t' Russia wit luv (part 3!)

last post - er because im home

2012-04-22T03:44:00.000-07:00

just thought id throw up some photos that i didnt manage to blog.
its strange to be back. good to see friends obviously. all being well with visa, ill be back over for may.

these are all from st petersburg..

nevski st

and again

the winter palace

tallest structure of free standing granite - nearly fell over when the were putting it up apparently

now used as a gallery- apparently there are so many works of art here they have never been able to count them all..hence some go walkies

went to the top of this to get subsequent views

hope youve enjoyed the blog

stay tuned for next installment

spring has sprunged

2012-03-21T00:45:00.002-07:00

ok - so this might be my penultimate or even last post - two weeks remain.
although there are no real signs of spring, the big melt has started. snow is shoveled off roofs, pathways being cleared, and the river makes huge noises at night as the ice cracks..
although my russian is still practically zero, i kind of blend in and regularly do things alone that would have seemed difficult at the beginning (shopping, bus rides, going to a badminton club where i dont know anyone..)
how do i feel? how do i feel about leaving?mmm. there are pro's and con's here as there are at home, or anywhere for that matter, and i regularly switch between feeling homesick and feeling i could live here. i guess it depends on your priorities.
i have met some lovely people here and they have treated me wonderfully and i seem to meet more as time passes, but in the rest of the people, there seems to be a sadness, even anger and this can get me down. theres something similar at home but its not as manifest as it is here.
if anything, my time here has shown me that i can quite easily live somewhere else. even somewhere i would have never dreamed of living..
ok so some more random pics and videos (if they work)
will see you lot soon..

went for jog. following photos taken around village on railway line

a night out in nalyvyka

probably moments before a brawl..

stumbled across a military parade on way to work in main square, all under the watchful eye of mr lenin

ok this may not be my last post - but in case, see you soon for a beer and a curry

end of winter

2012-03-01T09:18:00.000-08:00

ok so today is officially the end of winter, and start of spring..it certainly feels warmer (hovering around -10)
went to a metal concert at the weekend..quite enjoyed. resisted the temptation to mosh.
drinking live beer - so its cloudy and not ready basically - but they like it here...

ok so some random pics

'but i only left my car for ten minutes!'

Ginny looks rather nice heading to the metal concert..

outside my flat in the bright sunshine

my street again

this dog/huskie/wolf knows me and will bark at me when i return home late, so he can get let in the flat basement

here he is again about to disembowel a babooshka

went to a nearby village called Vilgrort today, to the above building. an amazing place of art workshops and exhibitions

the main hall inside

some old craftwork

and some new

this is what blew me away- these are done by kids- none of whom are older than 6..

and more

and more..

there was also some crafts made by the kids - absolutly amazing - bought some too

mainly cathedral

2012-02-19T06:57:00.000-08:00

quite warm today, and sunny as usual, so thought id see if i could get better pics of the cathedral..

the ice sculptures are still here..

the old fire station

various views of cathedral

kids playing near cathedral

every now and then we go to a state school to promote our english school. here they had a couple of songs prepared. great kids.

more stuff

2012-02-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

well its st valentines. here they celebrate it differently -in that, everyone who someone loves gets a gift. so its more of a family thing.
its still fairly cold, hovering around -25. although today was a belter as there was some wind. face scraping stuff.
tried to sample some more night life, although it can depend on closing times, drink prices, paying for tables and teenagers being dickheads.
i asked my friend if we could go see some countryside and we ended up going to an abandoned warehouse which is about 20 floors high. going up crumbling staircases and walking across holey floors was slightly unnerving but the view from the top was impressive.
lots of kids around the other day, zooming down hillsides on all manner of devices. they seem to start at a very early age and are pretty fearless. sometimes use each other as sleds! not got my snow legs yet..
job still good but tiring. students are great and often inspiring.
played badminton against the best player in the whole komi republic and won. so i am now champion of an area the size of france..
ok so heres some random pix..

the wiring outside my flat

looking down to the river

a twee

the top of the abandoned building

and views from it - the railway line to moscow

the roof floor, with visible holes and hidden ones..

slighly queezy

a long way back to sowerby bridge

a wee church

the view from my friends flat

Igor and myself reflect on the differences in local faces (he being nordic)

swift vodka drinking

my colleague and her relation

ezgenya (who can only swear in english)

irina (speaks fluent german)

olga and the sportcentre mutt

bobsleigh of a kind..

