Care Packages and Late Summer Fun

I GOT THREE CARE PACKAGES THIS MONTH!!!  it's beyond incredible.  first that they made it here (two took over a month).  and second how absolutely fantastic they made me feel.  (btw, this is NOT a passive aggressive way of saying please send some, not at all.  there is a massive risk they won't make it.).  anyway, so i got a wonderful birthday surprise from my friend melissa.  it was a package of my fave all natural red licorice that you can only find in dan's grocery store in park city, ut.  well, at least i know it is there.  then, i got a package sent by my friend alex with all kinds of goodies in it!  the best was a package of what once were brownies.  they were double-bagged but had been stabbed to death (not kidding, there were knife slashes in the bags!) to make sure there wasn't anything hidden in them.  so it turned out to be a bag of crumbled brownie mix.  and thinking i could roll it into balls and fry them.  fried brownies!  they were a hit at this year's fair.  here's a pic of the bag:

alex also sent me nail polish, some magazines (ENGLISH!) and a fantastic scarf.  super happy.  and THEN bridgette sent me a package with MORE goodies!  among them: luna bars (THANK YOU!), a grey v-neck t-shirt (love it) and some natural cosmetics.  absolutely fantastic.  i love it all.  i have the best friends!!!  yes, i can get approximations of a lot of that stuff here, but it's not the same as the stuff from home.  plus, the best part is, it is from my friends.  and it's the thought put into the packages as much as the items.  

anyway, the weekend i arrived back from iowa was a very summery one.  this is probably the bluest sky i've seen the whole time i've been here!  gorgeous!  this is one of stalin's seven sister buildings...it is the old hotel ukraine, right across the river from me.  this is from a walk to the grocery store i took the day i arrived back as a tactic to keep myself awake until bedtime.  

another pic from that walk.  this is the russian white house.  it's a LOT bigger than ours.  but i hear it's what's more important is not the size, but how you use it...  :)

these are inflatable giant matrushkas.  they were part of the entertainment for the IAAF world championships held in Moscow at the stadium where the 1980 Olympic Games were held. 

and here's the stadium!  it's gynormous.

this is reporters trailing after usain bolt after he helped jamaica win the men's 4x100 relay.

this is part of the american team after they got 2nd place.  or maybe 3rd...i can't remember.

this is tamara and i in the sochi OCOG offices being sochi mascots.

this car is for sale.  it is 99,000 rubles.  that is $3000.  WAAAAYYY too much for this partially saran-wrapped vehicle.  

this is an amazing amount of food at a georgian cafe near work.  pizza's and hatchapori (basically stuffed pizza, or bread.  usually stuffed with cheese, but can also be meat, spinach, cabbage, etc).  super tasty.

this is jason all russian'd out drinking vodka and with a plate of pickled veggies.

ragtime band that we see regularly.  new orleans-style jazz.  extremely good.  all russian, but they sing in english.  very fun.

my best attempt thus far at making turkish coffee!!  however, i will say my motivation has diminished since a cute new coffeeshop opened around the corner from my house...now i just go there every morning.  and after 4 days i'm a regular!  they know my order when i walk in.  i love it.  and i speak only russian to them!

this is the view from my bedroom.  it was a foggy, cold day this day.  i'm told this is what september is like.  and october even worse.  and then it snows.

jess rubbing the nose of a dog sculpture for good luck!

super fun cocktails at an underground (both physically and figuratively) bar.  the bar scene here is pretty fun.  lots of places make very unusual cocktails...with thyme, rosemary, lots of different kinds of fruits and berries, star anise, etc.  it's really fun to test them all!

means "i love moscow."  i kinda do a little bit.  or at least have a soft place in my heart for it, as tough a city as it is.

our colleage steph photo-bombing my pic of a car with POLAR BEARS painted on the side.  it's amazing what these folks choose to paint on their cars.  i wonder what this says..."i'm from siberia?"

anyway, so some shots of our end of summer activities here in m-town.  hoping for a few more days of sun coming up.  trying to plan a hiking trip down to lake baikal in september for a few days on a short tour (which is actually in siberia!!  but i bet you didn't know siberia extends very far south...so it won't be the frozen tundra yet).  trying to enjoy myself before we go into rehearsal lock down.  squeezing out the last drops of summer in the city!

