Memories of St. Basil's Cathedral

In honor of All Saints Day I found these old photos from our trip to Moscow in 2007. 

I am still amazed at the places God has taken us over the past eight years.  Standing in Red Square that day I was overwhelmed.  As a child whenever I saw Russia on TV it was usually on the news.  And in black and white.  The vivid colors of Saint Basil's Cathedral are breathtaking in person.  And I feel so blessed to have been able to tour the inside that day with Spencer and his friend Andrew.   

It's a matter of time...

Are you a polychron or a monochron? With six years of living outside of the United States you would think that I would have heard these terms before.  But I haven't.  Maybe you haven't either and have no idea what I am talking about.  Let's take a look at a definition I found on these terms:

Source

Do you see yourself in these terms?  Do you like to be on time or does all time flow together and is not a big deal for you?  Some of us get uptight when our schedules are disrupted and, after all, those of us from the US have often heard the phrase "time is money".  However, our US culture also sends out the message "just go with the flow" to those of us who are stressed and need to learn to slow down.

Anthropologist Harley Han said  "Culture reinforces biology".

Tom and I lived for five years in a polychronic culture while we were in Russia.  While there were some people who kept schedules and liked to plan out their time...many did not.  It was not uncommon for people to be 15-30 minutes late and still see themselves as on time.  The same is true here in Belize.   

When you travel or live in a different culture it is helpful to understand this concept. Pay attention to the guidebooks about the country you are visiting.  In Germany I have heard that public transport runs with precision but in other countries there may be long gaps between buses or trains.

If you don't come to terms with cultural differences regarding time you may find yourself feeling disrespected when people are late, or perhaps you may become judgmental and condemn a whole people group as lazy.  When what is actually true is that polychrons are relational beings who value people over appointments.  If they are on their way to meet with you and come across a friend or relative who needs to chat they will stop and visit with that person and then come to see you.  All the while believing that you will understand the importance of what they HAD to do.  It is simply a difference in cultural values not a lack of pride in self or disrespect for you.  Each of us tend to believe that the way we do things where we come from is the way that makes the most sense.

So for you monochrons when you have to face a situation like this outside of your monochronic culture give yourself and others the gift of letting go.  Schedule your meetings and then plan for the lateness of the polychrons you have invited.  There is much we polychrons and monochrons can learn from one another but to start we need to bless each other with the grace needed to find a common ground.

Maslenitsa

Yesterday was the beginning of Maslenitsa. One of my students brought in blini (Russian pancakes)and explained that this holiday is about saying goodbye to winter and welcoming spring. Pancakes are to symbolize the sun. Hers were quite tasty. She spread a cream cheese mixture inside and rolled them up. Yum!

After this week the Lenten season fast begins here so that is another reason to enjoy pancakes with butter for a full week!

I have what?

Before moving here to Russia I had heard of three types of colds. A cold, chest cold or a head cold. Last week I was out of commission for 4 days with back pain.

I called a medic (think nurse practitioner) who is also a massage therapist. She gave me a back massage and asked me questions about the type, location and duration of the pain I was feeling. After ruling out anything serious the diagnoses I was given was... a back cold.

So that is a new one for my list. Cold, chest cold, head cold and back cold.

Marc Chagall Exhibit

Jeremiah







"Ever since my earliest youth I have been fascinated by the Bible. I have always believed that it is the greatest source of poetry of all time...The Bible is an echo of nature, and this I have endeavoured to transmit.... In art everything is possible, so long as it is based on love"

Marc Chagall


For Tom's birthday we went to the museum with our friends Brennen, Stephanie, Valera and his granddaughter Eva. We were surprised to discover that the exhibit was a collection of Chagall's lithographs with biblical themes.

My favorite was Naomi and her daughter in laws click here to see a copy. Each lithograph was displayed with a verse from the Bible that inspired the piece.

If this collection comes your way you will not regret going to see it... even if you are not a fan of surrealism this Russian artist will leave an impression on you!

