Charmed Life

The other night my friend Jenny, one of the actors, was visiting us on the 5th floor when Joe joined the conversation. I told him when we were leaving in the morning. “Should we go get a cake before then?” he asked. “Actually, I hear she wouldn’t like that, maybe we should bring wine instead, but is it weird to bring wine at 10 am?” I said. “Well, we could always bring champagne and orange juice,” someone suggested. At this point, Jenny cried out, “What do you guys DO all day?!?”

We all laughed and explained that it was a gift for our Russian film history professor, who was having us over for breakfast. But taken out of context, both this and our lives here in general sound pretty decadent. Sleeping in, one or two classes a day at most, museums, sightseeing, reading in parks and cafes, free shows…it’s a tough life, but someone has to live it. As my time in Moscow draws to a close (I leave the morning of the 25th), I’ve begun reflecting on what I will and won’t miss. But to be honest, I think what I will miss the most is the lifestyle. After months of stress in Cambridge, Moscow has been a much-needed respite from constant stress. So here are some lists, since we all know how much I enjoy lists:

THINGS I WON’T MISS
-Moscow drivers: Every time I walk down the street and cross, I glare at and try to ESP the approaching vehicle, “don’t you dare hit me you motherf***er.”
-Cigarette smoke: it’s gotten so bad that I’ve found myself craving a cigarette at times. Can you get addicted to nicotine through second-hand smoke?
-Super thin walls in the dorm
-The very long stair trek up to the 5th floor
-Mullets: on men AND women. Oy vey.
-Having someone speak to me in Russian and only being able to stare at them. And stutter. Or blink.
-Worrying about my internet usage
-Being in a group 60% of the time
-Moscow Fashion: jeans with ripple/dart thingies on the sides of the thighs, monochromatic look, fishnets, fur, overdressing for everything, heels so high the women look like a strong gust of wind my topple them over…as my friend Sarah said, “stay classy, Moscow.”

THINGS I WILL MISS
-Moscow Fashion: because it is endlessly entertaining! Laura and I made up a game where we rank outfits, hairstyles, and heel height on a scale of 1-10 crazy.
-Museums: learning about Russian art and then seeing it. Learning about/reading Russian authors and seeing where they lived.
-Russian food: especially blinis, cireniki, pelemeni, Georgian restaurants, and the chocolate
-How everything can become an adventure: the super market, finding your way, taking the wrong metro exit but seeing a really beautiful ceiling in it, small triumphs in Russian language communication
-The classes: especially our classes with Tolya. We had the most amazing lecture with him this week as a whole class, when he told us about his first foray into researching Bulgakov (he’s a Bulgakov scholar), and meeting Bulgakov’s widow. It was amazing. Then on Friday he took the four dramaturgs out to lunch at a Georgian café near where he lives by Patriarch’s Ponds.
-Springtime in Moscow. It’s so gorgeous!
-Free productions practically every night. Many of them wonderful.
-Immersing myself in another culture…well, almost. That whole language barrier has made it rather tricky. But still.
-No morning classes=sleeping in
-Only work is enjoyable reading and writing

Sorry it’s been so long since I last wrote, by the way. Between my parents’ visit (which was wonderful, they said it was one of the best trips they’ve ever taken) and the beautiful weather, I haven’t spent that much time indoors by my computer. Soon I need to remedy that and finish up some of these articles. In the end, I do think my time has flown by here. I’m really grateful to the friends and family back in the US who have been so wonderful about keeping in touch with me!