Let's Try This again

OK, I know I've been away for quite some time, but I'm going to re-dedicate myself to the blog and post on a more frequent basis. A quick update on the family and then I'll provide some information on the daily life here. Baby K is growing fast and is quite a lot of fun. She is very vocal (have to admit that isn't always a blessing) and is more interactive each day. I really can't believe that she's three and a half months old. The time really goes so fast.

So our gym membership ran out and we decided to re-up for another year. In the US I would have gone to the gym, informed them that I would like to extend my membership for said amount of time. After signing a new contract (or maybe not), they would have informed me that they will continue to collect payment on a monthly basis and that would have been the extent of the transaction.

Now let's talk about the process that we went through here in Russia. First, Olga had to contact someone at the head office because they handle all of the corporate rate clients. After she received the rate we were then provided with our options for payment. Option one: Trek ourselves down to the other side of Moscow and pay. Option two: Request an invoice to be sent to email, print said invoice and take to our bank (Citibank) and transfer the funds. Option 3: Make payment into the fitness club's account in person at Sberbank (this is where the fitness club has it's account) and then take the proof of payment into the gym.

We first chose option two, as we liked not having to carry that much cash anywhere to make the payment. Oh, did I neglect to mention that we have to pay the full year up front and in cash? There is no monthly payment plan here and the use of credit cards, well that is just coming around here. Olga, being the good Ruskie that she is, phoned the fitness club to find out how long it would take for our memberships to be reinstated after payment. She was informed that this would happen after they received notification of our payment. She was also informed that this could be after one day or more than a week.

Hmmm, ok, option two is now off the table. So option three it is. We withdrew the cash from Citibank, walked over to Sberbank and made the payment. Sberbank, for their difficulties, then charged us a 'commission' fee of about $70. For this the teller took our money and put it into the fitness club's account, but would not fill out the receipt, as this is not her job. She was kind enough to tell Olga to be sure to fill it out though, as it would not be valid if it were not. So kind of her, don't you agree?

We now have our proof of payment and walk over to the gym. We are both joking about the process and I pose the question 'Do you think they'll give us new cards or just extend on the old ones?'. To this Olga replies, 'I don't expect this part to be that easy'. Well, she was right. But in all fairness, she is the native Russian and by nature much more pessimistic than I. We show up at the gym with receipt in hand and the people look at us as though we have two heads. The lady calls another lady down that handles the corporate accounts and she proves to be no more useful than the lady at Sberbank. She has to call the corporate headquarters to find out how to proceed and after about 20 or so minutes we have the answer. They indeed have to issue new cards that will be sent to our club. Not sure how long that will take, but so long as they continue to let me in, I'm OK with it.

Economic Update

I figured with President Obama making a visit to Russia this week that this may be a good time to update everyone in the US on the economic front over here. Unemployment is now at 9.9%, which is down from 10.2% and is the first decrease in over a year. It also appears as though some of the construction that was halted has started again. Wages in arrears, a concept that we in the US are not at all familiar with, increased by 10.8% in May to 8.78 billion rubles ($282 million). Overall, the state of the Russian economy is not much different from that in the US at this point. There is a glimmer of hope here since oil prices have been on the rise and the economy is mostly reliant on natural resources, but we'll see how that plays out over the next few months.

Below is a link that provides information on inflation, which I guess should make me happy since it has come down, although I'm not sure that a decrease from 14% to just over 11% is all that much to get excited about.

http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/1009/42/379341.htm

Katya's Homecoming

After 4 days of living in the lap of luxury it was time for Olga and Katya to face reality and head home with daddy. Poor Olga, going from six meals a day to whatever we/I could make and whenever we could get it into baby K's schedule. For those of you in the US, that's right, Olga stayed at the birthing center for 4 days after giving birth...and there were no complications! Try to find that in the US! Don't they kick you out after two days there??

Pavel, a co-worker and friend of Olga's, was kind enough to take time out of his Saturday to take me to the birthing center to pick up Olga and Katya. I'm not sure how these days are handled in the US, but the Russians make a huge deal out of leaving the birthing center. We went to Olga and Katya's room to pick them up and then moved down to the first floor where Pavel and I were shuffled off to a waiting room and Olga and Katya went into a changing room where Olga put on Katya's coming home clothes.

