Vegas vs Reality (Wedding Bliss part 2)

Vegas: waking up at 9am and thinking 'OMG I either need another drink or a new liver.

Reality: waking up at 7am and taking a shower and going to work.

Vegas: strolling around with a liter of some frozen cocktail from store to store thinking that it was the most natural thing in the world.

Reality: um, not doing that.

Vegas: Butting into other people's conversations because they are talking about how slutty a girl looks, and you totally agree.  Or offering your sincere compliments to a woman wearing seven inch spike heels, because let's face it, if you or I wore them, we would hurt ourselves.

Reality: offering a compliment to a girl wearing four inch heels because seven inches simply isn't seen in the real world.

Vegas: actually getting a free shot poured into your mouth by a hot bartender.

Reality: um, again, something that usually doesn't happen in the real world.

Vegas: dancing until dawn and thinking what a great dancer you are

Reality: ha, well, okay this happens a lot too.  

Moral of the story:  Vegas is fun.  It's a city which doesn't apologize for being honest about selling and promoting sex, alcohol, and all kinds of other less than desirable behavior.  Mix in some childhood friends and viola, it's a perfect recipe for lifelong memories.  As I expressed in my previous post, happiness comes in waves.  Seeing one of my life long friends get walked down the aisle by Elvis and then spending the next numerous hours doing shots with her family and dancing in crazy high shoes is something that is almost beyond words.  We can't choose our blood family, but we can choose our family which consists of friends and if you're really lucky family.  

Mushiness aside, on my last night in Vegas, as I shivered my way back to the hotel, I think I was almost glowing.  It's been a long time since I've felt so connected with people, and it's been even longer since I had laughed that much.  Truth be told, I was a bit relieved to get out of the city because neither my kidney's nor liver could handle another day in that place.  

Upon arriving in New York, I somehow found enough energy to get out of JFK (no easy feat for anyone who has experienced the entity known as JFK airport) and revisit one of my favorite American cities.  I love New York and no one is ever going to convince me that the people are rude and generally suck, and no one is ever going to convince me that Chicago style pizza is superior to New York.  Unfortunately, it was starting to snow when I arrived and I simply wasn't up to walking around Central Park.  Walking around Central Park in the snow sounds like fun and perhaps even romantic, but not when you're going through alcohol withdrawal and haven't slept more than 5 hours in days; so instead I found an amazingly inexpensive cafe on Lexington and set up camp.  For a mere $7 or $8 I got eggs, bacon, latte and hash browns- in other words, breakfast.  We all know how I feel about breakfast.  Breakfast is amazing.

As I sat in the cafe and listened to people around me I couldn't help but feel a sudden sense of  loss.  For five days I had been surrounded by my friends and the constant banter of people around me, and then suddenly it was quiet.  Yes, it was quiet in New York, and I realize how it sounds, but it was just that, quiet.  This silence would just intensify as I approached Siberia.  It was welcomed and annoying at the same time.  In Moscow I kept trying to make small talk with the guy next to me, but as usual, no one wanted to chat about nonsense.  We are not in America any more.  Pity.  I had forgotten how much people love to chat with strangers, I think it helps relax a little.  Just to be clear, I'm not that annoying person who sits next to you and talks about my cat; I could if I wanted to, but I've also been sat with a people who don't shut up, so I get it.  But would it kill people to smile at a joke or agree about the awesomeness of the coffee? 

Also, I am back in Siberia, in reality.  Going from non-stop walking and drinking and dancing to non-stop walking and working and hoping and being so grateful that the hot water is still working.  This reality isn't so bad.  It still hasn't really snowed, not the heavy, snow crunching, giddy OMG-let's-build-a-snowman snow and I'm actually kinda relieved about it.  Things which I throughly about Siberia is nothing severe really ever happens here.  No blizzards, no tornadoes, no ice storms, and no drunk polar bears.   

 

Wedding Bliss (part 1 of 2)

They say “home is where the heart is.”   I’ve always wondered what this means, or to be more exact how this applies to someone with a restless spirit like mine.  Is home a physical place or a mental or spiritual place?  And is your heart this beating thing in your chest or this thing which makes you cry when you see a slaughtered elephant on your computer screen?   I’ve often struggled with this question and the other question: “are you happy?” 

