My Host Family

I know you are all anxious for pics of my host family, but I haven't really had a chance to get any good ones. But I promise I will! For right now, I'll just tell you about them.

Alla is my sister and is in the 9th form. She's 14 turning 15 tomorrow (I have no idea if she'll have a party or anything. Maybe a family thing or something). She's like any other girl that age. She loves pink and cats and taking crazy pictures of her and her cousin Inna. She's very easy going though, more so then American girls that age. She always takes the time to help me even if it would appear to be inconvenient and she does what her parents say with little rebuttal. I haven't been able to talk to her that much because of the language barrier, but so far we get along really well.

Then there's Papa. Oh goodness, what can I say about Papa? Well, the first thing you notice is how loud he is. The first night I got there, their English speaking friend Ria came over to interpret somethings, and he told her to tell me not to be afraid of his loud voice, that's just how he is. It's like he's yelling all the time. But not an angry yelling. He's very goodnatured. He has a perfectly round face and a nice smile. And just like everyone else in the family, he does everything he can to make me feel welcome and happy. On the application, it said he owns a moving company, but I don't think that's right. He owns his own business, but there's a giant dump truck parked next to the house that he takes out really early in the morning. So I'm not sure exactly what he does! There are two other things you should know about Papa. He is very proud of his grapes and insists upon telling me about the different types and the growth cycle of them even though I don't understand a word of it. And he is also very proud to be Cossack. He is not Russian; he is a Cossack, which, if my memory of Russia history isn't too muddle, means his family is from the Ukraine or at least that area.

Mama is definitely the more level headed one in the husband/wife dynamic. She is very down to earth and is very patient when she explains things to me. She does most of the cooking and cleaning in the house with the help of Bubula. She also works a few days a week at a cafe in town. Like Papa, she not Russian too. She's Moldavian and when her brother comes over, I guess they speak in Moldavian but I can't tell the difference between that and Russian! I can't understand either! And Mama doesn't speak English like it said on the application, but that's okay. With no one speaking English in the house it's more motivation for me to learn Russian! But yeah, Mama is awesome and very motherly and I feel very comfortable talking to her.

Bubula is the one I know the least. She kinda keeps to herself, joining the family only at meal times. She's usually working out in the garden, hobbling about and mumbling in Russian. Sometimes it seems like she's in so much pain from walking around so much; I can't believe she's still walking to be perfectly honest. Her brown skin is all worn and wrinkly and she wears these thick glasses that make her eyes look huge and I always laugh to myself when she puts them because they look so ridiculous! We don't really talk, but she always insists upon filling my plate (like I'm not getting enough to eat) and she knows I really like milk so she always gets me a glass after supper. She's a classic Russian Babushka and maybe I'll be able to talk to her in Russian at some point!

Oh yes, then there's Afonia (I have no idea how to spell his name!). He is one of the most hyperactive 5 year olds I have ever met! He's constantly running around the house blubbery away about something. She I can always tell when he's upstairs because the chandelier in my room rattles whenever he runs around up there. Also, I think Mama and Papa let him act in ways that wouldn't be tolerated in America, or at least I think so. Like he has an aversion to napkins for some reason and Papa wiped his mouth with one and Afonia freaked out and screamed for a towel. He only uses towels apparently. And Mama and Papa just kinda shock their heads; they didn't tell him to stop fussing or anything. I don't know, it's just different parenting I guess. Afonia may be bratty, but he always says hi to me and loves to tell me when it's time to eat. He runs up to me and says "Shannon, kooshaet, kooshaet num,num,num,num". So he's still kinda cute.

So yeah, that's who I live with. Then there are about 20 gillion cousins and aunts and uncles and I can't remember who's who's brother and who is married to who. It's crazy! I do know Inna, Ulia, and Lesa though because they go to school with us every morning and live right down the street. But then they have a couple older brothers, Sasha and some one else. And then someone is getting married soon, I can't remember who... oh well, maybe I'll figure it out sometime! All I know is I have a great family that I can feel a part of. And as I learn more Russian, things can only get even better :)

Though I do suppose I have one little complaint. It's not that big of a deal, but still. The family doesn't really go anywhere together. I haven't gone anywhere except for downtown Korenovsk with them and that was just to run errands. Sarah has been to Krasnodar and Andrea is going to the mountains tomorrow with his family. I hope that we do something more as a family. And I mean, I've been here just under a month. There's still time. And I can't complain too much because I have such a caring and supportive family that I feel very comfortable being a part of.


I wanted to add this picture of my family I took at their church because I have no idea when I'll be able to post this on facebook and I know you all want to see pictures so here you go!

