Springtime in Moscow

hey-o!  it's full on spring here in moscow-town.  tho instead of april showers, we have had may showers.  it's been a deluge.  fortunately, i've been inside for most of them, which means i've missed seeing the bazillion rainbows that everyone else has posted on facebook, but that's ok.  i got to see my share of rainbows in utah!

anyway, we've been trying to find the joy here in m-town through the rain.  going on 2 weeks without seeing the sun really.  it's come out here and there, but always hides away under nasty storm clouds.  here are some pics of rainy moscow:

beckie and i only just managed to escape the showers while eating at a cute restaurant near the office.  the restaurant is pretty much outdoors, you sit in little porches, basically, while the waiters dash down an open-air alley to each table.  geogian food, sushi, and hookah pipes...pretty standard restaurant for moscow!  it's been incredibly difficult for me to find food that i love here.  some of it has been tasty, but in general, i'm not impressed.  i might have to step it up and spend more $.  we are starting operation dinner out to see if we can't find some more tasty places.  i have a HUGE craving for italian...i'm tired of georgian and pierogies already!  (tho the bread here is amazing...)

just between storms..this is one of the seven sisters i see on my walk home.

the storm rolling in!  or away...i can't tell.

the evening sun between storms.  it stays light until at least 10/10:30 already!

on saturday, between rains, glenda and i went to a gallery...well, it was a collection of galleries, or design studios, or schools, or all of the above.  i'm finding that contemporary/artistic moscow is filled with kind of re-purposed old industrial parks...but more like re-purposed apartment complexes maybe...they are places that are tucked behind buildings on the street, with little alley-ways and small building connected together to create one large complex.  there are hardly any signs telling you what is what, so it's anybody's guess as to what is a gallery and what is workshop and what is some artist's home.  so you try a bunch of doors and ask around, and eventually find what you are looking for.  seems like something that should be in east berlin.  so glenda and i went searching for an exhibit called "Recycle.  Future Archaeology."  it turned out to be a rather small exhibit of unexciting artworks made from re-purposed materials.  eh.  but we found vending machines selling glass jewelry (i bought a necklace), a photo booth, and the street art in the complex was much cooler than the gallery work.  some of the street art is below:

birthdays in russia are a BIG DEAL.  BIG.  there are some traditions that are strictly adhered to, at least in our office.  first of all, if it is a woman's birthday, EVERYONE has to give her flowers.  big bunches of flowers.  so, um, listen up mom and dad...you'd better find a florist in moscow to deliver my flowers on my birthday or it will be a very sad day.  so every department gives the woman flowers, but a male member of the department must deliver them to her, and give her a kiss on the cheek.   so she is surrounded by a wall of flowers all day.  seriously, it looks like a jungle.  amazing.  then, whomever has the birthday is obligated to bring in treats for everyone in the office.  fruit, cakes, periogi's whatever.  i'm sure it's not cheap.  and i don't know how some of them afford it, they must save up all year to give food and treats to EVERYONE else on their birthday.  it's a pretty fun tradition, actually.  here are some pictures from a recent birthday in the office.  this one was particularly grand because it was our russian ceo's bday:

this is a lot of our russian colleagues on my floor.  and they are gathered around...

this amazing spread of fruits, cheese plates, and bread/crackers.  and it's not easy to find good fruit here unless you spend a LOT of rubles.

just an example of one bouquet.

this is the poster of the birthdays of our russian colleages for the month of may.  it is in russian on the left, english on the right.  we internationals don't have a poster up, i think mostly cuz no one wants to have to buy fruit and cakes for the whole office!

anyway, pretty slow week and weekend.  i'm focused on trying to find good restaurants with international food.  needing a bit of a break from dill-flavor, which is in pretty much every russian dish. :)  went shopping at a very fancy grocery store the other day and just acknowledged that i would be spending a lot for fancy items like soy milk, coconut milk, blueberries, raspberries and other foods that are staples of my diet in america.  i spent over $100 on one bag of groceries, mostly fruit.  and a box of macaroons.  :)  

have been cooking a lot and learning to perfect a good curry.  and last night gerri, an exceptional cook, made us a pork roast and puttanesca pasta.  i made bruschetta with roasted garlic.  and we had fresh fruit and macaroons for dessert.  amazing!!!  now to find that in a restaurant...

