Culture

I have been asked to blog a bit about the culture here in Russia, so this post will be dedicated to just that!  Keep in mind I've only been here 2 weeks, so I'm sure I'll have more interesting things to tell you in the future, but here's what I've seen so far:

Let's start with the Metro.
 First, there is this unspoken rule where everyone stands on only the right side of the escalator, so that others can run down the stairs.  The escalators are very steep, and how people don't trip when the run down, I will never know.  Second, if you can find a seat on the metro you take it.  But if a babushka comes on and she doesn't have a seat, you get up for her.  Same with children.

Apartments.
Everyone lives in apartments, and they are mostly made of concrete and brick (soviet era remnants). They are pretty small.  I actually sleep in the living room.  Yes, there is a queen sized bed in our living room.  The bathroom is very small. It's basically the size of a large pantry with a toilet, shower (we have hot water!), washing machine, and sink crammed in it!  Also these bars inside next to the shower that I assumed were for you to hang your towel on while you're showering.  The bar is almost scalding hot all the time.  It only took me a week and a half to figure out it was for drying your clothes.

Stores (aka Shops).
I've noticed that the produce here is not always that fresh.  I basically only trust the bananas.  For some reason, they always look fine.  There is an "apteka" just 1 minute from our apartment building that we go to a lot.  It's a tiny store, and on some days there are a million people shopping.  Think about the frustration you can have while trying to navigate through a Wal-Mart, but times 10,000.  Yeah.  Also, I think the mafia meets at that store. (Don't freak out Grandma)

Safety.
Believe it or not, I actually have felt pretty safe.  I was expecting to feel much more "on guard" all time.  It's different here.  Even though we live in a ghetto area, it's basically Russia's middle class.  There are kids everywhere, and normal hard-working families.  The nicer part of the city is where the wealthy people live, and even then most of them live in apartments.

Mushrooms.
People pick them, and call them "thumps."

Driving.
There are really no rules and people just do what they want.  It's kind of terrifying actually.

Smiling.
You don't.

Pigeons.
THEY ARE EVERYWHERE.  They are the bunnies and squirrels of Russia.

Food.
The food is SO good!  IT basically all looks nasty but tastes really good.  I love the soup here and the juice.  They have an entire section in most aptekas just full of juice.  Peach juice, tomato juice, pineapple juice, apple-banana, etc.  It's very thick and takes more like a smoothie base.  Some are good, and some are nasty!  The raspberry juice is to die for!

Smoking.
About half the people I see are smoking.  It's a big thing here.

English.
More people speak it than I realized.

Well, that's all I have for now! I'll continue to update when anything interesting happens!  Here are some pictures from today!

For Kian (cool carabooshesh) (inside joke haha)