December 15, 2010

Today, I woke up to have croissants and Italian Christmas cake (which is exactly like our Easter cake but without raisins) and champagne for breakfast)) I had more sleep later to make up from the day I spent travelling, and we watched Love Actually in the evening. I am looking forward to seeing the city. Tomorrow, Christmas Carols. Oh, one more thing: I got another message from the UN and they expect to see me on the 18th of January for the oral examination!!! I might fail French, though...

December 14, 2010

Today, I went on one of the longest and most tiring trips ever. I woke up at 5.30 a.m. and we set off to Finland at six. Thankfully, I managed to get some sleep on the bus, we passed all the borders quite quickly, and it was beautifully snowy outside... Knowing that I'd have to wait at the airport for several hours I hope we wouldn't get there until 3 p.m. local time, but we were already there at 2. The flight was at 21.15. There were two more people going to London, and we spent all that time with them, chatting and drinking coffee. The flight was all right except for the three English girls who spoke extremely loudly about their diets and gossiped about their friends... and the one sitting right in front of me pushed her seat backwards so far that I could harly move for the rest of flight. She, generally behaved like an utter bitch and didn't even say sorry when my neighbour told her that she was making my flight very uncomfortable.
On arrival, everything went fine, I was let into the couthry without any problems, wasn't asked any questions at all, got the ticket to Southampton all right and got off at the right station to change trains. If only I hadn't missed my train to S. It wasn't really my fault because there was hardly any information on my platform and the train said Bournemouth, but how was I supposed to know if it went to Southampton if even the locals didn't... So, it was past midnight and I was stuck at Clapham Junction. I must admit, I swore quite a lot when I found out the only way for me to get to Southampton this night was to take the next train at 2.15 a.m., then change for a bus at a station called Basingstoke because of engineering works and finally get at Southampton Central at 3 something in the morning. And I did get there but at four, because the train moved even slowlier than expected. I asked a bloke on the train what kind of engineering works these were and he said, "Engineering works means four people in orange jackets having a cuppa, love". The bright side of this adventure was that I saw a lovely-looking city called Winchester while on the bus and met some interesting people on the way. Who would have expected to talk to a guy from Manchester who had arrived in Southampton to see the Docks at 4 a.m.? To begin with, he thought I was local and then complimented my English, then it turned out that he'd been to St. Petersburg and Moscow and Beijing and many other places! What a traveller! In the end, he wished me luck, kissed me on the cheek and called me sweetheart))))))

December 13, 2010

Today, I finished packing and did some Christmas shopping. Also, went to work to say happy birthday to one of the colleagues and saw more icicles being cut off. Whenever I see such enormous icicles I think of death, they're just so so scary.

December 12, 2010

Today, I mostly stayed in, tidying up and packing. I did have one lesson and it was lovely)

December 11, 2010

Today, I had a haircut and received my WAllace and Gromit package!!! That's basically all that happened... I was stunned in the morning to see that practically all the snowy mess had been cleared off the roads during the night. And the district where my hairdresser lives just looked incredibly beautiful and magical... so so so much snow! And it was so white that my eyes hurt!

December 10, 2010

Today, Anya, Anya and I went to a club. That was supposed to be the highlight of the past few weeks. We chose the same club, that is Radiobaby. The music was all right, we still liked the design and the company of each other... But I realized that I'd never ever ever ever understand people who go out on a regular basis. As soon as I looked around when dancing (I do happen to like watching people) I met so many looks filled with, I don't know... lust? desire? some kind of perverted curiosity? But that was all right... because I had nothing to be afraid of being with friends. But when some people we knew turned up, we were all very disappointed to see a married guy make advances to all the three of us... and all that in the presence of his wife. His friend turned out to be an absolute pervert: he asked me and one of the Anyas to kiss in front of him... Sigh... Well, we still we happy to have met up and went to my place in the morning to laugh about the whole thing and come to the conclusion that it's not worth getting married if you are going to seduce other women in two and a half years...

December 9, 2010

Today, I felt nostalgic and sentimental. It might have been my last day at work. Things are not going great with the project but I still think they will "go live" on the 1st of January and that means that my participation will not be needed any more... So, I looked at everyone in a different way today, thinking that I might never see them again (especially the German colleagues). Two of them were leaving, and they both kissed me when saying goodbye, and that was really touching. I had similar thoughts during the rehearsal because it might have been the last one this year... It's very sad that I will not be at the concert because now I'm starting to get what the chorus master wants from us, what he means by those metaphors, and I am going to miss other choristers...
The weather was extraordinary today (and it still is). I haven't seen such a blozzard for a while! It's been snowing since three or four in the afternoon and I already can't see the bushes that grow near the road because they're covered with snow! They say it will keep snowing until morning and I can't imagine what it's going look like!

December 8, 2010

Today will be written down in history books as the day when I bought the tickets to see Coldpplay at Werchter, Belgium, on the 2nd of July. It fits perfectly into my dreams about the summer and I can't believe another dream will come true.

December 7, 2010

Today, we had a rehearsal in the concert hall. I can't say we did very well but I really enjoyed it. And I start liking the new chorus master. Well, they're both quite adorable, and with their singing skills and good ear and sense of music they just seem so extraordinary, nearly like some sort of deities... When our main chorus master was giving a speech to make us pull ourselves together before the concert, I was furtively watching this new chap (he's barely older than us) conducting one of the songs to himself, very passionately, waving his hands and moving his lips and nearly jumping on his chair. I smiled to myself, wondering if all conductors live in their own world...