As Pavel and I waited for Olga and Katya to make their appearance we watched the goings on of another couple that was leaving. First off, there were at least three cars in the procession and no less than 8 people there to take them home. Second, they had a professional photographer taking pictures and the staff of the birthing center taking a video of the event. Third, there was some guy outside holding two handfuls of balloons in front of the car that I assumed the child would be leaving in.

After all this, poor Katya was greeted by just her daddy and Pavel. No professional photographer, no video and no balloons. I'm not sure she cared too much (see the pictures). As you can also see from the pictures, I'm a natural at holding a newborn baby...NOT! In the end we all made it home safely and when we got there Olga and I sat on the couch and looked at each other and said 'OK, now what do we do?'. Still wondering on that question sometimes.

See what I was talking about above....sooo not a natural!!

The very proud parents.....still not looking too comfortable here.

Hey, let's try out the bouncer! Katya was not so impressed.

Эта Я....Катя! (It's me...Katya)

After 9 months of anticipation and having Olga read to me what was happening to our little girl during each week of the pregnancy our little bundle of joy finally joined us. Екатерина Елизавета Льюис (Katherine Elizabeth Lewis) was born at 7:49PM Moscow Time on June 30th. She made us wait a bit longer to see and hold her than we had anticipated (her 'due' date was June 25th), but the wait was well worth it!

We went in on Monday the 29th to see Olga's doctor and she told us to come back on the 30th at 8AM, as she didn't want to have Olga go any longer and was going to induce labor. I know that I was a bit shocked to hear that, but mostly because it finally sank in that we were going to be responsible for a little person that couldn't communicate to us what she needed or wanted (well, no more than a cry or a fuss that we would need to interpret). We had another ultrasound on the 29th that showed all was well with the baby and we went home to plan our attack for the next day.

We arrived at Перинаталный медицинский центр (Perinatal Medical Center) at about 8:30AM and after a brief check-in I was shown the locker room to change into the scrubs, Olga was checked out and changed into a robe and off we went to the birthing room. I know that you have all heard me say this quite a bit, but the accommodations and the personnel at Перинаталный are SOOO much better than at the Soviet-style place that we had been going to...it was like night and day.

Once in the birthing room, which reminded me a bit of a surgical room, Olga's doctor came in and checked her out and then began the inducement around 9AM. The contractions started around noon and the epidural was administered around 2:45PM...so much for the LaMaze breathing techniques that we learned from the video we bought. Around 6PM the real pain started and the nurses came to the rescue with the second epidural. Or did they? This one didn't seam to do much for the pain. I have to admit that it was killing me to see Olga in that much discomfort and I would have done anything to take the pain for her (I'm sure I would have changed my mind after feeling that first strong contraction!).

Around 7:15 everyone agreed that Olga was ready to deliver and they gathered the team for the main event. Olga pushed for first time at 7:30 and little Катя (Katya) made her debut at 7:49PM. OK, she's not really that little. She weighed in at 3.83 kilos (8.4 pounds) and 53 centimeters long (20.87 inches). It is true what they say, that first scream from your child is the best sound that you have ever heard. A few hours later they sent us to Olga's room and took little Katya for a more thorough check up. All in, it was most definitely the best day of my life to this point. I now have not one, but two beautiful Russian women in my life.

The Year In Review

It's difficult to believe that Olga and I have been in Moscow now for over one year. It's amazing how quickly time goes by these days. Now that Olga is on maternity leave and we spend more time together we have started reflecting on our time here thus far and below is a synopsis of what we have come to realize.

• We love summer in Moscow! I have to admit that last summer was not that enjoyable, but that had everything to do with living in a hotel for 75 days and enduring rain 5 out of every 7 days. This summer has been fantastic. I'm drafting this post at 11PM and it is still light here! We are almost to the summer solstice and we currently have sunrise at 4:40AM and sunset at 10:15PM. The weather has been fantastic and the city is green...not to mention all of the flowers that have been planted in the parks, squares and boulevards.

• We are not so fond of winter in Moscow. Last winter was by far the most depressing winter I have ever endured. I seriously believe that from October 1 to March 1 the sun was out only about 10 or 15 days total. That, my friends, is a whole lot of gloomy. Combine that with very short 'days' and you have all the makings of BLAH! The snow and cold were manageable, but I'm going to need a sun lamp if I'm expected to live through another Russian winter.

• The fruit and vegetables here are much better than in the US.. As with anything else here in Moscow it is not cheap, but we have been able to find very good fresh fruit and veggies all year around. We trek over to the equivalent of a farmers market each week and do our shopping, with the strawberries, cherries and tomatoes being exceptionally tasty!

