Spicy Bar

 Well, it only took me 4 months to write about the trip to Russia.  That's how long it took to go through my pictures, sort and label.  Now that I'm working every week instead of having blocks of time off, I find my time is not organized as well as it use to be.  Spicy Bar is how our program director taught us how to say "thank you" in Russian.  ...And, one of the first things she taught us how to do is drink vodka.  There's a right and wrong way which, of course, I never knew.  It involves putting your glass on your arm and holding a piece of bread in the other hand, downing the drink in one gulp, and chasing it with the bread.  We practiced on the bus from Finland to Russia - an all day trip! 

Our trip was especially special because we were joined by our friend Joan who we met in Egypt and our favorite travel buddy, Cathy from Connecticut.  She ran and gave me a big hug as we gathered the group together at the airport.  I was so worried she would be left behind that the teacher sneaked out of me as I encouraged her to check in with her guide.  Once all the people and luggage were accounted for, we headed off for our hotel and the beginning of new discoveries.

We started with a pre-trip to Finland and Estonia.  Both were great places and very modern.  The people there love the sun and spend as much time out in it as possible as we all know doesn't last that long when you live so far north.  As we speak, it is dark there most of the day and night.  Tallinn was a learning experience for me.  I knew nothing.  It has an absolutely beautiful old town and is where Skype entered the world.  What stands out is our lunch at Olde Hanse (a midevil restaurant) with Cathy and Joan.  Someone ordered root beer which I have to tell you tasted nothing like our root beer.  It was beer from some root, but who knows what!  If I remember correctly, they also had reindeer on the menu, however it was not ordered by anyone at our table as it was very expensive.

We had the best program director in Russia, Violetta.  She was very good at keeping us in line and entertaining us at the same time.  She was in her 50s so had lots of good experience behind her.  She was also a theater major which explains why no one complained on the long bus day.  Anyway, our cruise ship was nice.  We started in St. Petersburg and were exposed to all the luxury, opulence, and gossip of the royalty as we visited the royal sites.  UNBELIEVABLE!!  Such a disparity between the royals and the common person.  We also visited some Jewish sites and partook of that history also.  The traffic is crazy in St. Petersburg just like in any big city.  They've got a brand new bridge, so no more excuses for not making it home for the night.  We did many wonderful things including go to the ballet and circus(Moscow).  It was the Amazing Race without the stress - we were all winners! 

We made our way down the Volga stopping at quaint little villages along the way.  The cathedrals and all the domes were just gorgeous and I probably took as many pictures of those as I did zebras in Africa. 

We ended our voyage in Moscow.  Again, wonderful sites were taken in and processed - the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers at the Kremlin/Red Square, a ride on the metro, and a visit to the dead (New Maiden Cemetery) which is nothing like our cemeteries.  Outstanding was the visit of three Russian veterans on board our ship.  Their stories of WWII were amazing - what they went through and are here still today to share with us.  They loved us!

Guess what?  The Russians like us.  They really do!  What they don't like is crispy bacon.  I think we have more in common than not.  Anyway, it is a new and different perspective on life and everyone should have to travel outside her/his culture as a part of and before completing her/his education. 

We finished our travels with a post-trip to the Ukraine, the capital which is Kiev.  This is where I came closest to my genealogy roots.  I had many questions and got a few answers.  I wanted to understand what is what like when my grandparents were there and how easy or hard it would be to do research on my family.  The guides were patient with my questions and answered the best they could.  I did come away with a feel for the time and place.  As far as research goes, I would need to travel to Keshinev (sp)which is actually in another country and guides made it sound like that wasn't a very safe place to be right now.

Well, we made our way home safely and soundly without any mishaps as on other wanderings and it is nice to revisit my trip 4 months later.  I just want to say to everyone in Russia - YELLOW BLUE BUS!  I love you.  Come here anytime.  I would love to show you our part of the world.

A Series of Mini-trips

The month of May is about mini-trips.  Nevada City was our first destination and rain it did every day.  Yet we enjoyed ourselves.  I practiced at sleeping in and re-energizing.  We checked out some museums and soaked in the flavor of the area.  The flowers are beautiful this spring!
 Next was a trip to San Diego to see some relatives (impossible to see all).  Our first stop was to visit Uncle Irving in Riverside and leave a scattering of memory stones.  We also spent time with brother Bill (B. I. LL.).  V and P also gave up their weekend for us.  It was good reconnecting and catching up on each others lives.  One evening was spent having dinner with Auntie Annette and Greg.  It was fun to see brother and sister together again.  The weather was good - not too hot for the clan and we got in a few cards games.  Still working on the sleeping thing.  There's nothing as soothing as the ocean!

