Entry 11: September 4, 2011
As promised, my weekend escapades will consist on two entries, this being the first. I know I have been a bit lax in getting these posts together, but thus far I've been too tired to write, hence my putting it off.
I left you last at Thursday evening. Friday was a normal day. A little before three I went home to drop off my computer and grab my small purse so that I didn't have to lug a big heavy bag around with me when I hung out with Veronika. My back has been hurting a lot recently, mostly I think from the bed that I sleep in, but carrying my large bag around for 6ish hours earlier last week might also have had it's own contribution. Anyway, after her class got out around 3, Veronika came to find me for another adventure. We walked down a different street than usual to get to Bolshaya Prokovskaya. I know that Veronika is a tourism major, so perhaps I should be surprised at her vast knowledge of the histories of so many buildings around the city, but I am always impressed. She can point out what parts of buildings have been added since the Revolution of 1917 (if you know no other date in Russian history, I would recommend remembering that one at least). It is always sad to me to see how there are so many old, beautiful buildings here that are in such a bad state of repair. Time has not been kind to many of the structures here.
When we got to Bolshaya Prokovskaya we in at one shop that Veronika had mentioned before. It's called something like “Esoteric Treasures.” Veronika had mentioned there were some Celtic bracelets she really liked there, and there were also some Tibetan knives and instruments there that could be seen in the tables at Fonoteka, where we were going to dinner. As soon as we stepped into the store I immediately thought of Lynnea because it smelt like incense and was very similar to what Lynnea usually has in her room. The store itself sort of reminded me of stores such as Mermaid Imports. It was definitely fun to look around in though. It always amazes me how certain objects seem to be all over the world. On one shelf there sat a wooden frog with a stick through it's mouth, just like the ones we see every year at the Saturday market. I should Veronika how it worked. It makes me wonder where those frogs are actually from.
After our in-store window shopping was over, we headed towards the restaurant. Fonoteka (which I guess may make more sense if I spell it out in English instead of just transliterating -Phonoteka. Phon- meaning sound, and -teka is a common ending for places. If you've studied German or even Spanish, this ending is usually simply “-tek.” A few other examples that might be familiar to you ar diskoteka (a disco), apoteka (a pharmacy), and biblioteka (library).) is a restaurant known for having live jazz in the evening. There are two rooms there: the one with jazz and one that is a Tibetan theme. Most people had recommended the jazz room to me, but I knew that Veronika really loved the Tibetan room, so we went there instead, and I think it was the cooler room. It was curtained off with dim lighting, traditional Tibetan music, and pictures all over the walls. The tables themselves were like a sectioned collectors box with various cultural items in them with glass set over top. Veronika knew what some of the items were, and I knew others.
The menu itself had all sorts of things on it. It was divided into three main sections: Europe, Japan, and Asia, and had everything from Caesar salad (though it looked different from our idea of a Caesar salad) to sushi. We ended up both going for a sort of fried, spiced rice, which was absolutely delicious. We also both ordered drinks. I got a Cappucino (which was listed in the menu as “Grand Каппучино,” which I found funny. The transliterated the Italian word for the coffee, but didn't bother to translate “Grand.” Also, there was no “Plan Каппучино” or “Insignificant Каппучино.” Obviously Fonoteka only serves upper class coffee). Veronika got a drink that I think is a lot like mulled wine and is very popular here. It's a warm wine drink with some sort of herbs and orange slices in it.
One a bit of a sidenote, being in Russia has made me realize how much Americans love water. You will never see a student here walking around with a waterbottle, and you do not get a cup of water in restaurants here. Ludmila and I had a conversation earlier in the week about American's obsession with drinking water, and how we also have waterbottles. Several of the Russians asked me why we drink so much water, and I said because it was good for you. They all looked at me like I was crazy, even after I mentioned that since our bodies are over 70% water we have to keep replenishing that water. This sidenote was brought on by the fact that we had our coffee/mulled wine after we finished our dinner. People don't seem to eat dinner and drink beverages at the same time here. If you have ever been to a cafe or restaurant with me you will know that I usually drink water like there is no tomorrow, so the no water or beverage during dinner is definitely not something I will miss when I get home.
After a pleasant dinner, we started walking back down the street. We decided to switch into speaking Russian, as I mentioned I felt like I needed more practice. There is an old theatre on Bolshaya Prokovskaya which shows plays nearly every day. Veronika asked me if I would be interested in going some time, and I said that I would love too. We went and looked at the list of plays. Unlike in America where one play shows for 1-2 weeks before the next begins, here, most plays only show once a month, with only a few showing up to three times. When I mentioned that seemed like a lot of work for not a lot of show, Veronika said that they tend to repeat them every couple months, with a few new ones premiering every so often. Sometime, hopefully in the next two-three weeks, I'm going to experience Russian theatre. I can't wait.
When we got back to my dorm, we stood outside and talked for a while. I really enjoy spending time with Veronika. We're going to try to do something once a week, and Fridays seem to work best.
