Filed under: Russia
Not everyone enjoys trains, but I adore them. Because this is a holiday weekend (Russia day), everyone who needed to travel already left on Friday. Thus, the train from St. Petersburg to Petrozavodsk was nearly empty. I shared a room with one other woman, and in our car was only one other family.
In spite of my exhaustion, things proceeded in the Russian way – my neighbor and I talked amiably about Karelia, life in a country and culture other than one’s own, the financial crisis, racism, and the environment. She has lived in France for five years with her French husband, and so understands the issues Slavic immigrants face, both in their adopted countries and when they return to their countries of origin.
I was worried these last few months about the state of my Russian; I haven’t been in Russia for four years. So far, I’ve been able to understand more of what’s happening around me than ever before – four years ago I never would have been able to engage people in conversation at this level, I still make mistakes to be sure, but I know I’m successfully communicating more information.
It is blessedly cool in Petrozavodsk. It will grow hotter as the summer progresses, but for now it’s in the mid 50s. My contact met me at the station this morning when the train came in at 7.00am. I was nervous, for some reason, that G.P. wouldn’t meet me or have found an apartment for me, as she is in no way obligated to help me, since I am not sponsored by the university. Why I doubt Russians I don’t know. My neighbor in the train said she would wait with me on the platform for my contact, and help me if need be. My contact showed, and had found me an apartment on one of the main downtown streets, Prospekt Lenina.
The apartment is on the fourth floor of a khryshchevka. It hasn’t been remodeled and so has all the character of a Soviet apartment – layers and layers of paint on the bathroom walls and doors, a terracotta-hued coat of paint on the floor, and cabinets that have seen better days. There is also an old-school water heater, thus in order to have hot water, I must manually turn on the gas and light the flame, which is in a small box on one of the kitchen walls. When I want turn the hot water spigot the gas kicks in with a whoosh and voila – hot water. The water itself seems very soft here, so hopefully my skin won’t have a hissy fit.
Everything I need is here – furniture, linens, dishes, and appliances. At 8am I was left to sort out my things and rest and we agreed to meet around one o’clock. I cleaned the tub and sink, unpacked, made the bed, washed some dishes, and took a nap. After I showered G.P. returned and we walked up and down Prospekt Lenina. There are several grocery stores and a market within two blocks of my apartment, a club and movie theater, tons of stores and cafes, and the university. Parallel to Prospekt Lenina runs Prospekt Karla Marksa, where there are several museums and theaters, more stores, and a large square.
We talked about the city and the types of students who come for the summer language program at the university. We discussed Finnish style, politics and culture, as well as the credit crisis in the US and the rise of credit in Russia (which is rapidly occurring, much to my dismay). Naturally we talked about my research as well, and I hope that, with her help, I am able to find traveling companions (they will likely expect some sort of compensation) and access to the library. I also hope that faculty members, for the most part, will be in the city over the summer and be able to meet with me.
My apartment will cost 45,000 rubles for the summer, and we will sort out the payment tomorrow. I went to the store to buy the basics – milk, butter, tvorog, kefir (no really, I love dairy!), vegetables, bread, and water, and ate a meal of herbed veggies and buckwheat. Tomorrow I will access the internet and try to call my friends in Moscow. In the afternoon I will work on the class paper left over from Spring quarter, though probably I won’t get it finished! For now, some tvorog and the rest of this football match!
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