This past weekend, Chris, me, and 3 others from StreetCry went to Estonia for their monthly "satellite school". It was Chris' second time there and my first time and I have to say, it was literally and figuratively a breath of fresh air.
We were in a small town called Sillame of around 17,000; which compared with St. Pete, well, it doesn't really compare. As we walked the immaculately clean streets, we breathed the air in deeply - no pollution, no cigarette smoke, no alcohol fumes oozing out of people's pores, just pure, clean air. The town is right on the Gulf of Finland and Chris and I walked to the water's edge, soaking in the sound of water crashing against the natural shores. It was a picturesque little town - besides a few communist-looking buildings which were reminiscent of the past soviet reign. (Now Estonia is part of the E.U.)
Besides the town, the people at the church were great. They put us up in great accommodations and were so hospitable. We ate the most comforting of foods - noodles and wieners, meatballs, potatoes. Nothing "gourmet" but it was the kind of food that made you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. The best part of every meal - yogurt at the end. It was called Jogiis and there were a bunch of flavors but the best was the hazelnut flavor. It had little bits of hazelnuts in it and as I drank it, I kept thinking, "Mom, this yogurt is so good, you would give up ice cream for it!"
It was nice, too, to see some of the Russian countryside before we hit the Estonian border. We finally saw some houses and I couldn't believe the condition some of them were in. Sure, I've been to Peru, but these people have to live in these houses at 20 below. It was enough to send me shivering on the spot. I was sure thankful for our "communist" heating system then.
Okay, so that was our trip. It was like a yummy appetizer before our much anticipated Christmas dinner.
Family and friends, we are living a war zone. In the dead of the night, shots are ringing out. Our apartment has been under siege for the past week. Mothers are clutching their babies close to their bosoms, men are trembling with fright. No, another revolution has not begun. December marks the beginning of the fireworks season here in St. Petersburg. Any and every day of the week, thousands of Russians spend hundreds of Roubles - Roubles, I might add, that could be used for feeding their families - on fireworks. A few nights ago, we heard them going off very near us. We looked out our window and right below the building, separated from them by a thin piece of glass, were fireworks going off. 20 - nay - 30 of them. Smaller ones that day but a few days later, at around 12:00am, we woke up to the sound of apparent gun fire only to discover it wasn't warfare at all, but it was fireworks. And these were full-blown fireworks. So we stood by the window, laughing hysterically and enjoyed the show.
Then there is the darkness. The utter and complete darkness. The sun is now rising around 10:00. And it sets around 3:50. It's pretty dark most of the time (ideal conditions for fireworks:) and what makes it ten times worse is that it's cloudy the rest of the time. Whenever the sun actually does shine, Chris and I run to the window and stare at the sun, soaking in as much of it as we can. Sure, we have sunspots in our eyes for the next hour, but it's all worth it. This is a picture of the first sunrise we've seen in.........I don't remember the last sunrise we saw. Unfortunately, it was quickly overcome with cloud cover but it was beautiful.
On our weekly trip to the grocery store, we take a shortcut. This shortcut is through some woods, down a back road, through some more woods, and then across some railroad tracks. And after it snowed a few weeks ago, the path quickly disappeared as paths tend to do when it snows. But what we've noticed is that paths quickly form here. Maybe there's a message in this (I know, this is a little deep for my blog) but we're always amazed at how quickly these paths form. You know they always say that water follows the path of least resistance. Well, I think Russians do too. The path is always the shortest route, the most efficient way to get there and it is always well-worn.
It's been awhile since I've given a 'shout-out' to anyone and I think it's about time. So here's a 'shout-out' to Bill. You're rollin' with the big boys now that you're doin' yo' bizness on the potty!
Besides the town, the people at the church were great. They put us up in great accommodations and were so hospitable. We ate the most comforting of foods - noodles and wieners, meatballs, potatoes. Nothing "gourmet" but it was the kind of food that made you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. The best part of every meal - yogurt at the end. It was called Jogiis and there were a bunch of flavors but the best was the hazelnut flavor. It had little bits of hazelnuts in it and as I drank it, I kept thinking, "Mom, this yogurt is so good, you would give up ice cream for it!"
