С Рождеством! and the lead up to the New Year

Translation of the first phrase is 'Merry Christmas'. I know this is a bit belated, but it happens. We sincerely hope that everyone across the world had a great holiday, whichever one that they observe. As for us, Christmas was a bit anti-climatic, as in Russia gifts are exchanged on New Years Eve. We did buy a tree, although it is not the Douglas Fir that we had become accustomed to in the US we put the ornaments and stockings up about a week ago. Olga's mother came over this weekend and brought some of their family ornaments and so we added those the the tree and around the apartment. It does feel more festive now.

For those of you that are not familiar with how New Years Eve is celebrated here (and I would suspect that very few do know) I will attempt to provide an overview. New Years in Russia is more of a family holiday, as opposed to the US where we typically celebrate with our friends. Don't get me wrong, there is still plenty of libations that are handed out, but there is also a large dinner and the night is long....very long from what I recall. I last celebrated New Years in Russia in 2001/2002 and I believe I went to bed around 7AM. We'll see if I can last that long this year! So, the family gathers (we are hosting Olga's relatives this year so there will be 7 of us) and eats and drinks through the night. Just prior to midnight the President gives a short speech (this year it will be Medvedev, but we will see if Putin attempts to give his own speech as well) and after midnight it is common to go to a square where a tree has been set up to celebrate with your 'neighbors'.

In preparation of the upcoming festivities Olga and I decided to do some shopping. I'd now like to provide an example of why I really need to stop converting the prices from Rubles to Dollars, as it can get a bit mind-boggling. We stopped at a kiosk to get some fruit and vegetables and while the lady in front of us paid her bill I was somewhat bemused that she had spent about $75 on just fruit and vegetables. After about 15 minutes of ordering and tasting, the lady informed me that our bill was 3,050...uh, WHAT??? That's over $100....for fruit and vegetables??? Really??? Then I looked at the price of the cherries that we bought....1,500 rubles per kilo. Hmmm, that's about $25 per pound. I will no longer do conversions to Dollars....I will no longer do conversions to Dollars. I have to admit, there is still some pricing here that I just don't get.

I'll post pictures from New Years later this week. Hope everyone has a happy and safe New Years celebration!

Long Time No Blog

Not sure where the time has gone, but it's been a while since I put anything out here. I apologize to my loyal followers.

So, what's been going on over the past three weeks? Let's see. We have had decent weather and a bit more snow (see pics below), but that has again melted. I got my cholesterol checked....I didn't realize that readings actually went that high. I'm on a new, self-imposed, lower-cholesterol diet hoping to keep away from the need for drugs to correct that. I knew I wasn't eating well here, but I even surprised myself. For those of you that know about cholesterol the first digit was a '3' and there were three digits in the number. Suffice it to say that I was not pleased. I'll get a new reading here in the near future.

Upcoming events. We are hosting the Russian side of the family for New Years, which should be quite a treat. The last time I experienced a Russian New Year was back in 2001/2002, which was my first trip to Russia. We started the feast at 7PM and finished eating at 5AM. That's a lot of eating and drinking. And trust me, there was no shortage of vodka! All-in, I believe we will have eight guests, plus Olga and myself.

We also made a quick trip to NYC to get a new visa for me. We arrived on 12/6 and were greeted by a snow squall and extremely cold weather....neither of which we had planned for. We caught up with some friends and participated in something we both miss on Sundays...BRUNCH! Went to a very nice dinner on Monday at one of my favorite restaurants, Nobu. Always like that place. If any of you get to NYC you should try it and make sure you try the Black Cod Miso and the Rock Shrimp Tempura.

Tuesday and Wednesday we did more than our part to keep the economy rolling by hitting as many stores as we could. Unfortunately Olga caught a cold and didn't get to fully enjoy the shopping, but that only means that she had less patience to look (great for me!!!).

We flew back on Thursday and not much is new since then. Hope you enjoy the pictures below.

Outside our building after the snow.

Who is that masked person!? Oh, wait, I know her. That's Olga. C'mon, it's not THAT cold (temperature, approx. 25 F).

Walking into Red Square in early December. That sky looks ominous, right? A large shopping center, ГУМ (pronounced, Goom), is in the background. They put up a skating rink in the Square, how cool!

Closer shot of the skating rink in Red Square, in front of the shopping center, ГУМ.

One of the 1,000 'trees' they put up across Moscow.

In stark contrast, the real tree at Rockefeller Center.

Снег!

That's the Russian word for snow (pronounced 'sneg') and not a reference to an aging icon of American pop. Before anyone fires any emails to me asking what I am talking about, just look at the letters and think long legs and raspy voice. Anyway, the снег has started to fall here in Moscow and it is starting to feel like winter. It has snowed at least a little each of the past seven days, but we really don't have much snow on the ground because we had a nice rain storm on Saturday that melted everything up to that point.

Everyone that we have talked to here in Moscow states that the past two winters have been very mild with very little snow. Interestingly enough, my first trip here was for New Years 2002 and there was more than a little snow during that winter. So much so that our flight to Volgograd, where Olga's relatives live, was cancelled because of 'bad weather'. While we certainly were getting quite a bit of snow here in Moscow that evening we were told that it was crystal clear in Volgograd and planes landed all evening. Nice, especially since we sat in the airport and/or on a plane for 14 hours that day (and that does not include the overnight flight that we took). But I digress. It snowed nearly everyone of the 17 days I was here that first trip and I'm not talking little flurries. We'll see how it goes this winter, but I am fully prepared with my new Ugg boots and Spider ski coat!

Looking out our front window into the parking area/'yard'. Hopefully you can see the снег.

Off To Vienna

We had worn ourselves out in the month of October so we decided to hit the road (actually, the air) and head off to Vienna for a three day excursion. Although it was a short trip it was quite nice to get away. Not because I'm overworked, but because it's nice to see other parts of Europe and it's a double bonus because most places are only a 2-4 hour flight from good old Шереметьево (Sheremetyevo) airport here in Moscow. Below are some pics with brief captions.

While in Vienna we were able to walk around quite a bit of the city thanks to the beautiful weather we had (highs in the mid 60's each day) and see many of the palaces. We ate great food, drank exceptional coffee and even took in an ballet. As for the ballet, yes it was long (nearly 3 hours), no it was not even close to what they put on at the Bolshoi and yes, Olga was happy (the last one is really all that matters).

Olga in front of St. Stephen's Cathedral - yes, we climbed the 343 narrow steps to the top of the tower. Sounded like a good idea at the time.

The Opera House (view from our hotel room).

In front of Schonbrunn palace.

In the gardens of Schonbrunn palace.

In front of the main fountain at Schonbrunn palace.

In the gardens of Belvedere palace (Upper Belvedere in the background).

