Amsterdam

As all great adventures do, the weekend in Amsterdam began innocently enough. After the harrowing adventure of taking the Russian bus to Helsinki, I spent the night at the same hostel I was at the first time I was here – the one in the old Olympic Stadium. It’s a great place, mostly because it has free wireless internet (and when I’m connected to it, my IP address says that I am in a place called Espoo – isn’t that just the coolest name for a city EVER!?). I did however find one downside to staying in the Olympic Stadium this time. Apparently it is still used rather often to host sporting events. Whilst I slept on Wednesday night, Ireland and Finland were duking it out on the futbol field. Of course, I have no idea who was victorious, nor do I really care. But it was kind of interesting falling asleep to the sound of cheering fans and commentary (in English) for a game I couldn’t see (it was on the other side of the wall). I think it may have influenced my dreams that night, but I’m not going to go there. This entry will be interesting enough without throwing that into the mix.

Since I had been awake for nearly 36 hours (sleeping on a bus is hard, especially when a very talkative old Russian lady is sitting next to you and taking up half of your seat as well), it was no problem for me to get to bed at a decent hour that night. I fell asleep (as the game was reaching its climax, judging from the sounds) at about 10:30 – plenty early to get a good night’s sleep before jet-setting to Amsterdam. My flight was leaving rather early, and with the big hullabaloo that has surrounded international flights as of late, I decided that it would be wise to give myself extra time to get to the gate. I woke up at about 4:30 (how I managed that, I’m not quite sure – must have been the excitement) and was out the door by 5:00. There is a nice shuttle bus that runs to the airport every 20 minutes from 5 am to 2 am every day from a hotel down the street, so getting to the airport was really easy.

When I got there, I realized that I had been worried for nothing. In less than 10 minutes, I was checked in, through security and at my departure gate. It was the quickest check-in I’ve ever been through. 10 MINUTES!!! And that’s even including having to go through security twice, because bike locks are apparently dangerous items, so I had to go and check mine that was attached to my backpack. Of course, I’m not going to complain. It was awesome. I had plenty of time for an espresso and a muffin before the flight (which I wouldn’t have splurged for if I had known ahead of time that breakfast was going to be served on the flight – a mistake I did not repeat when I flew back). These are just more reasons why I really like FinnAir. It all started because they had student discounts, and things just kept getting better from there.

As the plane landed and we were taxiing to the gate, I tried to calculate how long it had been since I had seen Chris. I believe the last time was at our annual spring luncheon with everyone’s favorite benefactor, Mrs. McDermott. That would make it about five months since the last time we hung out. And it had been over three months since I’ve seen any of my friends at all (with the exception of John Keese, who I ran into randomly in Salzburg in May). Needless to say, I was extremely excited when I finally found Chris in the baggage claim area. His evening had been a bit more interesting than mine. Apparently the earliest train from Lausanne (where his lab is) to Geneva (the nearest airport) wasn’t early enough for his flight, so he spent the night sitting outside the Geneva airport. Luckily the guards were understanding and didn’t give him too much trouble about it. (I can only imagine how Lindsey’s 24 hours in the Warsaw airport must have been last week – probably not nearly as nice as Switzerland. Sorry – another digression).

It was at this point that I realized that I had forgotten to write down directions to the hostel that we may or may not have had a reservation for (another long story). So where do we go? Well, we hopped on the train to the central station, figuring that would be a good starting point for the search. We were right on. There are loads of hotel-booking places and tourist information spots surrounding the train station, and we were able to get our hands on a list of ALL the hostels (with addresses and phone numbers) in the center of Amsterdam. We decided that it would be best to try first the one we had intended to stay at all along – the Witte Tulp (White Tulip, in case your Dutch is a little rusty). Making a reservation here had proved to be impossible, mostly due to the complete incompetence of the staff. Fortunately though, they had room for us for three nights. It was a bit expensive but all accommodation is in Amsterdam, especially where we were.

On a side note, I love the houses that line the canals – they are really tall (several stories) and deep, but very narrow. And all the staircases seem to be the same – really, REALLY steep. It saves a lot of space. Of course, getting up these steps late in the evening can be an adventure all on its own.

After we made it up the stairs to the dorm room, we realized just how close we were to the center of things. I knew we were in the red-light district, but didn’t know that the hostel backed up to the alley behind the Old Church, which is one of the main stretches of red lights, if you know what I mean. If you stuck your head out the window, you could see several of the ladies working late into the evening. And you could always tell how late it was at night by the level of rowdiness on the street.

