*The innovative milk containers--the handle is actually a fat pocket of air. The package is plastic, and the spout self-seals when you lift the container upright.
*Often the little man on the crosswalk signs moves like he's walking when it's ok to cross the street and then starts running just before it changes to stop. At intersections they don't have a button for pedestrians to push for a turn to cross--there are so many pedestrians that in each cycle of stop lights the pedestrians always get a turn automatically!
*Twizzlers don't get hard--they get softer! (Thanks for sending them, Jeff).
*Flowers are a big deal here.
*Long summer days. Twilight lasts a long time and it's still fairly light when we go to bed at 10:30, about as light as it is again around 3:00 am! That will slowly change now as the days get shorter and shorter. It's been great while it lasted.
*Public transportation is great (typical of Europe)--we can get just about anywhere in the city and surrounding areas with a short walk to and from the stops and usually very short waits. Because there is such good public transportation, there is a lot less traffic on the roads. Someone told us about an interactive website that shows bus routes, where most of the buses presently are--you can even see them moving along, and gives estimated times to stops along the route. Dave has become an expert at using it. We'll especially appreciate it in the winter so we can check to see how soon the next bus will arrive rather than wait in the freezing cold.
*They have wonderful juices in all sorts of flavors. There's one kind that makes a big deal of their quality. On the box it says 100% quality; however, it never says if it's 100% good quality or 100% bad quality or just what kind of quality they mean, just 100% quality!
*Meeting with investigators and new converts is a great new experience for us.
*Many of the women have beautiful, artistic fingernails, often with birds or flowers painted on a background of lilac, teal, turquoise, or such. Many of them sport fingernails that are not just pointy, but filed to a sharp point.
*The bouillon here is great. In addition to the regular flavors like beef, chicken and pork, there are other flavors like vegetable, mushroom, and other kinds we haven't yet figured out what they are. Instead of being formed into a cube, they are a flatter, wider rectangle. If you twist the package and wiggle it a little before opening, it comes out in a powder instead of a block!
*The streets are quieter--no boom box cars vibrating the street.
*There's a refreshing lack of concern about lawsuits or things that might bring about lawsuits.
*In some ways, there's an air of innocence about some things. An example is that even the adults like to play games we haven't played since childhood, like Pick Up Sticks, Hangman, and Duck Duck Goose. The kids living in our apartment complex ride their bikes all around in the small park-like area in front of our building, and ride and ride and ride. Even the older kids, up to mid-teenage years, play on the play ground. That is, except on weekends when everyone goes to their dachas (summer garden plot outside the city). The picture below is the view out our kitchen window. They work very hard at keeping the area nice. The playground has several swings, lots of monkey bars, a slide, a teeter totter, a covered sand pile in addition to the two larger ones in the middle of the oval, and benches for the mothers to sit on.
*We've learned we love Care packages. Of course, we've only received one so far, but if we had realized what a treat they are to all the missionaries, we would have sent more to our sons when they were serving. We're looking forward to our visa trip this week so we'll have a better idea of what is and isn't available at the American store there and know what to request for future packages.
*The Russian language really is very pretty when it's sung or spoken slowly. We're amazed at how many different sounds they can put into short period of time when they speak at regular speed.
*Cars actually stop for pedestrians in crosswalks--usually.
*We are learning new things (we just wish we didn't have to get so far out of our comfort zone to do it).
*It's fun getting so many compliments on what a nice, large apartment (1 bedroom) we have, which is VERY modest by American standards.
*The shopping carts are great. The wheels swivel in all directions so you can go from side to side across the aisle as well as straight, and they're all very easy to push--no flat wheels or wheels that pull to one side.
*Things aren't as expensive as they seem. Our first shopping trip came with quite a sticker shock - over 3400 рубли (Rubles). We spent nearly 2000 again the next day. Thank heavens the exchange rate isn't 1=1!
*We're on the fourth floor so we get in a little exercise every time we come home (if we lived much higher we'd take the elevator).
*Smiles suffice when language fails.
*My favorite: You ALWAYS take off your shoes as soon as you enter a home. Once as we were leaving a member's home I put my shoes on and stepped back to let the Elders get to the small area where their shoes were and promptly got scolded by the 11-year-old because I was standing on the rug with my shoes on. If the Elders have already put their shoes on before leaving and realize they've left something in another room, they'll ask us to get it for them rather than take two steps into that room with their shoes on!