I firmly believe in balance, and I believe that happiness one hundred percent of the time is a ridiculous notion.  That would be like a serious overdose of serotonin for your brain and we all know too much of a good thing is a bad thing.  Why?  Because as humans we simply can’t deal with too much of one thing at a time.  Case in point: I flew half way around the world to see one of my childhood friends get married.  Before the wedding I was joking that yes it was her wedding, but it was also my vacation and a break from living in place which I am quickly getting tired of.  However, landing in New York and having the most random conversation with the attractive customs officer I realized that what I needed more than anything was that: humorous and silly conversations about nothing at all. 

Las Vegas gave me just that, and more.  As much as I like my private time, I also enjoy people, and I had actually forgotten how truly amazing and friendly Americans are.  Despite our less than ideal government, people around the world usually like us because of our uncontrollable urge to smile, make inappropriate jokes and abuse the word friend.  Case in point: on our second night in Vegas (well, my second night, the first for the happy couple) we went into this bar advertising stripper girls dressed as devils.  You can imagine the disappointment when they weren’t there.  Anyway, everyone was getting drinks and I was just sitting there in my happy bubble just enjoying the moment, when I saw a guy trying to get his friend to take this weird looking shot.  She didn’t seem excited about it, so I told her to just get it and it looked like fun.

Me: Do it!  You’re in Vegas!

Her: I don’t know what it is.

Me: Doesn’t matter.

Her: No, you do it. 

Me: What? 

Her: Please, I don’t want to.  Plus, I think you need this shot more than I do. 

Me: Don’t be silly, I wouldn’t want to insult your friend who bought you a shot.

Her Friend: No please, be a pal and drink it.

Me: Fine.

Turns out it was a Jaeger and something else.  So for the next five minutes this group of people were our new friends.  They also had an extra shot to which I made Justin drink with me. 

Each night in Vegas is a smear of laughter and memories, and naturally some stand out more than others.  Rewinding a bit was the first night, after three planes and more than 5000 miles; Justin, Misha and I were blinking and staring at the city lit skyline from Mandalay Bay on the 64^th floor.  Surreal doesn’t even begin to cover it.  In the morning we had all just been in Moscow, a city famous for grey buildings and a serious love addiction to the rectangular shape and absolute fear of anything abnormal- and now here we were in Las Vegas with all of its sparkling lights, replicas of New York, Egypt and Paris all crammed together, yet somehow tasteful and breathtaking.  The word euphoria comes to mind when such moments are almost beyond words.

Moving onto and fast-forwarding to the wedding day itself.  As per tradition the night before we were on Freemont Street, the whole wedding party, with only one mission: making sure that the couple had a great time and consumed as much alcohol as possible.  Freemont Street is really one of my favorite places in Vegas because 1) it’s much cheaper 2) it’s where all the super freaks come and play 3) they have music videos on the ceiling.

On this night I brought the champagne which I had brought from Russia.  None of us are really champagne drinkers, but a special occasion calls for something equally special, and since we also didn’t have cups, we just decided to pass the bottle around.  I was quite relieved that everyone liked it and it had the desired effect of elevating people’s mood.  As we were slowly, and I mean slowly, I think a turtle could have covered more ground than we did, we took in the scenery around us.  There were a trio of nun who felt the need to show their breasts, nice.  Then there was a transgender woman with even bigger boobs which just made our whole party simultaneously massage our shoulders because we just couldn’t imagine carrying that kind of weight.  Across from all the boobs was a man sporting pink fairy wings and a G-string.  You know what really makes me laugh about all of these people?  Since they were all wearing make-up which requires a mirror, they all looked in the mirror and thought ‘damn, I am so sexy!’ and in their own way, they totally were.      

Krasnoyarsk Weekend Getaway!

Me: So Gabi, what should we do for your birthday this year?  It’s going to be hard to top last year’s repelling and medavukha adventure in the middle of Altai.

