Today was my follow-up interview with the Repository.  When answering the question of how long I'd been home, I realized just how much my journaling had taken a backseat to my catching up on my life at home since I've been back.  It has been about two and a half weeks now.  Most times it seems like it was all a dream, but yet I have all these things to show for my trip.  People (in Tomsk) joked with me that I'd someday only laugh about some of the events of my trip to Siberia that were more than unpleasant.  Well, I'm not laughing yet, but surely I can say that the good times I had are much more important to me than the bad.  I am so happy to be home, but a letter arriving yesterday from Kate reminds me that I have no regrets about my summer travels to Russia.  She and I have been keeping in touch the best we can and I am glad.  Going through the people that were rude to me (based on my being an American) is a fleeting thought when compared to my times spent with people that welcomed me with open arms.  My friendship with Kate is something that will not be forgotten.  In her letter she wrote that she sometimes feels like it was all a dream... where have I heard that before?  She asked me to come and visit her next summer.  Who knows, maybe I will.
     Anyhow, I understand that I have many more experiences to journal about.  My last day in Tomsk along with my adventures in Moscow both times lie unwritten about.  While I do sometimes question whether or not it all really happened, that does not mean that my memories are fading.  I will soon find more time between my running around (to get things for my first apartment in order) to get my stories down.  Baking a cake for my host family, barely being able to get out of Siberia, eating mounds of ketchup at Moscow McDonalds', and much more...     

     Ok.  I've done it.  I lived through six weeks in Siberia.   Tonight is my last night here in Tomsk and then it is off to the airport bright and early tomorrow - I have to be there by 6:30 am!  I don't mind it though; I am happy to be starting my journey home.  I've thought a lot about home since I have been gone, but this past week I've been able to think of nothing but home!  Just three and a half days... I can hardly believe that I made it this far.  Six weeks of class and three courses - short of turning in my last four journal entries it looks like I'll have earned an A in all three.  95.95% on my final exam and considering I've been peeing blood for the past few days from what I can only imagine is a urinary tract infection from hell, I'd say that that isn't such a bad grade! 
     Once in Moscow, we are going to go to a huge bazaar to do some shopping for gifts and visit Moscow University.  Also, if weather permitting, we are going to go on a river boat tour.  We will be there all of Saturday and Sunday and we fly out at 4pm on Monday.  We have a two and a half hour lay over in Toronto and then... ahhh, home.  I'll be back in Columbus at 11:15p on Monday night.  I am so excited. 
     I decided I'll just kill two birds with one stone and write about all the details of my Moscow adventures (past and near future) after I return home.  Also, I'll fill in some details about my last week in Tomsk and the going away gifts my host family bought for me.  For now, I better get home and spend some time with them since it is my last night! 
     This will probably be my last entry from Russia unless I stop by an internet cafe in Moscow, so pray for my safe return home and you'll hear from me after Monday :-)
    

 

