Final Post!

Even though it has been a week since I have left St. Petersburg, my exchange semester already feels like a dream from which I had just woken up. I cannot believe that this chapter in my life is over. So much happened, but it all passed in a blink of an eye. Nevertheless, I hope that people who I met will stay in my life and lessons that I learned will come handy in my future. Firstly, I am glad that I found out personally that Russian people are kind, helpful and intelligent, but in their own way. They might not appear that way from the first glimpse, but approaching them is worth a try. I am very disappointed in myself regarding the language, as it was my number one reason for choosing Russia, but I was also not ready for the heavy workload coming from the University. Despite that, I am happy I tried my best, and I did have some real conversations in the local language once in a while. Also, due to two particular University courses at my host University, I discovered a new side in myself, and that is a priceless feeling. I am pretty serious right now about learning more in these fields and who knows – maybe begin my career path exactly in those. Finally, even though being five months away from my loved ones showed me how much I love and miss them, this exchange experience also reminded me of the insanely amazing feeling that one can have when abroad. I do not think it has stopped me in any way, rather than encouraged me to explore this world even more.

After the ballet performance “Giselle”

Before I left to Helsinki and shortly after, I did not post any news about my life in Petersburg. In this post, I will quickly share what happened during my last weeks. So, my two final exams took place on June 7 and June 9, which was long enough time to not worry about them and instead enjoy my time in Petersburg. On May 20, Raphaelle, Barbora and I went to a ballet performance “Giselle”, which took place in the old Mariinsky Theatre. It was the final performance for all three of us, and it was brilliant. I also remember the magical feeling afterwards, when we were going home. It was close to 11 pm, but it appeared like it is around 3 pm. The sky was light and pink, and mood after an excellent performance was so exalted that I almost got chills. In the same group, we also went to the Marble Palace on May 25. We were lucky to be there the same time when a world famous artist Hunt Slonem was opening his exhibition. There was a whole ceremony in his honour, with TV cameras and many special attendees. 

Artist Hunt Slonem 

Before I left Russia, I had to visit several other “must see” venues, which for one reason or other I had missed during my stay. I went to see the famous Russian cruiser “Aurora”, Faberge Museum and on my very last day – the Glavni Stab, which is another building that belongs to Hermitage museum. I went there alone, enjoying impressionist art for more than three hours. It was magnificent, and I recommend this place to everybody. Since the weather in Petersburg improved after Jonas left, I managed to spend a lot of time outside. One day in a group of girls, we went to Pavlovsk, which is located 30 kilometres south of St. Petersburg. It was a sweltering, but beautiful day and our trip was overall quite fun. Besides these events, I also had to attend several “goodbye” dinners. It was weird and sad, but I believe it is part of the experience. My favourite, however, was the one with Raphaelle, where just she and I went to the restaurant “Terrace” located on a rooftop with a stunning view over the city. During this dinner, we celebrated her birthday, our last evening in Petersburg and overall a successful exchange semester. I was so lucky with my roommate because she became my good friend from the very beginning and I sincerely hope that our friendship will continue forever. 

Final dinner with Raphaelle @Terrace

After we had returned from Moscow, the weather was not that good, so most of my plans had to be cancelled. It was also time for me to prepare for the exams finally. Both exams went well, and later I learned that I scored B and A, which was more than I could ask for. I did not prepare that much as I usually would, which is maybe because I was ready for the summer break already. Also, the grading system in Russia is that 50% of my score I had already earned during the course, and in both cases, it was good enough for me to pass. From one exam I even left 15 minutes earlier, without properly checking it, simply because I did not care. I am not proud of it, but it is something that I had never done before. Russia changed me, and I like it. 

As the final note, I would like to mention my big drama that was killing my nerves for more than a week. Maybe also this has to do something with the fact that I did not care about my exams as much, as my mind was somewhere else. So, I went to the main lady at the dorms to ask for my final bill. I requested the bill to be until June 11, as it was the day when I left to Helsinki. I planned to leave my luggage at the dorms and on June 14 when I return from Helsinki, just to pick it up and go directly to the bus to Riga. For God knows what reason, I mentioned this to the lady. Without a hesitation, she began shouting at me like a crazy person. She said that it is not possible and that I have to pay until June 14. I said that I wouldn't do that because I am not occupying any bed and I know several people that have done it before without any problems. We finished the argument with her making the bill for me until June 11 and me promising that I will move all my things by then. I thought that she is just irrational and I will have no problems, but when I start talking with my friends, I realised that I might be wrong. It turned out that when you deliver back all your bed sheets, you receive a special paper that you need to give to the security man downstairs for him to open doors for me and my things. This is because they have no electronic system in place that could help control those individuals who leave without paying. Now in the month of June, they are suspicious of everybody who seems like leaving with a bit bigger bag. Basically, for some reason, I was so scared that I will have problems that I could not stop thinking about it. I could not stop annoying Raphaelle and only thanks to her, I could calm down. This was one of those weird feelings where with my head I could clearly understand that everything is going to be alright, but with my guts no. Of course, everything ended without even a question, and all my stress was for absolutely nothing.

Before the bus

On my final day, however, I could not stop stressing about my luggage even after leaving the dorms. I had so much stuff that I could not even imagine what could I have done if I would leave by the plane. My big luggage weighed around 30 kg, my small one around 15 kg and then I had a backpack, handbag and several small plastic bags in my hands, while several coats on me. Fortunately, Raphaelle helped me to get to the bus station, where I almost missed the bus. It was so stressful. The bus driver did not say anything, but his look was suspicious. Thankfully, he allowed me to take all my things without an extra payment, and we left the station on time. I hoped that this is it and now I would be able to sleep and chill for the next 11 hours until I get home. Wrong! I had to get out of the bus two times with ALL my things on the Estonian and Russian borders. Nobody helped me, and I still have no idea how I managed to move forward with everything that I had. It was a nightmare. When I returned to the bus, I looked like I had just come out of a shower. I never want to go through something like this again.

