting several hours, with continuous flow of food and drinks. We ate at this little restaurant off Balman Street. There were eight of us, six of them went through three bottles of champagne, only Susha and I abstained. Gifts were, of course, exchanged, everyone knows of Lena’s love for earrings so she received several pairs. It is also tradition for the guests to deliver a toast to the birthday girl or boy; I even gave a small one. After my toast, Lena’s friends asked what we Americans say when we clink glasses. I honestly could not remember anything but “cheers,” and that is kind of boring, so I taught them how to say “cheers” in Welsh. From then on, after every toast when we went to clink glasses, they said “Iechyd da.” While we were at the restaurant, four Americans showed up, and they did not know a lick of Russian, so guess who ended up helping them to order. They were very friendly and were only planing to be in Kazan’ for a few days on business, something US government related. I figured it was probably “need to know,” so I did not ask questions. Our Russian girls found them very interesting, and later that night; they all ended up together at Coyote Ugly. I, also, made a brief pit-stop at Coyote Ugly for about fifteen minutes. Long enough to watch Lena danced on the bar top. Afterwards, one of Lena’s friends, Susha drove me home.

Tuesday, was a tour of house Lenin’s family rented when they lived in Kazan’. They resided there for a grand total of nine months. Lenin and his family, the Ulyanovs moved to Kazan’ after the execution of Lenin's older brother for revolutionary activities.

Lenin, himself, attended Kazan State University for a time before being expelled for, can you guess, revolutionary activities. Funnily enough, Kazan State University was later named in his honor. It is always interesting visiting these houses, because of the portrayal of Lenin. He is still very much a revered figure here in Russia. As the guide was showing us picture of the Ulyanov family, she gave them each a glowing reviews, and told how each of them

either wanted to be just like Lenin, or wanted to helped him in his revolutionary work. The portion of the house rented by the family was small. It was Lenin, his mother, sisters and brother, who resided there, subsiding off his father’s death pension. The rooms were decorated according to the memories of the two youngest Ulyanov children, with a few personal effects of the family. Lenin’s room was down stairs with a door to the outside, for going to and returning from secret meetings, according to the guide. Oh… and I nearly forgot, the shoe coverings to protect the floors. Do they not look just fabulous?

I spent Wednesday and Thursday studying, while some of the others went to see Harry Potter. Yes, it came out here on Wednesday causing a major internal struggle between the “I want to see Harry Potter before my friends at home” side and the “you have a midterm, so study” side. I guess you can figure out which side won. I am going to Harry Potter tomorrow with Lena and Ira.

We are also headed to Sviyazhsk tomorrow. It is a town that was built during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. I will let you know how that goes.

Until Next Time,

Once again, Оля

Raifa Monastery

9 July 2011

Today, as I promised in yesterday’s blog, we went to the Raifa Monastery. It was about an hour bus ride from the center of the city. Lena joined us for the excursion. The monastery is located in the country near a beautiful lake. When we arrived, one of the monks from the monastery greeted us. Our guide was dressed in the traditional long black robes and he led us around the monastery explaining the history, with Dr. Livingston translating. Monks have lived in the area since the Time of Troubles, but the existing monastery was built only in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It has been under reconstruction since the end of Soviet power, when it was heavily neglected. There are two churches, which are open to the public. The first that we went into was the Church of the Georgian Mother of God, so named for the icon which is located in there. The icon is actually a 19th century copy of the Icon of the Georgian Mother of God, but is considered a miracle-working icon in its own right. It is believed to have healed the sight and hearing of those who stood near it on the day it was brought by procession to the church. There are two other miracle-working icons in the church, but the Georgian mother of God is the most famous. The church, itself, is not painted in the traditional orthodox style. The inside, including the iconostas, was repainted after the end of the soviet period and looks more Italian in style.

We exited the church and continued around the compound, stopping in front of the dormitories of the monks. The dormitories also house the library, but our monk guide told us it is rarely used because the monks use the internet and the computer to access old texts.