Of course, we didn’t spend all our time in the red-light district. There is a lot more to Amsterdam than just brothels and coffeeshops. Aafke (my Dutch friend from the dorm in St. Petersburg) would be proud. We spent a lot of time just exploring and going to different museums. We made it to the Rembrandt house (it was cool being there in the year of his 400^th birthday) and saw a really cool exhibit on his printmaking. And of course, we had to go to the Van Gogh Museum and Rijksmuseum. Much of the Rijksmuseum is under renovation, so they had a big exhibition of all their masterpieces up. Erica would have loved it, especially the Vermeer room. Oh wait, she’s already been there :-D.

We also went to a really cool museum that was just down the street from the hostel. Apparently a few hundred years ago it was illegal to practice Catholicism, but the authorities were willing to turn a blind eye if the place of worship in no way resembled a church from the outside. Therefore, there were a bunch of hidden churches throughout the city, one of which is still intact and has been restored to what it would have looked like then. It’s called Our Lord in the Attic and really worth the visit if you’re ever in Amsterdam.

We also felt it was necessarily to rent bicycles for at least one of the days. Bikes are everywhere in Amsterdam – when you cross the street, that’s what you have to look out for more often than cars or trolleys. It was really nice being able to roam all over the city the way everyone else does. We rode over to the Vondelpark, and liked that part of town so much that we spent most of the day there. I love big parks like that – it’s so nice to just relax in the middle of the day, or have a picnic and people-watch all through the afternoon. It made me miss Zilker Park just a bit. Of course, the weather is much better here than in Texas right now (I hope the rain comes soon, guys). It only rained the last day that we were in Amsterdam – the rest of the stay was perfect weather.

And being there with a biologist, we had to go to the flower market. Chris bought a bunch of tulip bulbs (that mostly what they have at this time of year). I would have bought some too, but don’t really have room in my bags – I’ve got enough stuff already. And I definitely didn’t have room for any wooden shoes, another of Chris’ purchases. I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to take home many souvenirs for people – for me, my pictures are my souvenirs. I have bought a patch for my camera bag for every country – it’s going to look awesome!

One thing that Chris and I agree on is that French fries with mayonnaise is one of the best things EVER! We had sooooo many. I don’t know what kind of oil they’re cooked in, or if that’s even the reason why they’re different, but they are sooooooo good. My favorite was the Mannekin Pis (yeah, you read that right, even if I didn’t spell it quite right) frites stand – conveniently located just a few blocks from home.

Overall, I think the trip was a great success. We got to hang out and have a good time, just relaxing and seeing the sites. I have to say that there isn’t much else in this world that can surprise me after some parts of the city, but I think that’s part of the charm. I hope that I can go back, soon and often. And know I have a friend there, so I have a great excuse.

Now that I’m back in Helsinki, I have to get down to business. I need to get my new Russian visa. I was going to do that today, but circumstances somewhat out of my control prevented that from happening. Apparently the consulate is only open from 9 til noon. I don’t get it – the world’s largest country and their consulate in a bordering nation is only open for three hours five days a week. That’s Russia though – not the biggest on tourism. I was able to talk to the lady at the train station into selling me a ticket to St. Petersburg without a visa. Logic eventually won her over – if I wait until Thursday when I finally have my visa in hand, the odds of there still being a seat on that particular train are pretty slim. And I have to be on that train – my train from St. Petersburg to Moscow leaves on Friday night at 11, and I can’t enter the country until Friday, so I must be on the 7.45 train from Helsinki. But I have my ticket in hand – now I just need my visa. Tomorrow. Then I’ll find a bicycle to rent and go on a little adventure of my own. Hehehe. I’m excited. Three whole days to explore at my own pace. Then onward. To Siberia. Crap. I’m insane.

Swiss Chris

Chris is quite possibly the coolest person on the planet. How many friends do you know who would fly to Amsterdam with (long) underwear and swiss chocolates just to hang out with you? I'm guess not many. I can't wait til tomorrow morning. It's going to be one hell of a weekend.

"And so I find myself ... conflicted"