That is it. This was my last post. One more chapter is closed in my life, and I am getting ready to open the next one. I will start a new blog about my adventures as an intern in Google very soon. 

Bye!

3 days in Helsinki

Lotta from Finland invited Raphalle and me to Helsinki. It was kind of a last minute decision, as we returned to St. Petersburg the same day when I had to leave to Latvia. We went to Helsinki from June 11 to June 14, and even though we were not very lucky with the weather there, we did experience quite a lot. Well, it was not hard because Helsinki turned out to be a tiny city.

We left dorms around 6 am so we could catch our train that departed from the station at 7 am. The train to Helsinki was very fancy. I kept thinking to myself whether we had not made a mistake and ordered tickets in the business class. It was well equipped with drinkable water, nice toilets, electrical plugs, wifi, comfortable chairs and a lot of space for legs. It also only took 3 hours to reach the capital of Finland. Everything went very smooth until the moment when we reached Russian border. The moment I saw Raphaelle taking out her passport and migration card, I realised that I had forgotten my migration card at home. It was simply not acceptable, as we had been instructed to have this migration card on us at all times, and we unquestionably have to have it when going overseas. At the exact moment when I began to panic, an officer from the border control approached me and asked for my documents. Immediately, in a shaking voice, I started explaining that I am a student and my migration card happens to be at home. Fortunately, he did not say a word to me, and it was not even necessary as his face said it all. Anyways, it ended up with me filling in a new migration card and continuing my journey without any problems. As I understand, I got very lucky this time.

We arrived in Finland around 10 am. Lotta was actually in St. Petersburg with her parents that day, and they returned home very late that same night. It was okay for us because we did not have many things with us and we just spent the entire day in the city on our own. In the evening Lotta’s siblings picked us up with a car and took to their home. We first met Lotta in the morning next day. So, when we arrived, we first went for breakfast at the café with outside terrace. The weather was fantastic, and we enjoyed it to the fullest. After the breakfast which cost us the same as the food for the entire week in Russia, we went on a Free Walking Tour. It is crazy how expensive everything felt in Helsinki after my exchange semester. These two cities were so much in contrast with one another, not only regarding the prices but also people and scenery. Both of us could notice right away how friendly, kind, helpful and overall positive were Finnish people compared to Russians. During these three days, we did not meet or see anybody who appeared to be angry or annoyed. The weird thing is that when we said this to Finns, they were shocked because usually everyone is saying the opposite about them. 

Anyways, so around 12 pm we went on a 3 hours long walking tour, where a local guide showed us around and told the most important things about the Helsinki and Finns. I don’t know whether because we were a bit tired, or because he spoke incredibly fast, but not much stuck in our heads. However, almost every story ended with a conclusion that Finns love drinking and they become quite crazy when they do that. During the tour, we noticed a lot of people relaxing in the parks and enjoying the sun. We agreed that this is exactly what we want to do after the tour. So, after the tour, we took the local ferry and went to the Suomenlinna – a beautiful fortress just 15 minutes from the city centre. Unfortunately, when we arrived there it began raining, and it only stopped after several hours. Despite the rain, we tried to enjoy the nature and walk around the islands. I had my raincoat on, and Raphaelle bought a pink umbrella in the local store. It was funny that several tourists that passed us were holding the same umbrella. Apparently, the local store sold only one kind. 

Suomenlinna

It was fascinating to see how green is the city and how much nature surrounds it - another big difference between Finland and Russia. There were so many birds that we had to watch out of them. Unfortunately, no matter how much we tried, both of us became the victims of the seagulls. Raphaelle got pooped on while I got hit by one. Yes, for the first time in my life a seagull run into my head. 

In the evening we met Lotta’s brother and sister, who picked us up from the railway station. They both were so sweet to us, and we could not ask for better hosts.

The next morning we woke up and met Lotta who sneaked in so quietly after the midnight that I did not hear her at all. In fact, I slept like dead throughout the whole night. Unfortunately, the weather was awful from the very beginning. It was pouring rain without stopping until around 7 p.m. So after the breakfast, we decided to go to the science centre Heureka, where we spent more than 5 hours. It was fascinating due to its temporary exhibition called “Animals Inside Out”. It was a very educational exhibit where we could see bodies of real animals, such as sharks, elephants, giraffes, gorillas, bears and others. These bodies were turned inside out, so we could observe the complexity of the muscles, veins and different organs of these beautiful creatures. It was quite crazy because there was even a body of a human. This exhibition alone made the visit worth it. Additionally, we watched three movies in the planetarium. I have never tried it before, so seeing three interesting stories in such a place was a great experience. 

Gorilla inside out

After the science centre, we returned home, where we met Lotta’s parents. They were so kind and welcoming. Lotta’s mom prepared a fantastic dinner for us, and we had a wonderful evening all together. After the dinner, we went to the city for a concert. This was a Helsinki day, so free concerts with very well-known Finish artists were going on the whole day. But due to the weather, we only went to see the last two artists. It was quite fun, and I am glad we did it. Finish language is so cute and hearing the songs in this language was an enjoyable experience. 

On our last day, we woke up very early, already at 7 am. It was because according to the forecast it was supposed to rain only in the afternoon, so we knew we have to use the good weather to our advantage. Lotta’s mom prepared breakfast for us and took us to the train station, which was on her way to work. We went back to the Suomenlinna and walked around there. Lotta showed us more places that we did not see before, and generally, it was a nice walk. Later we returned to the city centre and went for lunch at the market square, where we tried local Finnish food. During the lunch time, an interesting man started to talk to us, and I think we ended up chatting with him for more than an hour.

Helsinki Day. At the concert.

