A new system...

So, yeah. It's been a while since I've updated. I thought I would update more once I got my computer. However, I haven't updated the stuff from the second half of the trip, so I kept feeling like I couldn't post something about Moscow until after I covered the stuff that came before it. Well, I kinda gave up on that. I promise it will come. I promise. Just right now I can't sit down all at once and do it. ...Or even enough that would constitute a post... So, Moscow...

I have this new system. I always sit on the metro and think about thing that I should tell you guys. However, by the time I get around to posting, I forget it all. So, I have a new system. I just remember the first letters of all the things I want to talk about, and make them into a word. The letters trigger the topic and then I get to tell you all about it.

Today's word: OMITS

We'll start with M. Moles. The Russian population is a lot more mole-y than the American population. Sooooooo many people have them. On the metro I see people with huuuuge moles on their faces. I don't understand it. I have been told that they just don't get them removed like we do in America. That may be true. However, I find it highly unlikely that droves of Americans are heading to the dermatologist every year to get things cut off their faces. I would love to know, evolutionarily, why Russians have so many moles. What makes this a desirable trait to pass on to future generations? :-D

You're going to like I, I promise! ICE CREAM. Russians love ice cream. They eat it year-round. It'll be the middle of winter and people will be eating ice cream on the street! There's all kinds. Russian's favorite "to go" ice cream is the эскимо (eskimo, trans. "ice cream on a stick"). There's more kinds that you could ever imagine! And now that it's actually spring, I see someone eating one every day. Mmmm...

T is for Transport. As you all know, Ann Arbor is not the world's biggest place. 10-15 mins of walking and you're already where you want to be, and that's at my leisurely pace. I'd kind of forgotten about that recently. Here, it's at least 10-15 mins of walking PLUS 30-60 mins on the metro. Driving or taking the bus for a half an hour to get somewhere is never going to bother me again! Also, when you're walking or driving somewhere, if you're late you feel like you can at least do something to make yourself less late. Here, if I leave my apartment 5 mins late, I can walk the 8 mins to the metro in 7 and the 5 mins to my school in 4. Other than that, it's just sitting or standing and waiting with nothing to do! I miss my маленький город (mall-en-key gore-uhd, trans. "little city")!

So, I realize that my system doesn't work too well. It really only works if you end up writing the post in the same day. Or, maybe, within a hour after you come up with your acronym. I had forgotten both O and S for the LONGEST time. Now, after 2 weeks or so, I've remembered what they are. So, here we go.

O is for Old people. Russia has a demographic crisis right now. Basically, too many people are dying and they're not pumping out babies like they used to. Just like in America, the baby boomers are getting older and so our "greatest generation" is, unfortunately, becoming weak and feeble. It seems like everyone in Russia is old. And a woman. And they're slow. Oh, so slow. And they're always walking in front of me. Especially when I'm late. I'll be walking in a metro transfer that's wide enough to fit two people walking next to each other, and I'll come upon a little бабушка (BA-boosh-ka, trans. "grandmother") who's walking smack in the center of the hallway. No room on the left, no room on the right, just takin' our sweet time getting through the transfer. Sometimes I just turn sideways and squeeze by, but sometimes I feel oppositional and stand at their side with my arm touching theirs until they realize that they're not the only person in Moscow at the moment and move over! Now, you're probably thinking, "Ohhh, poor little old lady getting practically beat up by Kendra!" But they're not helpless little old ladies! They're mean, they're rude, and they think that just because they're old, all of this is okay! It's not okay, and I'm here to tell them. Well, everyone tends to tell them nowadays. They mostly keep their mouths shut, but they're quick to shoot you a look of severe disapproval. They're also a prime example of the truthful saying, "Don't make that face, or it will stick that way!" Hehehe.

S is for STINKY. Oh my does Moscow have an unpleasant smell. There are certain smells that are identifiable and easily described. Like, our stairwell generally smells like a dumpster. There is a reason for this: we have a trash shoot in our stairwell, and only living on the third floor, we aren't far enough away from the dumpster where they fall to. Entryways and hallways mostly smell like port-o-potties (Russian: той-той, toy-toy). Even the entryway/hallway to the building of our school smells this way. The street can smell like anything: dog poop, car exhaust, vomit, rotting flesh, etc. However, there's this one smell that I just completely associate with Moscow. It's utterly indescribable, and therefore the only way to know what it is, is to come here and smell it. I'm not going to even try, but for those of you who've been here, you know what I mean. It's really gross, but I guess you get used to it. The smells have started getting stronger since the snow's melted. Of course, loving snow and cold, I have to come here on the year they have all-time high temperatures in March and April. Blech. I miss the snow, and all stinky things on the street being frozen.

Anyway, now that I've posted this out of order (there will still be at least one travel post to come), I'll hopefully be able to convince myself that it's okay to post more. I've got less than six weeks left in Moscow, and I feel like I should try and get all the thoughts down before I'm back in America reminiscing. :-D

I'm going to try and post some more pictures later today. Make sure you check them out! :-)