Day Seven: On Board the Aurora Battle Ship

Daniel trying out the head gear onboard the battleship Aurora!

Greeting from St. Petersburg.

March 9, 2011.  Today we strolled to Sasha's new school, the Anglo American School of St. Petersburg  http://www.aas.ru/stpetersburg.cfm which is TINY compared to FAIR school in Minneapolis.  There are 12 kids in the 4th grade with one nice teacher named Mr. Toth. All instruction is in English and Sasha will be in a class with kids from Holland, South Korea, Bulgaria and Russia.  It's a mini U.N.   More on this next week. Both boys will begin school on Monday and tomorrow we will check out Daniel's new Montessori.

  It has been a very exhausting week since we arrived but we are getting to know the neighborhood. Our apartment is great (Daniel pictured above with lego collection, the one thing we brought in the way of toys). Big by Russian standards with two bedrooms, a living room, hall and kitchen and with gorgeous huge windows that overlook a view of The Peter and Paul Fortress -- the gold domes in picture here.

The city is beautiful and quite European in style and feel.  It's expensive and people are very kind and nice.  Lisa has no idea where she is most of the time, blindly following Volodya around as he silently and masterfully leads us through the majestic landscape of his childhood (there are palaces and gardens everywhere you spit) Lisa who was last here 9 years ago, does what she is told and only occasionally is heard to mutter something like "oh...the circus. I recognize this place....wait, that's the Neva? Where am I??  Wait up!....can we stop for Coffee?  How do you pronounce that street? Oh my god that building is amazing what is it?? Sasha don't run ahead!!!" We are all resting a lot this week and have been to Volodya's family home several times already to eat his mothers Blini and other delicious food and vodka.  "Baba Luda" (Grandma Luda) has never met Daniel and last saw Sasha when he was four so they are being eaten alive with love.  The boys are both crazy for Blini! These are thin Russia crepes with a number of filling options.  There is a blini stand (chain called TERMOK) near out house and we go nearly every day.  Lisa eats her weight each day in black bread and pelmini (Russian dumplings) so expects to return to America obese-ish. Luckily we walk a HUGE amount every day so at least we are working our musculature.

Here is the view from our balcony looking out on our street in a snow storm at night.  You can see the corner wine shop in the photo which gives Lisa much comfort as it is open 24 hours.  The snow is really beautiful here, wet and big and excellent for building and sculpting with.  The boys have spent many hours outside in the nearby Alexander Park (perfect as that is Sashas name) which is our "Central Park". 

After visiting the school today we strolled to the banks of the Neva where the Aurora Battleship is "parked". It was amazing to see and particularly interesting that there was no charge to go on board and look around.  Following are some photos of the ship including Lisa surrendering to the enemy, the deck of the ship and a sleeping and eating area recreation. 

Lisa had to explain how the Soviet Union and America were once enemies to the boys.  Sasha looked sceptically at her and scowled as he pointed out that we both fought the Nazi's together. Hence a history lesson right on the deck of the Aurora, the ship that signaled the start of the revolution in Russia.  Amazing that they have no idea about the fear and horror of the Cold War days, which both their parents remember so well from the two sides of the story.  We each had our own version of "Duck and Cover" growing up.

Sasha is trying to decide whether to buy "a knife, a sword or a gun" here.  Nice.
Here he is trying out a Soviet sword for sale.  The amount of Soviet kitch and genuine artifacts for sale is staggering (put your orders in now folks...it's all really cool).  As for Daniel, he is saving the kopeks he finds on the Metro floor to buy a Matrewshka. 

The boys have picked up some Russian from the family and today purchased books to learn how to write. Lisa will need to begin reading Tennessee Williams tomorrow as she is being asked to "coach" Russian actors who are working on Streetcar and Summer and Smoke.  She is uncertain how to help them except to teach them how to drink whiskey.  By way of procrastination, Lisa has been reading the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and is now onto the next book in the series (in case you were worried that her mind is not active with things weighty and literary).  We have no TV or access to American Hulu, Netflix etc. Nothing streams here.  So, it's a media free lifestyle.  Books are therefore precious.
Lisa has also started teaching at the Academy. She is teaching a version of her class "Creating the Performance" to them including a lot of physical improvisation. Volodya is her translator/co-teacher.  All that is fine.

Finally, we leave you with these lovely gift shop pictures of the leaders of Russia, Putin on the left, Medvedev on the Right. Perhaps the relative size is irrelevant???

We hope this finds you all happy and healthy.  Check in with us when you can!
We will try to post at least weekly....

Oh almost forgot! Today we met with three Minneapolis friends here for a week!  Lisa and Lisa of Linkvostok and Charles from Skewed Visions.  Charles was kind enough to bring Tennessee Williams in English for Lisa.  We will hang out more while they are here this week.  Here we are outside "Dom Kniga"  (House of Books) on Nevsky Prospekt (the big main street of the city) where Lisa bought the novel The Girl who Played with Fire (not Tennessee Williams...) and a map of the city with which she hopes to become less clueless, dependent and annoying.

Paka!
L, V, S and D
*Bonus: Russian word for the day --  сумасшедший (sumasshedshiĭ)  Means "CRAZY"

9 days to go

If you don't see or hear from us this week don't take it personally. We are absolutely NOT ready to leave the country for four months and we are just realizing it. So this is the week of last minute everything.  Packing for three seasons!  Figuring out which books and toys to take!  Getting our house ready for subletters!  Preparing classes for when I get there!  Final plans for boys new schools!  Mental preparation!  Housing!  Visas!

It'a a week of exclamation marks, panic attacks, final social gatherings and copious wine nightly.
The news of the world is so extraordinary right now.  It will be so interesting to watch the way it all unfolds from outside the U.S.  Certain to be a fascinating time. 

Still working on housing and where we will exactly be living but once we know we'll pass it on in case you are in our neighborhood :)
Will post lots of photos here too I'm sure to be sure to check back or "follow" us.

Departure date is set! March 1.

Hi Friends,
This blog will follow the adventures of Daniel Luka and Sasha Channer Rovinsky (and their parents) as they embark on four months of living in St. Petersburg Russia!  Daniel is all set to attend a Montessori School and Sasha will attend the Anglo-American School of St. Petersburg for March - June. They are both hoping for a lot of snow ("hopefully PACKING snow!" - Sasha) and hanging out with their family there.  This will be Sasha's fourth trip to Russia and Daniel's first.
So far, there is little we know for certain about the four months.  It's an open ended adventure is many ways and we are getting excited about starting it!
What we do know:

• Lisa will be teaching at the St. Petersburg State Academy of Theatre Arts as a visiting Fulbright Scholar
• Volodya will be hanging out with friends, colleagues, his daughter Sonia and his mother and sister Ludmilla and Lena Rovinskaya.  
• Lisa will be traveling some to conduct research for a new play, visit other directors and observe new work.  
• Volodya will finish his advanced training in Biomechanics with his teacher Alexei Levinsky in Moscow.  
• We will be living in our own apartment somewhere in the city.
• There will be drinking of vodka.

Follow here as we send updates and observations about life in Russia for two American boys and their parents!