Gabi: True, true.  There’s always Yekaterinburg.  We haven’t been there yet.

Me: I would love to go there!  But it’s so far!  It’s 24 hours by train and I have a 12 hour patience level with trains.  That leaves Krasnoyarsk.

Gabi: Yes, when I was there in the summer it looked nice, but I didn’t see the city.

Me: Plus, according to this website, maybe we can push through to Abakan!  That’s near that village where the Jesus of Siberia lives!

Gabi: Oh!  Let’s research it!

This conversation took place about a month ago, and tragically, Abakan was just too far to get to.  In case we all forgot, Russia is an enormous country with the world’s slowest trains.  We naturally decided on Krasnoyarsk since it’s the perfect distance away, 12 hours by train.  After endless hours of reading travel website and blogs about this place, thank you Lonely Planet, TripAdvisor and Ask.com I was put in charge of finding and booking a hotel while Gabi was assigned booking train tickets.  When in doubt, divide and conquer.  Who would have thought a weekend trip would require so much work?  Oh yeah, we are both obsessive compulsive planners, so we are OCP. 

We were lucky and got our own private kopay car, which meant we could stay up all night chatting and not having to worry about our neighbors.  Once we finally arrived in Krasnoyarsk, we were greeted by fairly warm, yet very humid weather.  There are four train stations and we weren’t quite sure how to get to the hotel, and in a random moment of bravery I asked for directions.  As a rule, I really dislike having to ask strangers for help because most of the time I get snarled at or ignored; but not this time.  Just to be clear, I didn’t have enough credit on my phone so I wasn’t able to call the hotel myself.  Anyway, so she not called the hotel to ask for a concrete address, she then wrote down bus numbers and the bus stop which we needed.  Wow.  Then at the bus stop the conductor told us which stop was ours and we were greeted with open arms at our hotel.  For a moment I forgot where I was.  It was amazing.  The hotel was bit further from the center than I had hoped, but overall, it was everything and more: it was warm, real beds, a café and it was free from Soviet furniture.  After a much needed nap and shower we were energized and ready to do some real exploring. 

Like all tourists, we wanted to see everything and we wanted to see it NOW.  Then we climbed onto a bus and…sat in traffic for over two hours.  Krasnoyarsk is smaller than Novosibirsk and yet it feels so much bigger: it takes thirty minutes to cross the center, but not because it’s big, well it is, but there’s nothing to really see, the whole city is just spread far.  Our main mission was to find a museum, and somehow we missed our stop and wound up on the furthest side of the city and after standing on bus for so long and being pressed against the glass for so long, well, we needed to stretch our legs.  Only after about ten minutes of wandering in the dark did we think that perhaps this was not the wisest of decisions since we managed to lose our path back to the bus depot.  Great.  Happily, one thing which is really great about Russia is that bus stops are usually quite frequent, so we just hoped for the best. 

Fast forward to the end of the night, and by end I mean 8pm because it was pitch black and we were cold and hungry after wandering around for an immeasurable amount of time in search of a café.  Instead we found a super market and decided that it was high time for some real nourishment since we clearly weren’t going to find it in a café where one is usually served lukewarm soup and cold questionable sandwiches.  Gabi went on a fruit and yogurt buying spree and I went for the salad and water; she’s sweet and I’m savory.  The biggest question of the night was whisky vs vodka and let’s be honest, vodka just isn’t as fun as it used to be.  So we went with cognac and champagne instead.  And chocolate cake.  Lots and lots of cake.  I can safely say that not only did we suffer from regular hangovers, but from sugar and insulin shock for sure.  However, how often does indulge in decadence and bourgeois treats?  Dinner for the night included a cake roll- brownie thing, dark chocolate, cognac and 1870 champagne; followed by watching the end of a Soviet movie about a girl named Olya and her inability to love her husband and then killed herself.  It was a good night.

The next morning, Saturday, we decided to try and get an early start so we could see Chasovnya, the cute chapel on the 10 ruble banknote, and naively we thought we could take a bus up there.  Silly us.  It required a taxi.  Chasovnya itself is on the top of a small hill which overlooks the city and every day at twelve sharp they light a cannon which either wakes half the city while scaring and annoying the other half.  Why?  Because it’s tradition. 