We were then led to the orphanage. The children who are educated there are both orphans and children from poor families and only three had joined the monks after leaving. They receive both a tradition and a spiritual education. The children were gone for the summer, either to relatives or to summer camps in the country. We continued around to see the blessed spring, housed in a little chapel and then into the second church. There a four-monk choir preformed for us. Dr. Livingston said that in the nine times he has been to Russia, he has never experienced anything like it. He told us that we had received a great honor.

The music was beautiful and it was sung in a church with great acoustics and a ten-second echo. When the church was originally built, you could hear monks chanting for kilometers, but it has had a seventy percent reduction in acoustics since its reconstruction and renovation. I bought the CD and you can find the songs on i-Tunes under “Pritcha.”

Afterwards we visited the lake and were allowed to wander the compound. I looked over some of the pictures by local artists and purchased one. I hope you like it mamichka.

We left the monastery at one and Lena and I were dropped off earlier, closer to home. We returned to the apartment by two and I sat on my bed studying and fell asleep with my notecards in my hands. I woke two hours later to a thunderstorm and remembered four words that had been giving me trouble in my memorization all day. Funny, how that works.

Apparently, Russian has infiltrated my subconscious mind. Lena told me that she heard me speaking in Russian in my sleep the other night.

Until Next Time,

Once again, Оля

The Russians are Rushing but are Getting Nowhere: A Russian Traffic Jam

8 July 2011

I hope everyone had a great Fourth of July! I was sorry to miss the fireworks. Instead of fireworks, we were treated to a ballet performance of Sleeping Beauty. About two weeks ago, I met my host sister’s parents, Volodya and Tanya. They are very sweet, Volodya is a senior teacher at our university, teaching US history. He bought the four of us tickets to the ballet. He also lent me a copy of Pushkin to read, so I could get the gist of the story. Unfortunately, he had mistaken Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, so I ended up reading the Russian version of Snow White. Sleeping Beauty, if you are curious, can be found in its original form in the Brothers’ Grimm. Anyways, on the Friday before Monday's ballet, the schedule came out and the entire group was scheduled to attend the ballet. Aygul ended up giving my ticket to one of the other Russian hosts, so that she could go and I could sit with Lena. Lena and I were seated in the second balcony in the center. We had a great view of the stage. The dancing was,of course, beautiful and the on stage scenery was fantastic. The only thing I could have wished for was a live orchestra, but unfortunately, it was all prerecorded music. The first part; was of course, the prologue, where the fairies come to bless the princess and the slighted fairy performs her curse. The second portion of the ballet, was the Princess Aurora at her sixteenth birthday gathering, where she pricks her finger and falling asleep for one-hundred years. The third part; follows the Prince as he meets the fairy queen, who leads him to the Princess. Sorry, no fight scene with a dragon, the evil fairy simply disappears (off stage) in a puff of smoke when the Prince kisses the princess. Then came, for me, the most tedious part of the ballet, for the next half hour, everyone who had not gotten to dance, danced, and it had nothing to do with the plot. Finally, after all the intermediate dancing, we finally saw the Prince and Princess get married.

Tuesday, we were treated to a lecture on “small number” ethnic minorities in Russia. This constitutes all the Ethnic minorities under 50,000 people. Rulan Garipov, the lecturer, is also very well versed in Native Americans and their history, and he compared the US system to the Russian system. He had spent several years in the US, researching Native Americans and he expressed his surprise at how little Americans knew about Native Americans. When he was a child, he recalled, when everyone else wanted to be Cosmonauts, he wanted to be a Native American.

Tuesday evening, after the lecture, Michael, one of the boys in the fourth group, and I, went to Dr. Livingston’s apartment, to await an interview for a scholarship. Three hours later, we found out Arizona had messed up the days and that we had to return on Wednesday.

So, I lied when I said I would tell you more about the Universiade. I skipped the lecture in order to study. About four, after studying in the library, we headed back to Dr. Livingston’s place with a couple of our ROTC boys. We were finally able to complete the interview. How it went, I do not know, but I guess I will find out soon enough.