• Traffic in Moscow is horrendous. Not only is there more traffic than in any other city that I've lived in, the relationship between drivers and pedestrians is by far the worst that I've ever experienced. I feel like a target on the sidewalks and I now follow the old rule that my mother taught me while growing up...'Look both ways before crossing the street'. I take it a bit further and look both ways twice before scurrying across like a rat in a bright light. I won't go into detail again on the parking issues, but suffice it to say that I rarely wear my iPod anymore when walking, as I want all of my senses to be sharp as I walk on the sidewalk (don't want to lose a battle with a car coming up behind me!)

• The culture in Moscow (and Russia in general) is amazing. New York has Broadway and Times Square, but I've never seen anything like what is here in Moscow. You can literally be anywhere in the city and most likely only be a few minutes from a theater where you can take in a play, musical, symphony or any other type of entertainment.

• Not impressed with the entire country having rolling outages of hot water in the summer. I still don't get this. Although it was a non-event for us, we didn't enjoy the 5 minute showers and the fact that it took over 90 minutes for the water to heat up again after that 5 minutes of luxury. To put things in perspective, we had it very good. Most people don't have boilers, which means they have to boil their water and then pour it over themselves, AND our water was only out for 14 days (I hear in some of the outer regions it can be 3 or 4 weeks or more!)

• The Metro here is fantastic! Not only does it run on-time and more frequently than in any other city that I've been in, it is more affordable and you get the added bonus of amazing architecture in the central stations. During peak times the trains run as frequent as every 30 seconds and the cost is a mere 20 Rubles per ride (that's still only about $0.70). There are a few issues that have to be overcome, but they are not terrible. First, over 11 million people ride the Metro each day. That is a whole lot of people! Second, the cars do not have air conditioning, so in the summer the 'aroma' of the Metro can get a bit strong. Third, mix in fewer showers for people in the summer due to no hot water and the cars can get pretty musky in June/July/August.

Overall, this past year has been nothing short of amazing. I have picked up more of the language and I understand the Russian culture much better than I ever could have had we not moved here. Add to this that we will be welcoming our daughter here in the very near future and I all I can do is count my blessings and be a very happy man.

Interesting Medical/Insurance Information

So, as we close in on the arrival of our daughter, Olga and I have had some interesting revelations on Russian medicine and insurance.  We selected the 'premium' insurance package that would allow us to go to the American Medical Center clinic, which I openly admit was all for me given my knowledge of the Russian language.  There was a side benefit to Olga, as the care there really is very good and our insurance picked them up after the first of the year for prenatal care.  Let's start with that statement.  How in the world can the place that you go for basic medical necessities NOT be covered for prenatal care??  I guess the only way I can justify this is to think of the 'in network' and 'out of network' cases for the HMO's in the US.  Unknowingly I guess we are on the Russian equivalent of a US HMO.

Second difference.  Once Olga reached her 36th week of pregnancy she could no longer go to AMC, but rather had to select a birthing center from the list of 'approved' centers.  Olga selected one based on information provided by the center, information from the insurance company and reviews posted of services rendered.  The place she selected is known for its ability to handle any and all difficulties in births (no worries here, all looks good for us right now, but it never hurts to be covered, right?).  We were told that single-room accommodation would be requested, but not guaranteed, although we were assured that it is available most of the time.  I'm beginning to see the Soviet Machine very much at work here!

OK, here is where things get interesting.  After Olga had further conversations with the birthing center here is what we found out.  Ladies in the US, get ready.  First, there is only ONE single-occupancy room in the entire center!  Interesting.  Second, I would not be allowed to be with Olga during labor or birth....NO EXCEPTION.  Third, most likely they would take the baby directly after birth and we would not be able to see her much AND they would start her on formula.  Fourth, and this is not necessarily the fourth largest issue, if Olga was not put into the one single-person accommodation room she would be in a 5-6 person labor room.  OK, I have to admit that I've never been in labor and will never be in labor, but I can not think of one positive thing about being in a room with 4 or 5 other women in excruciating pain.  

