In Prince Caspian (the book, of course), Lucy asks Aslan why he didn't just make everything right, the way he did against the White Witch. As I recall, Aslan looks through her tears and says things never happen the same way twice. His answer is true in that story, I've seen it to be true in general, and it is certainly the truth in the case of my return to Volgograd.
Of course I knew things would be different this year, but somehow I still took a lot of the aspects of my life last year for granted. Last year, the young foreign teachers all hung out together. We had fun exploring the city's limited tourist attractions and trying out its various cuisines. This year the other teachers, while interesting and enjoyable people, are at too many different stages of life to make hanging out automatic or natural-seeming. That's where it's really good that at least on Sundays I get to spend time with some real friends in fellowship and good conversation.
While last year I shared an apartment overlooking the Volga river, this year I'm living alone in a comfortably run-down flat with its own set of unique quirks of personality. For example, when I wish to wash dishes in the kitchen, I must first turn on the hot water in the bathtub, then turn on the faucet in the kitchen, then turn down, but not off, the tap to the tub. And, as I discovered today, all the plugs in the whole apartment are on the same circuit. Thankfully, I quickly discovered the correct button to push and I'm rarely so busy that I would need to do laundry and vacuum at the same time.
My classes this year are also different, but I actually know a lot of the students from last year. Since I'm teaching exam preparation courses, many of my students were in my upper-intermediate classes last year. It's fun to get to see so many of the same faces, but the fact that I know them so well makes me feel more emotionally involved in making sure they are prepared to pass their exams. Of course, having a test looming in the distance means the lessons are a little less free-form and fun than they were last year.
All this is not to say that I'm having a bad time here. It's different, and there are certainly times when I wish it weren't. But the fact that things change is not the only lesson in Prince Caspian. There was a reason things were different, even if it was one that Lucy couldn't grasp. Lots of times, I don't really know why I'm here, but that's okay. What brought me back is surely nothing as dramatic as the blowing of Susan's horn, but I trust that there is something.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Sept 3, 2009
As you can surmise from the fact that I’m writing this, I made it to Volgograd safely and without major incident. My flight from Atlanta to DC was fine, and I even got seated in the Economy Plus section, where the 5 extra inches of legroom were nice, but not really necessary for such a short flight. Sitting around the DC airport went okay, particularly because I was able to purchase a day’s worth of wireless access and thus say goodbye, again, to Adam and James and whoever happened to be online at the time, as well as kill time watching my own choice of TV. DC to Moscow was fine, but long. It was no great surprise that I got very little sleep.
When I arrived at the Moscow airport and got through security (the lines are longer but the process shorter than in the states) I soon became very grateful for my cell phone. No one was there to greet me, but I was able to get in touch with Volgograd, who confirmed for me first that there was someone on the way, then that that someone had had car troubles and a new driver was on the way. Crises averted, though sitting around the airport while dead tired is not much fun.
I found myself dozing off over and over the whole afternoon as I was shuttled between the airport, the school office, the apartment where they let me nap, the school again, and finally the train station. Even with that napping, I still fell asleep almost immediately when I got on the train at 7:30 in the evening and, short of maybe 2 hours of waking up and reading for a bit, slept straight through until 11:30 the next morning when my compartment mate finally decided I really needed to wake up.
As soon as I got off the train at 5 pm, I was greeted by Elena, one of our administrators. She took me to my new apartment, which happens to have been Sarah’s apartment last year. It is comfortable and close to the school, as well as a number of other things. It will have a washing machine starting Monday and internet access in about 9 days. The only thing I’m worried about right now is learning how to use the oven . The stovetop works fine and is easy to light, but I can’t figure out how to turn on the oven, and the landlord had no clue. I know Sarah used it last year, so I’m confident that it will eventually work out.
Classes start on Monday, so between now and then I’ll have lots of free time to settle in (and look around for internet for the coming days). It looks like the teaching staff will be sort of staggering in this year, coming at a number of different times. I hope this doesn’t make our schedule really tough at the beginning before others get here. Right now it looks like I’ll be teaching mostly exam prep courses. I’ll let you know more when I know more.
As you can surmise from the fact that I’m writing this, I made it to Volgograd safely and without major incident. My flight from Atlanta to DC was fine, and I even got seated in the Economy Plus section, where the 5 extra inches of legroom were nice, but not really necessary for such a short flight. Sitting around the DC airport went okay, particularly because I was able to purchase a day’s worth of wireless access and thus say goodbye, again, to Adam and James and whoever happened to be online at the time, as well as kill time watching my own choice of TV. DC to Moscow was fine, but long. It was no great surprise that I got very little sleep.