When the weather began turning bad again, we quickly visited some of the must see churches and buildings and then went to the alko shop to buy some decent wine for dinner that night. It was so interesting to learn that people in Finland can buy alcohol from the specialised, state-owned shops only. In the grocery stores, it is not possible to buy anything above 4 degrees. So then they have these enormous stores called alko, where all the liquors are available. Here they hire very educated people, who can answer any question regarding their assortment. For instance, when we asked for the help in choosing the wine for dinner, I did not understand half of the professional terms that the girl used to explain which wine she recommends us for the planned dinner and budget that we have. They are also very strict with checking the documents because even though it was Raphaelle and me who paid, they requested Lotta’s papers as well. 

So on the final evening, we enjoyed a fantastic meal with Lotta’s family and concluded our trip there. These were one of the kindest and sweetest people I have ever met. I appreciate their time and effort from the bottom of my heart because they made our stay in Helsinki very comfortable and memorable. 

Holidays in Moscow

Before I even came to Russia, I had some opinions about it already. I imagine there are many people who think of Russia as this city full of crazy, impolite, often angry individuals who have questionable taste in fashion. They might also believe that Russian cities are polluted, underdeveloped and with a visible presence of communism in the architecture, society, and politics. So since St. Petersburg is known as the most European and cultural city in Russia, I was looking forward to experiencing “real Russia” during my trip to Moscow.

I went to Moscow together with four other exchange students, namely Raphaelle, another French girl Caroline, Czech girl Barbora and our one and only man Oskari from Finland. So it was quite fun, every time somebody asked us where are you guys from. Caroline and Barbora took the train to Moscow in the morning, but Oskari, Raphaelle and I flew there in the evening. It was not the easiest flight, as the place for legs were extraordinary small in the Utair plane making the travel a bit challenging for us. But we kept it fun by coming up with this idea of a Gossip Club, where we agreed to share the juiciest gossips with one another and keep them in Utair plane forever. 

After landing, we came up with another fun idea – a mission to get to the hostel as cheap as possible. Even though we were advised to take an express train or a taxi, we did not give up on finding a better (cheaper) way. And we succeeded. Since our hostel was located basically on the Red Square, getting there was not that hard. All public transportation was going that way anyways.

When we reached our hostel, it was almost the midnight. I was quite excited and proud about the hostel that I booked for us. It was in the heart of the city center, and for six days we paid only 45 euros. The reason for this low price was probably the fact that we stayed in a 16-bed room. Since I had never tried staying in a hostel before, I thought this is going to be the best and most hardcore way to start. And it certainly was hardcore…not so sure about the “best” part though.

Hostel. View from my bed.

So when we arrived, we were invited to follow the guy upstairs to the reception. While going up the stairs, we passed several strange looking people eating fish and drinking in the stairway. The room, where we were supposed to sleep was packed with people. Every bed was occupied, and it felt that we will have to sleep head to head with absolute strangers. There was no space for our things, and all of us were assigned the second-floor beds. At first, I thought I would have preferred the first floor, as there you can hide yourself a little better and have at least some sort of privacy. But when I felt how shaky the beds were, I would never fall asleep there being scared for being killed by my upstairs neighbor. It was also shocking to see that there were only two bathrooms and two toilets for the entire hostel, so I became quite worried about my hygiene for the following six days. 

Fortunately, it was a beautiful and warm night, so Oskari and I decided to go and explore our surroundings. This is when I was totally blown away from the beauty of Moscow. The Red Square was magnificent during the night. Since trees and flowers surround it, the fresh smell of lilacs and sounds of birds singing that night were breath-taking. We kept walking, and we could not stop being amazed by the harmony and cleanness of this city. I never imagined Moscow like this. Since it was a Friday night, many bars and clubs were open along the way. We noticed strange scenery with fancy big cars parked nearby with a driver waiting inside in each one of them. How posh. 

Eventually, we had to return and begin the first night at the hostel, which for me was the worst. I could not fall asleep as every time my downstairs neighbor moved, I flew up the bed. But the worst part was the smell and an absolute lack of air. Next morning I could not wait to get out of there and breath normally again. At least I learned that for me to be able to sleep there, I had to tire myself up during the day so much that I cannot move anymore and collapse in the bed until morning.

Beautiful gardens inside Kremlin

And it worked. Also, looking back to this experience at the hostel, it was not that bad after all. It was even funny because there were many strange people. I mean it was funny for us, who did not experience them directly, while Caroline had to deal with several. There was one guy who kept going after her saying in his broken English that Paris is not the most fashionable city anymore because now it is New York. When she tried to answer him in Russian that she respects his opinion and that she simply does not care about it, he did not give up to repeat it. From then on, he kept calling her Pariž, so some nights when we arrived very late, and the lights were already off, you could hear him calling through dark “Pariž…Pariž, is that you?”. Then there was another older guy who tried to convince her to marry him. That happened after the midnight in the toilet, and we could hear this conversation in the sleeping area. He was presenting himself as a famous poet, holding a paper bag that said “my poems”, in which we guess he kept his work. Next day this guy was in an argument with other guests, as they were accusing him of ripping apart some rules from the wall. It made sense, because Caroline did remember him disappearing for a second and coming back with a broken piece of paper where he wrote down his address for her. Not that she asked. 

Helicopter parking lot for Putin

Anyways, the first three days in Moscow were fantastic. The weather was sunny and warm, and we were very lucky with every decision we made along the way. So we began with the Free Walking tour, where we learned a lot about the history of Moscow, different buildings, and traditions around the center. As every Free Walking Tour, also this one was educational and very interesting. After we had finished the tour, we went inside the Kremlin. I would say it reminded me a little bit of Vatican. I am not entirely sure why, but maybe because it was also like a city within a city so different from the rest of the Moscow. We learned that guards are the only people that officially live inside of Kremlin, so it was unusual to see fitness area in the scenery together with gorgeous gardens and ancient buildings. Well, and, of course, not far from the “gym” there was also a helicopter parking lot for President Putin. 