AFS Camp pics

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=38504&id=1211594619&l=d312920bb2

House Pics

I got facebook to work and here's the link to the pictures of my house: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=38495&id=1211594619&l=57bb046df4

Arriving at my host family, FINALLY!

So, on September I arrived at my host family, the Bulan family. There is Mama and Papa and Babula and Alla my sister and Afonia (spelling?) my little brother. My cousin Inna was also there when I arrived. I was very tired and overwhelmed from all the traveling. I had dinner and a friend of the family's who speaks English came over. That was nice. We got some initial things squared away like I asked if it was okay for me to call them Mama and Papa and they said of course they wanted that. And they also explained about their church and how they go every Saturday and that I was welcome to join them but I didn't have to. They made me feel right at home from the start. Even though I was slightly emotional distraught just from being overwhelmed, at no point did I feel uncomfortable with them. They told me right from the start that I was family, which wiped away so many worries for me. I've heard so many horror stories from past AFS students about how they had to change host families 3 or 4 times. I really didn't want that to happen to me and unless things change drastically, I don't think I'll have to go anywhere. I think I've found another home in a different little corner of the world.

At this point, I don't have any pictures of me and my family, but I think I will the opportunity to soon. For right now, I have pictures of my house. Facebook is being fussy right now, but I will upload more pics of my house when I get a chance!

Pictures are up!

I just posted some photos from my first week in Russia on facebook! For those of you not on facebook, here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=38011&id=1211594619&l=04eb03b592

Krasnodar

So, Krasnodar is the capital and the biggest city of this region. And it is a pretty big city, even by American standards. There's a wide stretch of park down the middle of the city (pictured on the right) that was really cool. It lead right down to the Kuban river, which unfortunately is a very dirty river! I stayed with Noey, a girl from Thailand and her host family. They lived in a flat but it was wicked nice. Like an upscale apartment, not what you think when you think Russian flat. And they were so nice to me, even though I wasn't really their host daughter. That something that amazes me here. There are no strangers; everyone is a treated like a life long friend. Ample Russian hospitality is a very true stereotype.

In Krasnodar, I went to a language school for two days were we learned Russian history and language as well as Russian art and dance, which was really fun. Yes, we did the Cossack dance. Well only the guys did it, but still it was awesome. I have a video that I'll try and post but idk if my internet can handle it! I got my first real taste of true, home cooked Russian food and it was actually really good. But I think that the family I stayed with in Krasnodar was a bit more European (probably because of the whole city life) and they food I have now at my host family in Korenovsk is still good, but much more traditionally Russian. But I enjoyed my couple days in Krasnodar and on the 9th I drove to Korenovsk with Sarah from America and Andrea from Italy who are also in Korenovsk (Rodrigo from Bolivia is also in Korenovsk but didn't drive with us). And so, exactly one week after leaving my family and friends in Maine, I arrived at my host family, my home for the next 5 months.

By the way...

I'd also like to say that I apologize if you write to me individually and I don't get back to you. I will do my best, but it's hard because I don't want to be thinking about home too much and I don't want to be on the internet all the time. So, I'll try, but don't be offended if you write me on facebook or something and I don't get back to you. Know that I love everyone and just hearing from you guys, knowing that you were thinking of me, makes me so happy and gives me a little bit more courage to keep doing what I'm doing. So thank you for that. I have the best family and friends <3
Also, I'll be using facebook as my main mode of posting pictures. So check out my facebook for more pictures. I can post links to my photo albums on my blog so that everyone can see them even if they don't have facebook :)

Leg 2: The Train

Okay, there is no way to describe the train in Russia. You just have to experience it. I'll do my best to convey ever grueling detail of this journey that is, unforgettable to say the least. Okay, so you get on the car and there is a extremely narrow hallway you have to walk down and to your left are the compartments. Lugging two rather large suitcases down the hallway was a task in itself. I was in a compartment with Karla and this Russian couple that didn't speak a speck of English. And they had a little dog (thankfully it didn't bark at all). But this whole getting on to the train thing was extremely stressful because all of us students had no idea what we were doing and the two volunteers with us were the only ones who spoke English on the train. There was a lot of yelling and uptightness and confusion, so as you can imagine, I was pretty stressed out a this point. Thankfully Sergei, one of the volunteers, came to our compartment and talked to the Russian people and told me and Karla where we would sleep and were to put our bags. That was a challenge. The room was no bigger than 7X8 with four narrow bunks. The suitcases were put under the bottom bunk and an over head bin over the hallway. Even when we were settled in, me and Karla didn't know what to do because we were both still pretty scared and stressed and it was so awkward with the Russian couple in there. We had no idea what to do. Thankfully, the Russian couple was nice enough to help us make our beds and after that we just kinda crawled into our bunks and slept in our clothes. The next day, we hung out in a compartment that was only AFS students and slowly slipped into madness. We were so bored and cramped and gross feeling. There was one very small very sketchy toliet on the train but of course no showers so we were all so disgusting. I really can't describe it and really don't want to relive it, so, I'll finish by saying we spent one more night on the train and arrived in Krasnodar, the capital of the region, around 6 in the morning on September 7th. There I met my mama and papa, but I didn't go with them just yet. Instead, they took some of my luggage and I went with a family in Krasnodar so that I could have another orientation in the city. This travel thing just kept getting longer and longer...

