Fool in the Rain

There have been many days that I have taken the umbrella with me - today was not one of them. It looked like it might rain, however it has looked like that many times. But today, as I was almost back to the apartment, thunder rumbled across the sky, lightning flashed, and the rain came pouring down.....on top of my head, without an umbrella. There was nothing I could do but make a run for it and laugh. The Russians I passed by looked at me as if I were a complete lunatic. Of course, they all had umbrellas and none of them were laughing. Because it has been so hot and muggy, the rain was actually a relief. Things are a bit cooler now and the air smells clean.

I did make it to the Russian State Library today and they are extremely efficient. I was registered for a library card in no time. Unfortunately, just like at home, the things I wanted to look at are in storage and will not be ready until tomorrow or Friday. I thought for sure I would be able to get Russian journals and periodicals from the 1950s and 1960s right away in a Russian library, but these are not highly requested items here either. No worries though as I'm sure I will be able to get these items.

Alla made us lunch today and it was very delicious - stuffed, baked zucchini. She hollowed the zucchini out and filled it with sauteed carrots, zucchini, garlic, and a little bit of onion. Then she topped it with a bit of shredded cheese (Russian white cheese; I think parmesan cheese would be perfect on this if it were not so difficult to find and expensive here) and baked it for about 20 minutes. It was very scrumptious and not too heavy. Perfect for such a hot day. Speaking of food, there is a grocery store in Gum (the over priced mall on Red Square) called "Gastronom No. 1" and it appears to be the Fresh Market on steroids. There are crystal chandeliers having from the ceiling, marble floors, and the smell of chocolate and pastries wafts throughout the entire store. The liquor section appears to be something out of a museum. Truly spectacular, but so expensive I have no idea who could shop there.

Tomorrow it is back to the archives and with any luck the documents that I requested will appear. I hope to look at the debates that Soviet composers had in the early 1950s on the nature of jazz and whether or not it was appropriate for the Soviet masses. How barbarian music, as they called it, could be appropriate for Soviet citizens is beyond me :) We'll see what the jazz fans had to say. Cheers for now and I will close with a pictures of Gastronom No. 1, a view from the Russian State Library, and just a random shot taken on my way home (before the rain.)

                                                                   Gastronom No. 1

View from the State Library towards the Kremlin

Path on the way back to the apartment, just before the U.S. Embassy

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

Did I run off with a jazz band, or perhaps the circus? Maybe I decided to take the Trans-Siberian railway out to Lake Baikal? Maybe I'm lost somewhere in the Moscow Metro? Where have I been for 2 days and why haven't I posted anything? It has simply been a couple of very busy days. I made it to the archives and actually got to look at documents, which I now realize is an absolute miracle. Thanks to the archivist that has been so helpful all along I had documents waiting on me. However, it appears that any documents that I request myself will take some time. The first set of documents that I requested on Monday will be available on Thursday, at the earliest. It takes even longer to make copies. To make things worse, they are going to close for a week for cleaning purposes! The archivist told me today that the documents I requested today that are not on microfilm will be available on July 20th. Should be interesting to try and read all of them before I leave on August 1st! It is simply not enough time for them to make copies.

My biggest fear approaching the archives was the microfilm reader. The microfilm readers that we have at UF often confound me and I sometimes find myself asking (gasp!) an undergrad to help me. Therefore I was particularly concerned at having to operate a machine in Russia with an attendant explaining to me how to operate it in Russian. I have difficulty with this in English, and in theory I am fluent in that language. But much to my relief these were very old, and therefore, very simple machines.

Alright, no more archival talk for those of you that are not interested in that part of the trip. What have I seen here in the last two days? I think I should include a section in every blog entry entitled "strange and unexpected things I saw today." So, let this be the inauguration of that section. Although it probably isn't so strange, I saw a green and white Ford Bronco, early 1980s, with a Montana plate on the front and an American diplomatic plate on the back. It was parked in front of the U.S. Embassy, so it is not really that surprising. You can always tell that you are near an area where there are lots of Americans because the cars are all Fords, Jeeps, and Hondas.

The next strange thing were advertisements for a Russian bank Trast (trust) with Bruce Willis, smiling smugly at you as you ride the Metro. Below his picture are the words "когда мне нужны деньги, я просто веру их" (kogda mne nuzhni dengi, ia prosto veru ix - when I need money, I simply turn to them). Really Bruce, when did you learn Russian? Apparently there are television commercials too, but they are dubbed so its not actually Bruce speaking Russian. Personally, I'd like to hear him say the "yippy kai-yay" line from Diehard in Russian.