Language Update

I'm still not fluent by any stretch of the imagination, but I have now graduated to ordering meats and cheeses at the deli counter! Trust me, this is no small accomplishment, as the ladies that work the counter have about as much patience for my broken Russian as my wife does trying to teach me the broken Russian. I'm always concerned that they will get annoyed with me before I can finish my order and they will purposely give me the wrong stuff.

I have also moved up to speaking to the babushka at the yogurt kiosk on the road. I have to admit that I was quite nervous the first time, as I'm not so good with the names of fruit, but all went well and I walked away with exactly what I ordered. Some of you may wondering why I would buy my yogurt at a kiosk on the road and the answer is fairly straight forward. I often can not find low fat yogurt in the stores so I go on the Moscow version of a 'walk-about' in search of yogurt with a fat content under 5%.

I'm feeling more confident now with my language skills and I understand more each day. The classes are much more challenging as we are well into learning all the verbs and they keep bringing up this 'perfect' and 'imperfect' forms. Whatever, all I know is that one is used for current action and habits and the other for past and one-time only actions. It's confusing as hell some days and I often walk out feeling as though I know fewer words than I did at the beginning of class, but at some point I figure it will all come together. Either from a light bulb clicking on in my head or a cast iron skillet smacking my head (that would be from the wife).

Things Are Tough Everywhere

I was reading the Moscow Times the other day and thought that those of you in the US may find this article interesting. I'm sure many, if not all, of you are now familiar with the oligarchs of Russia. If not, here is the Cliff's Notes version. When Russia privatized its businesses, approximately 25 or so individuals purchased nearly all the business assets. How did they do it? Well, the privatization was done through a voucher system, meaning that every Russian citizen received a voucher with which they could 'invest' in any company that they desired. These 25 individuals ended up with the most vouchers (due to most people being willing to trade them for, well, a bottle of vodka) and, therefore, the most assets. Over the course of the past 5 or so weeks, these 25 individuals have collectively lost over $230B. I'm sure the figure is much more now that oil is trading below $75 and the other commodities are being hit as well.

Yes, Olga received a voucher. No, she did not sell it for a bottle of vodka. She invested it in a bank. UGH! Yes, that bank went bankrupt. Therefore, no, we don't have a fortune waiting for us in a bank here...at least no that I am aware of. Remember, she is Russian!

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1009/42/371599.htm


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081016/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_what_crisis_1st_ld_writethru

To answer your the obvious question raised by the second article, no I have not seen empty shelves in the grocery stores. But I will admit that the selection at one of my most frequented the other day was pretty sparse!

The Good Things

Many of you have heard me talk of the things in Moscow that need to be fixed, but the link below speaks of the things that make Moscow so unique. The only thing that I will have to take issue with is where the writer speaks of how true Russians drink vodka. While it is indeed true that a pickle is used as a 'chaser' here and the vodka is meant to be consumed only in shot format, it is NOT chilled by the true drinkers. Trust me on that one.

http://guides.moscowtimes.ru/articles/detail.php?ID=368205&IBLOCK_ID=37&SECTION_ID=437

World Class - Our New Gym

Olga was kind enough to sign us up for gym memberships while I was gallivanting around the US. I have to say, she made an excellent choice. Click on the link to see details of our location http://www.worldclass.ru/members/clubs/about.php?ID=10312. OK, I know it's all in Russian, but I'm sure that all of you will be able to point and click your way around.

It's really quite a nice facility and it's not overly crowded. I noticed that the hours of operation are a bit different than I was accustomed to in the US. This facility does not open until 7AM. Can you imagine that in the US? Of course it is open until 1AM. Not quite 24 hours, but pretty darn close. I should explain the reason behind the 7AM opening. It's really quite simple....no one gets up early here! As I'm walking to my language class at 10:30AM most people are just heading into the office. Not sure that would work so well in most cities in the US.

Another great thing about the gym, everything is in Russian. Not only do I get a good physical workout each time I go, but as an added bonus I get a language lesson! Thank god I knew the words for man (муж - moozh) and woman (женщина - zhainshena) or that could have caused some serious issues. It did take me a few minutes of staring blankly at the treadmill before I started pushing the buttons (I know, typical guy, just push the buttons and hope that one of them works), but it eventually started moving. When I feel like torturing myself a bit more I attend one of the stretch classes. Honestly, I really do enjoy that class, as it has helped me to pick up a few more words. Overall, a very good investment.

Let's Go Shopping

I've been back for a little over a week now and am starting to get back into a somewhat normal routine. Since I am now a domestic engineer, I am getting quite acquainted with the grocery shopping routine. We have three relatively large supermarkets within 5 blocks of our apartment, the nicest of which is Седьмой Континент (Sedmoy Continent - Seventh Continent) so I frequent this one the most. We also have a продукти (prodookti) across the street (a cross between a convenience store and a very small grocery store), which I frequent for water (two 5 liter bottles at a time) and other little items. I admit that I enjoy shopping for groceries, but it does come with it's special challenges here. Yep, my very limited language skills can be a hindrance even in a task as solitary as grocery shopping.

Example #1 - We needed some things the other day so I trekked over to Sedmoy and filled my basket with the necessities. One has to have fruit in order to remain healthy so I also grabbed some яблоки (yablakee - apples). Reverting to my US ways, I recalled that fruit and vegetables are weighed at the check out counter and the price is calculated there. So I'm here to tell you that it was a very large oversight on my part to think that this is the way it is done in Russia. Apparently, I was supposed to either hand the apples to a person over by the produce (don't recall seeing anyone) or weigh them myself on a scale. In any case, I arrived at the checkout lane with my apples having not been weighed and with no price. The lady at the register was not impressed and directed me to....well, to do something. I smiled at her and nodded thinking that she was only suggesting she needed to do a price check on the apples. After she attempted, unsuccessfully I might add, to get me to act on her instructions she gave up and left the register with apples in hand. She arrived a few minutes later with said apples and a price tag on the bag that they are in. Hmmm, don't recall the price tag being there before. So I turn to look at the produce section and notice the scale and a lady standing next to the scale. Interesting. Did I mention that the ladies at the checkout registers sit as they check you out and that it is self-service bagging? She was not at all happy that she had to stand up, walk all of 20 feet to the produce section and then back. By the way, Olga confirmed that she made the same mistake, but the lady made her go back to weigh the fruit herself. My guess is that Olga had to do the work only because she actually understood what was being said to her. For once my lackluster language skills have worked in my favor!