Jackie and I had agreed to meet up around 5pm on Saturday to grab some coffee before going back to her hotel to Skype with Anna Anatolevna, our faithful Russian professor, back in Portland. Thus, I had the morning and afternoon to myself to run some errands. I had something I wanted to get from Spar, so I set out on my little excursion. As I was so successful in finding what I was looking for last time, naturally, the one item I wanted was nowhere to be found this time. However, upon walking into the store a basket of umbrellas caught my eye. Although I had planned to bring an umbrella with me from home, I believe I mentioned last time that it was one of the few things I had regretfully forgotten to pack. Thus, I looked at the umbrellas and thought to myself, “Self, you may just need an umbrella for your excursion tomorrow, and goodness knows it rains enough here that you'll probably find a chance to use it soon.” Then, as I checked out, I glanced at the ATM machines by the door, and realized that I may want some extra funds for the excursion with the professors the next day. Luckily the first ATM I tried there worked. So although I set out with one goal in mind, although I didn't succeed in obtaining that goal, I returned with two things that I needed.
The week before, I had purchased a map of the city, and I spent some time studying it. My sense of direction, to be kind to myself, is poor. I need to look at a map to be able to get a picture in my head of how a city is arranged. I knew downtown Portland like the back of my hand, but Portland is arranged on such a nice little grid. Nizhny Novgorod is an old city, thus no one had a grid in mind as they kept adding on.
I got a text from Jackie saying it was looking like she wasn't going to be able to meet until closer to 5:30, so I worked on some homework. I am also doing recordings for one of the professors. She has an American English textbook that I am reading texts or lists of words from. I myself have used recordings similar to this while studying Russian, and it was a little strange to be on the recording end. I also felt a little funny sitting in my room by myself saying a word, then pausing so the student could repeat the word, over and over. I hoped my neighbors couldn't hear me, or if they did, that they didn't think I was crazy. Also, one of my greatest fears is reading aloud. Ever since a particular incident in the first grade, I have been trying to rebuild my courage about reading aloud. Public speaking = no problem. Public reading = instantaneous and total fear. Even reading aloud to myself is somewhat humiliating for me. It looks like I'm going to get to read a good 50 pages or more aloud. Kick number two out of my nice little comfort zone. It is kind of fun though to look at how Russians are taught English phonetics. Interestingly enough, when I was talking to the one guy after the idioms class, he wanted help with his accent, and I was trying to explain something to him using examples. I found nearly those same exact examples in the book. It made me feel good. That good ol' education is a-workin'.
In the early evening I set out for Shokolodniza, the same place where Oksana and I had had coffee and blini the weekend before, where we had decided to meet. I had decided to take a path I hadn't taken before to get there, trusting my memory of my map study. I had one moment where I second guessed myself and started to go the wrong way, but then corrected my efforts. I had texted Jackie and said I'd probably be a little late due to my detour. I was thankful for my umbrella purchase as it started to rain. I arrived at Shokolodniza at 5:35, but I still hadn't heard anything from Jackie so I waited outside...for twenty minutes. I was just about to call her when I got a text back from her asking if I was ok and finding my way. I then realized that she might be inside...which she was. Apparently, she ended up getting there at 5pm after all and had already had a sandwich waiting for me. I joked that, for being in a Capstone entitled “Intercultural Communication” we were doing a pretty lousy job. She had thought we had planned to meet inside, and I just assumed outside. We had some coffee and desert as we laughed about it. Next time, we'll plan better.
We left a little before 7 to head back to her place, as it would take us about a half hour to walk there. I made sure I paid better attention this time so I could find my way back. As we talked, we both mentioned that we felt that we weren't speaking enough Russian as we had to keep speaking English at the universities, and we didn't live with host families. Therefore, we decided to just try to speak Russian with each other. We got to her room with about five minutes to spare before we were supposed to skype. Anna Anatolevna was a little delayed getting on, so Jackie and I were better able to share our findings of the week with each other. Jackie had found a book of Nizhny Novgorod stories, and Veronika had given me a few as well. Many of the legends have multiple versions, so we're choosing our favorites. We skyped with Anna Anatolevna for about 45 minutes, clearing up some of the details of our project. Jackie has a headset with a built-in microphone that connects via USB, meaning that to use the mic, we had to use the headset. Jackie wore the headset and I sat close to her so I could here what was being said. Next time, we're thinking of using my netbook as it has a built in mic.
Jackie walked back to Gorky Square with me, and then I headed back to my dorm. Walking through Bolshaya Prokovskaya I heard one bar blasting out the Titanic Theme. There is a joke that every time you go to Russia, you are bound to hear the Titanic Theme at least once. For some reason it's everywhere. I guess it promotes a better atmosphere than the Macarena I had heard walking back down the street alone last time. It take about 45 minutes to walk from Jackie's to my dorm. If it concerns you that I am walking alone for that long after 8pm at night, let me allieve your concerns. Bolshaya Prokovskaya is well lit and populated at night. It's probably the safest place for me to walk alone. Also, when I'm walking at night I stay on the streets that are more prominent and well lit, so you don't need to worry.
So ends installment one of weekend number three.
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