We also visited this massive shopping center “GUM”, where the poshest shops are located. Tourists love this place not because of the brands, but because of the beautiful design inside. All the shops were empty, but the hallways were crowded with people taking pictures and enjoying the view. We liked the place as well, but not only because of the design. We also loved the ice cream that was sold inside. Not only its taste took us directly to heaven, but its price did not influence our wallets. It was insanely cheap, only 78 cents. Even in the regular grocery store, the price for ice cream begun from 1,20 euro. So we took full advantage of this mysterious price and ate almost one or two ice creams a day. 

@GUM with my ice cream

We finished our day with a walk on Arbat Street, which is this very long and lively walking street in Moscow. At that point, I realized that St. Petersburg is clearly missing a proper walking street for pedestrians. There is nothing nicer than enjoying a warm evening with your friends in such a dynamic place as Arbat street. There were entertainers and musicians every five steps on our way. And they were often so good that we just kept stopping to enjoy their performance. It was a very magical and positive energy that I got before returning to the hostel and falling asleep like dead. 

On Sunday, we began our day with seeing Lenin’s body at his Mausoleum situated in Red Square. Surprisingly this is something that people can do for free, so the line, of course, was quite long. Yet, we managed to see him in less than 40 minutes, as at one point security divided the two lines in three, and they did it in the middle, where we were standing. So basically we went in front of many people who were theoretically supposed to go inside first. It was a strange experience as he was so visible and close to us. He really looked like asleep and at one point I thought he takes a breath. It was quite unpleasant but at the same time unique experience, which lasted for about two minutes, as we were not allowed to stop and stare, and God forbid – take pictures.

Saint Basil’s Cathedral 

After this, we decided to visit the Saint Basil’s Cathedral which was situated few steps from Lenin’s Tomb. The luck was on our side that day, as without us even knowing, the entrance for students was free that day, allowing us to save almost 8 euros (= 10 ice creams). This Cathedral features vivid and colorful onion-shaped domes of many sizes, which actually belong to 9 different chapels. It was a very impressive visit and something I can recommend to everyone traveling to Moscow. 

The same day we also managed to visit Tretyakov Gallery, which has one of the largest collections of Russian art. Barbora and I took the audio guide, so we spent several hours wandering around and listening to the stories about different paintings and their authors. Listening to these stories made our visit so much more enjoyable. 

Business Centre

Finally, we ended our day at the Business Centre. We were recommended to visit this area, and I am so glad we did. It was so impressive, with countless skyscrapers in every form and shape. I could not stop being amazed about the designs and heights of these buildings. The warm and pleasant evening made this experience even better. We were also suggested to visit this one restaurant called SIXTY, located on the 62nd floor. When we found it, we first were a bit worried about the way we looked and whether we will be able to afford anything in there. Thankfully, our group was treated nicely no matter the fact that we visually did not belong there. We were seated at one of the best tables with a magnificent view. Before we even made any order, the window in front of us begun opening in a rhythm with a show type of music in the background. We were basically in the first row of this great experience. Fortunately, the prices were quite democratic, and we ended up having a nice dinner with the best possible view, especially because soon after the windows were closed again, a glorious firework began lasting for about 10 minutes. 

Our view from Restaurant SIXTY

The following days were not as amazing anymore, mainly because of the weather and us becoming more and more tired. The hostel with 16 people snoring, farting and moving every day, is certainly not the best place for a good night sleep. Anyways, the beginning of this day was hot and almost humid. We went to VDNKh Park, where people can visit different museums and exhibitions in connection to Achievements of National Economy. Unfortunately, that day everything was closed, but we could still enjoy the parks, including one nearby where everything connected to space was honored. There were many statues with cosmonauts, such as Yuri Gargarin and even with the famous first dog in space – Laika. 

After wandering around the sights, we decided to return to the center and visit a small monastery which the guide in the first day recommended us to visit. It was a place where people from this monastery bake pastry and sell it to the visitors. When we sat down for this mini meal, a storm that was afterward called - the craziest in the last 100 years began. We could see it is pretty bad, but we would never imagine that it took 11 people lives that day. Fortunately, we were sitting in the holiest place at that point, and we felt very safe. When the weather calmed down a little bit, we decided to split, so while Raphaelle and Caroline went for some touristic activities, the rest of us chose to go home and have a nap. 

The next two days were rather calm and slow as well. The weather continued to be shitty but at least not as bad as the day before so that we could keep up with our touristic activities. On May 30 we went to a small city called Sergiev Posad, located about 1.5 hours away from the center. It is an ancient town known for the 14th-century Holy Trinity monastery complex. I am so glad we went there because it was a very special place. Very calm and at the same time so impressive with a rich history behind. On May 31, our most important visit was the Armoury Museum located inside the Kremlin. It was an interesting museum to visit and learn more about the history of Moscow.

Sergiev Posad from a distance

On the final day, we all split. Barbora and Caroline went home with the train before the noon, Raphaelle stayed at the café to complete her online examination, and Oskari was dealing with severe food poisoning back at the hostel. So I decided to take the hop on hop off bus and hear more about the city. It was a bit of a failure, as at first I was stuck in a traffic jam for about half an hour and audio guide kept talking about the things that we have not yet even seen. The traffic in Moscow was quite crazy, so I am glad it was my only time when I had to move through it. Drivers were kind of aggressive and kept hitting their horns to one another. Anyways, I then decided to jump out and see the famous Pushkin Museum, which took me around three hours in total. When I was done, I could not locate the bus stop anymore, so I ended up walking all the way to the point where I started. It was raining like hell by the way. But since it was not that far, I was all right. I decided to take another round and surprisingly the circle was very short. I felt like taking this bus was not worth my money and time, but at least I am glad that I saw the Pushkin Museum. Well, I am happy I saw the new part of it with one of the largest exhibitions of works from such artists as Manet, Van Goh, Monet, Picasso and many others. 

I was also trying to enter the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world. But it was simply impossible. We had been trying to do it already days before, but because of some religious festival, the entrance was not possible. The guards around kept sending us further and further until we gave up. On my last day, I was hoping that the festival will be over, and I can finally enter this mysterious place, but because of the infinitive lines, I gave up. And it was also kind of the time for me to return and go to the airport.

