After three wonderful weeks in St. Petersburg my program now takes me to Moscow for a few days of intense touristing. Many churches. Shiny. On Wednesday or so I’m flying down to Irkutsk, on Lake Baikal, to continue with the academic bit.

So far I have not been crushed to death on the metro in the morning rush (although it’s been a near thing), nor have I been mugged, or even been taken for an American. I’ve been asked if I was Finnish, English, or Polish, on various occasions. One old woman at a museum, when I mentioned that I was an American student, said she hadn’t realized I was foreign, although she’d noticed I wasn’t understanding everything she said, so she’d started talking slower. i.e., she didn’t realize I was American, she just thought I was dumb…

I’ve also had my fortune read from my coffee cup by the Armenian host mother of one of the guys in my group. She said I have a fire in my soul, and I’m going to fall in love in Russia. She also offered to find me an Armenian husband…

Went to a concert of a ska-punk band called Leningrad, and had a great time. It was at an hockey stadium (but without ice, of course) and there were a ton of people. The line to get in was controlled by riot cops by the doors. After the concert, they closed to closest metro station because large masses of drunken Russians, after concerts, or soccer matches, or any sort of event, can be rather destructive. Therefore our academic director (who is extrememly cool) had us leave a bit before the concert ended.

I even went rowing once! Not in shells, but in replica boats from the 17th or 18th century. Like the sort of boats they row out from the ship to harpoon whales from. All wood, no feathering, and leather oarlocks. It was amazing!

And last Sunday I went out of the city with my host family to gather mushrooms. They told me which ones were edible, and which ones you should never touch. Then we had a campfire and roasted some. Yummy!

Some crazy things I have seen: A triple wedding on the riverfront. Two people in M&M costumes in a square by one of the metro stations. Someone in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costume in the Victory Park in Moscow yesterday. Not really seen, but I’ve been in cars here, and that is scary!

Okay, there’s more crazy stuff, but I can’t think of it right now and my internet cafe time is running out.