Later in the afternoon the hunt for the elusive museum was resumed.  Since this was officially Gabi’s birthday I didn’t want to be downer because I really had no interest in museums, except for perhaps the Literature Museum, but that didn’t seem interesting to her.   So once again we were searching for the museum and the equally intangible city center.  The ‘center’ consisted of giant government buildings and no shopping or cafes or anything which is generally associated with a city center.  There was however a giant Lenin statue, not city is complete without Lenin.  Throughout the city we spotted bushes shaped into animal shapes, like what they do at the zoo, so it was a nice change from the usual square and rectangle what everyone loves, but aside from that, it makes me sad to say that the city is quite drab and shabby.  One day I will stop hoping to see a truly ‘Russian’ or ‘Siberian’ city: all unique culture, tradition and architecture was lost 90 years ago.

After a quick lunch we finally succeeded and found the Tvagenski Museum which for some reason was decorated with Greek and Roman deities along with Egyptian pictograms.  Curious.  Inside the museum was filled with an old ship which was a replica of the ship the Tsar was transported by to see his newly conquered lands hundreds of years ago.  Then there were some impressive displays about the tribes of Irkutsk, Abakan, Krasnoyarsk Kray and so on.  What did Greek gods and Egyptian art have to do with the native people of this region? 

After the museum it was time to return to the hotel and get ready for a night out.  For once we were cool enough to have reservations and weren’t snubbed by face control or other nonsense like that.  The club was called Koloradski Papa; and the building was amazing.  The staff were dressed in Soviet clothes and kept asking the customers why they were drinking and if they could join them.  In case you hadn’t noticed, it was a theme restaurant, and not a lazy eye roll-OMG-I-hate-my-job theme, but real enthusiasm and humor.  Once again, where were we?  Never have I been to a club in this country where the people are happy to show you around (it was a huge place, four dance floors) talk you through the menu and explain that there are drinking games and prizes.  We played a few games, but didn’t win.  The music was great, and it wasn’t just American stuff either, about sixty percent was Russian, which is impressive these days. 

Around four or five in the morning we got back to our hotel for a few hours of sleep and then we were off to see the Stolbi.  Volcanic rocks which you can climb on.  Except that it rained and it was muddy and cold and much further than we expected.  Krasnoyarsk is a ski town, not resort style such as Aspen or Vail, but the equipment is quite new and modern in summer and autumn it’s possible to ride the lift up a mountain and either walk down or ride down.  The cold fresh air was a nice way to clear away the cobwebs from the night before.  It’s so nice to be able to escape the monotony of the city: the daily bus rides, nasally offensive people, mindless chatter of co-workers…we desperately needed this trip. 

There’s something magical and almost indescribable about being on a train or bus or even plane going somewhere new.  It’s this excitement and energy which drives me on and makes me stare for hours on end at maps and wonder what’s going on there.  Krasnoyarsk reminded me that Russia isn’t so bad, not everyone is a jerk and not everyone thinks that foreigners are the anti-Christ coming to invade and take over.  Returning to Novosibirsk was nice simply because traffic isn’t as bad and this city is more glamorous (did I really put Novosibirsk and glamorous in the same sentence?) and easier to find coffee shops and supermarkets.                 

      

Russian Reboot

In case we all forgot, it’s hard to live in a different country.  Heck, it’s hard to live in your own native country, but that rant is for a different day.  The hardships of living in a foreign country are different for everyone, but the unifying factor is generally food and the way of doing business.  Food, of course is universal.  There are days when I wish more than anything that I could just have breakfast which I don’t have to make.  Sure, most people are probably asking themselves, breakfast?  What’s so hard about that?  The answer: everything.  Americans are raised with the notion of breakfast, if you don’t believe me, watch Breaking Bad.  Even when it’s just cold cereal, there’s something very comforting about cereal and cold milk and juice.  This kind of breakfast is possible to find in various countries, but not always.  In Mongolia this was a fantasy never to be realized.  These days, in Siberia I would love nothing more than an omelet or even more exotic, a breakfast burrito.  Here’s a Russian omelet: runny eggs, seriously the FDA would have a panic attack, and barely cooked tomatoes.  No onions, no veggies, no cheese and no black pepper at all.  I can more or less live without the frills, but runny eggs?  That will just go on the Ridiculous Paradox List.  Ice is bad, but uncooked eggs are just peachy.  And French Toast.  Yes, I have become the French Toast Master, but still, even I get tired of cooking.  It’s not like it’s hard, it’s just eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar and bread, but   still, if people can’t even thoroughly cook eggs…I’ll let you continue my thought for me.