When I arrived at the Moscow airport and got through security (the lines are longer but the process shorter than in the states) I soon became very grateful for my cell phone. No one was there to greet me, but I was able to get in touch with Volgograd, who confirmed for me first that there was someone on the way, then that that someone had had car troubles and a new driver was on the way. Crises averted, though sitting around the airport while dead tired is not much fun.
I found myself dozing off over and over the whole afternoon as I was shuttled between the airport, the school office, the apartment where they let me nap, the school again, and finally the train station. Even with that napping, I still fell asleep almost immediately when I got on the train at 7:30 in the evening and, short of maybe 2 hours of waking up and reading for a bit, slept straight through until 11:30 the next morning when my compartment mate finally decided I really needed to wake up.
As soon as I got off the train at 5 pm, I was greeted by Elena, one of our administrators. She took me to my new apartment, which happens to have been Sarah’s apartment last year. It is comfortable and close to the school, as well as a number of other things. It will have a washing machine starting Monday and internet access in about 9 days. The only thing I’m worried about right now is learning how to use the oven . The stovetop works fine and is easy to light, but I can’t figure out how to turn on the oven, and the landlord had no clue. I know Sarah used it last year, so I’m confident that it will eventually work out.
Classes start on Monday, so between now and then I’ll have lots of free time to settle in (and look around for internet for the coming days). It looks like the teaching staff will be sort of staggering in this year, coming at a number of different times. I hope this doesn’t make our schedule really tough at the beginning before others get here. Right now it looks like I’ll be teaching mostly exam prep courses. I’ll let you know more when I know more.
Sept 2, 2009
The Statue is Still Standing
Last year in Volgograd, I heard some disturbing news: the statue of Mother Russia, the most visible landmark in the city, might be falling. Its base is slowly eroding, and while the Russian government assures the populace that they are correcting the situation, many remain unconvinced. Certainly the loss of this statue would be a devastating loss to the people of this city. Anyone with a passing knowledge of history knows of the battle that took place here, the deadliest battle in history, but how many outside Russia could tell you that Stalingrad is now known as Volgograd? The change in name, while laudable in intention, hides the “Hero-City’s” past from the casual observer. The statue, built on the strategically important Mamaev Hill, is a powerful link to this past. Also, as any of my students is quick to remind me, it is bigger than the Statue of Liberty.
All that said, as an outsider, I have no strong emotional attachment to the statue. It is extremely impressive, but when I learned the artist fashioned her after his wife, all I could think was “he must have hated his wife.” I had thought that the menacing look on her rather ugly face was simply meant to inspire fear into Soviet Russia’s enemies. If she fell, I’d feel bad for the citizens of Volgograd, but I’d be more concerned with 1) not having it land on me and 2) taking pictures and hoping to be an on the scene reporter for some English speaking news source with limited resources. In fact, some of the other (foreign) teachers and I had a running joke about starting a betting pool placing odds on when she would fall. Also on where, if one were to be visiting the hill when she fell, one should run in order to survive.
Still, I was pleased to see as my train chugged past that Mother Russia is still standing, tall and proud. I look forward to exploring the city in the next couple of weeks to see what changes have occurred over the summer, but it seems like a good sign that the statue, at least, is still standing.
The Statue is Still Standing
Last year in Volgograd, I heard some disturbing news: the statue of Mother Russia, the most visible landmark in the city, might be falling. Its base is slowly eroding, and while the Russian government assures the populace that they are correcting the situation, many remain unconvinced. Certainly the loss of this statue would be a devastating loss to the people of this city. Anyone with a passing knowledge of history knows of the battle that took place here, the deadliest battle in history, but how many outside Russia could tell you that Stalingrad is now known as Volgograd? The change in name, while laudable in intention, hides the “Hero-City’s” past from the casual observer. The statue, built on the strategically important Mamaev Hill, is a powerful link to this past. Also, as any of my students is quick to remind me, it is bigger than the Statue of Liberty.
All that said, as an outsider, I have no strong emotional attachment to the statue. It is extremely impressive, but when I learned the artist fashioned her after his wife, all I could think was “he must have hated his wife.” I had thought that the menacing look on her rather ugly face was simply meant to inspire fear into Soviet Russia’s enemies. If she fell, I’d feel bad for the citizens of Volgograd, but I’d be more concerned with 1) not having it land on me and 2) taking pictures and hoping to be an on the scene reporter for some English speaking news source with limited resources. In fact, some of the other (foreign) teachers and I had a running joke about starting a betting pool placing odds on when she would fall. Also on where, if one were to be visiting the hill when she fell, one should run in order to survive.
Still, I was pleased to see as my train chugged past that Mother Russia is still standing, tall and proud. I look forward to exploring the city in the next couple of weeks to see what changes have occurred over the summer, but it seems like a good sign that the statue, at least, is still standing.
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