Internet problems: Forgive me if this posts twice! And the pictures just won’t load…
I’ve been procrastinating on this blog post because it’s a little overwhelming. In the past, it has been pretty easy to sum up my experiences into a few paragraphs. The last few days, however, are proving to be quite difficult to put into words.
Let me start by explaining the deal with Russia- Due to the conflict that started early this year (Actually, let’s be honest, the conflict has been going on for much longer than 8 months now), getting a visa to Russia was going to be quite a lengthy and expensive process. Since I was going to need to expedite my visa, I would’ve been shelling out over $500 for just one visa! To bypass this, Semester at Sea shortened our stay to 3 days, which gave us the opportunity to get a 72 hours pass. (My terms, not the official terms by any means) Basically, this allowed me to skip getting a visa, but without a visa, I would only be able to get off the ship if I had registered for a “field program”, aka a registered tour through Semester at Sea, ahead of time. So, in the interest of saving a few bucks, I skipped the visa and signed up for several activities. I found that lots of students bypassed the visa as well, but a good number of them paid the money and explored on their own.
I’m sure you’ve noticed, if you’ve read any of the past posts, my favorite part of traveling is getting lost. Taking a wrong turn and ending up God-knows-where is the best way to see a city. Not having a Russian visa took that opportunity from me. Instead, I got earpieces and tour guides. Don’t get me wrong, it was still amazing! And I loved learning all that I did about Russia. My tour guide explained everything in such great detail and there is simply no way I could’ve found that out on my own. But still, rigid schedules and headcounts aren’t my cup of tea. My first tour was Orthodox St. Petersburg, where we visited several churches around the city-some of them were in session-and got to witness the religion firsthand. In one of the churches, I simply stood back and watched a family teach their young son how to pray; going through the motions and then proud congratulating him when he did it correctly. It was honestly amazing to see. Especially when you think about Russia, and all that we usually hear about Russia, you expect to see a city of grey walls, unhappy and angry people, policemen everywhere. While I did witness this side of the country, I also saw a couple on the escalator embracing romantically, I saw teenagers skateboarding and horsing around, I saw that almost every building was painted mint green, pink, blue, yellow, etc. i saw the most beautiful churches you could imagine but also saw palaces that make hotels look small. I saw how royalty lived-on acres upon acres, in palaces of 1,000 rooms, surrounded by 180 fountains, while just outside the city, I saw broken down buildings, hidden behind tall walls and barbed wire. I saw a city that has been ravaged by almost constant turmoil. A city that has gone from Superpower to nearly 3rd world and back numerous times. St. Petersburg is a city full of juxtaposition that I saw even on the most basic of tours.
So, yes, I learned a lot from guided tours. However, my favorite activities were not guided tours. On the second night, a group of us went to a “Secret Pop Up Dinner”, where the location and menu remained a secret to us. We were led into a restaurant called Taste to Eat and oh. my. God. Delicious is an understatement. We had 4 or 5 appetizers, ranging from liver pate to pork fat (wish I knew the correct term, but they weren’t sure if there was an English word). Then we got our main course, which was stuffed chicken fried in some strange battery stuff with mashed potatoes and other garnished. I’d kill for that food again, especially after a week of ship food. BUT WAIT it gets better. Then, just when we think it’s over, the chef (who was mighty fine, might I add) rolls out this table with two giant bowls on it. Then proceeds to explain to us that they will be using liquid nitrogen and making what he called “frozen cookies.” It ended up being sort of like ice cream but kind of not……. so I have no idea what it was but it was served with chocolate and a side of Heaven.
mmmmmmmmmmmmm…… Okay, right, back to the story. Anyway. The coolest part (maybe even topping the liquid nitrogen) was that we all got to sit with a local and talk to them about their life. The man I sat next to explained to me that, because they were Russian, they were not allowed to get accounts on certain sites like Netflix, Pandora, etc. He told us about his daily life, and expressed apprehension when someone mentioned Ukraine. Quickly changing the subject, we returned to lighter topics. While we took vodka shots (for free!), he politely passed, saying that he would be driving home. Now, I’m not saying that doesn’t happen in America, but I meet very few people, adults included, who refuse to have even ONE drink because they are driving. Still hanging on to stereotypes subconsciously, I was definitely surprised by this. But regardless, we laughed and shared and became friends with Alex and by the end of the night, we were all (except Alex) quite tipsy and singing “Happy Birthday” in Russian to our trip leader. At least, we thought that’s what we were singing but I’m sure it was terribly butchered.