     It is Monday afternoon here and that means I have just five days left before my flight to Moscow.  On Saturday the 31st we will be flying out early in the morning.  I am so happy, but that has its problems because I've just been in my own little world these past two days :-)  I got to talk to my grandma on the phone last night and that made me even more excited for home.  I saw my car here again yesterday (the same one, of course), but this time it was parked and I got to take a picture.
     Saturday I went to Vlariya's family's dacha, they are the host family of Katharine.  It was fun like I said, but some things happened that really upset me.  The incident of two Saturday nights ago when Doug and Roman called my apartment at 3am and then screamed my name over and over at 3:30a outside my apartment building was something that really angered me but knowing that I still had to continue to be around them for about two weeks made me decide to try and make the best of it by putting it out of my mind.  I wasn't sure if I could do it based on the fact that Doug was trying to put his arm around me and hug me the night before that happened (which grossed me out), but I was able to put all that behind me and blame it on alcohol... that is, up until Saturday.  I decided to swim in the lake and of course that meant getting into my bathing suit.  I asked specifically that Doug not take pictures of me because it made me feel uncomfortable.  The second I got out of the water he whipped out his camera and starting taking a video.  I got back in the water and told him I wanted him to stop.  He said he would, but he must have thought I was some kind of a moron for me not to realize that he was zooming in on my boobs when I swimming.  He said he was just making a video of everyone talking.  Yeah, right...  That only made him staring at me all through dinner all the more creepy.  When we went to leave we were all getting together to take a picture.  Doug took out his camera, zoomed in, and just took a picture of my chest (I was wearing a t-shirt, like that is so irresistible?).  I looked right at him and said, "Just what are you doing?".  Of course then he took his camera and started clicking the shutter button over and over of random shots of the sky and all around, claiming that, "I've just taken so many pictures that I am just taking random ones now; I've given up."  What a jerk.  Miriam and Joni saw exactly what was going on, and Miriam just apologized that she couldn't really do anything about it.  It just really upsets me, I mean, if you want to act like that then why not take pictures of random girls on the street or at the bars he and Roman always go to?  They reveal a lot more anyhow.  To make matters worse he showed up univited when Joni and I went to our favorite cafe yesterday for lunch.  Thanks for ruining my lunch!  I'd really rather not be around him, but I highly doubt it is going to ruin the happiness of my countdown until I'm home!
     Anyhow...  I went to the post office on Friday to find out about my packages.  It took a lot of restraint for me not to go postal on them!  They basically told me too bad and that they get there when they get there.  Needless to say, they were pretty rude and not of any help.  I am still watching the mail, but I've made arrangments for Kate just to send them back to me if and when they finally come.
     Despite the recent occurances, I am still in high spirits.  I have the days planned out of things I want to do or have to do before I leave and I think that will make the time left go pretty quickly.  Tomorrow I plan on going tanning and Kate and I will probably go to this CD store called "Underground" for some Russian CDs I'd like to get.  On Wednesday we have a lecture after class; I'm not exactly sure what it is about.  Thursday is my final exam.  And on Friday I'll be packing my things!! :-)     
  

     Sorry I haven't written lately!  And even now I am in a hurry!  All is well; I went to dacha yesterday and had a lot of fun.  I ate a lot of good food all day, went swimming, and basically just hung out.  Well, I'm out of time here in just a few mintues at the internet cafe... expect more tomorrow or tuesday!

     I never got the chance to write a journal entry on an excursion we went on weeks ago, so I figured I'd make a few comments on it while I have some extra time at the internet cafe...
     Our first stop was the foundation stone.  It is supposedly the exact spot where the founders of the city decided that they were going to choose this location as the city...  or something like that; you know it really isn't the exact spot, but the location still made for a nice view of the city.  Our next visit was to a church very close by.  It was a gorgeous church on a steep hill.  Once inside I learned that the church had been built by Polish people that were exhiled here after the Polish Uprising of 1833.  It is the only Roman Catholic church in Tomsk.  In 1853 the original wood building was rebuilt with stone.  In 1937 the church was closed due to the banning or religion and for some time in later years it was used as a planitarium.  During the time that is was closed, underground, secretive services were still held in different places as you can imagine.  In 1990 it was given back to the people and church services are again held there.  Even though services of past have been held in Polish, German, and Russian, today they have only services in Russian.
      We visited two more churches after that one.  One was in Lenin's Square downtown, ironically next to a statue of Lenin, who hated religion.  It was just one tiny little room where people come to pray to the icons.  The third church was the main church of the city, where people also go to pray to icons.  There, we were allowed to climb the narrow and steep steps to the bell tower.  I took some good pictures of downtown from there.  After that last church we took a bus to visit a village just outside the city.  It made me appreciate living in the city here... haha.   I took a picture of a cow standing next to a minivan :-)    