Example #2 - I'm back at Sedmoy a few days later to pick up some items to make homemade chicken noodle soup and a Russian chicken salad (yes, I can cook). I finish my stroll though the store and am at the checkout lane. I have no fruit today, so I'm thinking I'm in great shape. I'm bagging the groceries as I watch the lady scan the items and then it happens. She seems to be having an issue with the carrots. It appears as though they won't scan properly and I'm now being directed to do something, which of course I don't understand. So I look at the lady and say 'I speak only a little bit of Russian' (hey, at least I said this in Russian!). She's not amused, as she gets up out of her chair and walks the 20 feet to the produce section to get the price. Although I am grateful that she performed the price check, all I really wanted for her to do was slow down a bit so I could try to figure out what was being said.

Oh well, it is what it is. I am a bit concerned though that as the ladies figure out who I am they will all run from the registers as they see my coming to the checkout lane. For my sake and more importantly, for Olga's sake, I may need to buy produce at a different place for a while so that we don't go hungry.

While my language skills are not awful, but I'm also not going to kid myself and say that they are good. Especially after 17 days in the US where I spoke almost no Russian. In any case, I'm just not to the point where I can keep up with what is being said to me and even if I could, my limited vocabulary and understanding of the grammar would get me.

Back in the USSR...

Made it back home with no issues, even landed an hour early! How often does that happen? In NYC and Chicago....let's go with NEVER. Anyway, it's nice to be back home. If you happen to look at the time this is posted you will notice that I am very much still on Eastern time. Nothing like a bit of jet lag to make things interesting. Woke up at 2AM yesterday, back to sleep at 5AM and woke up at 4PM. It's now 2:35AM and I'm feeling very awake. Oh well, in a few days it'll all be a distant memory.

I brushed up on my language skills on the plane by ordering everything in Russian and perusing a newspaper written in Russian. I received the food that I intended to order and the waitress was kind enough to play along and spoke only Russian to me. The newspaper, well that was just a reality check to remind me that I have a long way to go with this language. I am a bit surprised by how much I retained, as I was able to fend for myself with the waitress the other night in the restaurant (Olga kindly left me to take a call when it was time to order). The waitress was very patient and we eventually figured it out (sushi isn't quite as straight forward to order as Italian).

Stepping out of the airport, that was a reality check as well. I had forgotten about the pollution and traffic. It's all what one is used to, right? I'm sure in a few days everything will be back to normal.

Back in the USA

Well, this is my last day in the US for a while again. I'll be on my way back to 'Mother Russia' in a few hours after nearly two and a half weeks on US soil. I've accomplished quite a bit while here including attaining a new visa, seeing many of my friends, catching up with my family, finishing my first half marathon and doing my part to help boost the economy through shopping.

While I've enjoyed seeing everyone I have to admit that I'm looking forward to getting back home to Olga and our home in Russia. I'll also be interested to see how much of the language I've retained after not speaking it for such an extended period of time. This could get interesting so stay tuned!

Time for a Vacation

A few people have made comments about me taking a 'vacation' seeing as though I'm not currently employed, but hey, it is what it is. It's tough work living in Moscow and trying to accomplish even the most basic of tasks on a day-to-day basis. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

So Olga and I decided to 'get away' (that better Dion?). We hit Berlin, Prague and Munich over the course of 9 days and had a very nice time. Although I have to admit that we walked quite a bit even for us and we walk just about everywhere given that we haven't owned a car since we've known each other.

In short, Berlin was OK, but didn't really have that 'German' feel to it. Maybewe just had the wrong expectations. Don't get us wrong, the city is interesting it just wasn't quite what we expected.

Add to that the fact that I suffered a REALLY bad day picking sites on the day that we trekked about 10 miles. Seriously, I went 0-for-3. First, I decided it would be interesting to see another gate, as I thought it would be similar to the Brandenburger Tor, which was really neat. So that is not the case and it turned out that we wandered down a road with Soviet-style housing for more than a mile and the 'Tor' was just nothing special. Strike one. On to a park where we walk up a not insignificant hill that shows a bunker at the top. We get to the top and what do we find? Certainly not what I would consider a bunker. We found a group of 'young adults' enjoying some beverages and chatting. Nice, not even a good view of the city. Olga is less than amused at this point, but hey, we're just looking for interesting sites. Strike two. Later that evening I convince Olga that we need to see Checkpoint Charlie, as it holds such historical significance. We get to the site and what do we find? Again, not what I expected. Checkpoint Charlie is now a metal post in the ground that plays a recorded statement about why this site is important. Strike three...and I'm still hearing about that one.

Prague was much more interesting from a site perspective, but I almost gave up on it the first night. I was caught off guard by how many tourists were there and it took me a bit to get past that. The sites are amazing though and the history is quite rich. We were also a bit surprised at the fact that Prague still has a Soviet-era feel to it.

Munich was amazing. The city has the architecture, the culture and the food of Bavaria all of which we enjoyed immensely.

I'm having some technical difficulty right now and am not able to post pics, but will do so soon.

The Shipment Has Arrived!

Our furniture saga finally came to a close on Saturday, as the delivery arrived without much incident. Well, unless you count the ride that we had from the hotel to the new apartment. Olga ordered a 'taxi' for us on Saturday so we could lug our six suitcases with us over to the hotel. Given that most taxi cars here are fairly compact, her assistant asked if we would like a Gazel for the transport. Her assistant explained that this is similar to a minivan and everything sounded good. Fast-forward to Saturday morning when we walk outside to see that the Gazel is something akin to what you see in the MASH series used to transport supplies. Or as Olga described it 'what you would see transporting potatoes around the city'. At least the driver had a great sense of humor about it, as he asked if we were moving furniture from the hotel.

I had my doubts as to whether the movers could actually get some of our furniture into the lifts here, but they did. Five guys showed up and within four hours all of the furniture was in its rightful place and all but a few boxes were emptied. We threw a few extra Rubles in and they mounted our flat screen for us, which was quite nice. I joke a lot about the inefficiencies here in Russia, but Russians in general are quite resourceful. Example. The guys didn't have a drill to mount the TV...not a problem. They went down to the security guard and asked if anyone in the building was doing renovations. As luck would have it, they found someone who was and indeed had a drill in his possession. In they come with their new comrade and a few minutes later it's all over. Olga explained to me that it is very common here for people to not only borrow tools and such from their neighbors as well as to lend each other money. I can't say that I've had that many neighbors that I would be willing to lend money to. As a matter of fact, I didn't even really know our neighbors in NYC and we lived there for two years!

After two days of searching through things and finding the right place for each item, I can happily report that the move is complete. We both wondered aloud a few times as to why we brought certain items, such as the US power cords and the small radio for the kitchen...neither of which will work here and neither of which would have made the trip had it not been for the fact that someone else was doing the packing!

