Furs in St Petersburg

i can't help it.  there are just so many fur coats here.  the stereotype is true.  and they are fashionable furs (some of them), and practical furs (most of them).  and they come in all shapes and sizes.  and i would like one with a large, drapey hood and a nice drapey belt.  i have a few months to find it.  :)

meanwhile, here are some photos of furs that i captured on the streets of st pete's.  a good slice of local life as well.  i hope you enjoy.

ok, so this doesn't totally count.  but, if you look closely, these are monkeys dressed up in baby snow clothes.  their "owner" hands them out to you as you walk by, trying to get you to pay to take a photo with them.  it's sick.  and these little guys have no idea what's happening.  i snuck a photo, cuz i was so fascinated.  but i feel a little gross for doing so, as i totally am a part of the exploitation now.  but i'm appalled, not adoring.  so maybe that counts for something??

moving on.  here is a couple outside hermitage.  

this lady is negotiating for a painting sold by an artist on the street.

this lady is making a phone call.  (i think she totally knew i was snapping a photo of her...)

these are two lovely older ladies leaving the Kazan Cathedral.

older furs meet younger furs.

beautiful group of older ladies out on a saturday...likely a tour group of some kind.  they each had a fur coat or hat or something made out of fur on their persons.

furs even go with tartan plaid!

another classic russian lady.

loud striped fur on the left.  hip, fashionable use of fur on the right.

there is a bit of an obsession with cats and cat art at the hermitage...like, classic ancient cat art, egyptian style, not like contemporary painting of cats.  but they do have a lot of cat books.  and i miss my cats, so i took this photo in honor of them.

and this is winter sara, trying out my drapey-hooded look.  there is a line of fake fur on the hood of my coat in this pic, but it's nowhere near as cool as the ladies above me.  i think i need a true russian fur.  it's fine if it's fake fur, but it's got to be russian.  :)

St Petersburg - General...oh, and a bit about a massage...

hello all.  sorry for the delay in posts.  took a brief, but amazing, weekend excursion up to St Petersburg (or St Pete's as some call it here).  incredible city.  extremely different feel from moscow, which is to be expected as it is much smaller, on the coast, looks like paris, and almost all signs are in russian as well as english.  a very tourist-driven city.  and so proud of it's history.  very fashionable as well.  i bought a cute pair of boots...tho they are italian, not russian.  but i bought them in russia, so that still counts, right?

here they are...i'm hoping i get the melissa soltesz stamp of approval.

so we arrived on fri am, and basically saw the sh*t out of some art until we left on sun eve.  oh, and we ate good things, too (gonna write a whole separate bit on that).  but the sightseeing was fantastic.  again, admitting how horribly ignorant i am about this country i'm in, i had NO idea there was a museum called the Hermitage.  and that is in a former palace (well, THREE) former palaces of romanov empresses of russia, and that it is in st petersburg.  oh yeah, and houses one of the finest collections of 19th and early 20th century french art that i've ever seen.  oh yeah, and it's the SECOND largest collection of artwork in the world after the Lourve.  well, i guess it was my lucky day, cuz i found all of that out, and got to see it all, too.

here is the Hermitage, the winter palace of catherine the 2nd (aka cathy the great), but was built in the late 18th century for peter the great's neice, i believe.  anyway, next to it are the "small palace" that catherine called her "hermitage" - her hideaway built in the early 19th century, another palace built during catherine's time, and a more modern palace for the romanov's in the late 19th century.  they were all art collectors, and we get to benefit.

here is the winter palace...the main building.  this is sat am, and it was snowing, so there is a snow plow pushing snow away from the front of the building.  the hermitage is one side of a HUGE piazza that is 2x the size of red square, if i remember correctly.  more photos of it later.  but it is kinda funny to see a snow plow in front of an 18th century pale green building.  

here is the library of tzar nicholas II (the one who was killed during the revolution of 1917), from the "new" palace as a part of the complex.  they have preserved the rooms more or less just like the romanov family used them.  and they are stuthe one who was killed during the revolution of 1917).  i would love to have a library like this.  i would read more.  and probably write more "correspondence." 