  

From the tone, yes, I’m hungry and deeply annoyed.  At some point I’m really going to have to question my decision making paradigm, but until I do, I’ll just have to complain.  Last week, I made the impulsive decision to stop by my favorite place in the city to buy coffee for my friend.  Imagine my surprise when that barista was so excited to see me, along with two other men, one of whom I had never met before.  Given my sour mood, I couldn’t tell if they were being sarcastic or genuine.  They not only complimented my ‘sexy accent’ (this still makes me smile, I forget that Russians either love or hate my accent) but invited me to stay for a traditional Chinese tea ceremony.  Globalization never ceases to amaze me.  After receiving such a compliment, how could I refuse?  It’s had really been a while since I had a real conversation in Russian about something other than English grammar or buying food, so my manners were a little rusty.  I can’t say the tea was amazing, because green tea is green tea to me, but the company was amazing.  I have noticed that there are two types of Russian speakers, those who communicate clearly and those who don’t.  It’s really that simple.  People who communicate clearly don’t yell, don’t use exotic structures and aren’t arrogant, and these people are so great to talk to.  I appreciate it when people want to speak to me without wanting or expecting from me, as in wanting to practice their English with me (which is really torturous when I’m not working because it’s always something like, “I very really no not English”) or wanting to know why I’m here.  The people I was sharing tea with wanted to talk about the medical uses of tea and the weather and other random topics.  I found myself relaxing and realized how anxious and stressed I’ve been recently; like a coiled snake.  When I left, I was honestly sad to depart from my favorite place, because I don’t get to go there very often. 

As I walked home I felt as though I were seeing the city for the first time in weeks.  I call this Russian Reboot.  For the first time in weeks I had connected with people that I didn’t know and would probably never see again, which is fine.  Half of the beauty of traveling and living abroad is for such moments of pure Zen.  You find yourself laughing and sharing stories with people whom you don’t know, but you don’t care because for a minute you are friends and understand that language isn’t that big of a deal.  I needed the reboot because even the most optimistic people get weighed down with nonsense with babushka logic (which is non-existent), toxic fumes being pumped into your lungs on a regular basis, lack of hot water, people not caring about being late and the list just continues.  The Reboot allows me to see past these things and really appreciate the changing leave colors, the humor of the street vendors and the occasional good humor of the bus conductor.  The Russian Reboot also reminded me that despite the lack of cooked eggs and normal food, at least I’m spared from the nonsense of the American government shut down.  It could always be worse.   

Facebook and the English Language Whore

I’ve been giving a lot of thought about what it means to be an adult.  Justin tells me it’s about a savings account with more than $30 in it.  I think it’s about having a place to call your own, like a house or overpriced condo.  Then, another friend of mine posted this same question on her Facebook page.  Freaking Facebook.  Seriously.  People who scoff at it are now considered lame or anti-social and then there are those who abuse the crap out of it.  Some really great examples:

OMG I’m eating sushi!

My kid peed today, I’m a proud mama.

I’m in jail and trying not to freak out. 

 This is how I feel right now.... SLAP !

Not to mention the non-stop flood of people taking pictures of bread, pasta, fish or whatever else people eat these days.  Now that I am saying that I don’t care what people are eating or what their kids are doing- perhaps secretly we all do.  Isn’t the point of these websites to feel cool for about thirty seconds and to give quick updates on a massive scale to save time and hassle of making a real phone call?  How many times have I posted about floods in my city or coffee tragedies or political stuff?  That answer is a lot.  But do people respond to my posts?  No.  Do I respond to theirs?  Most of the time.  Am I feeling hurt and irrationally ignored?  Absolutely.  Is this unreasonable?  Yes, yes it is. 