A Bit More on Russian Service

Olga and I are finding out that we took for granted the level of service received in the US. Not only was there a distinct correlation between the amount paid and the quality of services rendered, but there was an expectation of SOME level of service. If you've been keeping up with the posts, it will come as no surprise when I say that we have thrown those expectations out the window and are now accustomed to the Russian service levels. A few examples.

First, the delivery of our furniture. OK, to be fair this is partially to blame on incompetence in the US, partially due to inclement weather (we assume this is why our shipment ported in Hamburg) and to the level of service delivered here in Russia. The updates we receive on the progress of our furniture shipment are directly correlated to the number of requests sent by Olga (we have come to expect a response after the fourth request). We have also become accustomed to the cryptic responses that we receive, such as 'We need two additional business days for it to clear customs'. This is response to where is our stuff? No mention of whether it is in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kiev, Warsaw anyone??? When Olga finally hit her level of tolerance, she phoned the lady at the shipping company who replied with, get ready, 'You're from here, you know how it is'. Oh boy.

Second, our apartment is supposed to have a video-phone for security purposes. The company that supplies the service has come to pick up the phone twice in order to repair it, but has to send it out to another company in order to have it worked on. Oh goody, two levels of service!!! no idea when it will be repaired, but our landlord assured me that 'this is just the way it is here'.

Third, the connection of our Internet and satellite TV service was fun for several reasons. I was left on my own with our landlord who, although he speaks fluent English, is not totally up to speed on these two things. Add to that two young men who were here to set up the service that apparently understood most of what I said, but refused to speak any English. OK, I can't be upset about the fast that they wouldn't speak English because for all I know their English is as strong as my Russian. The interesting part is that when they could not figure out which cable in the main junction box ran to our apartment. At this point they suggested that we use a different service provider because the Internet is run through the phone! Problem solved. Well, it was the next day when two different young men came to the apartment and hooked it all up.

Even with the complaining in the last two posts about the lack of service here, it's still a fascinating country. Most of the people are pleasant and the food is great. And I'm looking forward to the season at the Bolshoi Theater (maybe I'll even understand some of the announcements this time!).

And the Saga Continues

Well folks, 71 days now here in Russia and still no furniture. For those of you short on memory here's a recap. The moving company pushed us to have our furniture packed in NYC earlier than we had wanted (5/23 to be exact) under the guise that our shipment would arrive in Russia and be delivered within 10 weeks. Since that initial time quote the moving company has been able to consistently set time lines and expectations to which they have come nowhere close to meeting. After they packed our furniture they then informed us that there is a worldwide shortage of shipping containers and that our shipment would arrive in St. Petersburg on 7/23 (about 9 weeks, which is within the quoted 10 weeks). Shipment makes an unexpected stop in Hamburg, Germany and does not hit St. Pete until 8/5 (now outside 10 weeks).

We have been informed that our furniture is still in St. Pete and that it should arrive in Moscow on Thursday. Two days to clear Moscow customs (I don't even want to ask them about why it has to clear customs again once it hits Moscow) and then it will be delivered at 9AM Saturday morning. If they actually manage to hit that date it will have been 86 days since they picked up our stuff in NYC. Ten weeks? I think not.

It is quite important that we receive our shipment prior to August 19th, as this is when we begin our well-deserved vacation! I came to this country with three goals. First, to learn the language and the culture. Second, to find a job with a Russian company. Third, get as many stamps in my passport as I can from countries in Europe, Asia and Africa before returning to the US. I'm making some progress on the first goal, although Olga may have a different view on that. Haven't even begun to work on item number two. Will add Germany and the Czech Republic to my passport this month for item three! Our plan is to hit Berlin, Prague, Munich and then back to Berlin before returning to Moscow on the 28th.

After that it's back to work for Olga and on to the US for me. That's right folks, I'll be taking a tour of three US cities on my 14 or so day jaunt. First to NYC on 8/31 for that all-important new visa! Then to Chicago on 9/3 to see some old friends, hopefully catch a baseball game and enjoy some good wine. From there it's on to good ol' DSM, IA on 9/7 to see the family and more friends. Back to NYC on 9/14 and then back home to Moscow sometime shortly thereafter. I'd love to see as many friends as possible on the return trip to the US, so feel free to email me to let me know if you will be available during my time in any of the three cities.

To the Dacha We Will Go!

Ksenia (childhood friend of Olga) and her husband, Valery, invited Olga and I to their family's dacha last weekend. For those of you unfamiliar with Russian culture, the dacha plays a very important part in the family life here. A dacha is a summer house, located in the countryside and normally furnished a bit less extravagantly than the permanent residence (i.e. may not have indoor facilities or running water). In addition, the dacha is not typically suited for use during the Russian winter.

The dacha we stayed at was quite nice and had all the furnishings of a permanent residence, including a sauna in the back. I have to admit, it was nice to get out of Moscow and all the craziness that goes with it. The traffic was terrible, but that is to be expected here.

Things started slowly, with Valery making drinks for the ladies before he and I went to collect and chop wood for the fire (I still have all fingers, even after wielding the axe). Oh, did I mention that everyone was speaking Russian? They call it 'total immersion', I call it 'daydreaming'. But I digress. We needed a fire because the dinner was going to consist of 'shashliks', which is the Russian version of shish-kababs. Fire complete and food in process of cooking. My job here is done. Whilst Valery tended to the shashliks, I wandered off to find the wife (since he speaks about as much English as I speak Russian, our conversations were brief).

We sat down for dinner and Valery set down on the table what I had been trying to prepare myself for.....a bottle of vodka. Oh boy. I'm suddenly having flashbacks to my first visit to Russia about 7.5 years ago when I was initiated into the Russian manner of drinking vodka. Trust me when I say, the flashbacks are not great.

Shot one is done as Valery toasts...something. Ugh, warm vodka. All the memories from that first experience are flooding back into my head. Shot two (about 5 minutes later) and another toast. Seriously, warm vodka is tough on the stomach even when followed by cucumbers. Half way through the bottle and not done with dinner, this is not looking good for the American.

The weather turned chilly, so we moved inside to play some spades after dinner. Olga taught them the gist of the game, since the Russian I have learned does not cover cards. Anyway, Valery assures us that he brought only one bottle of vodka, so that makes me feel pretty safe. After about 15 minutes into the game, Valery and I are winning in strong fashion and the bottle of vodka is bone-dry. I'm happy on both accounts. Then he reaches into the cabinet and pulls out a second bottle of vodka. Note to self, just because he only 'brought' one bottle does not mean that there is only one bottle in the place. Into the second bottle and I am feeling a bit more confident in my Russian (who wouldn't be?), so I propose a toast to good friends and good food. I think I got my point across even though the grammar was most likely pathetic.