At the airport, we arrived rather early, so it was definitely not a pleasant surprise to learn that our flight had been delayed for 4 hours, meaning we were stuck in an airport for 5.5 hours in total. We were all exhausted, and the thought of the small, uncomfortable plane which would only take off only at 1 am was unbearable. So the trip did not end on the most positive note. Yet, I will remember it as a fun, mind-blowing experience, which I can sincerely recommend to others. 

Finally Time to Relax

So my Russian experience will be cut short because I have decided to go to Latvia before going to Denmark and Dublin and spend some quality time with my family. At first, I wanted to experience Russia to the fullest by going on Siberian railroad trip, but unfortunately due to the time and financial limits this had to be canceled. My last exam is on June 9, and initially, it would mean I have only two weeks left, and, therefore, the Siberian trip would be very intense, and there would be nobody who could join me. Moreover, it is not as exciting in its start, and it could take up to 12 hours to get from one destination to another. And finally, it is so expensive that I could invest the same money in more exciting adventures.

Night boat tour with "Bridges Opening"

Moreover, Raphalle has planned to go back home on June 16, and that would mean I would be all alone for one more week. Most of the exchange students won’t be in St. Petersburg by that time anymore. Also, my gym membership would be over, and long story short – I decided to take the opportunity of cheap bus tickets and come to Latvia and be with my lovely family instead. I am sure that is the best choice, especially because I have planned to have quite an intense schedule for the following weeks anyways. 

Speaking of intensive schedules, we definitely had one when Jonas was visiting me from May 12 to May 16. I had planned everything hour by hour and surprisingly we did manage everything except Faberge Museum. That is something I have to put on my list to visit before leaving.

So when Jonas arrived, we first went to our hotel, which was not as magnificent as the one before. Well, it was a hotel, we could have a good night sleep there, but that's about it. It was located quite far from the city, and we had to take the metro every time we wanted to go somewhere. Also, the hotel room itself was a bit annoying due to different “technical” challenges. But I guess, the most important here was that we were together. So we celebrated our reunion at one fantastic restaurant “Gogol” suggested by the guide from the Free Walking tour which we did with my mom and sister. It was such a great experience because service, food and the whole atmosphere were outstanding. There was a live-performing pianist, and every time we wished something from the waiter, we had to ring a golden bell placed on our table. 

The Peterhof Palace

After the dinner, which we finished around the midnight, we went on a private boat tour. It was my birthday gift to Jonas. Unfortunately, it was not as good, as I imagined. Our guide was not very energetic, and it was a bit difficult to hear her. We took a boat that all the other tourists were taking anyways, and she was speaking to us over the automatic Russian language radio. The evening was nice but cold and we only managed to see two bridges opening. It was beautiful, slightly educational, but maybe not completely worth it. The tour ended at 02:30 in the night, so of course, we were exhausted and ready to go back to the hotel.

The next day was very slow for us. We walked a lot to find the perfect place for breakfast. Unfortunately, there were not that many options nearby our hotel. Around 13:00 we took the speedboat to The Peterhof Palace, which is mostly famous for its large gardens full of astonishing fountains. We did not go into the palace, as it was one of the warmest days so far and we wanted to be outside as much as possible. This tour plus the long search for some places to eat, took us the entire day. We finished it up with a cozy evening at the hotel watching the Eurovision. Since Russia was not participating this year, they did not broadcast it, and we had to stream it on my phone, as the wifi went down for the entire time while we were staying at the hotel. 

Staying in, was a smart choice as we had a busy day ahead of us. We begin it with a fine breakfast in a small café that we discovered close by our hotel. And then we went on a Free Walking Tour, which was the second time for me. I was ready to hear exactly the same stories and visit,  places, which by the way would be alright as I sincerely enjoyed the tour last time. But fortunately there was another guide, and she was doing the tour completely differently, so for me it was just another great experience. I am now planning to do the tour again with Raphaelle.

The Mosaic Yard

After the walking tour, we went to the Summer Gardens which surrounds the Summer residence of Peter I. The residence is so tiny compared to what everyone else in the royal family had, but the gardens were magnificent. I could not believe that I didn’t know about this place before, as it is so central. The only thing that is missing in all those beautiful locations are leaves on the trees. It is almost the end of the May, and the trees are still without leaves. Consequently, such gardens do not look as amazing as they could. 

The final thing on my schedule for that day was the Mosaic Yard. We discovered this cute little yard hidden between the resident buildings. It is something that my friend suggested to me, and I am thankful to him for reviling such a treasure that St. Petersburg has. I am definitely in love with this city and its history, but honestly – I am sick and tired of the pollution. It is not tolerable anymore.

Our Sunday we finalized at the Mariinsky Theater attending the ballet performance based on the famous Pushkin's poem “The Bronze Horseman”. I did not have any expectations, but I was in a complete shock of how amazing this performance turned out to be. It is the best ballet performance I have ever seen. We met several of my girlfriends, and they all agreed that “The Bronze Horseman” is the best ballet they have ever seen as well. Since it was somewhat built around the story of Peter I, we could see few links to the stories that we had heard earlier that day on the Free Walking Tour. 

Grand Maket Rossiya

On Monday I brought Jonas to the Grand Maket Rossiya, where we could see a huge model layout designed on a scale to cover images of regions of the Russian Federation. Since we had an audio guide, we tried to listen to every single story, ending up there for 3 three full hours. After that, we went to the museum of Soviet arcade machines, where we could not only see but also play old Soviet arcade machines. It was a place with a weird vibe. At first, we were very excited, but then after using our coins on machines that simply did not work (one even started to burn), our excitement vanished. It was an experience, but I would not recommend it to others. 

