A Great Experience

The teachers at my school are proving to be a friendly, inclusive, interesting and welcoming group of people. Tonight I was invited to a colleague’s birthday party at her apartment. Using my map I turned up at the spot where my address said the apartment was. There was a group of older people sitting on a bench nearby. As I put in her buzzer code one lady started to talk to me. Giving my usual shrug, no Russian response and smile I continued unsuccessfully to get into the apartment building. A few minutes passed and the older lady came over to me and talked in Russian some more. Have I mentioned that speaking in English and looking confused does not deter Russians from continuing to speak in Russian to you?????

Anyways I showed her the address of where I was intending to go and she literally linked arms with me and guided me down the street talking away. We reached another building and she led me inside. She then went into the front desk office booth after looking at the address again. When returning she confidently showed me to the elevator and off I went. I found the apartment number and rang the bell. When people speaking English answered the door I knew I had about a 99% chance of being in the right place. I proceeded to have a lovely evening full of conversation and food, including Russian Blinis with fish eggs 🙂

I love being surrounded by motivated, adventurers from around the world. Conversations are filled with everyone’s diverse experiences and past and future travel plans. Many people know multiple languages as well. One co-worker wouldn’t give me a definite answer but I have heard him speak at least five different languages. I have even been able to practice my Spanish. There have been some days when I have spoken 3 languages! Granted it is only about 5 words in Russian that I can use regularly, but it is a start. Despite the fact that going anywhere is still challenging, it is such an incredible experience.