     I forgot to mention yesterday that the reason for my happiness on Sunday was french fries, Heinz ketchup, and broccoli!  At the big supermarket here that I had been to a few times before I found frozen french fries and broccoli!  I had bought a bottle of Heinz a few days earlier and now I have a reason to use it.  I made broccoli Sunday night and it was greeeat!  Tonight I think I will make some french fries.  I would have last night, but I asked Kate's Mom to make perogies for me and she did!  They were just the plain mashed potato kind, but they were really good!
     As for the crazy story of Saturday night: a guy from our group, Doug, and the buddy he lives with, Roman, called my apartment at 3am!  They wanted to know where my window was!  They called a second time and Jenya said he's call the cops if they called one more time.  I was in my room and didn't really know what was going on, but five minutes later they were screaming my name from seven floors down for nearly ten minutes.  The morons could have easily been arrested!  I still can't figure out what that was all about.  Like I'd really come outside at 3:30am...
     Today it is storming here like I've heard it has been doing back home.  I went to class and then played a few hands of Euchre with the people in my group at a cafe.  After leaving this internet cafe I will probably just head home and have some dinner, take a shower, do some homework, and then go to sleep.  Doesn't sound so bad to me; I've been pretty tired lately.

     I had anticipated things looking up for me, but Satuday was the worst day that I've had here.  We we told we were going to a nature preserve, but it turned out to be something ridiculously different.  We took a horribly bumpy bus ride for 45 minutes on a dirt path that made me carsick before getting off in the middle of nowheresville.  We then began a torturous hike up steep hills in 90 degree heat wearing pants and long sleeves.  It lasted two hours.  I normally like to go on hike like that (at night) but I believe they confused "nature preserve" with "mosquito nest".  They were biting our faces, nesting in our hair, and in general just swarming like mad.  It was like a scene in a horror movie.  Most of us had no water, as we believed we were walking on a path to look at rare plants.  So needless to say, most of us were sick and about ready to pass out by the time we returned to the bus for a bumpy ride back to what is only sort-of recognizable as civilization.   I slept the rest of the day, cursed that "excursion", and drank a lot of water.  Sunday I went to the cafe I liked from last week and felt a lot better.
     I have an insane story to tell about Saturday night, but with the library now being closed until after we leave, that means no more free internet.  I have just a few minutes remaining at this cafe where you pay to use it.  Still no package yet...  On a good note though, Sunday and today have been much better than Friday and Saturday.  Roughly two weeks (plus a few hours) until I am home!  It's a great thing! 

P.S. - today I saw my car here in Tomsk!  A Hydundai Tiburon in Siberia!  Also, I heard a song I really like when I walked into the internet cafe that isn't even popular in America - "Aisha". 

     Today was my last day of Russian 405.  I did well on my final exam, but I do not know yet what my final grade is for the class.  Miriam said she thought we were all operating at the A level before our exams, so since I did well on it I have my fingers crossed that that means I got an A.  Monday we start 407 with the teacher we began our first week with.  We will have her for one week and then our 405 teacher for the last week.  They split is up so that each teacher teaches us for three weeks.
     Today and yesterday haven't been the best days; I've had a little relapse in wishing for home.  At this time in two weeks I will be all finished with school and I'll be packing to leave for Moscow the next day, but yesterday and today I've felt like two weeks seems too far away.  I'm sure I'll snap out of it soon; I'm just tired.  Tomorrow we are going to a nature preserve about an hour from here for a few hours - a.k.a the middle of the woods.  We are told to wear pants and long sleeves and pack a lot of bug spray.  Tomorrow night Joni and I may go out with Doug and Roman - a member of our group and the buddy he stays with.  Sunday Joni and I are going to the cafe we liked downtown. 
     I think I will cheer up if my mom/grandma's package arrives; I've been disappointed that it hasn't gotten here yet...