Next day, after Jonas left, I went to a small town called Gatchina, where four Tsars used to live in. We left home at 7:15 to manage to catch the first train to this sweet little town. It was such a beautiful day, and we really could relax. We visited the Grand Palace, which as I mentioned before was the family home of several generations of Romanovs. Finally, I could see and hear more about periods and historical figures after Peter I and Catherine the Great, the two most important emperors in St. Petersburg before the revolution). After that, we visited two smaller churches and walked around the palace garden. It was amazing how many sweet, kind, polite people we met at this town. Every single lady at the Palace was so kind and helpful, even people on the streets took their time and effort to help out when we asked for something. I really enjoyed this day, so I hope we can have more such small trips before I leave. 

Gatchina Palace and us :)

Finally, my last experience that I could share here is my recent doctor’s appointment. I have been experiencing occasional stomach pain since the beginning of April, and up to now, I ignored it. When Jonas was visiting, my pain became much more frequent and stronger, so after my buddy’s recommendation, I went to this particular specialist. She was a very fine doctor, and it was a neat clinic, but the price that I ended up paying was astronomic. Yet, it seems that it was worth it as now I have some answers and I hopefully will soon learn how to treat my "discomfort" (I have another “expensive” visit next week). 

That’s it for now :) Next blog will probably come after my time in Moscow!

Birthday

My birthday was a bit unusual. In the midnight I was booking the flight tickets to Moscow, which was a quite annoying procedure. For now, it is Raphaelle, Oskari and me who are going, and it was Oskari’s job to book the tickets. Since he kept postponing this, but the prices were apparently rising, I decided just to do it myself even though I had to do it on my phone. Nevertheless, we all three ended up being involved in this process, because Oskari was translating everything, Raphaelle was repeating his translations, and I was making the booking. It was the longest process ever because there was some kind of a problem in the every step of a way. Anyways, when we finally booked the tickets, an announcement from the University about the Galla party came. And of course, this party will take place while we will be traveling. I was so pissed about it because I just cannot understand why announcing dates for important events take so long in Russia. 

This whole process destroyed my plan to get a good night sleep before the exam in the morning. I tried to prepare for it every once in a while when my family was visiting, but I did not succeed.  So, I thought I would go through my notes in the library two hours before the test which was supposed to start at 11:00. I didn’t take my PC with me because all my notes are on Google Drive and I can just use the big screen at the library. When I got there, it turned out that the library is closed because of the Victory day holidays. So I began to worry about the bad start of my day. 

Fortunately, the exam was very easy, and I was super excited for knowing that the next one will take place only in the beginning of June. Since it was time for a lunch, we went with a group of people to a Georgian restaurant nearby the University. The food was great, but the waiting was just too long. So when I got home, it was already after 15:00, so I took a nap and went to the gym. Raphaelle, left a very nice surprise for me, which was quite handy next morning. She gave me French candy alongside a cute note. The day was finally getting better and better for me. 

Afterwards, it was already time to prepare for the evening out. I invited a group of people to a very cute restaurant called Zoom Café. I went there with my mom and sister few days before, so I was sure we would have a very good time. And we did. It was such a lovely evening, and everyone was so sweet to me. When it was time for the cake, the waitresses turned off the lights and brought the cake with the candles, while everyone sang happy birthday to me. It made me feel so special, but at the same time, it was just such pressure to have all that attention on me. Then guys gave me the sweetest present ever. They noticed how much I loved the Sustainability class, so as the gift to me they bought a goat for a needy family in Congo and named her Elina. I loved it so much that I almost teared up. So thoughtful and sweet. 

After the dinner, we went to the karaoke bar, where Oskari and Kamil joined us as well. We had so much fun there. All the guys went up on the stage and sang happy birthday to me. Of course, the whole bar sang along and again I felt so special and loved. I mean, how sweet is that? Also, I was spoiled with fancy cocktails not only from my friends but also one old man who was there alone and who really tried to get in the middle of our group. It was quite funny. He then tried to ask me out, which made me think that probably I have now reached the age, where it is normal if a 50-year-old man thinks he can have a chance with me. Anyways, the night at the karaoke bar was so great that we stayed there until the closing. I got home around 7 am, so I am happy that I still have the power and youthfulness in me to manage to stay up so long. 

So in conclusion, of course, I wish that my closest friends would have been with me, but I cannot be more grateful for the people that I have met here and that made my day so amazing. That is the best feeling ever to be surrounded by such great friends!

The Fam Comes to Town

On the April 29, I could finally begin to breathe again. Not only I was done with 4 out of 5 courses, but also my mom and sister came to visit me. They came with the bus from Riga, and I met them at their Airbnb. Fortunately, they were staying very central and kind of in a walking distance from the main attractions. They were so nice to rent a place, where there is a place for me as well, so I stayed with them the entire week. 

The outfit on the first day

In the first day, it was raining, so it was our museum day. Raphaelle recommended us to visit Yusupov palace, which belonged to one of the wealthiest families in Russia from 1830 to 1917. It is also the site where Rasputin's murder in 1916 took place. Even though until we reached the place my feet was completely wet, we did enjoy the beautiful palace, which had luxurious interiors, sculptures, and decorations with more than 40,000 works of art. We really enjoyed our time there. 

Starting with the next day, the weather became much better. It was sunny and quite warm, so we tried to be outside as much as possible. The entire Sunday we spent at the Peter and Paul Fortress, which is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, founded by Peter the Great in 1703. 

On 1st of May, we experienced the workers' parade on the Nevsky Prospect. It was interesting, but nothing over the top. I was surprised that there was not even that much police around, taking into account the recent terror attack in the metro station. After the parade was over, we went to a very special excursion. It was excursion over the rooftops of St. Petersburg. Actually, we only went up on the roof of one building, but then by walking around, we managed to be on top of three different roofs. It was kind of interesting, and even a bit scary, especially, because the guide said that this is not legal on paper what we are doing. They are not even a legitimate company. Hearing this did not make my feeling about the walk over to roofs any better. Thankfully, it all went smooth, and I can say that I did it. After this experience, we went on a boat ride. Unfortunately, we ended up on a tour which was in Russian language only so neither Madara or I could understand a thing. I actually, almost fell asleep. (Yes, my Russian has not improved at all, due to my absence in courses for the past three weeks).