Well, now that we have all of the facts we have decided to go to the prenatal birthing center, which sounds like a palace compared to what I have envisioned the other place to be.  Olga will be in a single room, I will be allowed to be with her for labor and birth and I will be allowed to visit from 9AM to 9PM.  All of this is very positive (I admit that I may have a different view after the actual experience of labor, but only because I'm not sure how I'll feel about my wife being in that much pain and me not being able to do anything about it), with one small exception.  Has anyone seen any mention of this being covered by insurance...anyone.....anyone?  Right, so this place is not covered on our insurance and the majority of costs are due at signing of the contract with them.  Well, at least they take credit cards!!!!  In all honesty, I don't really care what it costs.  My only desire is that Olga and our daughter are both well taken care of.

We All Have Our Faults

I'm only posting this because I found the article and some of the defenses of this archaic law quite interesting.  Could any of you in the US even imagine if this existed today in your world?  I believe it may be time for an update.  Oh yes, be sure to check out the salaries listed as well.

http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/600/42/377334.htm

Who Needs Hot Water Anyway?

Ahh Russia, the land that never ceases to amaze.  As of Monday morning the boiler was shut down in our building for 'maintenance'.  Duration is projected to be two weeks, but we shall see if that holds true.  The good news is that there was a notice posted so we were not caught entirely off guard and because Olga used to live here we knew this was coming at some point.  

This knowledge, while nice, does not stop me from wondering what causes the need for this in the year 2009.  It's not as if we live in a Soviet-era building...we believe the building is less than 10 years old.  FYI, this is not an isolated thing, as there are rolling outages throughout the country over the course of the summer.  This would also explain why the Metro has that amazing aroma by mid-June!  

The only reason that I can think of that could justify this is the fact that Moscow has the hardest water I've ever experienced, thereby causing the need to shovel out the deposits each year.  I've often considered wearing a hard hat while taking a shower to diminish the possibility of head trauma. 

Oh well, at least we have a boiler in our apartment...this was a requirement when we were looking for a place.  So I guess for the next few weeks we live in the world of 7 minute showers. I guess it could be much worse, we could be without a boiler and have to boil water in order to take warm showers.  So much to be thankful for.

May 9th - Victory Day in Russia

On May 9, 1945 the surrender document was signed by Germany, thereby formally ending WW II between the USSR and Germany.  In 1965 the USSR designated May 9th as the Victory Day holiday.  They now have a very large parade on this day that runs through the Red Square that is intended (and succeeds) to show the military might of the Russian Federation.  I have to admit, the showing is quite impressive.  Follow the link below for more information on what the parade was all about.

http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/1010/42/376993.htm

We had intended on watching the parade from home, as it was invite-only at the Red Square (can you believe they left us off the list???).  Unfortunately, we ended up watching it from my private room at the American Medical Center.  The short story is that kidney stones hurt like hell and apparently I had them.  It hurt enough that I actually requested (ok, begged) Olga to call an ambulance because at that point the pain was so severe I was not sure what was going on.  

My worst nightmare was coming to fruition....'IT'S POSSIBLE THAT I MAY HAVE TO HAVE SURGERY IN RUSSIA'.  Don't get me wrong, to this point the medical care that I have received here has been very good, but I'm not giddy about going under the knife in in a country where I can understand the language, let alone in a country that I'm lucky to catch every 5th to 10th word!  Keep in mind that at this point I was looking at worst case scenario....i.e., this could be a hernia or worse yet, my appendix.  

The guys showed up in the ambulance and my loving wife says 'Oh, you're going to love these guys', as they are walking up to the building.  How's that for love and support....I believe I will remember that in late June around the time that our daughter is scheduled to arrive.  As they entered the apartment I understood...they definitely had a Russian look to them and they spoke no English (here is where it really pays to stay on the good side of ones Russian-speaking wife!).  Within minutes they assured me that it was only kidney stones and provided me with a very nice pain killer...YES!  After they phoned the AMC to ensure they had room for me they even gave us a ride in the ambulance so we didn't have to suffer through the Metro.

The stay at the AMC was quite uneventful, although I have to say the accomodations were very nice.  I had my own room and they fed me very tasty food.  I had my first ultra sound.  The guy that administered it is the same man that has done several of Olga's and I'm sure he was confused when he saw us enter the room and I jumped up on the table!  I spent the night and they released me the next morning after my second ultra sound came up clean.  All's well that ends well!

Сергиев Посад (Sergiyev Posad)

We have found ourselves with some time on our hands lately as Russia has quite a few holidays at the beginning of May.  Being as the weather has also been fantastic for the past few weeks, we decided to take a day trip to another of the Garden Ring cities, Sergiyev Posad, a few weeks ago.  This city is about 100,000 people and is located 75 kilometers north of Moscow (about 90 minutes on the elektrichka train, which is the local trains that run out of the city).