this is me on the grand staircase into the winter palace that catherine added on...it is called the jordan staircase cuz it leads to the exit along the canal in back of the building, and the royals thought they were just like jesus going to be baptized in the river jordan when they would process down the staircase to the water for religious ceremonies. eh, kinda...

this is winter sara in the plaza just out the front gates of the winter palace (where the snow plow was moments before).  the alexander column is in the background, which celebrates alexander I's defeat over napoleon in the great war of 1812.  and you can also see people dressed up like catherine the great, and peter the great.  and you can pay them to get a photo.  i did not do that, sorry.

this is winter sara and her colleague winter anne.

and these are more dress-up people!  this time with a horse and carriage!  so you can totally replay anna karenina.

we also went to the most beautiful church i have ever seen.  the church on the spilled blood (actually the church of the resurrection, but no one calls it that cuz it was built to commemorate the assasination of Alexander II, which happened on the spot where the church was later built.  they've even kept a section of the original road, where he was hit (by a bomb being thrown in his carriage), and put a canopy over it.  kinda morbid...but i suppose all cultures do slightly morbid things to commemorate their dead leaders.  anyway, here are some photos of the outside and the inside.  it is simply stunning.

and there is a gorgeous park off to the side...michealevsky park.  so we took a stroll there, too.  it is the summer garden to the summer palace that i think is now the russian museum.  lots of palaces-turned-museums here.  it was hard to keep them all straight, i'll be honest.  but they are all beautiful, and so ornate.  and we only saw a few of them!  there are more across the river!  and outside of town!  one could make a whole year of seeing summer and winter palaces.  no wonder the people revolted...the excess is just outrageous.  anyway, here are pictures from the park...

 
 i'm not sure what the ice sculpture says...i haven't learned to read in cursive script yet.  but that is me standing between two of the letters.

here are some "street scenes" from st pete's.  like i said in a facebook post...from 60 hours there, i can say it feels like the charming younger sister to moscow's gritty intensity.  (to which my sister replied that she was st petersburg and i was moscow.  well, fine.  i'd like to be charming and beautiful...but the people revolted against that charm and beauty and moved the capitol to moscow, which is where the real action is.  so i guess in the end, i win that one.  :)  ).

oh, yeah, and we saw the famous sculpture of peter the great...for whom the city is named.  he was a pretty enterprising guy, and wanted to make russia more connected with europe, so intentionally designed st petersburg to be a more european city.  congrats, sir, on a job well done.

ok, so last but not least, a story, specifically for my friends laura leonard and melissa soltesz, who should probably meet and hang out.  they both have terrific senses of humor, love to laugh and love wine.  and they both (hopefully) read my blog, so here you go.