In other random news, a complete stranger struck up a conversation with me on the Metro after I told her that her skirt was fine and not wrinkled. She was very striking and energetic - bright yellow dress with black polka-dots that looked like it could have come from the 1950s. Her dark hair was cut in a very nice bob and I think she was in her early 50s. She seemed very nice and like she just wanted someone to talk to. Unfortunately for her she chose the one person on the Metro that couldn't really keep up with her. She asked me if I lived near the ocean because she thought I had that look about me. Truly an odd encounter.

I've also discovered, rather miserably, that Russia has something akin to Jasmine. It might just be the Russian variant of it, I'm not sure. But I am sure of the smell and the way that it affects my allergies! It also smells just like the Jasmine at home and much to my chagrin I have to walk past what seems to be a jungle of it on my way to the archives.

I suppose that is all for now. I finally made it to Red Square and St. Basil's Cathedral, so here are the obligatory pictures of probably the most widely recognized symbol of Russia. And also, the Bruce Willis advertisement :)

Russian jasmine

St. Basil

Rock albums (yes, vinyl!) for sale in a record store in GUM

the Who, the Stones, Yes

The Gap

Today I stayed close to the apartment, mostly because I've walked so much in the past week that I have blisters on my feet in places that I didn't know I could get blisters. And how so many Russian women walk around on 4 inch heels all day long is beyond me. I was reading through one of those "Eyewitness" travel guides for Moscow and the author wrote that "Moscow's inhabitants are not known to be great walkers." I wonder which Moscow he is talking about because it most certainly is not the large one in Russia. It seems that people here walk everywhere, except for those than can afford a car. The rest of us must make do with the metro.

It seems that the divide between the haves and the have-nots has become very pronounced here. After trying several different grocery stores I understand why so many Russian women are thin - they can't afford to eat. Some thing are priced about the same - grapes for instance are about the same price. You can find milk, butter, cream and domestically produced dairy products relatively cheap and when you consider the quality, in many ways they are often more reasonable than their American equivalents that we purchase at home. In general the dairy here has more fat, so whereas you have to spend nearly $5 to get a pound of real butter (something like Land of Lakes, not Organic Valley which was $7 a pound the last time I checked), at least in Florida, here it can be had for around $3 and you can rest assured that it will have lots of fat :) For those of us that bake this is important. Milk is relatively cheap as is smetana, which some people would equate to sour cream. However, it has a different flavor and a different consistency altogether. Bread is another staple item that is pretty cheap, but bread, or at least the lack of it starts revolutions, so the low cost is not surprising.

I have been truly surprised by the price of fresh vegetables. I knew they were outrageously priced in one of the major chains Azbuxa, but I was surprised to find them so high in another chain Sedmoi Kontinent (7th Continent). For instance tomatoes are about $7 per pound in Sedmoi Kontinent. Originally I had planned to make spaghetti and I thought it would be easiest just to buy fresh tomatoes, but after seeing how much fresh tomatoes were I decided to just get a jar of tomato sauce. Unfortunately the tomato sauce in the jar was even more expensive. So my next step is to try the local farmers market, which will undoubtedly be cheaper but also less convenient.

Beer is also reasonably priced and certain beers such as Czech, German, and Polish are cheaper here than at home, and this makes perfect sense. American beers like Budweiser and Miller are way overpriced, in my opinion, and cost at least 3 times what good Czech beer costs. I got a bottle of Kozel dark beer the other night and it was approximately $1.25 and it was a large bottle. Wine is also comparably priced, although in many instances it is way beyond the income of the average Muscovite.

I also spotted a Chili's and a Friday's not far from my apartment and I was sorely tempted to go into Chili's and order a margarita and fajitas, but it would most likely run around $50. I didn't check the prices on either menu, but considering that they are both located on Novyi Arbat, they are most likely out of my price range.

There are also quite a few homeless people. In my wanderings up and down the Old Arbat I noticed a number of people who seemed to be sleeping on the streets. At the monument to Aleksandr Pushkin an old man was laying on the base sleeping while a group of tourists, thankfully not American, laughed and pointed at him. They took pictures in front of him and the monument, mimicking his behavior. I didn't know what was worse the circumstances of the homeless man, or his fellow human beings standing around laughing at him without any idea of what would bring a man or woman to such a condition.

I am sorry for the somber mood of this post, but I do want to give as full a picture as possible. In the meantime, I hope one of you reading this goes to Chili's and has a margarita (or 4) for me. Cheers!

Talk of the Town

Started the morning off with a trip down to the Aleksander (Alexander) Gardens thinking that the light rain would keep the tourists at bay. Considering the large presence of Brits, Americans, Italians, and French, just to name a few of the groups, I was obviously wrong in my speculation. It was like the United Nations except friendly! The gardens run along the wall of the Kremlin and are a favorite with tourists. But there were also quite a few army guards strolling along with their sweethearts in the rain. The pictures that you see here with the red brick are from the gardens.

