Tuesday, May 31, 2011

find yourself in the moment.


especially when time is limited, live without looking to tomorrow.
each day has its own worries, its own joys, its own beautiful moments.
live, marvel, reflect, just be. 

(a little reminder from duran duran as i wander the streets.)  

Saturday, May 28, 2011

A true Russian pooch...

FOR A BIG SAUSAGE.  THANKS!!

С днем рождения, город мой!

Saint Pete is celebrating it's 308th birthday this weekend, and in good Russian spirit the whole city has been out celebrating.  Russians never turn down the opportunity to have a party.  Practically every weekend this month has been a holiday weekend (День труда, день победы, день города...), but this has been one of the most fun and laid back.  Although we woke up to rain this morning (no cloud-seeding today!) the weather turned around in enough time for the festival to get in full swing.  Since most of my friends are off traveling the Baltics this weekend (without me, thanks to the great visa crisis of 2011), I set out into the city solo.  The streets were filled with party-goers that were just out to have a good time.  The atmosphere was very laid-back but colorful as many were dressed up in funky costumes with faces painted.  I strolled along Nevsky Prospect stopping at each stage to listen to different musical performances or watch the dancers.  After hearing lots of jazz, folk music, and poor but humorous renditions of American pop classics, I ended up at the Palace Square (where the Hermitage and the Alexander Column are located).  There I found one of the neatest things that I've seen in this city.  A troupe of French acrobats had set up a circus in the center of the square.  For an hour and a half a stood amazed as these kids zip-lined off of cranes across the entire square sprinkling feathers as they went and performed other awesome tricks as we stood directly underneath them.  I've been to many a circus, but I have never experienced something so up-close and interactive.  Way. Too. Cool.  












It's crazy to think that this city is only 308 years old.  It's true that she is, of course, older than America, but when you compare her to the rest of Russian history, St. Petersburg is just a youngin'.  At the same time though, it is hard to believe that in just 308 years this city has such a rich, deep, dark, beautiful history.  The history of the city is alive and tangible.  You can't help but feel it as you walk across the Neva and see the beauties of the city on the horizon.  You can't help but feel it as you stare into the worn faces of babushki and dedushki that lived through the Seige of Leningrad and the Great Patriotic War.  You can't help but feel it as you watch the sun rise over Peter and Paul Fortress and imagine what Peter the Great must have felt as he was founding this place.  The story of St. Petersburg is as much the past as it is the present (not many are really thinking about the future just yet).  Such a beautiful paradox!


*So, Happy Birthday, Piter!  Thanks for capturing my heart and making me fall in love with you more and more every day.  Thanks for shocking me, confusing me, challenging me,  making me laugh, speaking to my soul, and leaving me with no words to explain you.  You're pretty awesome and I'm glad I can call you mine even if it is just for a short amount of time.  Love, Liza


*The writer of this blog profusely apologizes for the cheesiness that here ensues (a.k.a. end-of-the-semester-sentimentality). 

locks of love.












Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Finnish Nationalism



My blogging about Finland would not be complete if I did not share with you this song.  While most of the music played in Finland is American, we literally heard this song everywhere that we went.  The Finns would sit like they were the coolest kids in town dressed like they just stepped out of a JCrew catalogue while we Americans danced alone to "our" music, but the second this song started the Finns would flood the dance floor.  You could tangibly feel the Finnish nationalism swelling (I'm taking a class on nationalism currently, so therefore I see everything in these terms.  Sorry.).  The essence of being Finnish must be summed up in this song.  Some people think that you need to learn Finnish in order to become a citizen of Finland.  That's not really true.  All you have to know is this song.  It's a pretty great song, actually.  I can't stop listening to it.

You know you've been in Russia too long when...