saturday eve we returned to our clean and modern hotel in the historic district to relax and rest up before going out for the evening.  we had been slow-walking in museums for 2 days straight, plus in and out of the cold and staring at artwork.  we were beat, and sore and my lower back was killing me.  i read that the hotel had a spa with a sauna, and according to the posting in the elevator, they also had massages available.  done!  so i went to investigate.  first of all, the entry to the fitness center cannot be found without a gps, a map, speaking fluent russian, and three hotel receptionists.  once i finally found the small door marked "fitness," i entered the tiny fitness reception area.  tiny.  i mean, the size of an armchair.  there was a friendly, if strict receptionist and a large bear of a man in sweatpants and a white undershirt sitting in a chair next to the check-in station.  which pretty much means i was sitting in his lap while talking to the receptionist.  i asked if it was possible to use the sauna.  "now?!?" the receptionist asked.  um, yeah, now would be good.  so she asked my room number, gave me a towel, and a locker key and said "you will shower before."  yes ma'am.  then i asked about massages.  "now?!" again.  yes, sure, why not?  she looked at the man in sweatpants, he put down the paper, and gestured to me that sure, i can get a massage now.  ummmm.  he gestured that i should go thru the locker area and then find his office where he will presumably be waiting.  he seemed very nice, for wearing sweatpants and being about 300 pounds.  knowing melissa and laura would want to know what happens next, i thought, hey, ok, i'll try this out.  so i showered as instructed, and slipped and slid in the cheap slippers herr receptionist gave me and made my way to the massage office.  boris, let's call him, was there, again reading a newspaper.  "please, come in" he said. he pointed to the standard massage table in the middle of the room, covered neatly in a sheet and some towels.  "lay down.  on stomach.  face here." directing me to put my face in the divot in the table.  fair enough - seems very similar to massages i've had in the past, ok, it seems fine so far.  he left the room so i could undress and hoist myself onto the table.  since i was just getting a back massage, i kept the undies on, and draped my own towel over my lower half.  boris knocked, asked if "is ok?" to come in.  yes, is ok.  "all back? or low back?"  all back.  "you have some pain?"  yes, some, not so bad.  and the massage begins.  pretty normal.  warming up the muscles, etc.  so i start to relax.  and it really does feel pretty fabulous.  until he starts to dig into my lower back.  and then, starts to push into my glutius maximus...and then starts massaging my tail bone.  whoa.  um, how far you gonna explore down there boris?  thankfully, tail bone is it.  and then he asked me to turn on my side.  so i think, flip over.  "no!  side, side!"  ok, stay on my side.  and he stretches me over his beefy arm.  does this both sides.  it's also actually pretty great, so i start to relax again.  and then he does have me flip over.  so i make sure my towel covers my top parts and i settle down, a bit on edge, as not sure what part of "back massage" includes me actually lying on my back.  but all is well.  he massages my neck, and then stretches and pulls on my legs.  i notice he pulls the right one a lot harder than the left, and i'm thinking he's pretty smart, cuz my right hip was really sore and tight from slow-walking so much.  so i relax again.  and then he says "sit up! sit up 2 minutes."  so i sit up, holding the towel against me.  he rubs the oil off of my back and asks "not dizzy?"  nope, not dizzy.  then he leaves the room so i can dress again.  so yeah, overall a great massage experience.  but a little freaky there in parts.  which i kept thinking was like a metaphor for this whole experience.  i didn't want it to end, yet i also hated being on edge the whole time wondering what was coming up next.  it was simultaneously so familiar, and so foreign.  relaxing and terrifying.  and for about 25 minutes, i felt a microcosm of what my life will be like for the next year.  i won't want it to end, yet i will crave being at home in the US.  loving it, and hating it at the same time, and seeing things in a new light and learning to trust along the way.  i guess that is what the adventure is all about. but i still don't need to have my coccyx massaged.  that was wierd.

Finding Our Way

this morning we decided to walk to work.  it's about a 45 minute walk.  and it was -19 C.  but we decided to do it anyway, to help us get a better understanding of the lay of the land.  it was myself, anne, jorge (closing ceremony psm, from mexico), sara b (casting director for opening and closing, from italy), and another stage manager from mexico.  other than our noses freezing off, it was a beautiful morning.  and we walked past a fabulous bakery chain, the post office, the gorgeous belaruskaya train/metro station, and lots of other fun shops and restaurants.  all in all, a success.  i captured our journey in pictures...

This is on leningradski prospect...the large road that runs behind our hotel...and it is a BIG road.  like, 5 lanes of traffic on either side.  i've found that there are many large roads here...of at least 3-4 lanes on each side.  AND, rarely can you cross them...you have to use underpasses, and go below the streets.  which is actually kinda nice, cuz it takes you out of the cold (or the wind anyway) for a moment, gets you some exercise going up and down stairs, and there are fun kiosks down there selling things like, oh, pastries, cigarettes, sweaters, socks, dresses, boots, and ashtrays, or some other kind of totchkies in various shapes (like, um, breasts).  there is an orthodox church in this photo...if it's not too dark to see.  with the iconic ice-cream-scoop tops on the chapels.  a beautiful building...and somewhat out of place amongst the more modern architecture...the city is such a mish-mash, it's incredible.

sara b (left) and anne leading the way.  still on leningradski prospect.

this is what inner-city train stations look like in moscow.  belaruskaya station.  it is also a metro (subway) stop.

this is the entrance to the belaruskaya metro stop.  gorgeous!