On top of the "world"

The following days were less exciting for me. I had to let the girls enjoy the city without me, as I had two exams coming up. One was on May 2 and the second one on May 4. And then there was an exam coming up on May 8, so most of the following days I had to spend at least half a day on studying. At least on May 2, in the evening I went to a ballet called Spartacus with Raphaelle. There we met one more guy from our University, who was so tired (hopefully not bored) that he fell asleep. Raphaelle and I enjoyed the show, unlike the performance that my mom, sister and I went on May 5. I invited the girls to the Mozart’s opera “The Magic Flute”, which is supposed to be the world famous performance. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a total fiasco. For the first time in our lives, we decided to leave the show after the first break. Something so tasteless and cheap we have never seen before. It is, of course, shocking, that we had such an experience at the Mariinsky Theatre, but I guess there is the first time for everything. 

1st of May parade

Back to the positive. On Wednesday, we went on a free walking tour around the St. Petersburg. It was a three long tour, where the guide is given tips at the end of it (we pay, what we feel he deserves). Honestly, he deserved a lot, because he was simply amazing. Such clear and compelling stories that seriously in combination with rest of our activities, made me fall in love with this city. I am shocked that I did not feel that way about it until just now. Anyways, I would love to take Jonas on this tour when he visits me in few days. I might even consider going on a night tour as well. That one costs money, but it could be worth it to float around in a boat and watch the beautiful scenery while bridges are opening one by one over the Neva river. We planned to go to see the bridges almost every night with my mom and sister, but we only did it on Friday. I actually was trying to find another excuse to stay in and keep sleeping, instead of going out in the cold at two o’clock in the morning, but I am happy that my mom did not give up on me. We missed the actual opening part because the scheduled times and the reality did not match (of course, it's Russia), but we still saw the opened bridges, and it was a stunning view. 

Bridges opening

On Saturday I joined the girls for a morning walk. We went to the Saint Isaac's Cathedral, where we went up on the roof again to see the view over the great city. It was quite an impressive building. It turns out it is the largest Orthodox basilica and the fourth largest cathedral in the world. St. Petersburg is certainly full of such impressive buildings, and I cannot wait for warmer weather when I can enjoy the city even more.

On the final day, we came to my ghetto, so the girls could leave their bags at my apartment and leave for some more sightseeing before their departure. The moment when I came home, I already began feeling sad. It is so crazy how fast I got used to the nice and clean surroundings and how devastating is the feeling to come back to the disgusting dorms. Thankfully, my mini depression left me rather fast. I think it is because of the gym and my fabulous birthday party (read about it in the next post). 

Anyways, that is it for now. Now I am quite free and relaxed from all the responsibilities. I will be looking forward to my next and final guest – Jonas. I hope I will be able to show him another side of the city and make him appreciate it the same way as the rest of my visitors and I did. 

Karo-Shi (my April)

„Japanese people work 60 hours a week, which has led to a phenomenon called karo-shi (death from overwork), where corporate employees have been known to spontaneously drop dead of exhaustion.”

So, I was definitely experiencing the karo-shi throughout the entire month of April. There were so many days where I would be at school from 9 am to 9 pm and then come home to continue until midnight. Fortunately, the course that kept me awake the most was the new one called “Sustainability and Stakeholder Management”. It was a very intensive course lasting for 2.5 weeks only. We basically had classes every day, including Saturdays. And even though we usually finished by 12:30, we had to read a lot for each lecture and, of course, work on a group project. I would surely not mind all of this if there wouldn’t be three other classes going on at the same time with similar demands.

It is unusual that once again I had such an amazing professor that I just loved attending every single lesson. The topic of sustainability is so fascinating to me that I feel I have discovered a new passion. Even more, I have realized something so unique about myself that I feel that this might be the area where I want to work in after graduating. And that is such a gift to me because I have been struggling to understand what I want to do in my life. Then, all of a sudden, I have been blessed with two fantastic courses that have changed my mindset completely.

With my girls from the Sustainability project

Besides “Sustainability and Stakeholder Management,” I began a course in “Business Process Management and Information Technology”. It is not the most tiresome course, but it is somewhat similar to the “Knowledge Management,” which was a complete disaster. At least the professor is amusing and energetic, even though he is Russian. At first, I was afraid that he would be another super boring Russian geek who runs the entire lecture in a monotone voice, but fortunately, he is my first Russian professor who is trying very hard to make the class fun and interacting. He is always smiling, and he almost reminds me some sort of a host of a Bingo Show. Actually, in the very first lecture, we spent 2 hours on a game which was supposed to teach us how complicated it is to communicate throughout a supply chain. Despite the fact that one out of those two hours we spent on just to understand the game itself, and then the other hour to fix the mistakes that we have done during the process of learning the game, it was a funny start. Honestly, it was just another silly procedure of learning, but I was in tears of laughing with my group mates about the whole process and how ridiculously inefficient it sometimes felt. 

Raphaelle and I at the Mariinsky Theater

Even though because of the pressure from University, April was an absolute nightmare for me, it was also full of different extracurricular activities. Our University offered us amazing deals for various performances at the famous Mariinsky Theater. I bought tickets for three ballet and two opera performances. After this purchase I was, of course, totally broke but most of the shows that I have already seen were worth the “hunger”. Moreover, I was so lucky to be next to one of the girls, who was about to buy the tickets to the Hockey playoffs. All the tickets for this match sold out in minutes, but magically she managed to buy four tickets for us. Some of the much more hardcore hockey fans didn’t succeed in getting the tickets, so I felt super happy to have made it. 