After the stroll through "aleksandrovskyi sad" I wandered back down to Old Arbat to sit in a Starbucks and work on my Modern Europe class. Sitting in such a historic spot (the street and the region mind you, not the Starbucks) I thought would provide more than enough inspiration to sit down a write a lecture on the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. It was also a nice spot to listen to what I would consider good music without having to have earbuds in. It turns out that Beck and the Pretenders are very good to write lectures to. I also managed to complete what I think will be the opening pages of my dissertation.

Once again the musicians were out in full force along the Arbat today. I saw something truly unexpected - a bagpipe player. Probably the worst bagpipe music that I have ever heard in my life, and I love bagpipes, but I tossed a couple of coins in his hat for the pure originality of it. There was also a gentleman playing an interesting guitar, see below, and it would be great if anyone could tell me what it is.

I'm going to have a quiet evening writing and working on courses. Until next time.....

the view from the other side of the apartment

view of Kremlin wall 

Monument to Bulat Okhuzhava on Arbat

anyone know what kind of guitar this is?

Beautiful Day

What a productive and lovely day. Well, actually the weather was not what one would exactly call lovely, but still it a nice day all around. It started with a nice breakfast of a boiled egg, dark bread with homemade strawberry jam, and 2 cups of coffee! I also managed to make it to a meeting on time and not get lost along the way. This was truly monumental for someone with a very limited directional understanding.

I met with an important person on the Russian jazz scene today and he was so helpful and enthusiastic about the subject. We met at a cafe (Eat & Talk - yes, that is the name of the cafe and not a translation) downtown very close to the state library, formerly known and very often still known as the Lenin Library. It was a very nice cafe with a strange assortment of music - Enya, Huey Lewis, the Stones, Michael Jackson, and Geico commercials. But, more importantly he not only brought me a year's worth of his journal, but he also gave me a copy of his upcoming book, which is actually an edited collection of one of the most important jazz theorists of the Soviet period. Truly a treasure for my topic!

It was such a nice afternoon, especially after my frustrating trip on the metro, which would not have been frustrating at all had I bothered to read the signs posted throughout the stations. It would have been most helpful had I noticed that my connecting station was closed for repairs and that is why the conductor never once stopped the train there. But one of the beauties of the metro is that there are so many connecting stations that you can always find an alternate route.

On my way back to the apartment I noticed an older gentleman throwing a frisbee with his yellow lab who was catching every throw. He was on the grounds of the American embassy and maybe it was the marine tattoo on his forearm, the New York Yankees baseball cap, the fact of where he was, or just something in his general manner, but when I walked by just figured that he was American and told him how beautiful his dog was and what a good catch he seemed to be. Of course he was American, but it made me wonder how subconsciously we all decided whether or not someone is in "our" group. I don't remember thinking of anything in particular when I came to the conclusion that he was American, but there it was. It helped to explain to me why Russians that I come across in the metro or in cafes automatically assume that I am not Russian.

I also got to meet my hostess's students tonight and have tea with them. One of them is a medical doctor and the other is in the IT field in some capacity and they told me some pretty funny jokes, which I most certainly will not repeat here. They also told me about rabid Russian soccer fans and how the game is not for normal people anymore.

Lastly, Alla brought home one of the most delicious things that I have ever tasted, although it might not sound that appetizing - cabbage pie. It was lightly sauteed cabbage mixed with a boiled egg and butter, all wrapped in nice bread. I would gladly post a picture of it, except that I was too happy eating it to even think about taking a picture of it. So I will post a picture of my pelmeny and Czech beer instead.

The other picture is of my apartment - my room is on the 5th floor, and the other picture is of a major street in my area at approximately 10 pm.

  

Have you ever seen the rain

So today was to be archive day, but alas, it was not. Unfortunately, I neglected to note the hours of the reading room, which opened 3 hours later than the archive administration office. I realize this must sound surprising to some people - me, actually early for something. Of course, it took me a very, very long time to find the archive as there is a great deal of construction in the area, which apparently necessitates the removal of all street signs in the immediate vicinity of the metro station. So my carefully noted directions were almost useless. But I persevered and eventually found my way, and still arrived too early.

The area where the archives are located doesn't offer much for the average, or even non-average American, since it is largely a residential district. So I returned to my apartment and emailed my favorite archivist and advised him of my predicament. And as he is most certainly a wonderful man, he told me not to worry that it would be better to come on Monday anyways because he has located more documents that will be useful to me. Seriously, I think I must dedicate my dissertation to this man!