Fast forward some period of time. I'm not sure how long because we have now finished the card game (Valery and I won quite handily), the second bottle of vodka and we have started on some homemade moonshine. This is not going to be good. Time to take a walk. Oh sure, why not. I'm feeling very light on my feet. Off we go. While we are on the walk we pass a little store at which time I decided that I desperately needed a beer. Right, that's a good idea. So I get a bottle of beer and proceed to finish that off as well. Now I'm EXTREMELY light on my feet and want to go back to the dacha before I find myself extremely heavy on the ground.

The good news is that I did make it back to the dacha. The bad news is that when I awoke my head felt as though someone had used it as a gong the entire night before. The score is now vodka 2, American 0.

Bad News, Good News

So, our sea shipment made an unscheduled stop in Hamburg, Germany and will now arrive in St. Petersburg port on August 5th. The bad news is that we will now be in the hotel for at least another two weeks. After almost 60 days I can honestly say that I've had enough of the hotel. While I do enjoy the fact that we don't have much space to keep clean, I'm looking forward to saying to Olga 'could you pick something up?'. The good news is that we are scheduled to receive our air shipment on Saturday! Highly critical, as this contains the remainder of or clothes.

They tell us that the air shipment will be delivered around 9:30AM. We are hoping that they actually show up on Saturday...anytime on Saturday. This is important, as we have been wearing the same clothes for the past two months and to be honest we're both quite tired of the stuff we brought with us (yes, they have been laundered several times!). Also, really hoping that our clothes are in good shape (remember, they were packed almost 60 days ago!).

We're also looking forward to being able to prepare our own meals or better yet, having Olga's mom come over to visit and cook 'with' us! I typically enjoy dining out, but this is ridiculous. Not to mention that we eat so late anymore. Since the day starts later here we also finish later, with dinner coming around 9PM. That would be a significant issue for my waist-line if it weren't for the fact that I visit the gym here on most days.

Fingers crossed that our stuff shows up!

Moscow - is it expensive?

Well folks, Forbes has confirmed it. Moscow is once again the most expensive city in the world. I would like to personally thank Gavin and Brian for taking time out of their busy schedules to remind me of this (see link below).

I do feel as though I should make some editorial comments to the information that has been provided. The first is to the comment that Brian sent. I did a personal price check at Starbucks today and it was only 200 Rubles ($9 and some change) for a grande mocha, which is just shy of the $10 that you had quoted (but thanks for playing 'Guess the Price in Moscow'). We won't add in the personal time that it took me to actually get to the Starbucks, as there are only one or two here at the moment, neither of which is within 20 minutes of the hotel. The second correction is to a quote in the linked article. It states somewhere that a two-bedroom, luxery apartment in Tokyo is $5,100, which is about $600 more than in Moscow. That's just not true and trust me on this one, I've done A LOT of research. Olga and I were looking at a two-bedroom apartment that was renting for $4,500 per month. It was nice, but not what we would consider 'luxery'. The lease came due in June and the apartment was re-listed at $8,000 per month. We were told that it was rented by someone for $7,100 per month (remember, everything is negotiable!).

So, is Moscow expensive? I believe the answer to that is a resounding Ýes'. Is it worth it? Again, a resounding Ýes'. This is an amazing place and we sincerely hope that many of our family and friends take the unique opportunity to come visit us while we are here.

http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/105443/World's-Most-Expensive-Cities

The American Medical Clinic

Or is it the American Medical Center? That was a very interesting dilemma that Olga and I faced last Friday when we were at the Clinic, but really should have been at the Center. They are on the same street, they are not related at all and it was not overtly clear on our medical card as to which one we should go to.

Olga's teeth were still bothering her, even after the removal of the right-side wisdom teeth, so we took her to the doctor to see if they could find anything. We figured that since we were already going to be at the Clinic we would also have them draw my blood for tests so that I can eventually work here. So the girl at the front desk asked for my passport. Didn't bring it...oh boy. The girl informs Olga that they would not do the test without my passport. Let the games begin. After about 5 or 10 minutes of, we'll just call it 'discussion', Olga won out and they agreed to do the test based on my NY driver's license. Great. I fill out some paperwork, take it back to the same girl and she informs me that they will not do the test because it is 'a very serious test'. I protest, but know that this is going nowhere and so I go back to find Olga.

We speak to her doctor about this and he says 'f*&^$&# beauracracy here is unbelievable'. Oh yeah, did I mention that this doctor is Russian (remember where we are at) AND he was over an hour late seeing Olga. Did I also mention that she was his first appointment of the day? In the end, they draw my blood and run a battery of tests on Olga. All is good.

But wait, remember the opening? As we are preparing to leave a lady informs Olga that she has a bill from her previous visit. That comes as a bit of a surprise, as there is no deductible on our insurance (that's right folks, NO deductible). Well now, this is getting interesting. Turns out we really should be at the American Medical Center because our insurance is not valid at the Clinic. They want a not insignificant amount of money for the last bill and I'm sure that the prior one is nothing compared to the one that was run up on the current visit. More 'discussions' and the director of billing agrees to let us leave and discuss the situation with the insurance company. The lady from billing was not going to let us go anywhere until we paid in full (no joke, she was standing between Olga and the door).

In the end all worked out, although many people have had a good laugh over this. The insurance company agreed to pay the bill, which was quite nice since this really was our mistake. We now know to go to the Center (it looks much nicer and is closer to the Metro stop anyway). My bloodwork is all taken care of. And most importantly, Olga's teeth no longer hurt! The doctor didn't help her tooth ache, but the root canal she had on Sunday at the American Dental Center did.

I would blame all of this on Olga, but we all know that is not a good idea.

Lewis Home in Moscow

Well, we think we finally have a home here in Moscow. It's further from the center than we wanted, but overall we like the space and it has two bedrooms! Everyone can now begin planning their vacations to the great Russian wonderland. A few caveats here. First, 'Hotel Lewis' will not be open until after the first few weeks of September, as one of us will be kicked out of the country in order to go back to the US and get a new visa (you only get one guess as to who that applies to). Second, time of the visit will need to be cleared through the booking office (that would be an email to Jay) just to make sure that we will be here.

For those of you that have not looked into it, getting a visa to come to Russia is the most cumbersome part of the process. I'll look into this and put some links out in a later posting. Flights are pretty easy anymore. For those of you on the east coast, there are direct flights from JFK in NYC (about 9 hours). For those in the midwest, there are now direct flights on Aeroflot from Chicago (I'm guessing the duration will be around 10 or 11 hours from Chicago, as you'll go over the pole). I really like this airline, as the service is very good and there's nothing better than a direct flight. For those on the west coast, I'm guessing you would go through either LAX or SFO and fly west, but I'm not entirely sure.

More to come later on the travel information.