This week's Russianism: They have long shoehorns called lozhkee (Russian for spoons). It makes it easier for people to put their shoes back on, as long as the shoes are tied somewhat loosely.
*Public transportation is great (typical of Europe)--we can get just about anywhere in the city and surrounding areas with a short walk to and from the stops and usually very short waits. Because there is such good public transportation, there is a lot less traffic on the roads. Someone told us about an interactive website that shows bus routes, where most of the buses presently are--you can even see them moving along, and gives estimated times to stops along the route. Dave has become an expert at using it. We'll especially appreciate it in the winter so we can check to see how soon the next bus will arrive rather than wait in the freezing cold.
*They have wonderful juices in all sorts of flavors. There's one kind that makes a big deal of their quality. On the box it says 100% quality; however, it never says if it's 100% good quality or 100% bad quality or just what kind of quality they mean, just 100% quality!
*Meeting with investigators and new converts is a great new experience for us.
*Many of the women have beautiful, artistic fingernails, often with birds or flowers painted on a background of lilac, teal, turquoise, or such. Many of them sport fingernails that are not just pointy, but filed to a sharp point.
*The bouillon here is great. In addition to the regular flavors like beef, chicken and pork, there are other flavors like vegetable, mushroom, and other kinds we haven't yet figured out what they are. Instead of being formed into a cube, they are a flatter, wider rectangle. If you twist the package and wiggle it a little before opening, it comes out in a powder instead of a block!
*The streets are quieter--no boom box cars vibrating the street.
*There's a refreshing lack of concern about lawsuits or things that might bring about lawsuits.
*In some ways, there's an air of innocence about some things. An example is that even the adults like to play games we haven't played since childhood, like Pick Up Sticks, Hangman, and Duck Duck Goose. The kids living in our apartment complex ride their bikes all around in the small park-like area in front of our building, and ride and ride and ride. Even the older kids, up to mid-teenage years, play on the play ground. That is, except on weekends when everyone goes to their dachas (summer garden plot outside the city). The picture below is the view out our kitchen window. They work very hard at keeping the area nice. The playground has several swings, lots of monkey bars, a slide, a teeter totter, a covered sand pile in addition to the two larger ones in the middle of the oval, and benches for the mothers to sit on.
*We've learned we love Care packages. Of course, we've only received one so far, but if we had realized what a treat they are to all the missionaries, we would have sent more to our sons when they were serving. We're looking forward to our visa trip this week so we'll have a better idea of what is and isn't available at the American store there and know what to request for future packages.
*The Russian language really is very pretty when it's sung or spoken slowly. We're amazed at how many different sounds they can put into short period of time when they speak at regular speed.
*Cars actually stop for pedestrians in crosswalks--usually.
*We are learning new things (we just wish we didn't have to get so far out of our comfort zone to do it).
*It's fun getting so many compliments on what a nice, large apartment (1 bedroom) we have, which is VERY modest by American standards.
*The shopping carts are great. The wheels swivel in all directions so you can go from side to side across the aisle as well as straight, and they're all very easy to push--no flat wheels or wheels that pull to one side.
*Things aren't as expensive as they seem. Our first shopping trip came with quite a sticker shock - over 3400 рубли (Rubles). We spent nearly 2000 again the next day. Thank heavens the exchange rate isn't 1=1!
*We're on the fourth floor so we get in a little exercise every time we come home (if we lived much higher we'd take the elevator).
*Smiles suffice when language fails.
*My favorite: You ALWAYS take off your shoes as soon as you enter a home. Once as we were leaving a member's home I put my shoes on and stepped back to let the Elders get to the small area where their shoes were and promptly got scolded by the 11-year-old because I was standing on the rug with my shoes on. If the Elders have already put their shoes on before leaving and realize they've left something in another room, they'll ask us to get it for them rather than take two steps into that room with their shoes on!
This week's Russianism: They have long shoehorns called lozhkee (Russian for spoons). It makes it easier for people to put their shoes back on, as long as the shoes are tied somewhat loosely.
It is so fun to read your posts each week! Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. Kayleen
ReplyDeleteDachas-Our tour guide from the airport to our hotel kept talking about the 'lovely gahdens' and 'little cottages made of wood' with her Russian accent when she described these. It became an oft repeated phrase throughout the whole tour and for some time after.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you have 2 pairs of doll shoes in that last picture? :P
ReplyDeleteGlad you guys are having a good time there. The milk container looks like an interesting concept.