Next will be Inverness with the kids - more to come...

Well, there's nothing like a ferocious Pacific ocean to calm the beast in oneself.  All of my senses were stimulated and my mind calmed.  The first day it rained (again), but the next day was beautiful.  Thanks for joining us K&T!

passaporte

My passport has been rescued!

oh my

I just realized my passport is being held hostage!!

time travel

Ken and I visited his Aunt C a couple of days ago.  I noticed some pictures on one of her tables after we returned from lunch and she started telling us about the people in the pictures.  We are always interested in our genealogy - searching and asking questions.
I found out some amazing information about Ken's grandmother H.  She was one woman who I always looked up to and admired.  When I became a part of Ken's family, her husband (a doctor) had already died in a car crash.  So she was living on her own in Red Bluff, CA - a very independent woman , financially, who seemed confident and in charge of everything, and very intelligent in my eyes.  Well, here was the shocker for me:  Aunt C told us she was sent to Oregon to live as a maid or servant when she was twelve years old by her step dad and mom.  She did not finish school.  The woman in the family she was living with showed her a hundred dollar bill after she had been there awhile and told her she would never have one herself.  I think Aunt C. said she left that family when she was around 17, made her way to San Francisco, faked her way into nursing school.  She then put herself through school and eventually earned her high school diploma when Aunt C was in college.  Apparently she was very embarrassed about this and did not share this with anyone.  So now you can see why I was flabbergasted.  Now, I admire her even more than I did before.  I am sharing this now so that we can learn from our history.  And especially as women, we can realize that we can accomplish whatever we put our mind and heart to.  I feel so proud of her and lucky to pass this down. 

sun, sun, sun

I returned from J,R,&and A's this past week.  I can't even go there without having flight issues.  Geeze!!!  Oh well, the beautiful blue skies made up for it.  It was absolutely perfect weather and I soaked up as much vitamin D as I could.  It's a good thing too, because all it has done here since I returned is RAIN.  It feels strange to have a sunburn while it is pouring water from the sky.  

I miss my daughter already.  I had such a good time.  I learned all kinds of card games which I haven't played since returning.   We even squeezed in a game of Scrabble which I did get to play the other day with G.  We hiked the mountains in the area every morning taking A for a walk, and up to the shrine.  I learned how to tye-dye and brought back some wonderful specimens.  I watched J make mayonaise, R make sprouts, and helped make peanut butter.  The best part was meeting their friends.  It is a funky little town filled with wonderful people.  Meeting R's mom was great!  We both like the Beatles and concerts.  We had fun and isn't that what vacations are all about?

back again

I finally figured out how to get back here after crashing my old laptop and getting a new one.  We've been in the air again.  This time to Morocco and Tunisia.  I learned so much about the country of Tunisia.  I had no idea.  They are very liberal when it comes to their religion and the practice thereof.  But, just the opposite is true of politics.  In fact there was an articles in our local newspaper today that discussed the political consequences of the economy and the riots and protests that have taken place.  It will be to see how much the president can let go of and trust his people.  It is a very diverse country where a lot of Europeans and Muslims  come for vacation.  Did you know prostitution is legal in Tunisia?  We did not have a discovery in that area, but we visited many types of shops and spoke to the workers.  Their liquor stores are like plain clothes police, you just know that it is a liquor.  There are no signs advertising such unless a drunk stumbling down the street counts.  We had an amazing night camping out on the Sahara desert, learning about sand bread, singing Jingle Bells (it was Christmas Eve), and curling up in a burnouse to stay warm.  We visited a couple of Jewish synagogues, UNESCO sites, and a beautiful blue and white village. One of the highlights was visiting an eighty-plus young woman that lives in a mountain cave and very comfortable she is too.  She has electricity, but no running water.  Her granddaughter brings it to her each day.  Her  daughter got her a cell phone and taught her how to push the button when they call.  While besides touring ancient Roman ruins, wading in the Mediterranean, and shopping for souvenirs in ancient malls, I can't think of a better way to spend a December.