All Caught Up

Sunday, 18 May
After a day to recoup a bit from jet-lag, Sunday was spent on an excursion to a nearby town called Suzdal, which--along with our town of Vladimir--formerly served as the capital of ancient "Rus," before it was known as "Russia."

It was about a 30-minute van ride out to Suzdal, which allowed us the opportunity to see the beautiful Russian countryside that's inspired authors and artists for centuries. When we arrived, our first stop was at a site that utilized historical reenactors, performers, and craftspeople, all wearing traditional clothes of course, to tell the story of Suzdal throughout these many centuries. In front of our eyes, baskets and flowers were being crafted out of wood, and small bowls were being formed on the pottery wheel. Here, we got to go inside homes that once belonged to various aristocratic and middle-class families of the region and were treated to a traditional Russian folk song that told a story to the effect of the following: "A man was in love and ready to marry. People in the town kept bringing him things, asking if he was satisfied. First, someone brought him a horse and asked, 'Is this enough?' He said no. Next, someone brought him some money and asked, 'Is this enough?' He said no again. Finally, someone brought to him his lover and asked, 'Is this enough?' At last, he said yes. 'She is all I need.'" While listening, I had no idea what was being said, and only after did our group leader, David, interpret for us, but it was moving; the music, the clothing, the setting--it really takes you back in time.

Next in Suzdal, we visited cathedral after cathedral, monastery after monastery, museum after museum the duration of the day, stopping only to listen to a ten-minute performance by a man skillfully playing the church bells. By bouncing around and pulling various cords, he did this all on his own, which was really amazing! We also stopped for a brief but delicious four-course Russian meal at a restaurant where some Russian movie, whose title I forget, was filmed. The view from the restaurant was also very nice.

After this, our exhausted group went to the American Home for the first time, where we were amused to find that the place does, in fact, look like your stereotypical American-style home, though with even more Americana lining the walls. This is the organization that is hosting our trip, and it is the organization through which, I found out, David started learning Russian after he visited here to teach English. Though he's dedicated the past 15+ years to studying Russian and is fluent to the point that (a) he's now a Russian professor and (b) I thought he was maybe a native speaker with Russian relatives because of how natural and precise his speech is, he didn't actually start learning Russian until after he graduated from university, and this gives me hope that I can learn at least a little during my four weeks of study here. (Note: Finally, as of Day 5, I feel comfortable using the formal word for "hello." It's a mouthful, and my muscles are still getting used to the different movements required for Russian pronunciation.)

Anyway, on this evening a welcome party was held in our honor at the American Home, and local Russian university students from the history and foreign languages departments joined in the festivities. We were just expecting food and small talk, but the American Home arranged for three historical reenactors to come from the Vladimir history museum, in full traditional garb, to sing and play instruments (including a balalaika!) and dance and lead us in traditional Russian games. It was a lot of fun, and the weather was beautiful. We had Russian sweets and tea and kvas from a bowl and traditional Russian spoon/scoop things. Lena came to retrieve me, after which we drove back to her place with her friend, had some tea, and then set out for a stroll through the city before returning home and calling it a day.

Monday, 19 May
Today was our day of Russian lessons, and my first-ever official Russian lesson. There was some miscommunication, though, as I ended up leaving my Russian tutor--my host, Lena--at home, because I didn't realize she would actually also be my instructor. Instead, I got drilled on the alphabet and pronunciation for an hour by three people: two Russians (hosts and leaders of the American Home Alexei and Galina Petrovna) and David (trip leader and Russian professor). It was intense, and after that short period of time my brain was completely exhausted. After our lessons, we experienced our first Russian tea time as a group. How we manage without something like this in the US, I have no idea.

Today was also our first work day, and we spent it at the Association for the Parents of Handicapped Children. Here, we mowed the lawns, trimmed shrubs, pulled weeds, and got tan (or maybe just sunburned--only time will tell). We got a tour of the outstanding association, which is funded entirely by sponsors, mainly the parents of handicapped children themselves, which provides something like fifteen different services and classes--all free of charge--to, currently, over 70 families in the Vladimir area. They have a legal team, a horse-riding therapy program, speech-language pathologists, a preschool, a program at a local school for deaf children, and the list goes on and on. Because of my work in the Child Language & Literacy Lab at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center, I found the latter three programs particularly interesting.

After the tour of the facilities, we walked to lunch at a nearby school, where we were granted the opportunity to eat in the cafeteria and--as it happened--to talk with some middle-schoolers and exchange thoughts, questions, and jokes about each others' country. The little guys were really cute, and I think they were rather happy about having Americans, particularly three older American girls, in their presence. ;)

Following lunch and several pictures, our group went back to the Association's building and were charged with the task of pulling weeds and trimming hedges along the sidewalk in front of the building. We finished more quickly than expected, despite the heat and the relatively large area we needed to cover. When we were done, we went inside, where we were rewarded with tea and sweets.