Perhaps my favorite thing about Facebook is the psychological drama which comes with it.  Within a minute of meeting someone that you feel combatable with, someone will ask you if are on Facebook, or VK here in Russia.  I know Americans over use the word ‘friend’, we like to think everyone is our friend, it doesn’t matter that we just met in the bathroom of a night club or standing line at the supermarket; but here, in Siberia, people will ask me to friend them just because we met and I speak English.  It’s bad, even by American standards.  Why should I friend you on my social website when I don’t even know you?  And then the look they give you when you decline is even more priceless, you would think that you just killed their dog.  Does anyone remember the good ol’ days when people would have to sit down and write, and in, pen and paper, write real letters to each other?  I occasionally do this, and I really enjoy the process.  What I don’t enjoy is spending a few hours laboring over perfect penmanship, resisting the urge to add unnecessary smiley faces and ‘LOLs’, go through the torture of the Russian Post Office only to not have my letter or letters received.  Then it just makes me appreciate e-mails more. 

Returning to the subject at hand, almost on a daily basis, when young people ask me where I’m from and I tell them I’m American they will ask to be my friend on social media, not because they think I’m just that interesting or want to get to know me, no, they just want to say they know a native English speaker or they want to practice their English.  In situations like this, I can’t help but feel like an English language whore.

Person: “Um, I want, do I can practice English with you?”

Me: “Of course, it will cost you though.  It’s 1200 rubles to study with me.”

Person: “Oh it great!  I no want grammar though, just speaking”

Eye roll.  Sure, you just want to pay to listen to me, then give me money after I do all the work of desperately trying to understand you, pretend to care about microscopic progress and you give me money for no real reason.  Ew.  And at the end of the day, that’s what most ESL teachers feel like.  Going from house to house, or meeting in café’s or offices, it doesn’t matter, but you go, speak for an hour or so, and people give you money.  Your clients are always happy to see you, and you smile and give them what they want, English.  On a perverse level, at least in the darkness that is my mind it’s like a verbal blow job:

Person: “I very happy to see you!”

Me: “Thank you, but it’s ‘I’m very happy to see you.’”

Person: “Oh sorry (pronounced surry) I just happy to hear voice. 

Me: what an awkward thing to say, “okay, let’s get started.  Did you do your homework?”

Person: “Sorry, busy.  But I can to do it now.”

In my head I’m thinking, ‘sure you can, I mean, we’ve only been doing this for the theme for the past month, I’m so glad that I’m getting paid to do the same thing over and over and over again.  Sheez.  On the surface it sounds great!  No office politics, no nagging boss, no waking up at the crack of dawn and no taxes.  However, there’s not real stability, no real connection to people and real sense of accomplishment.  Perhaps I am over thinking and over analyzing this.  After all, how many professions allow you to show up wearing jeans, not pay taxes, and simply hire you based on your nationality?  It’s reverse racism at its best.             

The Hunt for the Perfect Cup of Coffee

The other day I was sitting in Traveler's Coffee (a better version of Starbucks,in terms of quality) with a friend of mine listening to her order a cappuccino in a very anal and American manner.  She wanted cinnamon, but not so much that the foam was the color of burnt sienna, she wanted to make sure that they used cream, and not 2.5% milk and she wanted it hot, not lukewarm.  I should be use to this, where ever we go, she likes to question the menu and confuse the waiters who really don't care about their jobs or their customers; the last thing they want to do is listen to a foreigner demand what she wants.  Normally, this drives me crazy, we're in a country where customer service and quality just really don't exist, and if and when you can find it, you are so surprised that you don't know how to appreciate it.  I'm ashamed to admit that I've just learned to t live with it.  And really, is it so much to ask for?  I mean, really, all she ever wants is a properly made, hot, cappuccino; it's not as if she were wanting Brazilian Special Dark Roast, or elephant coffee beans imported from Thailand.  I usually tease her about her simple request and then internally scold myself.  There we are in a coffee shop, paying anywhere from 130-170 rubles ($4-$5) and we have to demand HOT coffee.  If anyone should be ashamed of themselves it's the customers who get ripped off every single day.  When did it become okay and natural to be served cold coffee?  Especially here where people freak out and panic about ice cubes and cold water?