However, not spending the afternoon in the archives did leave me free to wander about the city, which I did and gleefully. Not only did I find a fabulous french pastry and coffee shop, but the city seems to be completely alive with music. For those of you that are interested in visiting, check out Le Pain Quotidien in Moscow (the locals call it Хлеб Насущный - khleb nasushnyi). It is a chain and they are in Europe, Japan, the U.S., etc. But, the coffee was great and so was the pastry. And best of all, they are only 2 blocks from my apartment.

Now on to the important part of my story - the music. On my way to the metro stop I was very surprised to see and hear what I think was a Peruvian band. They were decked out in full "native" garb - feathers, beads, and all. They were playing wooden flutes and the music was beautiful and completely unexpected. From the large crowd that had gathered around to hear them, it seems that I was not the only person enjoying their music. It was a peaceful respite from the pushing and shoving that you find on the metro at certain times of the day.

I finally made my way down to Old Arbat and there were quite a few rock and folk bands playing along the street. Old Arbat is this terrific pedestrian thoroughfare lined with shops, cafes, and street vendors offering everything from caricature drawings to palm readings. Musicians perform for donations from the crowd. The first group I came across was playing Credence Clearwater Revival's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" and they were really pretty good. Their lead guitarist handled the song pretty well, even if the lyrics were a little fuzzy in places. At one point in the song instead of "I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain," it became "oh no, have you ever seen the rain." I guess John Fogerty should have been more clear in his pronunciation. It makes me wonder how any group other than an American or British group could ever sing a Rolling Stones song. Never mind, most of us have no idea what Mick Jagger is actually saying even though English might be our native language. Come to think of it, does Mick Jagger actually know what he is singing?

To complete the multicultural experience, I also saw an Indian man playing a sitar. He had a large crowd gathered around him too. I guess Muscovites really appreciate good music.

I also found the restaurant "Goodman steakhouse" that comes up every time I search for Benny Goodman in Russia.  I guess he was just an inspirational man :)

That's all for now. I have a plate full of pelmeny stuffed with potatoes complete with sour cream and dill to eat.   

Just go with it

Greeting from Moscow and welcome to what I hope will be a fruitful 6 weeks in Russia! I arrived safely, if somewhat exhausted, on Tuesday morning after a 10 hour flight and yet another boring Jennifer Anniston movie. It has become an odd tradition of mine to watch Jennifer Aniston movies on planes, and this one was just as memorable as the last one I watched on a plane. But the name of the movie seems an apt title for this first entry. Nu ladno, as the Russians would say.

I am staying in a pre-revolutionary building very close to the American embassy and my accommodations are very much to my liking, as is my hostess! I have my own room complete with a real bed and not a pull-out couch and I have access to a kitchen too. But most importantly, the shower has a hot water heater so that when the city authorities turn the hot water lines off for maintenance, which will undoubtedly happen soon, I will still be able to take hot showers. Not only do I have access to hot water, but my hostess also has wifi, therefore I will not need to wander the city asking those most famous lines "U vas est vi-fi?" Not that there would be a problem finding wifi in Moscow.

If the start of my trip is any indication, this should prove to be a very useful 6 weeks. The driver who picked me up from the airport could have been the subject of an entire dissertation, or at the very least, a second book. His name was Igor, and he was probably in his mid 50s, and he was very much a gentleman and insisted on carrying my large suitcase for me, which weighed exactly 47 pounds, up 5 flights of stairs. When I asked if there was a lift, he laughed and replied "no, we do it the Russian way." He also joked that since I was so close to the American embassy that when the war between Russia and the U.S. broke out, I could run across the street with my passport and be safe. Of course he was joking and we had a great laugh about the Cuban Missile Crisis and the absurdity of it all.

We had what I think was a lovely conversation in Russian about his favorite topic - rock music! I say "I think" because my Russian is rusty and he did not speak any English. Seriously, I could not have asked for a better entry into Moscow. It turns out that his favorite groups are in this order Nazareth, Shocking Blue, and Led Zeppelin. For those of you who might not know Shocking Blue, they did the song Venus back in 1970. He told me their entire history and why they split up - it was like a Russian version of Behind the Music for Shocking Blue! Truly fantastic. What really caught my attention was his insistence that rock music must be sung in English, although he didn't speak any English. For him, if music was sung in any other language, it simply was not authentic rock. I also got to hear wonderful stories about the glory days of bootlegging during the Soviet period and how the music that they shared in the 1960s and 1970s was real music and not the "pop" stuff that is promoted today in order to make money. Today's pop music, Igor told me, has no art and only clogs the airwaves like trash.

So the beginning of the trip has been very nice indeed, notwithstanding the proliferation of Kesha music that seems to come from everywhere, except Igor's radio of course. I've finally recovered (almost) from jet lag and will venture to the Archive of Literature and Art tomorrow, and with any luck I will meet the archivist who has been so helpful and answered all of my questions by email.

The picture here is the view from my window. I will post more later......until then, cheers.