Moscow in the Spring...and EUROVISION!

spring has hit with massive enthusiasm here in moscow!  the temp has been hovering between 25-30 degrees every day.  sunny and gorgeous.  a few rain showers here and there, but they only help the cause.  it is incredibly lush now.  a COMPLETELY different city.  like spring anywhere, but it is especially dramatic here because it did happen so fast, seemingly overnight.  and we were longing for it.  was a particularly long and dreadful winter here this year i'm told.  lucky us!  here are some pics to show you the dramatic comparison:

this is the view out of our office windows.  the top one was less than 8 weeks ago.  the below one was just the other day.

some photos of the park near my apartment.  it is a sunny, beautiful place now, full of families and laughing children.  

i think the difference is exacerbated by our preconceived ideas of moscow being a cold, forboding place where there is no joy.  the joy is different here, i truly believe that.  but it is there.  the sun shines here and brightens this world just as much as anywhere else.  it's just a bit harder to see through the bureaucracy, fear of the government and fear of the unknown and under the control of an extremely strict and conservative religion.  a couple of days ago on the International Day Against Homophobia, gay rights advocates tried to stage a rally in Tbilisi, Georgia.  they were attacked by crowds throwing stones and many say the attacks were led by orthodox priests.  charges have yet to be pressed which shows how much influence the church has over the government...the city government is too scared to do anything or question the attacks.  it is true they tried to protect the ralliers and get them out of harm's way, but that is about it.  there is a great article in today's NY Times (ny times article).  and this coming weekend in moscow there is a planned gay rights rally.  however, it will be done illegally as the organizers have been turned down three times when trying to get permits from the government.  there is always a reason as to why they can't hold a rally.  so they are going to hold it anyway.  you can read more on www.themoscowtimes.com.  and we were issued a memo at work today warning against being around the rally for fear of violence and arrests that will likely happen, which is what historically happens at gay rights rallies here in russia.  i have an argument inside myself about this.  on the one hand, i am very supportive of the rally.  on the other, i will likely putting myself and my work at risk by attending.  which is ultimately what needs to be happening here in order for things to change.  at the end of the day, it is up to the russians themselves to change their society.  they know the rest of the world is much more tolerant, and in many places quite supportive of this issue.  but opinions here are very much driven by religion (as in many parts of the world) and orthodoxy has a strong influence (some might say stranglehold) on government (and thus many people) here.  i have nothing against religion (well, most religion).  but i do have something against people who try to tell me how to think and who are prejudiced (and violently so) against others.  but we have to believe that the younger generation here will do a lot to move things forward.  but it will be a long battle yet.  

on a somewhat different note...this past weekend was EUROVISION!!!  this is the amazing singing competition between every nation in europe...and israel.  each country submits a performance and each performance is judged by television viewers and judges in every other country.  it takes place over one week...2 semi-final rounds then the final round of 26 countries is broadcast live from the host nation.  (the country that won the contest the year prior hosts the current year's contest).  it is absolutely incredible.  here is a link to this year's winner from denmark:  eurovision 2013 winner.

and here is the incredible performance from romania (to show you how crazy-campy this show is): eurovision 2013 romania.  

anyway, some of our colleagues in the tech department hosted a party to watch the live final. however it was more than just a party.  we were each assigned a country from the finals.  we had to dress up in the spirit of that country.  and we had to bring food native to that country.  and we only had 24 hours to put this all together, cuz the final list is only published a day before the finale.  it was madness!  i was finland, along with one of my russian colleagues.  i had not met her yet, so this was a fab way to get to know her!  nastaya had the brilliant idea to dress up like finnish heavy metal rockers.  much easier than the native scandinavian dress!  and i brought a dessert of frozen cranberries with a white chocolate glaze.  and we brought finlandia vodka, of course!  so while the contest was going on, we did our own judging, and rated each country on the song, the costume, the camp-factor, and the performance overall.    in our contest, i think greece won.  here is a link to their performance: eurovision 2013 greece.  followed closely by azerbaijan: eurovision 2013 azerbaijian.  watching these links are worth it, i'm telling you.  pretty incredible stuff.  if you want more, check out maldova and ireland, too.

anyway, here are pics from the party:

this is nastaya and i by the tv for finland's performance of marry me.  i think our group voted major points to finland just for the ending.  rather shocking for the russians in the room.

this is rebekah and andrew who were supporting, um, russia...duh.

this is andy, who bought a child's traditional belarussian outfit and pinned it to himself.

luke as germany (he made his go-pro harness into lederhosen!!), shannon went out and bought a traditional georgian outfit, and nathan as an ikea employee (ie sweden).

zirka in the colors of hungary and di as france.

julie-ann as great brittain (i still don't understand her outfit) and sasha as a romanian prostitute.

tom as estonia (with a wooden horse?) and dan and ross as ukraine (in ukraine's song, a HUGE giant in greek dress carries out the beautiful lady singer who is wearing a white dress...so they copied that...in their own way)

and here is russia's performance, which is pretty ironic considering my above paragraph about intolerance: eurovision 2013 russia.  it's a fantastic lesson.  what if indeed.

