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We survived the big holiday season in Russia. They don't celebrate Western Christmas, so we had to take Dec. 25 off since it was a normal work day. We attended a Christmas Eve service at the Anglican Church, which was all in English. The New Year is the biggest holiday here. We just had a quiet time at home because it sounds like things can get to be kind of a crowded mess if you attempt to go out on New Year's Eve. Despite our quiet night in, I woke up on New Year's Day very ill. It seemed like the flu and it lasted about 10 days, complete with two trips to the doctor and five different pharmaceutical purchases. Not the best ways to start 2013!
Fortunately I recovered enough to go on a great trip to Scandinavia. Thanks to an unexpected Christmas gift for travel from David's parents, we were able to spend five days in Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. We spent the most time in Copenhagen, which is a beautiful city. We took a train from Copenhagen to Malmö, Sweden for a day. Then on the way back we had a long layover in Helsinki, Finland, so we got out of the airport to explore the city. Helsinki turned out to be somewhat underwhelming because it was late at night and everything was closed.
Now we're back in Russia and it is the same. One thing I'm thinking of now as I sit in a coffee shop is why many people here, and Europe in general I suppose, seem to have such a different concept of personal space than Americans. It still startles me to be physically pushed if I'm in someone's way. Also, if a restaurant is crowded and you are by yourself at a table, people sometimes try to sit with you. It seems so odd! However, I know these are cultural differences and seem perfectly normal and sensible to Muscovites.
I need to put more effort into learning Russian. I think it's such a wonderful opportunity to be living in another place with a foreign language. You get to practice every day almost everywhere you go. As you get older with more responsibilities things like learning a language seem kind of superfluous. There's work to do to afford food and shelter, a home to clean, clothes to wash, food to cook, and a gym to visit. Practicing a foreign language isn't a very relaxing way to spend the time that's left.
Instead, we watch TV shows using our VPN. A VPN is a Virtual Private Network, if you haven't heard of it. It allows us to watch shows on the Internet that are supposed to be for the U.S. only (shhh!). The websites look at your IP address to determine if you are in the U.S. Our IP address comes up as being in the Russian Federation, of course, and we get "Access Denied" messages from websites like Netflix, Hulu, NBC, and PBS. The VPN somehow gives our computer a U.S. IP address so we can watch our favorite shows in Russia. Here are some examples of shows we like to watch when we have time:
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: This show is good to watch if you want a light-hearted laugh. Sometimes I'm not in the mood for how selfish/dumb the characters are. They're always thinking of stupid schemes and end up looking like fools! There are some super funny scenes from this show, such as when Charlie and Dennis create the "Day Man" song.
Peep Show: This show has really grown on me. It's British humor (or humour) at its best. The two main characters, Mark and Jez, are very different but manage to be roommates and friends. There are also some pretty funny/memorable minor characters in this series.
Downton Abbey: Downton Abbey is so addicting! You really get into the details of the characters' lives in this period drama. Everything is very well-done, including the dialogue, setting, casting, and costumes. It's funny how there can be so many events with twists and turns, but the overall arc of the story remains the same: save Downton.
Breaking Bad: The first reason to watch Breaking Bad is that the main character, Walt, is the dad from Malcom in the Middle! David will start watching this show while I'm doing other things, but then I usually end up getting sucked into it as well. The main premise is that Walt is a high school chemistry teacher who finds out he has cancer, so he decides to use his chemist skills to make and sell meth so he can save money for his family to have after he dies.
The Walking Dead: This is another top-quality show brought to you by the AMC network. It's a somewhat apocolyptic story centering on a group of people brought together by their desire to survive in a world which has become overrun by zombies. The zombies themselves are very realistic-looking and there are some gruesome scenes. Some of the acting is not very good, but the plot is intriguing and makes you want to keep watching.
- comments
Andrew Curran Its always sunny is a pretty funny show.. you guys should watch the episode "the gang gets analyzed". They all go into a psychologists office to determine who has to wash the dishes lol.
mary curran Interesting that you had to take the 25th off. They actually push you when it's crowded?! Have never seen a single episode of the shows you talked about. Would like to see Downton Abbey. Well written blog-
Jen Thanks for the episode suggestion, Andy. Our favorite so far is "Dee's dating a retarded person" (pardon the non-pc expression, but that's what it's called).