Quiet Time

It's been pretty quiet lately. Just language lessons and studying. I ventured onto the Metro again the other day in order to do some shopping for Olga's birthday present. This trip was much easier I must say. I'm getting better at reading the signs and getting out of the way of the masses. She liked the present and I won't be subjected to going back to the store to return my gift (I'm sure that the girl that sold it to me will be equally happy that I won't be returning).

The weather has been, well, it's been terrible. Until Saturday I believe it rained almost everyday for over two weeks. Not every day was end-to-end rain, but still it was getting old. I was starting to wonder if we were actually going to get a summer. That is all set to change this week, as I hear the highs are to move into the 30's (that's the 80's for the Americans). Although I'm generally opposed to heat, I'm looking forward to a change in the weather.

We went to dinner for Olga's birthday on Saturday night and were joined by her mother and friend (Valery), aunt Luba, cousin Irene, and childhood friend Tanya. It was a nice, low-key event full of toasts and memories (people took turns translating for the Amerikanitz). It's nice to see Olga be able to spend time with her family and friends, which is one of the key reasons we decided to undertake this adventure.

Still no luck on the search for a home. Saw a few more places last week, but they all had deal-killers (i.e. no air, terrible kitchen, horrible smell in hall, etc.). I have to admit that I'm getting a bit concerned with only a few weeks left to find something. Oh yeah, we also heard that our stuff finally left the NYC port. Now the heat is on to find something. We may have to extend our perimeter in order to meet our needs.

Dry Cleaning - Part II

But first, a brief message from our sponsor. I decided to take the day off from language lessons in honor of my amazing wife, Olga. For those of you that don't know, today is Olga's birthday, so please be sure to send her happy birthday emails, etc. (she really loves it!). Happy birthday sweetie! я тебя люблю. But seriously, I am quiet a lucky person to have found Olga. She puts up with my feeble attempts at humor (I think she may even like it sometimes), she deals with the mood swings and she doesn't even get offended that I slaughter her native language! Not to mention, I mean honestly folks, how many of your significant others would have let you retire at my age (just kidding honey)?

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program. Ahh, the day has finally arrived where we get to find out if the dry cleaning mission was a success or a failure. I wandered over to the dry cleaning place late this afternoon only to find my favorite person working at the counter. Yep, you guessed it, it was the lady from last week. Oh boy. When she finally decided to end her phone call (I'm sure it wasn't personal, given that it was on a cell phone and all) I thought she was going to have a coronary when she saw the person standing there was no other than the annoying person that doesn't speak Russian.

Well, she gathered herself and started speaking very quickly about....well, about something (she was speaking Russian, of course). I caught the word telephone in there and figured she was telling me that she wanted a telephone number. Hmm, this sounds familiar. I believe we've had this conversation already. So I again informed her that I don't know the number (in Russian) and she kept on talking. Oh well.

She pulled the clothes from the rack. That's a relief, at least she is going to get something. Just hope it's actually our clothes. She showed me the items. Yep, looks like our stuff. Nice, mission accomplished!. It just goes to show you that even if two people don't speak the same language things can be accomplished.

One Month In

Well, we've now been here in Moscow for just over 30 days. I know I've said this a few times, but it still feels like a vacation since our accommodations continue to be the Sheraton Palace. I believe the hunt for a Moscow residence will heat up this week, as we now have a new agent that is sending us information on apartments that are much more to our liking.

We heard about a 4th of July party put on by the American Chamber of Commerce, so we thought we would get out of the center of Moscow to see what that was all about. We were expecting a smallish get together with mainly American ex-pats, as who else would celebrate our Independence Day. That thought in mind, we were a bit perplexed by the comment on the flyer that stated 'tickets available until 6PM or until sold out'. How many US ex-pats can there be in Moscow???

When we arrived it all made sense. The location was a huge park that was over-run with Russians, who apparently will pay 400 Rubles each to anything they see has live music and beer. At one point the singer of the band even yelled out 'Happy Independence Day'....IN RUSSIAN. Olga and I were in a line for food and she started laughing as she translated this for me. At that point we both knew it was time to go. Needless to say, it was a shame we didn't see the fireworks, but it is what it is.

A New Test

Well, things had gone along pretty quietly over the past few weeks so we decided to add some adventure. I had a task on Tuesday, take in the dry cleaning. Olga and I had visited the place about a week earlier and decided to give it a try. I finished my language lesson in the morning and figured I'd get my chore done early, so I stopped by the hotel and grabbed our things for the dry cleaner.

I found the place again with relative ease. Hah, this is going to be simple! I greeted the lady with my best 'zdratsvootia' (that's the formal 'hello') and she smiled and said hello back to me. Then the conversation took a turn into....well, into a wall quite frankly. She started rattling off sentences and I had no clue what was being said. At this point I'm thinking, 'sh*&, this is going in the same direction as the restaurant and I have no other place to go!'. So I politely asked if she speaks English. 'NYET'. Double sh*&. Now what? Then I hear a word that I recognize 'chetiyet' (read). She's asking me if I can read Russian. Well heck ya I can read it! So she starts writing down all kinds of stuff on the paper in what can only be described as chicken scratch. Uh oh. She asked if I could read it, not comprehend!!!

So I used one of my most frequently stated phrases 'ya nee penimiu' ('I don't understand'). And she grunts. This is not going as I had planned. Then I hear another word I know, 'zaftra' ('tomorrow'). Ok, something is going to happen tomorrow. That's good. Could the clothes be ready tomorrow? Then she says that she is going to work tomorrow. Again, Ok, but I'm not sure how that helps me here. Hmmm. She points to the calendar, to the 8th of July. I realize she is telling me that the clothes will not be ready until the 8th....uh, that's A WEEK. Whatever happened to same-day cleaning???

I wearily agree that I will come back on the 8th after 12PM (I assume this is what she meant when she pointed to the 12 on my watch). She made some gestures with Olga's blouse that I assumed meant wash and iron, so I nodded my head. She made the same gestures again, so I nodded my head again. Getting nowhere fast now. She shook her head in frustration. I'm thinking, 'what, you can only get clothes washed OR ironed, but not both?'. She finally wrote out on a piece of paper what I was leaving with her and stamped it (not sure what this was for). She pointed to the calculator...I owed 1,400 Rubles (about $55 for 4 pairs of jeans, one blouse and one pair of pants). So I paid, took my piece of paper and walked out. Chore complete!

At this point I honestly have no idea if we will ever see these clothes again. And if we do, in what condition will they be in? I'll let you know on July 8th (after 12 PM Moscow Time).

Pictures

Just want to provide some pics that we have taken.

The Moscow River by Gorky Park

Jay by the Moscow River

Jay by Belya Doma (the 'White House'). We took this picture on June 22, which is why the flag is at half-mast (marking the start of WW II).