So next and final day, I visited an animal shelter on the outskirts of town. Run by the President of all the animal shelters in Russia, this shelter was supposed to be on of the best. As many people now know after the Olympics, strays are a huge problem in Russia (however, many other European countries are significantly worse, but since they weren’t seen on TVs worldwide, many seem to forget). We pull up and immediately see dogs in runs outside. Oh, that’s nice, right? They get to play outside! Next, we notice the smell. So incredibly repulsive that I struggled to breath. OUTSIDE. Walking in, we met the woman and her small staff and again I was hit by a stench so repulsive and overwhelming that I actually saw one person start gagging. Walking around on a tour of the facilities, we learned that there were over 550 animals kept in the same building. It was so full, that the dogs that we saw outside actually stayed there all day and night, since there was no room for them inside. I can’t even explain the conditions that I witnessed. Cats walked around in their own feces, dogs were in crates, laying in puke. Fly traps hung from the ceilings and were coating with giant black bugs. The water in their bowls and in the jugs was actually yellow. We had to ask if it was water, because many of us thought it was pee. We learned that twenty low-paid employees cared for these 500+ animals and they were proud of their work. We, as a group, had a very hard time. They were clearly proud of the significant work they’d done, and it was clear that this truly was one of the best in the nation (they had awards lined in rows along the walls, over twenty in total), however, in America, this establishment would have been shut down immediately. So many dogs were living in their own filth, their fur was mangy and matted, and they were so incredibly scared of any of us that they were constantly shaking in their crates. The whole experience was eye opening, but ultimately just saddened us all, as we knew there was very little for us to do. The infrastructure simply wasn’t equipped to handle the problemt hat it faced. Twenty people could work as fast as possible, but never really fix the problem. It would be easy to point fingers at other citizens and urge them to help and do something, but I think it goes without saying that Russia is a country of multiple problems. It’s not that easy to fix one, without ignoring another.
^Yeah, that’s a dog. Under a table that has a syringe and muzzle and open containers of chemicals on top.
And on that note, the bus took us back to the ship, where we checked in and prepared to leave Russia behind.
Now, on a non-Russian note, some of you may have heard about a little thing called Ebola. Many of you asked me, even before I left, if I was still going to Senegal and Ghana. I received regular emails from my mom, insisting that we wouldn’t be hitting any of West Africa. Our ship, until last Friday, had been in denial. Speculations and rumor ran rampant, but we always came to the same conclusion: we’d be going to Africa. How could we not, right? The virus hadn’t hit either country, and we had so many amazing plans for each port. Field trips, including the amazing one my professor planned, couldn’t be cancelled. No way. We, all 650 of us, signed up for an Atlantic Exploration-a promise that we would see the world, good and bad. But then, news broke. The first confirmed case reached Senegal and immediately, Semester at Sea reacted. In a heartbreaking email, we learned the Senegal and Ghana would be removed from the itinerary, to be replaced with European ports. Everyone lost. their. minds. Reaching a whole new level of disappointment, we all realized that we had no right to be upset that we were losing out on Africa. We were losing out because thousands upon thousands of people were dying. A life-threatening disease was raging through an entire continent, and we were upset that we couldn’t visit? So our disappointment quieted, and we began to speculate about the new additions. Rumors spread like wildfire, but after 3 long days of waiting, they announced our new ports.
I will now be traveling to Barcelona and Italy.
As most of you know, with the exception of Rome, I loved Italy. I’ve been craving pizza and wine and dreaming about Italian leather jackets since the day I left, so I’ll happily take it.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m still beyond disappointed about the situation that brought these new ports, but as we tried explaining to an extremely upset teacher (They are just as affected by these changes as we were, if not more.), we’ll take what we can get. And as for consolation prized, Barcelona and Italy aren’t so bad.
But my budget is totally screwed……..
Next up: Poland and Germany!
As for a little update on ship life: The internet/email (we don’t actually get internet) totally blows. BUT EITHER WAY the most exciting part of the day is getting emails from home. I’m so incredibly lucky to have my mom, emailing me silly little stories about my dog and checking my bank account and making reservations for me. I’m sure she’s ready for me to come home solely so that I stop emailing her requests. And my roommate, who I haven’t seen in almost two weeks, when I cried goodbye in a hostel lobby. Emailing me updates o all our stupid shows and always understanding, even from a gazillion miles away, when I just need to laugh. I suppose being stuck on a ship with 700 strangers makes you appreciate that non-strangers that you have at home. In other news, please please email me. Especially if you have a question about something I say in this blog! Since I can’t check in on my blog, I rarely ever see the comments that people leave. Feel free to leave them anyway, I’ll see them once in awhile! But also, try to email me. adriana.kille.fa14@semesteratsea.org!
Currently writing this post from deck 7 though, and the view isn’t so bad. Until next time!
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