Returning to Russia

It started to feel like Russia again when I was waiting for my plane in Heathrow and I could hear the buzz of Russian conversation around me.

I sat on the plane behind some Russians, and they were having a very loud conversation bemoaning the state of airport security. I couldn't stand the sound of their voices. I thought, this isn't a good sign if I am already tired of hearing Russian. (I wonder if people feel that way about Americans speaking loudly in English everywhere?) They kept talking and talking. Finally I reasoned that the man was probably drunk or otherwise under the influence. There was just no way a normal person could nag for so many minutes in a row.

Arriving in St. Petersburg was easy, and once I was talking with my friends, I didn't mind hearing Russian at all. It sounded nice.

I always have to go back and read previous jet-lag notes in order to assure myself that I'm not going crazy. I want to be busy and I want to do nothing simultaneously.

I do have to say that it's a LOT easier flying into Russia in March than in January. I remember on January visits curling up in a ball and wondering, "why is it so dark?" But since I've been back, I've been treated to spring sunshine and temperatures above freezing.

Even though there is a fair amount of daylight, I get confused at times by the darkness, or simply by the position of the sun. Even though it's perfectly natural for it to be dark in the evening, something about it feels wrong or apocalyptic to me. If you've ever had jet-lag, you probably know what I'm talking about.

I went to the store yesterday and also traveled to another part of the city to get registered. I was shocked by how expensive everything had become. There are also a few high-rise buildings around that I don't quite remember, so I'm wondering if it's just me or if they were built in my absence.

I'm in Russia!

Yes, it's true. But I don't have the strength to write more than a few words...

To and fro

I had a nice trip to D.C. over the weekend and caught up with some college friends.


Normally I wouldn't go on a side trip shortly before leaving for Russia. But in this case, I think it actually helped. I was able to relax a little bit and get travel anxiety out of my mind. I still feel pretty disorganized, but not too stressed. It's hard to believe that in less than 24 hours, I'll be on a plane again!

If we don't get another snowstorm, that is...

A parallel universe, or a small world

I had a funny conversation on the plane ride over to D.C. this weekend.

I was flying Southwest Airlines, and was going through the confusing process of trying to choose my own seat. About 1/3 of the passengers had already boarded, so there were no more aisles, and I was trying to decide who looked friendly enough to crawl over to get to the window. Some people had placed their bags in the window seat, as if hoping that the flight wouldn't be full and they wouldn't have to sit next to another person.

I saw a middle-aged couple sitting next to an empty window seat, and asked if I could join them. They cheerfully obliged.

When I was seated, I reached for the magazine to keep busy on the hour-long flight, but the woman in the middle started talking to me, asking about my destination. I decided it wouldn't be so bad to chat away the time, so I soon found myself telling her about being a missionary in Russia. She was very curious and asked a lot of questions.

At one point, the woman started describing the family of a woman she worked with. "Her parents went to Russia and then went back and adopted a child. And her brother makes jaunts to Africa regularly and fell in love with a native woman there and they all went out to the village for the wedding."

It sounded so much like my family, with just a few of the details being different. So I described my family to her.

"Now, do you know Emily______?" she suddenly asked.

I stared at her in amazement. "That's my sister!"

So she had been describing my family after all! Of course she had confused certain parts of it, but apparently she and my sister had talked quite often about our family.

It would have been funny if there were another family like ours. I would have wanted to meet them!