(things I realized while in Helsinki)
  1.  You can't find the light switch because it's actually in the bathroom.
  2.  You see the back of a statue and assume it's Lenin.
  3.  You stare at someone and are surprised when they smile back.  
  4. You get excited to see a dishwasher and toaster in your apartment, but then wonder what you're supposed to do with them.  
  5. You audibly exclaim "YES!" in a cafe when you are told you can drink the tap water.
  6. You order a salad and are pleasantly surprised when it contains no mayo at all.
  7. You are shocked to get your coffee for free when the credit card machine doesn't work instead of being turned away. 
  8. You prepare to fight in order pay for your lunch with a 100 euro note but later realize that you'd never get hassled for big bills or inexact change outside of Russia.
  9. You're shocked when a sales clerk asks if she can help you with anything.
  10. You almost start crying from joy in the grocery store because you forgot how many kinds of food the world offers.
  11. Your friend threatens that the only way she is letting you take her back to Russia is in a body bag.
  12. Your breakfast of Honey Nut  Cheerios feels like high dining.
  13. You are hesitant to cross the street and are shocked when cars actually stop to let you cross and then wave and blow kisses at you.  
  14. You think it's a big deal to drink a cup of coffee that doesn't taste like muddy water. 
  15. Someone speaks to you in English and you respond in Russian.  
  16. Even though you're no longer in Russia, everything you talk about is still Russia-related.
  17. You are paranoid that people are going to break you in line if you don't stand touching the person in front of you and push them.
  18. You say that you are ready to go home and mean Russia.
  19. Your friend throws up from eating Indian food because she hasn't tasted spice in 3 months.
  20. You get excited to hear tourists speaking Russian because they are speaking your "native" tongue.
  21. You think that every boy you see is hot just because he doesn't have a mullet and has showered recently.
  22. You think a bar bathroom is really clean.

it's foreign on this side.


Last weekend I went to Helsinki with some girls from my program.  After resolving our means of transportation (our bus canceled the night before we were supposed to leave, typical Russia), my friend and I piled into a red Chrysler mini van at five in the morning with three Russians and a Latvian, and we were on our way.  We made it through passport control rather seamlessly, and as soon as we crossed the border, there was no question that we were in Finland.  We were greeted by smooth pavement, trash-less roads, and a customs official who cracked a joke.  Yup, definitely not in Russia anymore.  I honestly think I experienced more culture shock in Finland than in Russia.  Being in Finland was almost like being back in the US (compared to Russia).  Virtually everyone speaks English.  Good coffee is available at every street corner.  People smile, wave, and engage you in conversation.  Cars stop instead of speeding up at crosswalks.  The grocery stores offer anything I could imagine buying at home and more.    In other words, it was very strange.  For any normal American, a weekend in Helsinki would feel much more familiar than a weekend in St. Petersburg, but to me everything felt so foreign.  Don’t get me wrong, I had a wonderful weekend and loved the city, but as I walked the streets with my friends and talked about how great Helsinki is, I secretly missed Russia.  The reality is that I am attracted to places that are a little screwed up.  I think that’s why I love living in Memphis, love living in the South, love living in Russia.  These places are not without their problems, but there are good people working for change and progress, and I like to be a part of that change.  I’ve tried to think of my own metaphor but couldn’t think of anything better than the metaphor of my friend Emily, who is awesome and brilliant, so now I will shamelessly/proudly quote her blog on mine:

In Voltaire’s “Candide,” Candide and company, off in search of the best of all possible worlds, stumble upon Eldorado, a town wherein the streets are paved with gold and jewels. The town has advanced knowledge, no court system, no religious grievances, and no pecuniary problems. And ultimately, Candide and co. decide to leave. At the end of the book, they decide not to return to Eldorado. They dedicate themselves to a working on the improvement of a plot of land. “I know,” Candide says, “that we must cultivate our garden.”  (thanks, Emily, for your brilliant insight!)

Life really is about cultivating our own gardens, and that is why I am glad that I chose to study abroad in a place like Russia and not like Finland (there's plenty to be weeded here).  And that is why that as much as I loved spending time in Finland, I was happy when 12 hours after our intended time of departure (and after 4 hours of sitting at the border, 7 hours of conversation with new Russian friends, and an impromptu birthday celebration) I made it to my home sweet home (for now) in St. Petersburg. 

So now that I’ve made it clear that I like Russia better than Finland (big surprise!), I’ll show you a little bit more of my fun in Finland (through pics):

The bike culture in Helsinki is really big.  Now I'm re-inspired to get a bike when I get home.

My greatest love in life=farmers markets.

STRAWBERRIES=fresh, local and in season=I'm in heaven.

Sunshiny day at Suomolina, the fortress.

Some weren't as ready to get back to Russia as I was.

View of Helsinki from Suomolina

These girls keep me from going crazy in Russia, and I heart them so. 

Helsinki Cathedral

Lots of balloons for Vappu (May Day), which is a big holiday in Finland.  

College kids dress in bright colored coveralls, picnic, drink, and engage in other holiday-related shenanigans. 

VAPPU!!

Vappu parade.  It was lots of fun until the bottom fell out and rain poured on our heads.  

My lovely ladies sitting on top of the Church on the Rock.

Cool art installation in a park.  Inspiration=organ pipes, I think.

A park we walked through everyday on our way to Wayne's Coffee for our morning jolt.