The beginning of the city was the erection of a small wooden church and monastic retreat in the early 14th century.  The kremlin walls that you see me standing in front of in one of the pictures below were built around the monastery in 1540 during the reign of Ivan the Terrible.  

I'm always amazed and impressed with the architecture and history in the cities that we go to and Sergiyev Posad didn't disappoint.  Hope you enjoy the pictures!

In Sergiyev Posad with the monastery in the background.

The Chapel-over-the-Well in Sergiyev Posad.

One of the walls inside the Assumption Cathedral.

The bell tower is in the background (88 meters tall).

In front of the Sergius Well Chapel.

At the back of the Assumption Cathedral.

With the Duck Tower in the background (you can't see it, but there actually is a duck on the top of the tower behind me!).

In front of the main entrance to the monastery at Sergiyev Posad (this is the kremlin wall).

The Baby Shower

While I was back in Iowa my mom and sister put together a baby shower.  Since Olga couldn't make the trip back to the US, I was the stand-in mommy and I have to say that I did quite a nice job (although I did this sans belly!).  I have to admit, I was very skeptical of this idea, but I had a great time visiting with family and friends and they didn't make me change any diapers (see pics below)!!  I'm not sure I can thank everyone enough for putting the shower together, as well as for all of the very nice gifts that everyone gave our little girl.  We even had Olga and her mother, Svetlana, join in via Skype, so they got to see and talk to everyone!  Below are some pics from the shower.

Look what daddy bought our little girl. Her first Polo outfit!!

Showing the sleepers to Olga via Skype.

My cousin Jennifer with her newest niece, Ellie (It's amazing that we were able to get Ellie away from her grandma Liz!)

Me trying to get into the Baby Bjorn.  It took 3 of us to get me into it!!  I even read the instructions....REALLY!

Time to change Ellie's diaper.  Notice how I'm right in there helping...not so much.  Have to take this slow.

Lola talking to Olga on Skype and trying desperately to find out the baby's name (under the direct guidance of her grandma Austin!)

Trip to the US

Well, I spent just about 5 weeks back in the good ol' USA and had a great time catching up with friends and family, but I have to admit that I was very ready to come back 'home' to Olga.  

While I was away, Olga took her mom, Svetlana, with her to a doctor appointment where they had yet another ultra sound.  Svetlana enjoyed the ultra sound and Olga was able to show it to me during one of our many Skype sessions (have to love technology!).  She even noted that the baby has my eyes (from an ultra sound???)....at that point I have to admit that I was questioning Olga's sanity, but I let that go.

I returned to Russia with no issues and quite a bit more luggage than when I left.  We bought a stroller and I 'transported' it back with me on the plane, as well as a very large 'baby' suitcase.  Who would have thought that those little things for a baby could weigh so much (the suitcase was overweight!)??  Oh well, Olga and I had a great time going through all of the things and I even put together the stroller.  Of course, I had to take it apart and put it back in the box once Olga had inspected it, as she didn't want it to sit around and get dirty.  To answer the question that many of you are most likely thinking, 'YES', I did this with no objection...she is 7+ months pregnant at this point and there is no sense stirring the emotions.

Ярославл

Olga & I decided to get out of Moscow a few weeks ago over International Women's Day weekend (March 8th) and take a short trip to a Golden Ring city, Яарославл (Yaroslavl, in English).  For more information on Яарославл, follow this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaroslavl

For more information on the Golden Ring, follow this link: http://en.wiki.org/Golden_ring

Below are some pics from the trip.

Olga at the end of a pedestrian walkway. 

On the pedestrian walkway...what, no cars coming at me???

Walking along the Voga river.  Uh, not dressed properly for real snow.

On a bridge near one of the churches.

In front of a church and museum.

In front of the Soviet church.  Built in the 1700's I believe.

Does this really make sense??