Thursday was a meeting with the heads of the university and the press was there. Thankfully, we had some brave students who gave speeches. After the speeches the presidents gave us all the traditional Tatari hats and took several PR photos. Afterwards, I caught the bus to get back to the apartment. We had had problems with electricity all day. Even our meeting with the heads of the university was affected, we lost power before it began. We were about half way home when we got stuck in a traffic jam at a stop light. The light was not working and instead of treating it like a four way stop, no one would give an inch. Which meant, no one could move, because everyone was in everyone else’s way. I took a picture. It took us thirty minutes to drive two-hundred feet. We finally got out of the traffic jam and I finally got home to study for my Friday test. On the way home today, they had traffic cops controlling the traffic at the same light.

Tomorrow, we are headed to a monastery, Lena is coming with us. It is suppose to be absolutely beautiful, and I'm sure I will take many pictures.

Until Next Time,

Once again Оля

P.S. A few days after my original blog post, we discover that we had been on the front page of the Tatar news paper. That is me, front and second from the left.

Bolgar

2.7.2011

Today was the excursion to Bolgar, an ancient city on the banks of the Volga River. We, the program participants, met outside the main campus of our university at 8:50 am. It was already sweltering. Thankfully, the bus that was arranged for us was one with air conditioning. We drove through Kazan’, passing through a lot of construction associated with the 2013 Universiade. I will go into more detail on the Universiade on next week’s blog post; we are getting a lecture on it, on Tuesday.

As we were driving out of the city of Kazan’, our bus was pulled over by the cops and the driver had to present his paperwork. I guess everything was in order, because we were on our way in about fifteen minutes. The rest of the drive was uneventful, as we drove through rural Russia. I was, however, able to grasp the enormity of the River Volga, as we passed by and over it. It is one of the longest rivers in Europe and I would not be surprised if it was also one of the widest.

We arrived in Bolgar and exited the bus. We headed inside the gated area and had a ten minute restroom break. The toilet was a “cultural experience” and was not for the modest or the particularly faint of heart. Unfortunately, I am accustomed to worse in Russia, though a door would have been nice. After everyone had made their necessary pit stops, we met with a guide who showed us around the sights, with Dr. Livingston translating. Our first stop was the archeological museum, housed in a former Orthodox Church of the eighteenth century. The one of the exhibits was remains of a pagan burial, the bones of a woman and the cloth and metal belt that she had been buried with. There were also several examples of pottery and weaponry have also been excavated on the site.

Bolgar is famous, because it was there that Islam was first accepted and practiced in Russia. It is a holy center, which serves as a gathering place for Muslims every year on the anniversary of the foundation. After leaving the museum, we entered a mausoleum; there are many of these on the site. This particular one displayed tombstones of ancient inhabitants. Another, showed an open pit, where two stone caskets still stood. After investigating the tombstones, we walked to the foundation of the mosque, that once stood there. The big minaret, next to the mosque’s foundation, is in the process of being restored. The foundation of the mosque is still a place of worship, and while we were there, we witnessed several Muslims at prayer.

Our guide led us further across the site to the small minaret, which we were allowed to climb the forty-four steps in groups of three. It was a tight fit, because the only view from the top was a single doorway and a tiny platform. It required some maneuvering for each of us to look out the window in turn. While different members of our group took their turn, we waited. Some of the group was smart enough not listen when we were told to leave our lunches on the bus. I was not one of them. In the shade of the small minaret, some of our group ate and the rest of us enjoyed the shade.

Bolgar, also has several ruins of bathhouses. The Bolgars had a system of pipes that would run through channels under the floor of the bathhouses, through them ran water hot enough that the ancient Bolgars had to wear sandals in the bathhouse. The guide also explained that the bathhouse was a place for women to relax all day and get away from their husbands.

