If you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I am living for, in detail, ask me what I think is keeping me from living fully for the thing I want to live for.
-Thomas Merton

Масленица

Imagine a table filled with stacks upon stacks of freshly made blini (the Russian version of crepes) and every sweet or savory topping possible. I’m talking honey, condensed milk, fruit, nutella, jam, caviar, cheese, ham, tvorog, cream cheese, fish, sour cream. I could keep going. Now imagine that you are required to eat this every day for an entire week in order to be strong for the coming Spring. And at the end of this week of feasting, you culminate your celebrations by heading to the nearest park, playing games that turn into a manly show of strength, dancing to traditional tunes, and, finally, burning a giant chuchila (something like a scarecrow). Let’s be honest, American holidays have got nothing on Russian festivities.

Now don’t misunderstand. There is almost nothing more wonderful than a Margo-Wray celebration including mountains of Raspberry Cloud, intense rounds of Catan and family. But Maslenitsa is officially my new favorite week of the year.

Maslenitsa is an ancient Russian holiday that welcomes the coming of spring and the (supposed) departure of winter. Considering the intensity of Russian winters, its no wonder that Russians need at least a week to celebrate this important transition. Because blini is already a beloved Russian street-food/fast-food, the stalls and shops that line each street encourage the surge in blini consumption by advertising blini by the pound. And trust me, you need at lease a few pounds of blini for any good celebrations.

Natalie and I were lucky enough to be invited to a slew of Maslenitsa celebrations, some hosted by other internationals and some by Russians. While it was a nearly religious experience eating so much delicious blini, the week was really a beautiful picture of the community we have developed here. Being welcomed into the homes of friends and co-workers solidified the truth that this place is our home and these people are something like family.

We must have broken some international record, by managing to eat blini six out of the seven days of Maslenitsa, each day at a different home or celebration. While you might think we would never want blini again, I can assure you I’ve already had it once or twice since. Here are a few highlights from the week, including a feast and games at the HIV kindergarten where we volunteer, EVA celebration at our co-worker, Anya's house, and a festival on Saint Petersburg’s Elagin island. 

P.S. Maslenitsa has been over for nearly two weeks at temperatures are still well below freezing. I'm not convinced warm weather is ever coming. 

Preparing the Chuchila to be burned at Innovatsia, the HIV Kindergarten 

Games at Innovatsia

Gluten-free blini for breakfast

Maslenitsa Celebrations on Elagin Island

Maslenitsa Celebrations on Elagin Island

Maslenitsa Celebrations on Elagin Island

75 Days in Russia

Patience

Russians are certainly one of the most patient cultures. It took centuries of abuse from their Czarist leaders before they chose revolution. And nearly another century passed before they declared failure of their communist experiment. Russians bear their long winters, perhaps not with a smile, but certainly without complaint. While I, this fledging American with no real understanding of the word “Winter,” am beyond impatient for Spring to arrive. But in a country and in a city where incredible patience is demanded, we have to embrace it in order to survive (or at least maintain sanity.) Whether it’s enduring a three-hour Orthodox church service (where, of course, you cannot sit but must stand), spending two hours in the post-office to simply hand in your city registration forms, or riding the escalator for 5 minutes just to enter the metro (because of course it is the deepest metro system in the world), you spend a lot of time standing, waiting, thinking, watching.

Naturally, as an American, patience is not in my blood. From fast food to fast cars, I come from a culture of right here - right now. So when Natalie and I learned that the HIV orphanage we had arranged to work in through Sunergos International was closing its doors to us, my thoughts weren’t about patience and perseverance, but rather frustration at this closed society that couldn’t seem to understand those who want simply to learn and serve (see my last blog post for a full account of my rambling rant). Thankfully, my lack of patience did not affect the determination of Sunergos International, who followed up with the main doctor of the orphanage. Somehow (someway!) Natalie and I will be allowed to visit the HIV orphanage to meet with this doctor. As we seek to understand more about the situation of these children through interviews with the doctor, we hope to forge a relationship that will allow us to eventually volunteer on a regular basis with these HIV+ orphans. Until then, we are waiting, thinking, watching and embracing patience!

Despite the delay in beginning our work in the orphanages, my Russian life is anything but unengaged. From interning with E.V.A., volunteering at a local HIV+ kindergarten, taking Russian lessons and teaching English, there is simply not enough time in the day (as evidenced by my lack of blogging!) I feel this place is truly becoming home.

E.V.A.

Interning with E.V.A. has become the greatest piece of this experience. From the work, the support and the community, I know that I am glimpsing a unique and important part of Russian culture that I had previously not seen. Their work with HIV+ women and children is practical, sustainable and empowers community leaders around the country. I was fortunate enough to work closely on a grant application through ViiV Healthcare (a UK pharmaceutical company) with my co-worker that would expand E.V.A.’s reach and effectiveness. Addressing prevention methods of mother-to-child HIV transmission, we are working to help HIV+ pregnant women access the resources and support they need to have a healthy pregnancy and not pass HIV onto their children. If you’re anything like me, I though it was nearly impossible for an HIV+ women to give birth to a healthy, HIV- child. But through simple practical methods, it’s not only possible, but easily feasible.  Women who adhere to their HIV treatment, give birth through cesarean section and use milk-formula rather than breast-feeding, have an extremely low likelihood of passing HIV to their child. But as many of these women are drug users, lack education and/or don’t trust their physicians, many children in Russia are unnecessarily infected. Through this grant, we seek to increase the effectiveness of doctors, case managers, and AIDS centers in finding these women and staying involved throughout their pregnancy process so that they and their children can remain healthy.

The Kindergarten

I have also been volunteering 1-2 a week at a local kindergarten/

children’s center for HIV+ children, or children affected by HIV. This organization has a close relationship with EVA and the children of many of our co-workers attend this kindergarten/children’s center. We spend an hour teaching English to the children. This mostly consists of speaking practice since the English learned in schools is purely reading and writing. The second hour we spend time with the children, playing, talking, etc. While these children are not orphans, they come with their own set of burdens. Whether they are HIV+, have HIV+ parents, or live with their grandparents due to drug-using or deceased parents, they desperately need a safe community and support. This last Saturday we spent the afternoon at the children’s center celebrating International Women’s Day. The grandmothers and mothers of the children had their own celebration where they were able to relax, share life stories and receive flowers and appreciation, while the children played games and enjoyed way too many desserts. The highlight of the day: playing the game “Mafia” all in Russian. The kids always thought Natalie and I were the Mafia, because we were so quiet. Little did they know its because our Russian skills aren’t totally up to par.

Life

Besides interning with EVA and Sunergos, and volunteering with the children, I’ve been enjoying time studying, teaching and meeting new people. I started Russian classes at the Saint Petersburg State Forestry University about two weeks ago. It’s a rather small university, but between low prices, flexible schedules, and small class sizes, it was a hard deal to pass up. On the continued quest for fluency, investing in more academic Russian is definitely worth it. I’m also teaching both group and private English lessons 3-4 times a week, which gives me a bit of extra pocket money. It’s also been a great way to learn more about Russian culture and perspectives. Most of my students have a strong foundation of English and just need a place to speak and practice, so I ask endless questions about their life and country. And, of course, I force them to be my friend and hang out with me on the weekends (I’m only half joking). But truly, each day I meet more and more fascinating Russians and international expats who make this place feel like home and make any semblance of isolation vanish.

As I approach the three-month mark of being in Russia, I can only say that each day is more wonderful than the last, and I can hardly soak up all that I am learning. Warning: one year in Russia will most likely not be enough for this wandering soul.