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The countryside…

I know that I am eternally bad at keeping my blog updated, so I thought I’d surprise you all with another post in less than a month!  (No, I’m perfectly healthy and myself… don’t worry about me!)

I took a little trip to the town of Kavalerovo.  It took 8.5 hours by bus to get there.  I slept the whole way, so it seemed like a short ride.  While there, I gave a series of workshops, visited schools, talked to all kinds of creatures, as you can see:

These are some girls singing and dancing for us.  They were so adorable…nervous about performing for me, but doing a great job!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These were some of the best students in the music class.  The teacher is in the middle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ahh…the balalaika! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here I am standing in front of the famous rock.  Being here reminded me of the time my mother took us to the school reunion for the first school she taught in, in Landusky, MT.  I remember a few things from that trip.  Most importantly, anyone who had ever had anything to do with that school was invited to the reunion.  Second, we exhausted all entertainment in the town after the reunion and before leaving that evening (seeing a rock was on the list).  And finally, one student reminded my mother that she had flunked him.  So, here’s the famous rock in Kavalerovo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are the two-day-old chicks we met at the first farm.  They still had their egg teeth.  And, as you can see, this little guy was quite comfortable in my hand.  In what seems to me a cruel twist of fate, these little guys are served grated hard-boiled eggs.  (No, I don’t want to discuss the fact that eggs were their primary source of nutrition and are therefore the best food source for them; I still think it’s cruel…maybe on the part of Mother Nature, then!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quails!  I held one for several minutes.  It did try to mount a fecal attack, but luckily, I was not holding it close to my body or clothing at that particular moment.  I got some of their eggs, which I have not yet cooked, but intend to.  Yum Yum!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A traditional Russian furnace, which is used to heat the whole house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Ustinovka, the mayor came to see me and then invited me to his office.  We discussed the problems in his town (typical small-town problems), and I decided to try to find a sister school for the local school.  There are about 500 people in the town, so I’ll look for a town of approximately the same size.  (Suggestions welcome!)  I was happy to see that they’re interested in ecology and protecting their environment, including the Sea of Japan, as this is not a big concern in many Russian communities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At another farm, there were lots of babies.  I did wonder about why there were little ones so early in the year, but nonetheless, I was glad to see them.  Here are calves and lambs:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here is a little goat.  I fell in love with him, and the farmer offered to give him to me, but I didn’t think he would fit beneath the seat in front of me… at least not in July.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I visited a little museum in a school in Zerkalnoye (pop. 350±).  Here is some cool archaeological stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And in this town, I talked to about a third of the students in the school.  They started asking about President Obama, so I suggested that we write a message and take a picture, which I would then email to him, along with an invitation to visit the area.  It will be interesting to see if President Obama answers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also visited a classroom that had an antique school desk in it.  I sat in it and gave writing with a dip pen a try.  The teacher inspected my work and gave me a 5 (in other words, an A).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I visited a karate class.  The instructor was the driver/”security” for my stay there.  Security from what, you ask… well, if you have any ideas, go ahead and post replies.  I still haven’t figured it out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And… a final picture from the trip.  This is not even half of the souvenirs.  The kids gave me tons of their artwork and little treasures.  One little boy wanted to give me something, but didn’t have anything with him, so he gave me his pen (it’s lime green at the top of the picture)!  A couple of ladies gave me cutting boards that they painted.  You can see the matrioshka dolls that a teacher gave me.  A shy girl approached me and presented me with the doily that she had made.  There are also wood and straw housewares presented to me by a refreshingly honest and kind shop teacher.  In the basket are the quail eggs.  Alas, I carried more home than I took with me, and I take magazines, handouts, and other materials, so I felt loaded down when I went!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So… a couple of other notes about the trip.  I almost got to the Sea of Japan, but instead I got to help push a car out of a snow drift.  Ahh, life is grand!  Also noteworthy is the return trip.  The weather was horrible.  We saw at least a dozen cars in the ditch from the safety (if not warmth and total comfort) of the bus.  There were a few accidents, as well.  When we got to Ussurisk, an hour to an hour and a half from Vladivostok, the bus was not allowed to continue.  So, at that point, I followed my fellow passengers to a microbus that took us to the city.  It took about two hours… all fourteen of us cozied up inside.  All in all, the return trip took about twelve hours.  But I still want to go back and am hoping to have the opportunity in the summer!  What fresh air and lovely people!

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