[If you can identify that quote, you win a prize] That's how I would describe myself as I crossed the border from Russia back into Finland. I decided to save some money and take the bus to Helsinki last night instead of the train. It wasn't bad at all. There were a lot of very talkative old ladies who only spoke Russian, but that was to be expected.
I can't quite decide how I feel today. I'm glad to be moving on, that's for sure. But I'm not sure if it's due to my tendency to get fed up with staying in one place for too long or because the country was driving me up the wall. It's probably both. Russia is definitely an ... interesting experience. And coming back to Helsinki has accentuated how different it really is.
I didn't realize how much I like Helsinki until we pulled in this morning and I saw all the familiar buildings surrounding me. It's so clean and charming. And there is a lot more of a western feeling about the city. For example, I went to the grocery store this morning to get something for breakfast. I was completely oblivious to the fact that the produce section had those little self-service sticker-makers like we have at home and got in line to pay for my yogurt, [real] milk, and apple. When the checker lady saw that I didn't have a sticker she asked about it and I said I didn't know - she simply went to get one put on it. I was rather embarrassed and apologized profusely to the woman behind - who smiled understandingly at my inability to function in the western world. In Russia, the situation would have been completely different. The checker would have freaked out and run screaming from the register. Okay, maybe not. But it would have been a much bigger deal. In fact, I made a somewhat similar mistake one day in St. Petersburg and the results were terrifying. Also, if it had been a Russian lady behind me in line, she would have started yelling at me, and would have started yelling even louder if I said I was foreign and didn't know any better.
As harsh as situations such as this may sound, I definitely missing the uniquiness of St. Petersburg. It's a personality of it's own. I can't wait to go to Irkutsk. I have a feeling that it will be completely different, not only from St. Petersburg but from anywhere I've ever been.
But first, I have to survive a weekend in Amsterdam.
The countdown has begun. T-minus 17 hours and 45 minutes.

The last day...

I have been dreading the coming of this day - my last full day in St. Petersburg. The sad thing is, I've spent most of it taking care of all the little errands I need to complete before I leave. But more on that in a second - I want to start from the beginning of the last 24 hours.
When I got home from the internet cafe yesterday, I ran into Ksush downstairs in the dorm, and ended up helping her pack hurriedly because she was leaving for the Caucauses by the night train and had to move all her stuff back to our old room before leaving. Then we made a quick blini run and said our goodbyes. One more friend gone. It's sad having everyone leave. But such is life.
But then, not two minutes after I left Ksusha downstairs, Aafke (my fellow student from Amsterdam) dropped by to see if I was bored too, and we ended up sitting around having a good time doing nothing until late into the evening. It's amazing how quickly the time can fly when you're just hanging out, but it seems to move so slowly when you can't wait to be somewhere.
At that point I was pretty tired, so I went to bed so that I could get up early and do ALL my laundry. Which I did. It was fabulous. Now I can pack without worrying about seperating dirty pants from clean ones.
When I got back to the 18th floor from my laundryroom escapades, the "Obshezhitiye Babushka" was busy doing her fortnightly cleaning of the halls and changing of the sheets. No problem - pretty cool actually that my last night here will be nice and clean. But then not two minutes after I arrived, a flood of other babushkas arrived, who kept on saying to me, "Tarakani, tarakani!" ("Cockroaches, cockroaches!"). Well, you know me and cockroaches - we're arch enemies. And here I was thinking that these ladies were annoucing an invasion. Turns out they just wanted to treat the room for bugs. A little preventative maintainance goes a long way so I've heard. It was a funny encounter nonetheless.
Afterwards, I went to the university with the false hope of acquiring my transcript. It wasn't ready when they said it would be - fancy that. So now I have to go back tomorrow morning, when I was planning on making one last trip to the Hermitage :-(. But I need the transcript, so I'll have to make the sacrifice. I just wish people would do what they say they're going to do when they say they're going to do it. But I can't control that.
I did get one other thing done this afternoon. I went to the Hotel Oktyaberskaya to inquire about a bus ticket to Helsinki. I had been told be various reliable sources that there is a daily bus from the hotel that is much cheaper than the Finnish busline. And it was. For the bargain price of $15, I'll be on my way to Helsinki at 22.00 tomorrow evening. Joy of joys.
Now if I can just find out what's going on with my Amsterdam accomadations, I'll be all set.
Oh yeah, and I still have to pack.
And write my essay for Elena.
And find somewhere to store my stuff for the next two weeks.
Oh crap - the countdown has begun...