I caught the bus back to Lena's, took a shower, got ready, and headed back to the American Home to meet up with the group to ride to the concert we were scheduled to see. The concert featured ~100 local youth of all ages performing choral pieces (of pop music, though, including "Rockin' Robin" [or, "Rockin' RobEEN," as they pronounced it, hehe] "Benny and the Jets," "I Believe I Can Fly," "At Last," and a Russian translation of the song "Firework." Some pieces were performed by soloists, and overall the concert was really impressive and lots of fun for us. It was nice to be off our feet after all the activity--to sit back, relax, and enjoy the show, as they say--and we were very amused.

Once the show was over, I went back home to Lena, had dinner, and went out to meet her best friend, Gleb, to walk around. Gleb drove the three of us to Vladimir's Central Park, where we walked and talked for hours and even, as the sun went down, playing Nat King Cole, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Cole Porter, etc. The classic, nostalgic music, the picturesque surroundings, and the falling of night in the park made for a real "movie moment." In this moment, too, I thought to myself that all's right with the world, and that people are truly the same everywhere. "They" are "us," no matter how hard politicians and media may try to convince us otherwise, and here, in the heart of Russia--America's sworn enemy for years--I was singing and dancing to the same songs I listen to in Nashville, with Russian peers. If the fact that the young people here know our music, TV shows, and movies better than we do is any indication, I'd say there's nothing to fear in the future between our two countries--no matter what Putin, Obama, the European Union, or any other administration or international organization says. As Bobby Darin wrote in 1969, "Now no doubt some folks enjoy doin' battle/ Like presidents, prime ministers, and kings/ So let us build them shelves/ Where they can fight among themselves/ And leave the people be who like to sing!"

It was a wonderful night in the park, and after the park we drove several minutes outside the city center for a gorgeous view overlooking the entire town. Here, the air was fresh, and you could clearly see the stars! It was quiet and peaceful despite the fact that others had driven up to the same spot, too, in order to catch the view, and all I could keep saying was, "We don't have this in Nashville...." The memory of this night is something that, I think and hope, will live with me forever.

Tuesday, 20 May
Today would normally have begun with a Russian lesson, but--already on Day 2--Lena and I rebelled (not really). Lena's English professor invited me to come speak to their class at the institute where she studies here in Vladimir, so I was really excited and got permission to visit her class this morning so long as we made up my missed hour of Russian instruction at some point that day (we did).

Going to Lena's class was really a learning experience for me, and I think I probably got more out of it than any of the students did. Their questions, despite the language barrier--and Lena interpreted a lot of the time; she rocks!--reflected what I've been told many times since I got here: Vladimir doesn't usually get many foreigners; to have an American visitor is really special and exciting. I was asked simple things, about Nashville and my studies, about whether I liked Russia and Vladimir, but I was also asked more probing questions: "What was your first impression of Russia? What is the strangest thing you've seen here since arriving? Do you think Russians and Americans are more similar to or more different from each other, and why? What is your opinion on Crimea and Ukraine? On Putin?" Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stay the entire time, as Lena and I had to head back to the American Home so I could meet my group for sight-seeing and more touring of the city, but it was a wonderful experience, and I'm going to have to study up on current popular music and cultural stuff before I return, hopefully next week. I took and left three issues of TIME magazine so that their class can get a feel for American media--for the kinds of ideas being generated in the US right now, the opinions being proffered, the problems and solutions being discussed, the values being promoted, and the images of other countries that we are fed. With the help of their professor, I hope they will be able to get some use out of these magazines, but even if the written language is too much of a challenge right now, pictures still speak a thousand words.

At the bus stop, Lena, her friend Angela, and I continued our conversation outside the classroom and--using Lena as an interpreter--talked about freedom, beliefs, stereotypes, and so on. These conversations with my Russian peers are more enlightening than I ever imagined or anticipated, and for that I am grateful.

Back at the American Home, we had a quick tea time before heading downstairs for the first lecture of our trip, given by a local professor of political science at the Vladimir wing of the Russian Presidential Institute. He was very knowledgeable and witty and gave a presentation entitled, "Modern Russia: From Past to Future." His main points were that (1) geography is destiny; (2) demography shows the future of a country; and (3) "history as past path dependency"--I think what he meant here was that a country's future is dependent on its history and its historical trajectory. He spoke for about an hour, then opened the floor for questions from our group, and though I might've annoyed the man I took advantage of the opportunity to finally ask a question that, along with my dad, I've long wondered (will fill in his responses later): Russian identity seems confused, swaying between the two poles of the tsarist/imperialist era and the Soviet era. So, who are Russians? What is Russian national identity? Are Russians, indeed, as confused as it seems from a Western perspective?

I also had the chance to ask him his opinions and predictions for Putin's actions in Crimea and Ukraine and about whether or not he thought that Russia hosting the Olympics this winter in Sochi helped any to unite Russians and to help them forge or rediscover a common national identity in a now-post-Soviet world. This was a fantastic opportunity, and luckily he will give two more lectures to us during our time here in Vladimir. Next week, he will lecture specifically on Putin, so I am looking forward to that.