December 6, 2010

Today has been pretty hilarious so far. I don't know if it's my new boots, or the music in my ears or, generally, pretty damn good mood I am in... So, in the morning I was employed and then fired within three minutes. During the lunch break I went out to take some pictures and took a shot of some enormous icicles falling off the roof. The day was short, so I went home pretty early and popped in the post office on my way to get three more staple removers for my collection. Now, this is the climax of the day. So, I'm waiting for the bus shivering in the cold when this bloke comes up. "Oh, I'm so tired, I've walked all the way from the metro station" - "Oh." (Very stupid of you, really) - "So, what's your name? I'm Vitaly." (I'm ignoring the question pretending that I didn't hear). .... "So, what's your name?" - "Sasha" - "I'm Vitaly" - "Pleasure" - "Do you live here?" - "Y..." - "Are you married?" - (Now, that's fast) "Erm... So many questions at once..." - "I'm not from here, actually" - (I can tell) - "I'm from Siberia". - "Oh, wow!" - "Yeah. I'm looking for a girlfriend. For a good girlfriend" - "Right" (Are you, now?) - "So, are you married?" - "No. Does it change anything?" - "I'm just wondering. What if your husband turns up now and beats me up..." - "No, he won't" (I wish) - "Actually, I don't like it here too much" - "Really? Why?" - "I don't know... I liked it better in Moscow" - "Ohhhh... you should never tell this to locals... It's the worst insult you can think of" (Sorry, mate, your chances have just gone from zero to minus hundred). - "It's not too cold here" - "Well, we're not in Siberia either" (You, bastard, I'm freezing)- ... "Right, I should go" And he left.

December 5, 2010

Today, we decided not to go to Pavlovsk because the weather changed and it would be far too wet for a walk. I did, however, went out to see the new Harry Potter film in the afternoon! I took two more "fans" with me, and we all enjoyed it immensely. It felt like seeing old friends, who live very far away and only come over once in two years. Indeed, we have known them for about ten years now... And now they're grown-ups, and Ron is broad-shouldered, Harry has a stubble, Hermione has long legs (but she's still a little bit of a bore), Ron's brothers are as handsome as ever, and only Snape, very sadly, looks much older... And we didn't like the translation... We had lots of fun, commenting on things we saw (like Harry and Hermione kissing) and I think the rest of the audience wasn't too happy about it. But, well, let's face it, they were doomed from the very beginning, when Anya and I chose that particular time to see it. There were a couple of very touching moments, and, again, just as I did when I was listening to the book, I cried when the Putin-looking elf called Tobby was killed... I can't wait to see the second part with the whole Snape-Lily Potter story and the final battle...
I feel like listening to the book again, to be filled with that sense of adventure and mystery and magic)
And when I came home, I rushed to the laptop to see the latest episode of Misfits (now that I'm addicted) and it was rather shocking. I am now counting days to see the next one on Thursday.

December 4, 2010

Today, I had a proper, colourful Saturday. After watching Misfits until five a.m. (naughty, naughty) I had no voice in the morning. Besides, we weren't warmed up properly by our new chorus master (the rehearsal was at 11 a.m.) and I sounded like a very old grammophon... It was still lovely, however, because it turned out that in the absence of our main chorus master, this new one can smile and joke charmingly. One of his masterpieces was (when convincing the sopranos that they must gove out the sound to the audience): Let it out! All of it! It may sound ugly but do it!
We then spent some time in a cafe in the centre, I had a lesson and then we were supposed to meet some couchsurfers which we never did... But we did some shopping and then went to this new club called RadioBaby. I saw the link on a friend's wall on facebook and it turned out he actually is the director there... We didn't have a proper night-out this time, but enjoyed the atmosphere and the drinks and, which is the most important thing, the music there and are definitely going back. I've been feeling like dancing since then...

December 3, 2010

Today, I didn't have to go to work and enjoyed staying in. I did some translation and found out more about pilrimage in China and India, and then, when I was tired and decided to indulge myself, I started watching Misfits, recommended by a friend, and then I regretted it because I just couldn't stop. I watched 5 episodes in one evening, and I adored it! So, so gripping! To say nothing of the numerous accents...

December 2, 2010

Today, I heard a choir that sounded like I wish we could! I skipped the rehearsal, actually, to go to the Mariinsky Concert Hall to hear Russian folk songs! Oh, that was so so so amazing! The sound was so serene and moving, and even the songs that I had never heard before felt so familiar... That must be in the blood or something... That might sound cheesy but at some point I looked around and saw other people's glistening eyes and vague smiles, which made me think that they're bound to feel the same... The concert was only one hour-long but it was unforgettable!

December 1, 2010

Today was the first day of winter! There are very scary icicles going down off the roofs near the office, and they make me feel uncomfortable. Work went all right, but was a little bit boring. Later on, I was to have a lesson, and it was before then that I was woken up properly. The traffic lights weren't working, so when there was a substatial group of people willing to cross, we just started going, but then, somehow I found myself alone among many cars beeping and going... and I panicked for a very short moment and wanted to go back to the pavement and, thank goodness, that car stopped in time. I hated myself for being that ridicuous and immediately imagined boarding a plane with a couple of limbs in plaster...