The Hockey match was unquestionably an experience. We enjoyed it to the fullest. We got face paintings, and on every chair, there was a fan shirt that made us look like the real supporters of St. Petersburg's team. Our seats were pretty great as well, as we sat right in front of the corner with all the craziest fans that sang and played drums. We were so close to the field that we got to experience some nice crashes in the glass by the players. The only downside was the person sitting right in front of us because he kept holding a big poster all the way up blocking our view. He was doing it every time the camera was coming to our direction, as it seemed he had come here only to be on TV. Surprise, surprise – he never made the cut, but it did not get him to stop until the very last minute of the game. 

Getting my face painted before the match

Another crazy experience during that evening was seeing all the police and military around the Hockey Stadium. As you might have heard, there was a terror attack in the metro at the beginning of the April, which certainly raised the security concerns in big events like this. But for me, it was very unpleasant to pass so many military guys with big automate guns on their chests. Since the terrible attack, the level of security at the metro stations has also increased significantly. Now in each station, there are a couple of policemen, who randomly check different people throughout a day. I have never seen them checking women, only men. And it is funny, that they usually go for dark guys. The Finnish Oskari, who is very white and a bit redheaded has never been checked, while one of the Italian guys with dark hair is stopped on a regular basis, now even more after returning from a mini vacation in Sochi, where he got some intense tan. 

Anyways, another entertaining event for us happened when Raphaelle and I once tried to sneak in the Mariinsky Theater for free. Every Wednesday at 2 pm they have a performance where they let in 170 people for free. So one day, when we were both off, we went and tried our luck to stand in the long line. We stayed in the line for 1 hour, and they closed the doors basically in front of us. There were maybe ten people in front of us and like 60 behind us. So we were so freaking close. Even though the sun was shining that day, after standing in a line for one hour we were so frozen, that it took me 20 minutes inside the cafe to start feeling my hands again.

Between the main fans at the hockey match

The only positive side of this experience was that we went to a very nice restaurant nearby, where they served the famous business lunch. There are so many restaurants around here where they serve a three-course menu, called business lunch, during special hours for a very low price. Often the total cost of this kind of meals is lower than one dish from their usual selection. So this time we had a fantastic lunch for less than RUB 300 (~EUR 5).

Of course, we also managed to entertain ourselves with just another house party hosted by the two guys who had recently moved out of the dorms. For some reason, this was a pretty wild party for most of the people attending, including Raphaelle and me. I think it has something to do with our dinner before the party. Us two and Lotta (a girl from Finland) went to a Georgian restaurant, where alongside the delicious meal, we had one liter of homemade Georgian wine. It was a very fun beginning of the night, also because of our seating at the restaurant. We were right in between the stage with a woman singing and stage with a belly dancer. So being quite pumped up already, we were the first ones in the line for a good beer pong match at the house party. Well, the rest is history, but needless to say, we ended our night in our absolutely favorite place - SHAWARMA.

Picture that almost nobody remembers :D

It is crazy how long the April actually lasted for me because my beloved Tela was visiting for almost a week as well. Unfortunately, she came at the worst possible time, because I had so much on my plate that week. I had to deliver two projects and final presentations, and I had lectures every single morning. So, I managed to get off some of the evenings to hang out with my girl, but of course, that was not enough. On top of all this, I got sick. For the first time of being here, I got a severe fever and no possibility to get out of the bed. It was a nightmare. So the very final day, Tela came over to my dorms and we just hanged out at my room. How upsetting.

With Tela at the basketball game

Nevertheless, we had one fun night together. I invited both Tela and Raphaelle to a basketball match, where my uncle promised to get us tickets again. This time, however, he said that I should call some guy named Andrej one hour before the start of the match. Fortunately, I decided to call him a little earlier, and when I did, it turned out that not only he could not speak a word in English, he also had not idea about the deal with the tickets. When I got in touch with my uncle, he said I should now call a Sergey, but I was not in a mood to talk with another Russian. Thankfully my uncle got in touch with Sergey, but for some weird reason, I had to call Andrej anyways. So I did, and this time he knew what I am talking about. Getting to meet him next to the arena was also a bit challenging. It was the first time when it was almost impossible for me to understand what he is saying. His Russian was so fast, and he had a weird accent. I was not even sure that we both actually have agreed to meet somewhere. But at the end of this “adventure”, we did find him somehow, and we did get the tickets. The game was kind of fun. We almost cached a shirt, and we were showed on the “kissing camera”. This was a good enough combination for us to say it was a successful evening. Thankfully the both girls hit off pretty well, and they at least could meet for a cocktail the next day, while I was sick and studying back home.

With Tela and...who is that in the background?

Finally, just to give a short update on our never-ending cockroach and dirty apartment saga. Things have improved. After countless requests to clean after themselves, I finally said to one of the girls that if I ever have to come into the kitchen where I don’t even have a place to have breakfast, I will make an official complaint to the administration. At first, it seemed like my threatening worked, because one of the girls even cleaned the oven, which nobody has ever done here before. But unfortunately, three days later, the things were back to “normal”. So Raphaelle and I finally went downstairs and complained to the director of the dorms. It turned out that this particular girl have been living here for five years already, and there have been several complaints received about her already. Obviously, our complaint was going to be a big problem for her, and I have no idea what did the administration told her, but for rather a long time she was cleaning after herself every night. Of course, it did not continue forever, and I had another freak out with her. She then cleaned for some time again, but honestly, it seems that she will never change.

To finish on a more bright side - we got new beds. I was so happy when I got to know that we will be getting new beds because my old one was already so bad that I had to wake up every morning with a back pain. Now, I have a perfect bed where I can sleep like a baby. Slowly, the place is feeling more and more like home. Actually, the day when the cleaning lady came to warn us about the new beds, she began talking to me about her challenging work. How hard it is for her to clean all the dust from the reconstruction at some of the apartments. She talked and talked and then she decided that she wants me to see it for myself. So we went few floors below my apartment, and she showed me the final product of one of the apartments after the renovation. I could not believe my eyes how modern and new everything looked in there. I was even offering her to help with the cleaning just if I can move in there. Of course, she denied my proposal, and I was left with nothing more than an image of what my apartment could have looked like. Well, then again - we got new beds! Ha