Wi-fi success and The Kremlin

So it turns out our hostel does have wi-fi.....in the hallway..... so this results in 5-10 teenagers at any given time sitting in silence staring at their screens in the middle of the hallway, it beautifully defines our generation. So since I am blessed enough to have this access I can share with you the pictures from my last day in Moscow! We went to the Kremlin. For those who don't know the Kremlin is like a fortress that was forbidden to the outside world until after the death of Stalin and now it is opened up to the public. We didn't spend as much time as I would of liked to because it started to rain us. Basically inside it is like a small city with several government buildings and churches. We visited three of the churches. Happy Birthday to Peter the Great and Mrs. Donna Goehring!!

sign in our dorms about how far your eyes should be from the computer 

our classroom

map of Russia in our classroom

entering the Kremlin

inside the kremlin

church in the Kremlin

giant cannon

another church

me in front of churches

church

giant bell that was never rung

russian brooms consist of one giant stick with bunches of smaller sticks tied to it

St. Petersburg

Hey guys! I manage to get wifi on my phone for now but I don't how long it will last. The train was nice and I got good sleep! I love st Petersburg it is much more European and prettier than Moscow. Today we toured by bus and it was very rainy and cold so we only got out a few times. One of our stops was the Peter and Paul cathedral where all the Romanov family is buried which is super awesome because even Anastasia's remains are there now!! Now we are checking into the hostel.

Departure to St. Petersburg

I don't have much time left until I leave for St. Petersburg by train tonight. Once there I will rarely be able to update if at all. Today we went to the Kremlin, but I will save that post for once I have internet access again.

Here is something to leave you with while I'm gone: http://englishrussia.com/2011/12/26/freaks-from-social-networks/

Today was pretty much a free day. We had classes in the morning then were free to go wherever we wanted. I chose to return to Kolomenskoe with some friends who missed it yesterday, then I returned to the dorm where I studied for my 2 quizzes for tomorrow. Tuesday at midnight we will depart for St. Petersburg by train and will arrive the next morning at 8 a.m. While there I will have little to no internet access, so expect little updates for about a week.

Some weird things I've noticed about Russia:
1. you have to turn locks twice to actually lock them, and sometimes you end up trapped inside for several minutes...
2. you have to pay for ketchup at McDonald's
3. no matter what floor you're on the Russian people will ALWAYS take the elevator, no matter how ghetto it may be
4. traffic laws are basically non-existant and pedestrians do not have the right of way (despite the new law passed)
5. smile at someone and they will death stare back at you
6. there are a lot of stray dogs and cats
7. they HATE to make change, they always want the exact amount of money

that's all I can really think of right now...
here is their Burger King commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zojkbkaZwo

Restful Sunday

So today we had a pretty relaxing day. I got to sleep in until noon which helped me get a little more over this sickness, then we headed to Kolomenskoe, which is basically like a giant park in the city. It was the estate that Peter the Great grew up on. It was incredibly beautiful and so far my favorite part of Russia! Afterwards we headed home and grabbed mcdonald's which felt amazing to have. Tomorrow we will start class again and Tuesday we will leave for Petersburg!

Kolomenskoe

beautiful tulips

me in front of Peter's log cabin

inside Peter's cabin

portrait of Peter

Pagan idol, they are very rare to find in Russia

the oldest oak trees in Russia

a church on the grounds

inside the church

the entrance 

the gang playing frisbee

an interesting ad in the metro

One month left.

Today marks exactly one month until I return to the U.S.A. I already can't wait to see my family and friends again! Today I woke up and went to a monastery where we toured the Rublyov museum and then tonight we went to the circus which was super awesome and fun! We weren't allowed to take pictures during the production so I can't share much with you about it but it was definitely the best I've ever seen!

me by the Rublyov statue

Me and my roommate wearing the required head scarves 

the oldest church in russia

me in fornt of the oldest church!

the circus entrance

creepy clown fountain

inside the circus

they were selling toy guns that look pretty
 legit at the circus,...only russians...

Classes!

This morning was our second day of classes and they went pretty well! My conversation class is taught almost entirely in Russian which is hard but rewarding. We went to take pictures for our student IDs today and while in line I tried greeting a Russian girl to practice my conversation skills and she answered me back in English!! She was very sweet though and told me I had a beautiful accent (who knew texan accents sounded pretty!). Tomorrow we get to go to the circus which should be awesome!!!! Yesterday when walking through the metro we saw a lady with a sign saying "help me, my baby is dying"which was very sad. Living conditions here are worse than I thought they would be. There is definitely a wealthy class present but the poor greatly outweigh them. They all live in shabby tall condo things that look absolutely miserable and dirty. I'm lucky to be staying at such a nice university. Another interesting thing is that people have flowers everywhere! They constantly sell them on the streets and you see people with bouquets everywhere. 

Red Square

So today was our first day of classes! They went pretty well. Then after lunch we headed downtown to see Red Square! We went inside St.Basil's Cathedral but we weren't allowed to take pictures inside :( I'm very tired from all the walking but the buildings were so beautiful! here is some pictures of my day:

my breakfast, which was very good!
no idea what this stuff is called...

McDonald's!!!!!!!

me in front of the historical museum 

our group!

me in front of St. Basil's with my friends acting goofy

The Kremlin clock tower

KGB headquarters.....

my dinner at cafe MY-MY!
chicken noodle soup, french fries and chicken!

Well I finally got my pictures on here! Here's a look at my first day in Russia!

sign at the airport about taxi drivers

my dorm room

view from my dorm room

another view of my dorm room

my first meal here! It actually was really good, not sure what the meat was though....

my russian phone!

i reside on floor 9/2...russian engineering....

this is what their supermarket looks like!

 Well that's all I have for now. it's 5:30 a.m. here and I'm awake for some reason and my class doesn't start until 9:30 so I'm probably going back to sleep!

Safe and Sound

Well the good news is that I arrived safely in Russia today, but the bad news is my camera won't hook up to my computer therefore no pictures for yall to see until I figure this out :/ Anyway my flight landed an hour earlier than it was supposed to so that was nice, but I didn't get much sleep !! I'm really tired and have to finish unpacking, but i love and miss you all. and I promise to update more once I get some sleep and some pictures!

Last Night in America

     So tonight is my last night before leaving for Russia! I enjoyed dinner at my favorite restaurant, Casa Ole, with my parents and of course Chris! We also bought some scratch offs and bluebell ice cream which I will definitely miss. Too bad Russia doesn't have a lottery! There is still so much to do before I leave and I know I'm going to forget something...
     Oh, funny story of the day: my mom got her credit card bill and apparently the travel agency charged her for two other students plane tickets... uh oh... but it will all work out it's just something that would happen to her!!

This is what packing for 36 days looks like.... next time I leave home for this long I'm just going to buy my clothes when I get there!!!