Ironically, Traveler's Coffee, according to Gabi (my beloved friend) make the best cappuccino in town.  And this is has been seriously researched.  There are a lot of choices in the city: Chaska Cafe, Kofe Hause, Kafemolina, Chaklinitza, and Dubinka just to name a few.  As for me, I find Traveler's Coffee completely over priced and really, really, REALLY slow service.  Perhaps this is why coffee is always served lukewarm, the people move so slowly that it really takes about ten minutes before you are even served so naturally the coffee has cooled off.  My personal favorite is Chaska Cafe for two main reasons 1) it's half the price of Traveler's and 2) they don't ever argue with me.

Now, you may be asking yourself, what do you mean, argue?  Well, let me explain; first and foremost, I don't eat many sweets.  I hardly ever eat cake, if I do eat it, it's usually under duress because I don't want to be rude, I don't buy boxes of chocolate, and I don't enter candy stores unless I'm with a kid that I have to bribe.  So I don't eat sweets that often.  That being said, I do get my sugar fix from coffee.  I'm allowed to indulge in sweet coffee and the last thing I ever expect is people, namely baristas and waiters whose job it is to listen to me, tell me what I want.  I can't even count the times I've had this conversation:

me: latte please, large
waiter: do you want sugar?
me: yes please, 3 spoons
waiter: no
me: excuse me, what?
waiter: it's too sweet
me: so?  I like sweet coffee
waiter: it's not healthy for you

Just remembering all these conversations just annoy me all over again.  Why ask me how much sugar I want and this disagree with me about it!?  Seriously!  Better yet, just don't ask, I'll do it myself.  I'll be the judge of what is and is not healthy for me.  I don't think eating cake first thing in the morning, but do I tell people not to do it?  Well, I kinda just did, but you get the idea.  It's called the service industry for a reason.  So there we have it, my friend doesn't want her coffee lukewarm and over seasoned with cinnamon, which I forgot to mention, she has to pay for (5 rubles of 50 grains of cinnamon dust) and I want to place an order without someone judging me.




Now if we move away from the big coffee chains and explore smaller private coffee shops, the chances of finding a better cup of coffee greatly improve.  When I first came to Novosibirsk I was exploring the area known as tsnrani rinok, which is like a giant flea market and it's the very best place to buy spices and vegetables.  Near this area I came across this tiny coffee/ tea shop and wouldn't you know it, they also serve hot, strong lattes and cappuccinos.  They don't argue and the price is a fraction of the cost of the big guys, 60 rubles, about $2.  Sometimes less.  So this is my advertisement for Purerto.  I don't know if it's an Italian name because it's defiantly not Russian.  This is the one place where they not only care about coffee, like a lot, the beans are freshly ground and they use thermometers just to make sure the temperature is right, they also care about tea.  Here, I'm allowed to relax with a steaming hot cup of coffee and flip through all the fashion magazines I want and not be scolded for my love of sugar.

Why this rant and passionate demand for coffee?  Is it the process, the smell or is it simply the idea of coffee that makes people so agitated or calm?  Case in point, referring to my friend again, she simply cannot function without coffee.  She always jokes that she needs coffee to make coffee.  I enjoy coffee because I really love the rich, smooth and subtly bitterly flavor of the drink.  I love the soothing effects that come with coffee, yes, I do wake up and I can almost feel the neurons in my brain activating.  

Beyond just the caffeine effect, this drink brings people together.  People relax around each other and laugh more, girls stop talking about work and talk about shoes or hair.  Men laugh about women's problems and plot to over throw their bosses.  It's different than beer since the conversations don't spiral down to food talk and zombie invasions; instead they (ideally) migrate up to cat and pet stories, religion and everyone's favorite, politics.  So you see, if you don't have a hot, well balanced cup of coffee how can you expect those around you to be open and be cheery as well?  Coffee is more than just a hot liquid, it's about society.  