Orthodox Christians brave the cold waters!

Russians plunge into icy water for Epiphany

MOSCOW (AFP) – Scantily clad Orthodox Christians braved freezing temperatures throughout Russia on Tuesday to immerse themselves in ice holes in rivers and lakes to celebrate the Epiphany religious holiday.

To Orthodox believers, water blessed by a priest on Epiphany has miraculous powers, a belief harking back to Christ's baptism in the River Jordan. Jumping into the water is optional, but is a popular ritual among the faithful.

Water blessed on Epiphany "never goes stale, sick people who touch it are healed, devils are driven out and people are given strength," Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, said Monday during a trip to Kazakhstan.

Around 30,000 people immersed themselves in ice holes in Moscow overnight, the RIA-Novosti state news agency reported, citing city police.

The emergency situations ministry said it had posted over 200 lifeguards at lakes and rivers around the Russian capital to help prevent tragedies.

Just after midnight on Tuesday morning, worshippers gathered at a golf club outside Moscow, braving temperatures of minus 25 Celsius (minus 13 Fahrenheit) to leap into an ice hole, an AFP journalist witnessed.

Around 200 people followed a priest in a candle-lit procession to a nearby river, their breath throwing up clouds of steam. They then stripped to swimming trunks or wore long white shirts to complete the ritual bathing.

The well-off worshippers had paid 3,500 rubles (119 dollars) for a holiday package that included felt boots and a shirt to wear during immersion, as well as a performance by a Cossack choir and a buffet afterwards.

Six percent of Russians were planning to jump into ice holes for Epiphany, according to a poll published Monday by the Levada Centre, the country's most respected polling firm.

A more cautious 48 percent planned to visit a church to collect water blessed by a priest, the poll said.

The holiday is a favourite with politicians, who reinforce their reputation as devout Russian Orthodox believers by jumping into the ice in previously announced photo opportunities.

Bread & Salt

I just found a new culinary magazine in Russian. I love the way the magazine is laid out and the editor, Yulia Vysotskaya, is also one of my favorites. She has her own cooking show and a series of books called "We eat at home".

If you are studying Russian then watching her cook can be a lot of fun and great practice with listening skills... she talks really fast!

Feliz Navidad in Russian

learning new expressions

Tom came home from Yakutia yesterday and we are so happy to have him home. He told us about an expression he heard there. If someone is totally irritating you and you have had it with their behavior to describe this situation you can say that the person is "sitting in your kidney."

Russia Today

Russia to get its first fashion museum

11 October, 2009, 16:25

The history of Russian fashion is to be unveiled as the brand new Fashion Museum is being prepared for opening in 2010, as part of the All-Russian Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts.

As the director of the new museum, Margarita Barzhanova, says, it has already collected over 40,000 costumes, from 15th Century dresses to modern clothing, fabric and embroidery samples, as well as sketches and photographs dated from the 19th and 20th Centuries. The museum has been collecting all these priceless pieces of fashion history since its foundation 125 years ago.

However there is a slight lack of contemporary fashion in the collection – it was last updated in 1987. The museum’s administration can only rely on “the free will of the fashion designers”.

“Now we are refilling the collection as fashion forges ahead. But we can only do it with the help of fashion designers. The artist is our main donor,”Barzhanova says.

The presentation of a special museum’s “Black and white” project, dedicated to the history of city costume, will open on October 16 to mark the official start of the Russian Fashion Week, which will pass through the capital from October 17 to October 23.

Cossacks on Parade

We are not sure how frequently this happens... Sunday, while on Krasnaya street we happened upon this parade. A taste of Kuban (our state name) culture at its finest!

more dancing from the wedding!

I apologize for the footage starting out sideways... I am still trying to figure out my camera. Be sure to pay attention to the little girls when they show up in this Father/Daughter dance!

Going once, going twice...

