Schoool's out for winter (almost)

Well, it's a week until we fly back to Blighty! Flippin' Nora, the time's gone quickly. It's hard to imagine that we'll have been here for four months. I'm looking forward to going back to the UK's tropical climate (maybe it'll be zero degrees! Crack out the flip flops!) and to devouring the edible produce of England in its entirety. Real cheese! Arrrghh!! I'm aiming to eat a block of Red Leicester a day to make up for lost cheese consumption whilst in Russia. That and a million mince pies, mmm. It will be strange to go back to a country where you have to say please and thank you, queues have order and regulation and no one batters you for not having the right change. But there are some downsides. A pack of Marlboro Lights for £7.50?! Lordy lord. And a bottle of vodka, £8 minimum?! Christ.

So for the last few weeks I've attempted to do some cultural things..and failed. I think I might be the world's worst tourist. I've turned up five minutes before closing time to about four different museums, and only ended up in Kazanskii cathedral because it was blimmin' cold and I was next to it. But lo! I think I'm going to Pushkin this weekend, a small town named after... Pushkin. There's a lot of stuff and things there apparently, so I should go. I will add lots of interesting info and facts about things of note to the next blog (har).

The only thing I managed to do was go to a Russian circus! It was bare (bear) hilare. Once you look past the animal cruelty it was a packed show of comedy gold. Although on several occasions things appeared to go awry, but to be fair if you dress a dog as a crocodile it probably won't play along. Also, whose idea was it to use cats? The least trainable animal eveeeer?! Most of the animals were in pretty good condition, but it was a bit horrific seeing burn marks on some of them. I ate a vast quantity of Teremoks afterwards to console myself.

Other than that it's been a vast array of December birthdays and almost falling over SO MANY TIMES on the glaciers that line the streets. So close to stacking it every time I leave the house. We also went to see Санта на продажу to get in the mood for Christmas, only to realise had we read the synopsis that it was a film about evil elves and Santa as a huge horned beast that steals children at Christmas. Heartwarming.

Oh, and I've pretty much got the week off school – half of our class have gone on a school trip to Arkhangelsk and only the prolific skivers have been left. No school, yeeah!

Hm so yah. Hooooome soooooon! Woooooooooo!  

Me after my cheese-fest in England:

Arrrrr..t

It's been a quiet week. I mean having the militsia attempt to kick you out of your flat and a mugging is fairly tranquil for Russia, right?

It's blummin' chilly now as well – according to our landlord the temperature is going to hit MINUS THIRTY next week. That's thirty degrees below zero. M-i-n-u-s thirty. Blurh. No ta. So I'm going to finally purchase some thermals and look as gay as Andy in his short-sleeve/long-sleeve combo. I attempted going out in tights last night which was a HUGE mistake. Genuinely feared for the wellbeing of my thighs. Can it be, that it's almost too cold to go out in Russia?! Dear God. What is one to do of an evening? Knit? Do work? Drink alone in a dark corner? Or all three?

I've also had my first fall in Russia. It felt like a momentous occasion, like I'd been truly embraced by Mother Russia. I was striding confidently homeward bound when I was thwarted by a cheeky hidden manhole cover and totally bailed into a wall. In England everyone would've pointed and laughed at such a mirthful event, but no, the Russians carried on as normal, assuming I was merely a noob to this frozen wasteland. The only victim of the trip was my pride.

We finally said goodbye to Chloe and Halvor too. We went to Griboedov, which is a bar/club/cafe/bomb shelter (they do love their multi-functionality in Russia) for a 'reggae' night that turned out to be a dubstep night in disguise. I'd go so far as to say it was 'bangin'.

I've been culturing this week! Paid a trip to the Benois Wing of the Russian Museum (which is a museum, in Russia) where Malevich's Black Square is being displayed. To my surprise, it was not only black, but also a square! Crikey. The rest of the exhibition included various other paintstuffs by Kandinsky and the like. All very modern and swish. It shocked me that I actually recognised a lot of the work, seeing as I attended two art lectures last year (debatable, I slept through one of those). I'd recommend it to anyone who is a fan of geometric shapes and hilarious looking sculptures.

Not long until home now! I am really looking forward to going back – partly because I love Christmas, partly because I miss my mum and sister and mostly because I can't stand the sight of you 'orrible Benedict lot any more. Jookes. It will be very strange to stop being in constant contact with everyone from the school I must say. But I'm sure we'll stay tight for next semester, eh chaps?

Otherwise I've become a wummi addict (delicious nutritious Haribo worms), enjoyed a far too realistis impression of an owl from Leksika lady (for this is her name) and developed a fetish for Jenson Button's chin. Apparently.

Jenson Button's chin.