The Ring Road in Moscow - this road literally forms a ring around the center of Moscow. Not sure this does it justice, but it is extremely busy and anywhere from 4 to 8 lanes in each direction.

Garages just outside Moscow. No, I'm not kidding...people actually park their cars in these things!

Moscow Update

The only thing that has happened lately that could be remotely considered 'exciting' was the removal of two of Olga's wisdom teeth. One could seriously challenge the 'wisdom' in waiting until arriving in Moscow to have these removed, but we won't go there right now. The American Dental clinic that she went to actually looked like a dentist office...much more so than the one that I saw her in over here 7 or so years ago anyway.

The dentist, well he was....let's just say 'interesting'. I prefer my dentist to be a bit more clean cut than this guy, who resembled a heavy-set Kenny G (no really, he had a pony tail and ear rings!). We went back this week to have the stitches removed and he walked through the waiting area in a sleeveless T-shirt...NICE. Never mind the fact that he was 45 minutes late. Oh well, at least she is feeling better.

Since I have mentioned the dentist showing up 45 minutes late, let's chat a bit about the efficiency in Russian labor...or lack thereof. We have been in our hotel now for just under 30 days and we have been watching the progress of the construction workers across the street. During this time they have been 'working' on the same 20X20 square of the walkway in front of the building. We're not sure if they have finally finished it, but we did notice that one of the individuals appeared to be sweeping the side of the curb the other day, so we assume this means they are close to being done.

I also read an interesting article in the Moscow Times the other day (here's the link http://www.themoscowtimes.ru/article/1010/42/368400.htm ). This may be difficult for many to comprehend (at least those of you that have never lived in Chicago), but bribery is a serious issue here in Russia and it is very out in the open. Unfortunately, this will also keep the country from emerging fully into the international business community. It's extremely difficult to do business with those that make the rules as they go (even if there are rules currently in place).

For those of you that are interested in keeping up with the goings-on over here, the link to the English ('American' for you Jim) of The Moscow Times follows: http://www.themoscowtimes.ru/index.htm

The Metro

Olga and I decided to explore a section of Moscow that required the use of the Metro (see pic. of sign in a station) and in order to make it more interesting we decided to have me lead the way. Since I had done my research and I knew which way to head out from the Beloruskaya train station, I was feeling confident that this would be a successful test.

We decided to first walk over and check out a different hotel, as the one we are currently in has some construction going on. I'm thinking this isn't a problem as the hotel is by the Mayakovskaya stop, which is only one stop away (so my wife promises). Well, she is incorrect and we are now two stops away. Not much of a difference, right? WRONG! The stop we are at is on the ring and has three stops, all with different names and I have to figure out which one to get us to. Nice.

After a bit of anxiety Olga reminded me that we are on the green line (thankfully the lines are color coded) and I remembered that Tverskaya is also on our line. Whew! I found the correct line and then got us on the train heading in the proper direction, ultimately directing us to get off at the correct stop as well . I have to admit, I was a bit anxious over a minor event. The metro is fairly easy to navigate so long as you can read the signs (which I can now do, albeit somewhat slow). I'm not going to attempt the bus system yet, but I now feel pretty good about my ability to find my way around the city...even the parts that require train rides!

Who let the American loose in Moscow???

So, my wife informed me late last week that she would have an overnight 'business trip' on June 17th. At the time I thought, 'no big deal, I'm good'. OK, so maybe I was a bit over-confident in my Russian language skills. I decided to walk past a few restaurants that Olga and I had been looking at in hopes that I could break away from the Italian cuisine that we have been living on. I appeared to be a bit under-dressed for the most promising (and closest) place, as most people looked to be wearing Russian, business casual attire (I'll explain Russian 'style'in a different posting, as that will require pictures for full appreciation) and I was prominently sporting the classic American look of jeans and a t-shirt. With that place crossed off the list I headed further down a recently discovered street only to find that I was under dressed for many of the places.

Forty minutes later I arrived at a 'Pub'. I passed through the doors with confidence only to be met with a number of people standing around apparently waiting to be seated. Not to be deterred, I walked up to the man standing at the entrance and then fully realized that I had no friggin' clue what to say to him after I said 'hello'in Russian. While I am capable of reading a menu (with a bit of assistance) and placing my order, I have always relied on Olga to get us a table. At this point all of my Russian ran from my head and I stood there trying to ask for a table in English. Needless to say, the guy was not impressed and the severe look on his face showed it. After a few minutes of him speaking harshly to me in Russian and me responding with 'I don't understand' I decided that we had both had enough and I left. Only after I had left did I understand one of the phrases to be 'we have no room'. Nice.

I then promptly went back to an old stand-by, Italian joint and order my calzone and beer. While this was not one of my finer moments, it has provided topics for lessons from Olga!

Language update

OK, I'm feeling better now about my progress with the Russian language. Apparently this is going to be a roller coaster ride with some days much better than others.

I am now able to order my own food using the correct phrases. I ordered my food on Friday night and even received a nod of approval and a 'nice job' from Olga. For those of you that know Olga, you realize how big this is (Azmyra, you know where I'm coming from). I know I'm not fluent by any stretch of the imagination, but it's nice to be able to read the menu in Russian and understand most of it.

We are at Svetlana's again this weekend, as we wanted to say hello and we needed to do some laundry. There are a few downsides to living in a hotel, one of which is the limited wardrobe and the lack of a place to do laundry. In NYC we could get our laundry done for 70 cents per pound (this includes pick-up and delivery). I miss this. Apparently there is no such service in Moscow so we will either go back to doing our own laundry upon finding an apartment or we will need to find a cleaning person (I'm in strong favor of the latter).

Well, that's all for now. Hope everyone is doing well in the US!

Let the lessons begin!

I started my Russian lessons on Tuesday, June 10th. Two days in and I'm still not fluent. What the h#$%? Day one went really well for me, as the material we covered was mostly review (numbers, colors, greetings, etc). Day two, the star has faded.

Did I mention that these are one-on-one lessons that go for 2:15 each day? Oh, and the best part....NO ENGLISH DURING THE LESSONS! Me, the stupid американец (that's Russian for 'American') and a native Russian speaker, Elena, sitting in a room trying to figure things out. She is amazing, I am not. Did I mention that today was a bit more challenging? We are now into the variations of each word depending on the object or gender of the person being discussed. Oh joy, me putting neuter endings on feminine objects. It's amazing Elena can keep a straight face.