     Yesterday the group and I went to a cafe downtown to take in some history about the young people of the area.  The lecture was given by Tamara's son- she is the coordinator of our program from the Tomsk side.  He said that when he began at the university seven years ago only about 20% of the students attending had their education paid for by their parents, while the other 80% were fully covered by the state (the state of Tomsk).  Today, the system has deteriorated leaving anywhere from 50%-70% of students having their parents pay.  Fifty percent of all students' education being paid in full by the state - does that sound bad?  I aked if any students paid for their own education and the answer was a difinitive no.  The job market for young people who have not graduated from the university is very small and the jobs that can be found are low-paying.  It is very difficult to find someone who would even hire you as a cashier at a supermarket without graduating from a university.
     The cost of attendence is breath-takingly low:  The education is paid for per semester, with students studying two semesters a year.  Supposing you study in the Economics department you pay $400 a semester.  My mouth about hit the floor when I learned that a school year costs $800, but you have to keep in mind that people also make less money here.  I was originally told that the average salary was $300-$400 a month, but that was by a business man.  Yesterday I was told that it is around $200-$250 a month.  Still, my mind was boggled that per semester studying in the medical department costs $500. 
     I was interested in the information provided, but I really loved the cafe!  I hadn't eaten lunch with everyone ealier in the day, so I got something there.  The food was really good and the atmosphere was spectacular.  It looked just like an upscale coffee joint in America, and I'm not talking Starbucks.  The manager was a groupmate of Tamara's son when they studied at the university and he gave us some CDs of music that plays in the cafe (classical music that played in scenes of famous movies from as far as I could hear).  I plan on going back for lunch on Sunday.  One thing I thought was great was the gumball machine they have in the entranceway- first I've seen here.  It costs 2 rubles.

     On an off note - today when we were reviewing for our exam after lunch that is tomorrow I learned that the "Happy Birthday" song got copywrited about 10 years ago and that's why restaurants sing their own tune when customers have birthdays.  I thought they were just being creative - go figure.  Shows what I know!     

     A list of foods I've tried:
Pilmenie - similar to chinese dumplings (popular with a mix of mayonnaise and russian ketchup)
Bleenie - similar to pancakes only they are thin like tortillas (popular with sour cream or plum sauce)
Soups - chicken noodle and mushroom... both are great
Shashlik - beef, chicken or fish on a shishkabob - scary because the meet is cooked and sold in    little stands all over town and the meat sits out. 
Galooptsee - another name for good ol' fashioned stuffed cabbage - yum

     I've also had pizza here and the sauce is ketchup.  I do like many things that I've tried though, especially bread.  The bread here is amazing.  My favorite is the poppyseed rolls sold in the cafeteria of our university building.  Salads here are not like our dinner salads; they are not made from lettuce.  They are all mayonnaise based like potato salad.  In fact, everything here seems to be mayonnaise based if not with ketchup or sour cream!  You'd be shocked.  My stuffed cabbage came with mayonnaise on it and ketchup on the side!  They put mayonnaise or sour cream in soup, sour cream on pancakes, loads of mayonnaise on fresh vegeables.  It is so gross!  As I've said, the ketchup here is gross, but I've since had sour cream here and it is especially sour.  The mayonnaise is normal, but of course I've never been a big fan of it anywhere - go figure.  The good news is that the family lets me get my servings before they ruin it with whatever the sauce of the night is.  Kate's mom makes really good pizza that does have ketchup for sauce, but somehow it is good.  Outside of the apartment I have learned to ask for things without mayonnaise, ketchup, or sour cream.  I just didn't know there'd be a need to ask for stuffed cabbage without them!  



     As for foods I'd nearly kill for right now (always growing):
American Ketchup         French Fries         Broccoli         
Green Beans                Watermelon         Sandwiches         
Pickles                         Buffalo Chicken    Ranch Dressing             
Red Lobster                 Chinese               Cheeseburgers
American Cheese         Lettuce Salads      Apple Dip      
Rice Krispie Treats        Mom's Cooking    Gold Fish Crackers  
Nickel's Bakery             Fat Free Yogurt   
Skim Milk (although I'm drinking the .8%)