At each of the weddings Tom and I have attended it has been the custom for the bride and groom to cut and serve their wedding cake to the guests. After Timofey and Tanya cut their first slice it was auctioned off by the Maid of Honor before anyone else was served.

The first piece of cake was described as being the sweetest and best tasting piece of the entire cake. It sold for 16$ to the lucky guy in the final photo!

dancing at the wedding

Art appreciation

 

Since we walk or take public transport in Krasnodar, it’s always an adventure simply going thru the open-air market. We never know what we will encounter! 

Today I met a local artist - an older man from the local village of Elizabeth. He had canvases stacked on an up-side down cardboard box, while 2 framed pictures proudly leaned against the wall of a small store. As he showed me his artwork, he began to share stories. “This is where my parents lived.” he said as he displayed a small landscape. “Here is the dacha (summer home) our family went to every summer.” All of his paintings were landscapes, except for the picture of a young couple. I noticed he had painted on dish-towels, bed linens, burlap sacks & other pieces of fabric, utilizing whatever he had at hand. He’s not the best Russian artist we have seen, but I enjoyed the cultural significance of the artwork of the young couple. 

For $15, I met a local artist, was invited to his house to be shown his favorite paintings, & came home with a reminder of the resourcefulness of the Russian people & their culture that will hang in our home.

-Tom

Whose name do you associate with Russia??

Alexander II
Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Catherine the Great
Ivan the Terrible
Vladimir Lenin
Dmitri Mendeleev
Peter the Great
Alexander Pushkin
Alexander Nevsky
Joseph Stalin
Pyotr Stolypin
Alexander Suvorov

Do you know all 12 of these noteworthy people? You can click on a name to learn more about that person.

Tom and I had to look them up!! He only knew 8 of the top 12 and he did not know the winner. In a program similar to 100 Greatest Britons, Russia voted for Alexander Nevsky as the Name of Russia. Tom cast his votes for Dostoyevsky and Pushkin.

The show was not without it's controversy... there were those who were not happy with the way the votes were counted for Stalin.

For those of you who can read Russian here is the original website:
http://www.nameofrussia.ru/

English readers can check out this link for more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_Russia_(Russia_TV)

So tell us... whose name do you associate with Russia?

just doing my homework...

Our new lesson is about salary and the monthly cost of living. Our teacher Arina asked us to do some research on the minimum living wage here in Russia. When speaking about pay here in Russia all the numbers are per month and not per year like we are used to in America.

This is what I found online:

According to the Federal law " Regarding the living wage in the Russian Federation " the Government of the Russian Federation decided:

1. To establish a living wage across the Russian Federation for the third quarter of 2007 per capita 3879 rubles($164.81),for able-bodied population - 4197 rubles($178.32), pensioners - 3085 rubles ($131.07), children - 3704 rubles ($157.37).

All the amounts in dollars are based on today's exchange rate which is 23.53 if you want to look I used the website http://www.xe.com/ to do the calculations.

And for those of you who would like to read the original article in Russian you can click here!

Who is Ded Moroz?

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Russia's Gift giver is called Ded Moroz. Ded is short for Dedooshkah. Which means grandfather and Moroz is the word for frost. So he is Grandfather Frost.

... you can read about him here:


http://www.santalady.com/gg/moroz.html

Overwhelming needs in Russia...

Tom ran across this article in The Moscow Times newspaper.
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It chronicles the desperate need for released convicts to have some sort of social rehabilitation program, which are not offered in Russia. With a 98% rate of Russian inmates being an addict & alcoholic, too much of the time when they are released from prison they simply slide back into old, destructive behaviors. Many inmates have their papers & passports lost while incarcerated, & are released with a slip of paper that says they have been released from prison. With this as their only kind of documentation, most cannot find jobs or get hired; so they return to a life of crime & addiction. The article tells of one released prisoner who returned to his former prison official asking to be incarcerated again as he was tired of being homeless & without a job. It's interesting reading & why your prayers & support are so important to the work we are doing.