The rest of the day was spent touring the city after we left the American Home and went next door for a big, hearty, four-course Russian lunch. Thanks to Lena, I had already seen all of the places we visited--the Golden Gates, formerly the entrance to ancient Vladimir, and two beautiful cathedrals dating back 900+ years.

For the evening, our Vanderbilt group had been graciously invited to dinner at the apartment shared by some students in the foreign languages department of Vladimir State University, who knew of our arrival and wanted to talk to us about life in the US. They prepared a delicious meal, complete with the best-tasting, local ice cream. Even the juice was outstanding, and the six of us--dried out after a long day walking through the city--downed a couple bottles before the actual meal was even served.

We talked for several hours, laughing and discussing our cultures' stereotypes and asking each other questions, and then our hosts--six Russian girls--had us play some games to get to know each other before breaking out Twister! It was a fun night, and I went to sleep not long after returning home to Lena's after dinner.

Wednesday, 21 May
The word "exhausted" doesn't begin to cover it, but neither does the word "happy." It sounds cheesy and cliché, but I really am having the time of my life here. It is a completely different experience in every way from my summer in Berlin: I'm living with a host family, trying to learn a new language from scratch, am here for purposes of service-learning on what the State Department considers a "common humanitarian" visit, I'm "older and wiser," I came not knowing anyone in my group, it's a smaller group (and we're already close to the point that we can tease each other constantly with no hurt feelings), and, of course, I'm in a different, arguably Eurasian country, in a small town (unlike Berlin) in the midst of an ongoing political crisis between this country and mine.

Anyway, today began with a Russian lesson at the American Home with Lena, during which time I was again drilled on pronunciation and forced to read words until my brain seemed to melt. Lena and I are having a good time, though, and it's neat having her as my tutor beyond just my host.

After the Russian lesson, Lena headed out for her classes, and I headed downstairs with the group for our second lecture--actually, three smaller lectures, presented by local students at Vladimir State University. One of the girls spoke on problems facing contemporary Russia (namely, a declining population), another spoke about traditional Russian wedding customs, and the third girl gave a talk about challenges that face young Russian families in particular. These were informative talks that also allowed the students to practice their English, and again we were able to ask many questions, which they often answered and then flipped to inquire about how things are in the US.

This lasted about two hours, and then our group headed out to have yet another delicious, traditional Russian lunch at a nearby restaurant. At this juncture, I realized I left my cell phones at the American Home, and thankfully they were, indeed, there, and someone was kind enough to run them over to me while we were still at lunch. Crisis averted.

After lunch, we piled into a bus, drove about half an hour outside the city center, made a quick kompot (type of fruit drink) stop, where we drank two full bottles within minutes, then left, walked through a very industrial part of whatever town or part of town, and finally made it to our work site, where we worked to dig holes and clean up trash and debris from a plot of land given to three residents by the local government in order to establish a shelter for dogs and puppies who are stray or have been abandoned. We saw two big doggies and five puppies today, and lots of kisses were given and received all afternoon. We got some really cute pictures out of it, too, but it was a good experience that made us all feel like we were actually serving and not just learning.

After returning home and eating dinner, Lena and I went to the park to meet up with a guy named Timur ("Tim"), whom we had met several nights earlier in the same park while taking a walk around town. He heard us speaking English, so he came up to us and started talking, asking where I was from, etc. By the end of the first conversation, he wanted to know if I would "go for a walk" with him sometime. As an American, this sounded like a veiled invitation on a date. I talked with Lena--who, ironically, was explaining Russian dating culture to me at the very moment that he came up and started talking to us--and she assured me that, here, at least in this context wherein he was a complete stranger to me, going for a walk simply means "going for a walk." Reassured, I accepted, and we agreed that the three of us would meet up sometime soon so he could "practice his English."

Side note: At this point, I have to add that our discussion on Russian dating culture made me realize just how ambiguous the American dating culture is. Of course, these are generalizations. But Lena seemed amused that I would think of getting asked on a walk by a complete stranger as getting asked out on a date. Yet, back home, I find that people aren't clear with their intentions, and so you naturally fear the worst [or jump to conclusions, however you want to see it]. In the US, something as simple as "going for a walk" has connotations of "something more," even though you're not really sure what that "something more" is. People walk much more here than they do back in the States, or at least certainly more than in Nashville, so maybe that's also a part of it; walking is commonplace here, whereas back in Nashville it's more reserved for special occasions in parks, since not everywhere is pedestrian-friendly, and the general culture is more supportive of driving than walking.

Anyway, tonight, I had some free time, so Lena and I met up with Tim and walked around the city for a couple of hours. Even though we got eaten alive by bugs and I was exhausted as usual, it was a lot of fun. Tim's only studied English for 2.5 years he said, but he speaks incredibly well, and it was really interesting for me to hear his opinions about different facets of life and politics in Russia. And it really was nice to simply "go for a walk" without having to tacitly agree to a social encounter in which one of the parties may or may not have "ulterior" motives. :)