this is us pausing to check the map.  jorge thinks he knows which way to go.  also, this is a good time to mention the kiosks in the background...if i remember correctly, these sprung up in the early 90's when it was suddenly possible to have commercial enterprises...kiosks like these opened up on street-corners selling clothing, leather jackets, socks, food, etc.  our exec producer, andre (just one year older than me!!! makes me wonder what i have done with my life... ha ha!) told us he remembers his dad going to wait in line for several days just to buy some beers.  and then suddenly, one day, you can go to a kiosk and buy a leather jacket!  this country has been through so much...it's like a yo-yo.  the resiliency of the people is amazing.

yes, we think we know the way now!

oh wait, um, maybe not...better check the map again...this is anne's new map that she got when we went to a fancy bookstore last night!  it was so fun.  i got a fancy moleskin notebook (the "professional" version...complete with special note-taking pages, and removable task lists!!  totally nerded out with that one...), some copies of old russian propaganda cards, and a small russian-english dictionary so i can have one at home and one at the office.  i also got a map.  and we found a small english book section.  there are 2-3 bookstores in moscow that sell english-language books.  yay! (as my sister roles her eyes...)


this is a beautiful catholic cathedral we passed on our way.  it gives mass in english, spanish, portugese and french i think!  it is really rare to see a catholic church, because only 3% of the population here is catholic.  the vast majority (well, say 95%) is russian orthodox.  and they are proud.  during soviet times, religion was not really supported, or, um allowed in some cases.  so now that it is, or at least the government supports it again, it is roaring back with popularity.  ok, that's a very simplified look, but it does help explain why there is such a large percentage of orthodox practicers here.

we made it!!!  and went for a celebratory coffee at anderson cafe, my fave cafe (as some might remember) right next door to the office.  i got to ask, all in russian, for "one double espresso please.  thank you very much."  so proud.

this is jorge celebrating making it and not freezing to death.

so that's it!  we are finding our way.  slowly but surely.  :)

You Just Say Yes

well, another long weekend of cultural and educational activities!  it is part of getting to know my new home, but it is also part of learning for my job.  learning the culture of my co-workers and learning the culture of the country who's hosting the biggest show i've ever worked on.  and despite it being -10 celsius (i'm practicing, so i'm not going to convert it...that's up to you :)  ), we dragged ourselves around all weekend long.  it was a pretty fantastically freezing time.

first stop, the mall!  as you know, i do hate malls.  but it was necessary.  i needed a few practical items, and i wanted to do some shopping around for a new computer bag.  my EMS backpack system is not cutting it.  WAY too outdoorsy for this gig.  got to be more polished.  so here we are waiting for the subway on our way to shop til we drop!  and it's only 3 stops away, very easy to get there.  and tho there are lots of western stores (including 2 starbucks) hardly anyone speaks english, and there are few signs in english, so it does still feel pretty foreign, despite being in one of america's largest gifts to the world.

this is mike (prod coord), john (props manager), trish (operations guru), david (wardrobe manager), gerri (accommodations whiz), anne (also a segment producer) and keith (production executive, which means he keeps guys like david and john in check  :)  ).  a lovely group of folks.  and the mall was fun...i went to marks and spencer (undies), H&M (a bag and some fun tops...tho about 2-3x what i'd pay in the states!), and tried to buy a skin for my computer, but my card got denied...this is the second time in a week.  even tho i called chase to tell them i was traveling, they have denied my card twice in a row when i have made purchases at stores here.  so i had to sort that out when i got back to the hotel.  for now, i'll just take a bunch of cash out at a time, and keep it in my safe or something, and use the card sparingly.

after a nice nap, we went out again on a guided tour of the communist history of moscow.  saw buildings where the KGB made it's headquarters (above), and the hotel metropoli, which was also used by the communists as a govt HQ while they built their own buildings.  the hotel (below) is gorgeous.  designed and built by a british team in the early 20th century i think.  this city is gorgeous in it's architecture...i had NO idea.  so fun to discover it all!