Home Sweet Home

apologies for the lack of posts lately!  but i have a good excuse...i got to go home!  to iowa!  in the UNITED STATES!  so happy.  and with my renewed love and appreciation for my homeland and my experience growing-up, my education, and my family, i was looking forward with an even greater anticipation than usual to spend some quality time in the midwest.  at my folks' house specifically.  i arrived late on a saturday night, to see the smiling faces of my parents greeting me at the des moines international airport.  it was wonderful to see them, and to see my mom smiling, specifically.  she has been having some health challenges this summer, which made my visit home all the more important and needed.

my original plan was to stay about 10 days.  my main goal was to apply for, and receive a work visa that would allow me to go back and continue working in russia until the spring.  that process was supposed to take 5-6 business days.  however, upon receiving my application and passport, invitation letter, medical records, and proof of employment, the visa service i used phoned me saying the russian consulate might take longer than expected..."we just don't know with russia..." she said.  i told her i completely understood.  :)  so, i warned my colleagues and reserved a flight a few days later than my original departure date.  the good thing is the visa was processed in a timely manner, AND my job let me stay the extra days.  more time to buy fantastic and tastey american goods.  more time to eat blt's. more time to spend with my family.  all good things!

so here are some photos of the trip back home...it was absolutely refreshing.  and made me feel so loved and appreciative for my life back home.  also made me very appreciative for this experience that i am having, as hard as it is at times.

my first purchases in the US.  magazines at JFK.  you don't know how much you miss your native language in print until you can't have it.  

first things first.  sweet corn!!  the morning after i arrived, dad and i went to the farm in grimes where they regularly get good sweet corn.  on the honor system.  bag it, and leave your cash.

and they have homemade jams as well.

dad finding the very best ears!

good iowa site.  my fondness for iowa has grown tenfold.  or maybe it's just that i miss home.  but i LOVED being there.  

this is dad with one of his two photos that were accepted to be shown at the iowa state fair!!  so proud!

this is the photo...entitled "lines of commerce."

i forgot how, um, large, iowans can be.  and farm-like.

a tasting of local iowa wines at the fine art reception.  quite nice actually!

this pic and the one below are from one of my morning runs.  that was one of the best things about the trip home.  the freedom to just run outside.  sure, i can do that here, as long as i take my passport, my migration card, my work permit, and my registration with me.  i can't just walk out the door.  it's a whole process.  which makes it much less appealing.  

another corn-shucking night!

this is my niece, nettie.  now how CUTE is this BABY??

SERIOUSLY.  how cute?!?  warms my heart.

this is my awesome nephew casper.  i spent the weekend with them.  he totally schooled me in tag.

this is a photo shoot series that i did with casper.  he took direction very well!

dad grilling.  we grilled a few times.  one thing i really miss here.

the fair!!  i haven't been to the fair in probably 15 years.  so i thought, what better time to go than when i need to soak up as much americana, as much iowana as possible??  

this tractor is big.

my main goal:  the cowboy cone!!  from the rib shack.  it was in competition, and i think it should have won!   waffle cone with bbq beans, pulled pork (or brisket), topped with cole slaw.  they do NOT have anything like this in russia.

horses getting ready for their big show!

this is the big boar.  i think his name is willie.  i hope he can stand.

this is the "back-up" big boar.  

these are pretty cute pigs.

of course we stopped to see the butter cow!!!  again, they don't have this in russia, either.

i don't think i've ever seen the food displays before.  but i loved the competition food boxes!  beautiful.

now they DO have these in russia...  

fried pineapple on a stick.  pretty tasty.  and i hear it is the big trend in australia right now!  

a beautiful iowa sky.

i had such a moment of peace driving home from my sister's in minneapolis...i was driving between rain storms, and when it wasn't raining, the sky was amazing.  dark and stormy on one side, gorgeous sun rays streaming thru the clouds behind me, and a rainbow on the other side.  there are these kinds of skies in russia, too, of course.  and you all know how much i love the skies here.  but driving down the road, listening to my tunes, having spent time with my family, and seeing the beauty all around me...well, i just felt lucky to be alive.  

now that i am back in moscow, i am trying to conjure up that feeling again.  yes, yes, i am lucky to be working on this event.  lucky to be living in an apartment that is paid for, lucky that i am getting a salary AND per diem.  lucky to be having this amazing experience.  but i miss my home.  and i can't wait to go back.  and then i can miss russia, and all the good things about it, and how much it will have shaped me, and taught me, and how much it makes me realize how lucky i am in every way.  it is a real reality check, and i only hope i can keep this positive energy for the next 7 months.  i'll need all the help i can get.

if there is one particular thing that can encapsulate the trip home for me it is this.  we went out to dinner with some close family friends.  i was overwhelmed with the care and the interest they showed in me and my life, and that they wanted to take the time to spend with me.  and my mom told me that one of our friends said to her that "i hope sara had a good time.  and i hope she knows how much she's loved."  well, syd, i can tell you from the bottom of my heart, i do.  i do.  and it is that feeling that will carry me through these next few months hard at work and far away and the challenges that each day holds here.  so thank you to everyone who made my trip home an unforgettable time.  i really needed it.  love to you all.  especially to my family, without whom i wouldn't be so lucky.