So I’ve been having a great weekend. I went to Ladoga Saturday (a 1250 year old town about 2 hours outside of Petersburg) and learned about cathedral styles, went into the cathedral of Saint George, learned how to identify which saint a Russian cathedral is named after, was informed the onion shaped domes on top of Russian churches are called “Koples”, though it is spelled differently in Cyrillic, drank wine by Lake Ladoga with my temporary classmates, and the girls and their teachers shared all of their food with Joy and I while we enjoyed the view of the hills, lake, and far off fortress. Joy is another Canadian I met shortly after I got off the bus in Ladoga. She’s probably 28 if I had to guess and married. Her man-friend lives in British Columbia and his name is Jeremy (I know…kind of vague…but my knowledge of Canadian geography is poor so a region is all you’re getting for now). She’s quite lovely. I like making friends here and have found that everyone is somewhat anxious to have another persons phone number “just in case” they want to hang out. Despite, enthusiasm, I haven’t found too many people who want to make the phone calls. I think I can be included in that group as well.
Since adjusting, I’m comfortable walking and being by myself when I go places. I know I have friends I can invite to come with me, but honestly some of the best experiences I’ve had have been walking by myself.
Joy is very sweet and smart…I kind of want to pick at her brain…. Find out a how she feels about past Russian wars, current politics, the food, what she likes to do in Canada. She invited me to a jazz festival that night in palace square, which I was pretty excited about going to when we talked about it initially. After 5 hours of walking around on tours, and trekking through Ladoga, both of us kind of laughed at the idea of staying up late and agreed that hanging out later in the week would be better. She’s a student working on her Masters in Russian History.
I have to reiterate how beautiful it is right now. The sky is a warm bright blue. It’s breezy all the time, so the persistent sun doesn’t feel so harsh. I’ve even noticed a difference in the people. They’re so… excited…and sparsely clothed. The US’ policy remains a no shirt no shoes no service, but Russia is quite lenient in this department. I see shirtless men everywhere on days like Saturday, and have noticed the shorts on women getting uncomfortably short.
The last bit of the day before heading back home was spent at the all girls cathedral in Ladoga. Joy, her host mother, and I walked with maybe 10 other girls from the larger group we were with. Joy and I went into the cathedral together, and went back towards Lake Lodoga when we left. We walked down little paths on the hills, by a pool of holy water, and then found the rest of the girls having a picnic and painting. We shared wine together and sat while they laughed and talked about things beyond our Russian comprehension. The bus picked us up about an hour later right at the end of the path, and we rode home. Katya was so cute on the ride home. EVERYONE on the bus was asleep at one point besides Katya and I, and she stood up, laughed, and took a picture. Then I followed suit, and passed out too J
Sunday wasn’t as eventful, but consisted of just as much walking. I finally got to sleep in which was much needed. I took the metro to meet Katya at the Peter and Paul Fortress by 1pm, but needed to get off at a different stop on a different line since the one closest one was closed. I changed lines a few times and went with a stop I’d never gotten off on or even been close to. We decided to go to Peter the Great’s Summer Gardens since it was closer and just as wonderful. Though the Summer Palace modestly set to the left of the entrance, is clearly baroque, the rest of the garden shows so much European influence with its marble statues and symmetrical layout. AH AND SO MANY TREES. It’s a breath-taking garden. I’ll put those pictures up on facebook when I post this. We walked from the Summer Gardens to the Winter Palace, past the Small Hermitage and Old Hermitage, and underneath the overpass leading the Hermitage Theater. There are 5 total buildings that the Hermitage Museum is comprised of: The Winter Palace (the really big sea-foam colored one), the Small Hermitage (to the left of the winter palace from the Neva), the Old Hermitage (to the Left of the Small Hermitage from the Neva), the New Hermitage (right behind the Old Hermitage, with the large Man statues holding up the overhang), and the Theater (to the left of the Old Hermitage from the Neva). We parted ways, but not before deciding that we would go to the Peter and Paul Fortress Monday aka tomorrow.
When will my body rebel against all of this sun and walking 4 or more consecutive hours at a time? If Mexico taught me anything, it’s the answer to that question: Soon…
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