2012-02-05T11:42:00.000-08:00

well its still hovering around -30 and today we decided to go to 'the alps' - a place about 20 miles away that is hilly and actually looks very austrian..the drive there was interesting, as we often hit 80 miles an hour on a severely ice covered road. went thru a heavily industrialised zone where mondi paper mill resides. the smoke and emissions are an unbelievable sight. a sunny day suddenly turns grey as a mile wide blanket of fumes block out the sky and drift northwards for god knows how long. thankfully the alps were basking in sunshine. hardly anyone there because it was deemed too cold apparently.
the bobsleigh turned out to be being thrown down a hillside on a tyre innertube. it was quite fast - but a good laugh.

on a tangent - found some sausages at the top of my stairs. still trying to figure out the significance. should i be scared, pleased, angry, concerned, amused, thankful..? only time will tell

oh, played badminton the other day..the sports centre is better than anything we have..one of our group managed to break a collarbone - so i spent a good few hours in a hospital. not a pleasant experience if you like your hospitals clean and running under normal conditions..ie ' we can give u anasthetic if u wait 5 hours - otherwise u will be sick. or you can pay 50 dollars and not be sick and have it done now...
there was also a procession of incoming patients who had slipped on the ice and broken something or other.. plus drunks who do it on purpose in order to spend some time in a warm hospital.

a pleasant street scene

a half hour walk home will result in a jack frost snog

outdoor ice rink at the alps

i will kill the person with the p.a.

-32

2012-01-31T11:10:00.000-08:00

well, thought id best update..
went skating for the first time..went on my arse once but otherwise was ok. had to endure old russian childrens music in the process tho.
have already partaken of the cherished custom of visiting a friends house for tea and cake..the first of many no doubt.
went to a gig on saturday in an old cinema. it was a multi band night with bands from as far away as st petersburg..all fairly heavy.lots of covers. my favourite being personal jesus by depeche mode - with a rather unusual version of english..good night tho..first real taste of beer.

also had a night at my friends parents for blini and borscht. with plenty of political debate.
coldest day yet today - so quite unlogically , decided to cross the frozen river..was slightly parky. stunning colours and clarity tho..
today at work i made a ten year old girl cry..i gave her a lower mark than usual for her reading and she was absolutely gutted and cried..i felt awful! - i still do!

anyway heres some random pics

everyone needs a stuffed chicken in your cafe

the main church..will get more pics soon

the view from my works window

road through the park

wouldnt want one of these babies dropping on me..

another sunrise

after the frozen river trek - a nice warm cuppa of green tea in cafe chocolat - perhaps my new cafe 5?

oh and while i remember - ive been having regular lunches withmy friend in a nearby canteen. really nice food. average price for a meal, couple of slices of bread and a tea - £1.50

before sunrise..at 8.30!

2012-01-23T11:11:00.000-08:00

yes, getting stunning sunrises and sunsets at moment. this is the view from my balcony..

and the same view at midday.

this is my street again (soviet street). they dont use grit here. they have studded tyres..pedestrians take their chances.

this is my flat, right at the top! i resist the temptation to go on the swings.

went for a walk in the park which is just behind my flat - heading for the river..

this is the river, all frozeny. saw someone walk across. will try this when i get the courage up..

ice sculptures in the main square

and more of them. good to see no evidence of vandalism

my place of work

a snow leopard? more nice ice art

maybe we need this stuff in sowerby bridge?..ah but first we need a council that gives a shit

like this best but it looks like the penguin has been on the vodka. if hes still under the weather tomorrow, i will set him on his feet..

had my first full day at work. tiring but very enjoyable. the tutors are great and so are the kids.i find myself smiling way to often. its good old fashioned teaching but it works. and i like being called mr offen. get used to it. oh and for your amusement here is my first attempt at skiing (this is uphill by the way)

stuff

2012-01-21T13:39:00.000-08:00

the main square with ice sculptures and new year tree.
well , was put in a different flat than was expecting (soviet street) which is just above a sex shop. the flat is basic and sparse but very very warm. so much so its in the niff kippin with no sheets.
it is cold here. moisture in your nose starts to freeze ( a strange sensation)..lots of snow everywhere - but people just get on with it. went outside in the morning to explore - right outside, maybe a thousand waxwings were constantly cirlcling around the buildings and occasionally diving into two small rowan trees for berries.
then i went to work. nice rooms, nice tutors , nice students. joy..
tomorrow i go skiing. also swimming, snowboarding, bobsleigh and yoga are on the cards..also badminton is big here! so lots to do..
will post pictures of flat and also any skiing escapades..hope all is well in blighty

here and cold!