A Few Things I Have Learned So Far...

i started making a mental list of the things that i have learned so far here in russia.  here is the current list:

1.  fresh bread.  you can find fresh bread at almost any time of day in any grocer.  fantastic.  i make salami sandwiches for lunch every day on freshly baked baguettes, or brown grain bread.

2.  mustard.  sometimes i think i MUST be in germany due to all of the mustard flavors on the shelves.  dad will love it!

3.  office dress.  dressing up for the office takes on a whole new meaning here.  most of the girls here look like they are going out to a club versus to the office.  high heels EVERYWHERE.  and fully done-up make-up, usually done at their desks when they get in.  short skirts.  very short skirts.  and apparently it is just fine to wear translucent tops that show the bra you are wearing that day.  bonus points for colored bras.  sometimes that can even be coordinated with the skirt you are wearing.  really, it is incredible the outfits.  i have been chastised by multiple russian colleages for wearing jeans to work.  even smart, nice jeans.  i should be wearing skirts i am told.  and high heels.  i am told i need to show off my legs. at the office??  anyway, watch out park city.  i'm bringing home a new fashion trend.  some may call it a bit slutty...i call it "eastern european chic."

4.  cars can be parked anywhere.  ANYWHERE.  sidewalks preferred.  and if your tires go flat (whether naturally, or perhaps are slashed), just leave the car there.  it will eventually rot down and be absorbed into the pavement.

5.  alcohol is cheaper than coffee.  and WAY cheaper than tea.  a pot of tea at a typical cafe can run you nearly $12.  a beer is around $3.  coffee is somewhere in between, depending on where you go.  if it is kafemanya (the latest trendy coffee chain), a "flat white" (british for cortado, which is italian for espresso with equal parts milk) can be nearly $15.

6.  never assume the grocer will have the same products today as he did yesterday.  unreliability is the constant.  i'm sure this comes from the days when you never knew when the bread pr milk order would come in.  it remains today.  yesterday there was spinach.  today, no.  not even any form of lettuce.  limes in abundance last week.  sunday, when i needed them, i had to trek an extra 30 minutes to the super fancy grocery store and pay $10 for them.  and our local store was out of toilet bowl cleaner for a few days so i had to get it from the big grocery store in the mall a few neighborhoods away.  more than just traces of soviet life remain here.  that said, sometimes there are fantastic surprises that appear!  like fun european brands of foods.  or super tasty oranges that are there for a week and then never again.  but for that week, i ate my weight in delicious, juicy oranges.  it's a fabulous day when there are cherry yogurt drinks in stock.  very tasty.  and per my #1, there is ALWAYS fresh bread.  which has not always been the case here, so we count ourselves lucky and blessed.

7.  cherry juice.  this is my new favorite thing.  the russians have cornered the market in cherry juice.  i have never had it before and it is AMAZING.  and as i stated in #6, it's hard to find the same brand twice in one week, but that's fine, cuz i get to sample all of the brands!  and it is an extra-special day when my fave brand is in stock.

8.  the russians love paperwork.  i mean LOVE.  we have to deliver at least 3 monthly reports, all saying basically the same thing, and all with documents and meeting notes and charts and spreadsheets.  any and all forms of documentation that prove we are working hard on this project.  my friend katie wright would be horrified at the amount of paper we produce and turn in every month.  it is amazing.  i don't think anyone reads it.  i do think that they measure our worth by the amount of paperwork we turn in.  and it all has to be bound and stamped and with pretty cover sheets.  we probably spend half our month preparing the documents to prove how much work we have done that month.  it is comically inefficient.

9.  the russians love stamps.  everything is stamped.  at least twice.  with official stamps.  one day one of my colleagues was blessed with the opportunity to use the company stamp (the russian company that hired us), but only for one day.  and it had to be driven across town and delivered by hand to her.  like it was an endangered animal or a government secret.  it's probably both.

10.  i could start a new career as the recycling mogul of moscow.  to my knowledge, recycling doesn't exist here.  (plug your ears katie wright!!).  but it's not likely to happen anytime soon considering A the amount of paperwork the russians love and B the amount of paperwork it would take to get a recycling system going here.

ok, i'll leave it there.  will add to it throughout the year.

more later on the weekend's festivities...we had a Eurovision party.  absolutely incredible.  if you don't know what Eurovision is, google it.  like American Idol, but it is a competition for singers from each country in europe, plus israel.  fabulous does not even do it justice.