From the bathhouse, we had one more stop, to the black “palace,” there the guide told us

the legend of the name. During ancient times, a prince and his family were holed up in the building by the advances of an invading force. The leader of the invading force ordered that wood be placed around the building and it to be burned. We on top of the building a woman dressed in white appeared. The leader was so astounded by her beauty, he asked for her hand in marriage. She agreed on the condition that her brother be release. As her brother rode away, she three herself on to the fire, and died. Our guide stressed that this was a legend and that most likely the building was a mosque, an Islamic school or a court. I, however, would not be surprised if a similar incident did happen, legend is sometimes an exaggeration of historical events.

After the tour, we returned the bus and the rest of us hungry souls ate. Lena had made me blini and cheese the night before, and I had bought cookies. After lunch, we got back on the bus and returned to Kazan’.

I would like to wish everyone a Happy Independence Day. This will be the second Independence Day that I will spend in Russia. This time, we are going to the ballet, and yes, we must still attend class.

Until next time,

Once Again, Оля

The Russian Smile

1.7.2011

I have survived week two in the city of Kazan’. Following class on Monday, we had a free afternoon. Instead of returning home, I stayed in the center in order to meet with my language exchange partner. Masha is a very sweet girl, about my age. She learned English for two years, a few years ago. She was a former student of my teacher, Gulnaz. However, for the past few years, she has been studying veterinary medicine and has not had the time to study English. We spoke mostly in Russian, as we walked around Kazan’, with me throwing in a few English words or phrases. We have agreed on a topic for our next outing, so she can prepare her English ahead of time. Masha’s biggest problem with speaking English is fear, fear of making a mistake. This is the most crippling thing for learners of another language. You cannot be scared to make mistakes, it is going to happen, but most people will still understand you. I will, hopefully, see her sometime next week, when I have another free afternoon.

Tuesday, we had a lecture on human rights and Russia. The lecturer, gave a presentation on all the human rights that exist on paper in the Russian Federation and then on the enforcement, or lack thereof. It was very interesting; he used recent incidents to illustrate Russia’s lack of consistence on protecting human rights. He concluded by saying that it was his belief, that a regime change was necessary before human rights would be fully protected in Russia.

Wednesday, we toured Kazan’ Kremlin. Kremlin means fortress in Russian, and it is obvious that, that is what Kazan’s Kremlin was meant to be. A high wall surrounds it and from inside the Khan’s once ruled. Ivan the Terrible invaded Kazan’ and the mosques in the Kremlin weredestroyed. After the invasion, an Orthodox Church was built inside, which was later partially destroyed under Soviet rule. In 2005, Kazan’ celebrated its thousandth year. In honor of that anniversary, a new mosque was built and the Orthodox Church and its interior icons were restored. The mosque is one of the largest in Europe and every Friday and on religious holiday, it is overflowing with believers. The prayers are not called outside the mosque, in deference to the church next door. It is also for this reason, that the church does not ring its outside bells, in respect of the mosque. If the citizens of Kazan’ and Ufa can live in peace, why can the rest of the world not manage? We toured both the mosque and the church and then continued on to Kazan's Hermitage.

The Kazan’ Hermitage was a gift from the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, for the thousandth year anniversary. The exhibition was “art and weaponry.”

Yesterday, Thursday, was not very interesting. It was a free afternoon and I studied the entirety. That was seven, very long, hours of studying. I was exhausted, but the 91.5% was payoff enough for my efforts.

This afternoon, Dr. Livingston gave a very interesting lecture on Russian Intonation patterns. There exist seven primary intonation patterns in Russian, which are often misunderstood by foreigners. So, every time I thought I heard one of my host sisters, I have had three, speak in a frustrated manner to their parents, in fact that is just the intonation of the question. Who knew? Dr. Livingston also explained certain non-verbal communication to us. He compared the Russian smile to the American smile. According to him, Russians smile when they are happy. We, Americans, smile when we are happy, but also when we are serving someone in a customer service situation, and to prove that we are not threatening. The best quote thus far, “How do we know the Russian is not threatening? When the Russian does not attack us.”

Tomorrow, we are taking a bus trip to the ancient city of Bolgar. That, however, is for another blog post.

Until next time,

Once again, Оля