Масленица Festival

One thing about Russia, there is almost always a festival somewhere, celebrating something. We went to one a few weekends ago, Масленица, that has a dual purpose in Russia. First, it has a religious tone in that it is celebrated the week prior to the beginning of Great Lent, so it is a time of feasting prior to the fasting. Secondarily, it is celebrated as the end of winter...YEAH! The primary food served at the festival is блини (pancakes) with just about any topping you could want....chocolate, condensed milk (I know, we in the west think this sounds gross, but it's really quite tasty!), fish (yuck), etc, etc. So, why serve блини, you may ask? Well, they look like the sun and anyone that has been to Russia in the winter knows that seeing the sun is a VERY rare occurrence. Here is a link if you would like to read up more on the meaning of the festival: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslenitsa







Jay at the festival..they are playing games in the background.









More games at the festival








A traditional Russian dance on the stage








Дама Масленица (Lady Maslenitsa) making her entrance








The traditional burning of Дама Масленица.

Baby Update

Things are progressing quite nicely on the baby-front here. Olga and the baby are both doing very well and both are growing on a daily basis (and this statement should be read in the most positive manner only!). We went for another check up a few weeks ago and everything continues to look great. We had our third ultrasound and our little girl continued to be a bit difficult. She always wants to be active when we are trying to take pics, but will sit very still when I'm trying to feel her kick. Go figure, I believe this may be a preview of what is to come.

From the picture we could see that she has 5 fingers on her left hand and very long legs. For those that know me and Olga, you all know that this comes from mommy, cuz daddy's legs are anything but long!

On the more serious side, I am extremely excited that the pregnancy has been so positive for Olga and I really hope that this continues. I believe the only complaint at this point is that Olga can no longer walk home and chat on the phone at the same time, as she tends to get winded. If that is the worst that she experiences, I believe we should consider this a very uneventful pregnancy.









This is a few weeks old, but doesn't she look great?!

Random Stuff

Just realized that I haven't been out here for a while, so I thought I would post some random pics that I have taken around Moscow over the past month or so. Hope you enjoy and find them interesting.






This should look somewhat familiar. Pic out our window as it snows...looks so peaceful.










Walking to the Embassy one day....you do realize these cars and tire tracks are on the sidewalk, right? Parking is a serious issue here.









Something we don't see much of in the US, a sign showing the exchange rate (Dollar rate on top and Euro on the bottom...obviously taken a while ago, as current exchange rate is about 36 on the dollar).









Another shot of an exchange rate sign...and that snow! Gotta love it when it snows here....and I'm serious, it makes the city look beautiful!












Side of the American Embassy. Destination achieved (needed more pages in my passport....FINALLY).










Heading down into the Metro. I'm not sure this shot does the escalator ride justice, as it is extremely steep and the escalators move at a pretty good clip.








Shot of Christ the Savior Cathedral. This building is massive, unfortunately my photo abilities are limited.











Looking toward the Kremlin from Christ the Savior Cathedral.













Shot from Christ the Savior Cathedral.

We Now Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Programming....

See if you can find the difference in the pictures of Olga directly below.







This was taken the day we arrived in Egypt.









This was taken on our final day in Egypt.


Notice anything a bit different? Granted, she is wearing black, but this does not entirely disguise the fact that....hmmm, how do I say this and remain married?? Well, she's a bit more 'curvacious'. Now this could be due to any number of things, but it is in fact a 'baby bump'! We are excited to share with everyone that we will be welcoming a маленькая девочка ('little girl') into our family around mid-summer. As if just living here in Russia wasn't interesting enough, we have decided to 'kick it up a notch' and add a baby to the mix!

Olga and baby are doing quite well and Olga has been thoroughly enjoying pregnancy thus far. In the last ultra sound that we had done we even saw her sucking her thumb. I have to admit that I needed the doctor to help me out here because as much as I wanted to see that, it looked like a fuzzy blob until it was pointed out. I guess the other big news on the baby front is that I fealt her kick last night, which is the first time for me to feel it (Olga claims she has been feeling this for the past week or so).

I believe that with this news the direction of this blog may take a new direction!

Pictures from Egypt and Jordan

Hope everyone enjoys these.









In front of the Muhammad Ali mosque in Cairo (no, not the boxer).









Olga sitting in the mosque.










Jay standing on the pyramids at Giza, the only remaining structure of the original 7 wonders of the world.








In front of the pyramids with Cairo in the background.








This is NOT like riding a horse. Not even close. But don't we look at peace?



I'm not sure who is more relieved here, me or the camel. I really struggled at first, as I felt as though I kept sliding forward in the 'saddle'. I really thought that I was going to slide over it and onto the camels neck.











In front of the sphinx at the pyramids.











In front of The Treasury at Petra.










Petra









The amphitheater at Petra.












Petra