Victory Day in Russia - 9 May

so today is victory day.  over the nazi's, over world war to, over the ability for this country to survive.  even if it was led by stalin.  still, it's something to celebrate.  and boy do they celebrate!  with a lot of intensity and power.

gerri and i walked a few blocks from our apt to get a good viewing spot for the military parade this morning.  the main show was in red square, but that was for vets and vip's only.  commoners are able to stand on some main roads and watch the tanks and trucks approach red square, and then leave it and return to their tank and truck homes.  there was also a flyover by many different kinds of helicopters and military planes...some even had jet streams colored to look like the russian flag as they flew past.

gerri and i met some lovely brits while waiting for the parade...a mother and her daugher, who were here visiting the eldest daughter, who teaches at the anglo-american school with her husband.  they have been living in moscow for 7 years, but they don't know ANY russian, and don't really care to learn.  AND they hadn't been to many tourist sites that the mother and other daughter were seeing all week!  i can't imagine.  i mean, i know you get caught up in your life and things, and especially with kids, so visiting historical sights is not top on the list...but still.  7 years, and they haven't seen anything! they also have a home in florida that they go to during school and winter holidays.  so i guess they don't  want to spend much holiday time here in russia anyway.  i've heard that the expat community here is pretty tight.  and that not a lot of foreigners learn russian.  which is why my russian colleagues are probably so excited that i and a few others are!  i think it's important.  and again, i do not intend on learning every grammar rule (that would take 7 years alone...) but enough to get around, to ask basic questions, to understand basic announcements and directions.  which reminds me that i really need to do some studying...

anyway, victory day.  so we watched the parade.  a stoic show of military force.  here are some choice pics.  i also have a video, which i will try to upload.  lower the volume before you play it.  tanks are LOUD.

street cleaners...they cleaned the streets before the tanks came, and again after.  and there were as many of them as there were tanks!

so after THAT...how does one follow up an extreme display of military strength and power?  go to a park!

lots of parks around moscow were hosting various WWII remembrance and celebratory events.  and one of those parks happened to be minutes from my apartment.  we hooked up with a posse of co-workers and headed to krasnya presnya park to see what we could see.  here is what we saw.

There were volunteers (or maybe soldiers) dressed up in WWII uniforms and tables with WWII-era helmets and guns that people could try out.

and a big gunner to, um, play on?

i love this little guy.  he has no idea why he's holding a gun bigger than he is.

and i love this pic.  the girl is good...but what's even better is the guy posing behind her.

my friend beckie tried one out on the shooting range.

dining tent set up i think for veterans and their families.

an old mess tent was set up, as if it were a little movie hall to entertain the troops.  they even had an old projector!  there were movies played later in the day, but we didn't stay for them.

a dog with converse sneakers!

there was also a stage set up with live entertainment.  a 40's style band, 2 amazing violinists (that played live, but to track...kinda funny) and a folk singer who apparently sang all the good ol' tunes of Russia.  all of the older generation were up dancing and singing along.  very sweet.  here are some pics:

to cap the day, there were several firework displays around town.  we could see two from the river, which is just a block from our apartment.  here we are waiting.  this is a view of one of stalin's seven sisters building - this is the former Hotel Ukraine (now a Radisson!) across the river from us.  the white/blue/red lights are strung along the bridge that spans the river here.

this is one of the two displays we could see.  

was a fab day.  and it's officially springtime to boot!  27 degrees!  such a different city.  more spring pics later.  this was very much like our 4th of July.  but with more military presence.  ha ha!  i'd love to see the des moines golf and country club allow century-old guns to be shot on the driving range before the firework display.  ha!  anyway, it was terrific.  and the pride and honor this culture still feels for it's veterans is amazing.  people were shouting "victory day!" (in russian of course) while the fireworks were going off.  and as we were walking back to our apartment afterward, we heard strains of the russian national anthem being sung.  the glory of winning WWII is strongly felt here...it was extremely meaningful here...meant they could continue their way of life, that they could LIVE.  it was much more intense here than we could ever know.  and they keep that feeling alive, as they should.  it is a point of pride.  what makes russia, russia today.

anyway, it was fantastic to rub shoulders with that pride, even if i felt wierd about kids playing with the guns.  all part of history i suppose.  and now it is part of mine!