We also entered into the all-important arena of one of my favorite topics, food. I now am familiar with many of the food types that I would and would not eat. For example:

курица (koo-reet-za) is chicken
салат is salad
яблоко is apple

I have to do my homework (I have to write out a menu for a 'party' that my instructor is planning. Check out this link if you want to learn more about the Cyrillic alphabet http://www.pbs.org/weta/faceofrussia/reference/cyrillic.html

You can also check out Wickopedia.

Driving - not for the faint of heart

I thought the traffic and drivers in the US were nuts. I now have a much better appreciation for the infrastructure and rules that we have in place there. We returned from Lobnya on Sunday via car, thanks to Svetlana's friend, Valery. I was so disappointed that we didn't have our camera with us because I'm not sure that words can do justice to what we experienced, but here it goes.

Everything was just fine for about the first 15 minutes, then we hit traffic. We were on a four lane road that people turned into six lanes very quickly. That still wasn't enough room, so some of the more aggressive drivers turned the pedestrian path to the side of the road into yet another lane. This is where the pics would have come in handy. Several people walking on the path had to adjust their route in order to avoid head-on collisions. The gap between the road and the walking path turned into more of a ditch so the cars that took that route had to continue on until the next cross road in order to return to the real road.

Walking on the sidewalks here in Moscow can be just as adventurous (see pic above...nice right?). Several times I have had to make quick moves in order to not get hit by the occassional SUV coming down the way at me. No joke here. I thought they were going to just park on the sidewalk, as many others do (again, pics would be helpful here), but they continued on toward me. It's amazing more people don't get injured walking around here.

Svetlana's House

Olga and I travelled to her mother's home today in Lobneya. If you didn't guess already, my mother-in-laws name is Svetlana and she has access to the Internet, hence the new posts. I had to take a back seat today and let Olga lead the way here. The Moscow Metro is a-maze-ing. The key word there is MAZE (check out the link http://www.go-to.ru/en/support/moscow_metro.php?print=Y&). I was feeling pretty confident in my ability to find my way around after the successful walk yesterday. I am no longer under that delusion today after entering the Metro. Not only did my knowledge of the language disappear, it ran away. Add to that the high volume of people on the Metro because today was a working day and we had all the ingredients for a disaster.

I just couldn't read the signs fast enough and I had no idea which direction I was supposed to go once we hit the station. Keep in mind that the Russian language utilizes the Cyrillic alphabet and all signs are posted as such. It can get frustrating at times because I can't translate quickly enough, but I'm getting more accustomed to the alphabet.

Because Olga has been with me at all times when we are outside this has been just like any of the other vacations that we have taken here. The true test comes on Monday, as that is when Olga begins work and I'm truly on my own. That should be an interesting day. I'm also hoping to start my language lessons next week, which will not only help my Russian it will also force me to find my way around the city.

Language Update

My Russian is improving on a daily basis (obviously this is related to Jay). I've had my safety net, Olga, with me the entire week, so it's been fairly safe. I was able to order my own food the other night (OK, it was Italian, so it was fairly straight forward) and I asked for the check. I'm happy to report that both my food and the check showed up as expected. I have now graduated to greeting the people at the breakfast bar in the hotel and telling them our room number. So far so good, no large scale International incidents to report.

I was also able to lead us on a long walk around our part of Moscow yesterday and we were never lost (at least not that I am aware of). Have I mentioned that Moscow is an amazing city? It's absolutely beautiful this time of year. The temperature has been in the mid to upper 60's and the Cottonwood trees are in full bloom (it looks as though it is snowing at times). The days are long right now, it remains light until after 10PM here right now (and the sun is up before 5AM....jet lag helped me on that one).

Phase I Complete

We landed on time and have settled in to our somewhat temporary housing, the Moscow Sheraton Palace (see pic for the sign). It's not a palace by any stretch of the imagination, but it's better than the hotel accommodations we had in NYC.

We looked at a few more apartments on Tuesday and found one we really like, but there is a catch (isn't there always?). The apartment is available now and we don't need it until August since our belongings won't hit St. Petersberg until late July and the cost is $5,500. We were told the rent is 'negotiable' (I believe that is the case for everything here), so we offered $4,500/month and that we would occupy in August. It is now Saturday and we have not heard back, so we expect that our offer will be rejected.

You may have noticed that it has been quite a while between posts. That is because we are still negotiating the Internet price with the hotel. They are asking $30/day, we are proposing much less. I'm a big fan of FREE given that the daily rate for the room for the first 3 days was 22,700 Rubles (that's just shy of $1,000). Until we reach agreement on a much lower rate the posts will be somewhat sporadic.

Do Svedanya.

Day of the Flight

Only one hour and fifteen minutes until we no longer call NYC 'home'. Have to admit that I'm excited on one hand, but a bit nervous on the other. The good news, we are in business/first class so at least we will be in comfort on the way to Moscow.

We've run into a few snags the past few days as we finalize our move. First, Olga now has a pair of UGG's that will be delivered to our NYC address on 6/2 (a day late I'm afraid). Second, we didn't get credit toward our gold/platinum status with Starwood for our stay in Le Parker Meridien (this hotel is privately owned and does not award points). We were hoping to get upgraded to the Club level more quickly in Moscow, as it provides additional perks so now we'll have to see what we can work out with the front desk there. Last, we were informed that our stuff won't arrive in St. Petersburg until July 23. Yes, that is JULY 23. Apparently there is a shortage of containers around the world (I don't buy that one) and this is the first they can get our stuff on the slow boat to Russia. No sense worrying about that now, we'll deal with that as best we can.

Well folks, this is the last update from the good ole USA. The next posting will come from across 'the pond'. Later.

Two More Days

Our flight has been pushed back to June 1, as my visa came back with an effective date of June 2. The good news is that the weather in NYC has been beautiful and it gives us an additional day to catch up with our friends before we leave.

The moving company continues to be confused. After they picked up our stuff on Wednesday I received two calls from them informing me that they would be coming in to pack us on Thursday and load on Friday. They finally caught up and informed me that they had my phone number on someone else's account. They then sent an email last night asking if Olga is in Russia, as they need to authorize the release of our goods. Who knows if/when our stuff will arrive.

'The Move'

Well, the day is finally here. The movers came in on May 27th and boxed everything up. It really is amazing to watch these guys move. I realize we have only 1,000 sq. ft., but they had it all packaged and 90% moved out in just under 6 hours. They came back in this morning and finished up in less than an hour. My chores related to this move are now complete, as Olga will need to direct the movers on the other side. Who knows where our stuff would end up if I were in charge of speaking with the Russian movers.

We moved into Le Parker Meridien here in NYC on Monday night. Nice view of Central Park out of our room, but other than that it is average at best. I fear that I have been ruined now that I have tasted the lap of luxery at The Ritz-Carlton in Moscow. If the Lewis boarding house is full, that is the place to stay (if you are not too shocked by the price).