Now I'm scared of the dark

Lindsey's gone :-(. It kind of bums me out that I'm now the only one left in our little flat at the dorm (though being alone is much better than spending one more second with Katya). Last night was the first night that I have slept in a room by myself in 3 and a half months! It sort of creeped me out, especially since the nights have gotten noticably darker than they were when I arrived (I don't think we actually had nights then).
It was nice though to relax and just be by myself. I read a lot last night. I'm so close to the end of One Hundred Years of Solitude that I'm finding it difficult to do much else. I had to get out of the dorm today though. I'm leaving here on Tuesday night and I can't spend my days just sitting on my butt reading (as fun as that is). I was going to go to the Hermitage one last time today, but there was a line stretching all the way across the garden. Even though I could have gone in the employee entrance with my pass, I didn't want to deal with a crowd that size. I can't enjoy art when there are fifty bazillion other people just walking around, without any regard for others or a real desire to enjoy the art. I'll try to go back on Tuesday before I leave.
I did manage to make it to the Pushkin museum finally. It was hidden because they are restoring the building. But I got in and it was nice. And short, which is a plus. Sometimes these "apartment of _____" museums are way too indepth - the have a tendency to bore me to death. But I liked this one. Very simple.
I'm supposed to eat lunch with Ksusha today (former roommate), but I'm still waiting for her call. "Lunch" is a relative thing here - it means a meal anytime between the hours of 1 pm and 5 pm. So maybe not eating breakfast this morning was a bad idea. But I want to save room for the delicious pizza that will be filling my belly soon.
If any of you want to chat with me, you better call me before Tuesday night. That'll be the last day that I'm sure to get your call when you call. I'm not sure how roaming works with this cell. And I might have to get another number when Im in siberia. But you'll always be able to reach me (though maybe not immediately) by calling 254-230-1818.
Toodles!

Feoder is my new hero

I realize in retrospect that my last few posts have been rather harsh in respect to Katya my *couch* Russian roommate. To prove that I have managed to make some friends here, I would like to present Feoder as one of the coolest people on the planet.
Most of the friends I've made here have been fellow foreigners living in the dorms - French, Dutch, Swiss, Italian..., the list goes on and on. This is due mostly to the fact that a lot of the Russian students have gone home for the summer and I therefore have had more contact with others staying for the summer programs, which are mostly language studies. Feoder was one of my neighbors when I was living on the 9th floor (he lives with Charles, the guy from Paris). He is one of the few Russians left in the building because he has a job here in town.
Why, you may ask, is Feoder my new hero? Well, unlike Katya, he is someone who actually does what he says he is going to do, and even goes out of his way to help poor little foreigners like myself. I have been trying for the past week to buy a train ticket to Moscow without much luck, because the train company doesn't seem to find it necessary to hire bilingual people to work at the ticket booths (not only do they only speak Russian, but they are all quite rude and even insulted me when I tried to buy a ticket in the Russian that I do know). I asked Katya to go to the train station with me at her convenience, but she was too tired (not too tired to go out and party or too tired to keep me up until all hours of the morning on a school night by watching MTV, just too tired to help me do something for a change). It suddenly clicked that Feoder might be willing to help. He said yes immediately, and even left work early today to go to the ticket office with me. And got me a cheaper ticket that what I was expecting. Once again I need to quote Terri Hendrix - "Say what you're gonna do, and do what you say." Feoder, you win the prize for the coolest Russian alive. Katya - try harder next time.
The other cool thing about Feoder - every anecdote begins with "When I was in the army - the RUSSIAN army, you know...." Here you have to imagine a thick Russian accent and a bottle of beer in hand.
Neighbors rock.
Now I have to head back to the dorms. The first in a long line of going away parties is about to begin.

The days just seem to move quicker as my departure from St. Petersburg approaches. Not only to I want to see as much of the city as possible before I go, but I also have so much stuff to do. I just bought my train ticket to Irkutsk, but I still have to buy my ticket to Moscow (which is actually proving to be MORE difficult - go figure) and a bus ticket to Helsinki and back. I did find someone to let me store my big bag when I go Helsinki and Amsterdam, so I don't have to cart everything around with me. I have to keep reminding myself not to stress out over everything.
I'm starting to get a bit nervous about my classes in Irkutsk. Apparently there's only one other American guy that I know of in the program. Hmmm. It would help if I were fluent in Russian, but I'm an decidedly not. I think it will be alright though. Only one of my classes is with a bunch of Russian students - the languages classes will be easy and the Siberian Studies track will be one-on-one, so I'll be able to stop the intructor when I'm not understanding. I have a feeling though that my Russian is going to get a lot better very soon. It has to. Otherwise I'm screwed.
Of course, there's always the random British guy that I met who is living there, so I'm not to worried about finding my way around the city. As he put it, it's always nice to have someone that you can speak to in rapid English.
As much as I'm dreading leaving here there are a few things I won't miss. Number one on that list - Katya. Lindsey and I are at full-out war with her. We both had to get up early yesterday (Saturday) morning, yet Katya kept us up until 4:30 with her full-volumn MTV watching and phone conversations. So when we got up at 8, we turned the TV AND the radio on to wake her up too. It was fabulous. If were weren't so damn passive aggressive there would have been a major cat-fight at that point.
Now I have to run - I need to make another trip to the train station to once again attempt to buy a train ticket to Moscow.
Toodles.