 
  

Public Transport and Beer

I’ve been a little bit too negative over the past month about my host country, so in an effort to clear the air and let the rest of the world know that this place isn’t so bad I’d like to address a few issues which are just nice about being here.

 

Public Transportation

 Let me back up and start out by saying that Novosibirsk, and most of the world has a better public transportation system than my hometown of Denver, Colorado.  First, in Denver, the busses are usually late and they don’t really work on the weekends, and when they do they stop at crazy times like 6pm or 7pm.  They don’t really go out the ‘burbs and when they do, it’s only about once an hour.  That coupled with the fact that they are expensive, anywhere from $1.75- $4.25. 

Now, let’s compare that to the Russia, and in particular, Novosibirsk.  Here, the busses start at 6am and go until 11pm; now true there isn’t a set schedule, but they just come every 5, 10, or 15 minutes.  You pay 17 rubles, which is about $0.75 and even though you may be stuck sharing your personal space with a woman who hasn’t seen or touched a toothbrush in about week, in the end it’s worth it.  You don’t have to walk miles on end to find a bus stop, and you don’t have to worry about waiting for hours on end either.   

Plus, on the bus you can see every person from society:

 1) the rich girl who can’t drive and even though she’s decked out in Gucci and Versace using her i-Phone and pretending that she’s too good to be there

2) next to the spoiled yet beautiful girl is a couple who escaped from 1986 who have matching mullets, complete with the woman wearing unflattering jeans and the man wearing something trying to be a plaid vest.  This couple never got the memo that matching haircut were never, ever in style for a reason

3) a group of teenagers from jamming out to music and not caring what anyone thinks

4) a guy with dreadlocks and ear tunnels who could pass for an American hippie

5) a random collection of old people (these need their own subcategory)

a) the old man with gold teeth whose hands are covered in fading jail tattoos

b) the babushka with cart of mysterious cargo who is the size of a sumo wrestler, complete with a scarf around her head, three sweaters and will insist that she is cold even though it’s 20C

c) the tiny, frail babushka who can barely walk and you really just want to give this poor woman a wheelchair because she clearly needs it

d) the old man also with a cart of stuff who looks like he can give birth to triplets

e) the mega old man who is wearing an old military suit

6) the women with strollers who will go out of their way to roll over people’s toes and yet yell at you because they are the ones who are troubled

7) the woman who demands a prize and a seat for carrying a kid who can clearly walk, but she’s too busy over coddling him to realize that the kid is 6 years old

8) all the men who are drinking beer on the bus; seriously, it always makes me smile when I just on at 8am and see three guys drinking beer

9) the annoyed office workers who would love to get to work without being late or getting their suits dirty

10) the other fashionably challenged people from all ages who think socks and sandals are a good idea; these people also think that leopard patterns and polka dots can be worn together, or tracksuits and high heels look sexy

Really, the only thing that’s truly painful about riding any form of public transportation is getting on or off the bus.  People love to panic and bottle neck and just stand near the door at all times.  This is not Tokyo, Beijing, Chicago or Mumbai; there is no reason at all to push and panic and push people out of the way to get on or off the bus.  Relax people.  Just take a deep breath and relax.

American fast food with a Russian Twist

As a rule I try and avoid fast food places because I’m American and I think it’s bad form and terribly cliché for an American to eat at Carl’s Junior.  However, about a month ago I was so hungry and so tired of getting ripped off in Russian cafes where the salads are just mayo and oil, and really, what’s the difference between a shawma or chubreiki which are already drowning in fat and are of zero flavor and offer no nutrition whatsoever?  So I gave in and ordered a hamburger. It was amazing and for the first time in ages, I wasn’t hungry!  As I sat there trying not to inhale my food I noticed something which we don’t have in American fast food eateries.  Beer.  Yes, in Papa John’s you can sit and actually eat and drink beer.  In all fast food places it’s possible to sit and eat and drink beer.  You have to admit, it’s quite handy.