we saw an exhibit of old original propaganda posters used by the communist party to brainwash the citizens of the USSR.  here are some choice ones...and really, i have to question whether they should be considered "propaganda"...some messages do hit a little too close to the truth...
the image to the left is of uncle sam hugging a british guy, whilst simultaneously robbing him.  

the poster above and on the left says that life in america is pretty horrible...it states how often a bank is robbed (ie every 2 minutes, etc), a car is stolen, someone is mugged, or children have died per month.  and it also says it got these facts from the american media itself!  the one on the right shows what life is like as a musician in a democratic country (you are poor, in BW and playing on the streets) and what your musician's life is like in a communist country (you are well-off, adored, play in the largest music halls, and are in sepia tone!)

above and to the left, i am mimicking the "thinking worker".  this was a sculptural piece of propaganda, one of few that are still left in moscow.  this was created in the 1920's, when workers were still allowed to think.  then along came stalin and he decided that was a bad idea.  the pic on the right is for melissa soltesz...nesting cat dolls!!  with chickens!!

these two pics are from the fanciest grocery store i have ever been in in the world.  dean and deluca has NOTHING on this one.  it was built for the richest russians, before the communists took over.  the architect wanted to make a place for shopping for rich people.  he knew they would have no idea what things ACTUALLY cost, so he could charge whatever he wanted, and make a fortune!  he was right.  and then, it was still a grocery during the soviet era, but only the gov't employees could shop there/had enough $ to shop there.  the pic on the right is inside the store, too...they have a souvenir section...i'm guessing tourists are the main source of income for this store...but i took this pic because i remembered that my dad's friend tom shillinglaw (who sometimes reads this blog - hi tom!) brought back one of these types of boxes for me one year as a gift from his travels.  it's beautiful and i'll probably have to get another one while i'm here!

below is a pic of me with mr marx in the background.  (sorry i didn't change the orientation before i imported it...).   when the communists fell out of power, many of their sculptures and things were destroyed.  however, this one remained.  and the only reason why is because it was too heavy and would cost too much to destroy.  this city is incredible.  it has weathered regime changes every 70 years for the past several hundred years.  each one trying to wipe out all traces of the ones before.  but some lucky few remain...like st basil's and this sculpture of marx in revolution square.  what layers of history are here!!

hockey night in russia!!  we went to a hockey game today.  i was exhausted from the touring and shopping yesterday, and wanted to be lazy today.  but then we got offered last-minute tickets.  and i at first said no.  then i thought about it, and thought, you know, sara, sometimes you just have to say yes.  that is what this trip is all about.  saying yes to the chances, the opportunities, the challenges.  being open to it all.  so i went.  it was the last home-game of the season for spartak moscow, against their cross-town rivals svska (i think that's how you write it...).  was quite a fun game.  the pic on the left is the spartak home fans waving flags and shouting incessantly thru the whole game (spartak won!).  you can maybe see the cheerleaders behind the flags...they had a different outfit for each period, and danced their little russian hearts out the whole time, pretty much.  and their last outfit was basically a tight red t-shirt, over high-cut red panties.  was like they were at a sorority slumber party.  i was quite shocked, actually.  was also quite shocking to even SEE cheerleaders at a hockey game!  to the right are beckie, anne, simon, and mike.  some of the group that went.  oh yeah, and the russian president has changed the national anthem back to being the soviet one...has changed some lyrics, but the melody is the same. it was chilling, actually, to hear it sung at the top of the hockey game...raise goosebumps all over us westerners...we've been so programmed to think of that as an evil, depressing song...incredible to be here, when that period of history is over...sort of...and to hear it played.  going to have to get used to it in my line of work for the next year i suppose.

 and this is a little kitty in the window of a pet shop in the shopping center attached to the hotel.  seeing them makes me miss my kitties...and i thought it was amazing that this one has the exact coloring of my cat BC!  even down to the white spot on his back.  so cute.

so that was some of my weekend.  got lost a couple of times, ate some nice italian food, learned a TON about russian soviet history...and that was just the tip of the iceberg.  saw a russian hockey game, took a dip in the pool/hot tub/sauna/steam room they have in our fitness center (amazing...), cooked some pasta, skyped with my folks.  all in all, a pretty good one i'd say.