Leg 1: US to Moscow

Okay, I finally have access to a steady source of internet, aka, my laptop is finally hooked up to the world wide web! So here I am, in Russia, for just under 2 weeks and I already have a boat load to tell! I'll start at the beginning I suppose. I flew out of Portland and arrived in JFK just fine. I went to a hotel near the airport with all the other AFS students. It turns out that Sept 3rd was the regular departure date for France, Austria, South Africa, and Spain, so I got to meet all those kids. There was a crap load going to France and Spain. We stayed one night at the hotel and got a quick orientation from some AFS USA people where we talked about travel and safety and proper conduct during our stay and Russian culture, but of course we only skimmed the surface! There are 6 other Americans going to Russia, Phillip, Claire, Karla, Sara, Wilson, and Alex. We all got to hang out a lot in New York and got pretty tight. We get along really well. Everyone but Alex is in the same region, within an hour of each other, poor Alex. The picture above is of all of us in the JFK airport. From left to right, Alex, Sara, Me, Wilson, Phillip, Claire, Karla. See how happy we all look? Yeah, we weren't that perky after all that flying. hahaha

We then left for Frankfurt on the 4th. That flight was excruciating, though not as long as I thought, only about 6 1/2 hours. I had a crabby German lady sitting next to me, not fun. Anyway, we had about 5 hours in the airport in Frankfurt before we flew to Moscow. That flight was much shorter and much more pleasant. When we got to Moscow, we met AFS Russia reps and drove a few hours out of the city to a youth camp for another orientation. There are about 30 something students in Russia from the US, Italy, Germany, Thailand, Bosnia, Guatemala, and Bolivia. They had us do this weird activity where we cut the bottoms out of plastic cups and wore them like goggles and then walked around and had to count trees. It was supposed to represent tunnel vision and how we couldn't view things here with these restrictive goggles. I had my first taste of Russian food at this camp too. Honestly it wasn't that good. It was pretty boring except for the weird salads, which everyone tried but no one really ate! And I was put into a slight (but temporary) state of fear that I would die of dehydration because all they seemed to drink was tea! Hahaha. So on the 5th, we left the camp to begin our next leg of the journey; the train (dum dum dummmmmmm)

My Last Night in Maine

After I was told my departure would be delayed, I thought that tomorrow would never come! But, as always, time passes as it sees fit and now, here I am, less than 24 hours away from the beginning of the ultimate experience. Ready or not. But I think I'm ready, physically anyway. I have a very full 47 pound suitcase and a stuffed 23 pound duffel waiting patiently for tomorrow morning, a silent vigil to the emminent change that is slowly making itself known. It's a pretty daunting site to be completely honest! But it also is pretty dang exciting because packed bags mean a quickly approaching departure!

It's hard to describe how I feel right now. I'm on the brink of tears and jumping out of my skin at the same time. I think the scariest thing about this whole thing is realizing how much things are really changing. I'm not going back to Lake Region! Which, to be perfectly honest, I couldn't be more happy about . But its still a little said to make the transition out of high school. I mean, you're never going to be that young again right? Despite these nostalgic feelings, I want to try something new, taste something different. I'm expecting challenges but I hope my desire to experience a new culture and language in the purest way possible will help me overcome these obstacles.

I would also like to take a minute and give special thanks to my parents. I know that this will be a hard for them, a strain I can't fully understand seeing as I have no kids of my own and don't know what its like to see them grow so quickly before my very eyes. However, I do understand that my graduation from high school has ushered in a change for all of us which will take some time to get used to. It's hard for me to say something without it sounding corny. But You'll be in my Heart by Phil Collins keeps playing in my head right now. I think Phil knows what I'm trying to say. I love you mom and dad. Thank you for everything.

And so, I stand upon the brink of adventure. Good luck to all my friends going off on their own adventures. I will miss everyone! Keep checking my blog. I'll be home in January, which will come sooner than you think! Thanks agian everyone for your support! Wish me luck =)