2012-01-21T07:28:00.000-08:00

well, ive made it. despite a hair-raising landing at moscow - plane was just about to land when there was huge scream of engines and the plane lurched upwards.later the captain informed that there was a plane on the runway..have to go out now for meal so will update properly when i have time..

last full day

2011-08-28T00:42:00.000-07:00

well i tink all of the band recording is done - perhaps we are recording some of my songs today?..
last night had to do some acting- video of wedding preparations by groom and best man..mainly because i wasnt there - had to go straight to wedding from plane

this is the brides parents cat. apparently it is called a british cat? anyhow it was huge, and had a liking for being stepped on and used as a mop

waiting to get into the studio- the building reminds me a lot of the those shithole rehearsal rooms near the tip in SB - but inside the rooms are a lot cleaner..

the groom twiddles on guitar for purposes of the video - all artistic like..

yesyterday we went for a walk down to the river which involved walking along the train track and thru a village on the outskirts of syktyvkar..these are not dachas but actual homes - i am looking into renting one for a while..

every house must have a knackered soviet times car outside..

down to the river

view of syktyvkar from the outskirts

last night was bit of a laugh - jammed with a local band while all were under the influence of whiskey..should have recorded it - but it was probably frog dirt..

well off to get out in the sun..

randon vidios

2011-08-25T23:23:00.000-07:00

sorry no vids as connection so slow here.. will post when i return
so random pics instead..

inside the local post office

komi republic celebrates its 90th birthday

a device to both scare and potentially kill small children..

what every supermarket needs..a beer tent..

what i initially thought was a toilet, turns out to be somewhere were you buy fresh water

prime mushroom pickin territory - found numerous chanterelles!

the main square

typical flats of the posher type..

hi tech high rise and low tech low rise

time has zoomed by here, cant believe i'll be returning home soon already. had probably my first party last night where no alcohol was consumed..strange but not unpleasant. played a psychological game called mafia. i will bring it back home to try..

not sure what the remaining days hold - some more recording for def - but otherwise?

has been almost not stop sunny here.. hope same 4 you lot at home and 4 the puzzfest..

urals part2

2011-08-22T10:29:00.000-07:00

well it was certainly vast, quiet, mysterious,wild, haunting...and that was just my tent..

what wasnt rocks covered in bright green lichens and moss, was a carpet of berry bearing plants..i have never ever seen so much fruit readily available to pick..most of it was a siberian version of bilberry- that tasted like strawberry..it was literally a case of walk a step, grab some berries, walk another etc..i was on a vitamin c high.

magical skies most evenings, blown in from the arctic.

at our first camp, we left the other two to put up the tents while we searched for a vital drinking water supply. this is where we all felt real fear. are you familiar with the scene from jurassic park, where our intrepid team enter the field of long grass? that instantly sprang to my mind when we were walking down through the woods and foun bear traces. fresh traces. im not talking about lines in the grass, im talking huge indentations where the bears had layed down - in this chest high grass. not just one, but four or five. they were somewhere close. it was a scary time- and we hadnt got the water yet! so we had to forge on and keep our wits about us..bears will invariably attack if you stumble across them at close quarters..anywho- we got the water and got out of that wood quick..this was not the last close encounter.

bears dont like fires, so we cooked up some tea

some of the views in between camps

an example of the berry carpet

ooh more berries, what a surprise..

a rather cheeky little view..

we find time to play a strategy game..?..

?dont ask me - i lost

we decided to make our final camp where there were lots of bear signs- in this case lemon smelling shit - from the berries dont you know..the fragrant smell was everywhere- which means so were the bears..but for some reason we werent as scared- maybe we were becoming one with nature?..

the final weary trek back to the cars as the sun set.

finally back at the cars - where god did speak to the lowly travellers and said 'get orf my land'

btw it was now zero degrees..mm not it was just a case of a 600 miles high speed drive at night by two knackered drivers..deep joy

next up - some random videos

back from urals..

2011-08-21T05:21:00.000-07:00

well it wasnt so much a camping trip as more of a military expedition- rucksacks filled to the brim and terrain to tire any man..i am knackered!

first there was the very long drive there (approx 600 miles) - all done in one go of course, this involved rubbish roads for the most part + extreme roads for the rest. it felt like rally driving for about 200 miles of it..nearly all thru forest.

the only town we came across - all to do with gas

typical driving view

3/4 of the journey there, we had to get thru a gas terminal..we arrived about 10 oclock at night, and they wouldnt let us thru, so we had to kip in car. the following day was five hours of bullshit bureauocracy while everything was quadruple checked by god knows how many people- then we were finally thru..only another 200 miles or so to go..

our final contact with civilisation before we went it alone - nice sauna...

went for a jaunt up a large mountain to find a helicopter that had had a bit of trouble..

on our final leg

'you are now leaving europe and entering asia' . cool, first time in asia. also we are now in siberia proper

beautiful but severe landscape

'ere dear, ill give you an and..'

lots of nice clean rivers

so we left cars and set off on foot, sun shining and alls well\
ok - bit knackered and need shower so will sign off fa now and continue this later.. stay tuned for news of bears

nightmare journey..

2011-08-14T14:51:00.000-07:00

hello from russia!..well everything seemed to be going swimmingly til i got to amsterdam airport. flight delay of two hours meant my connecting flight from moscow to syktyvkar was also under threat..

on arrival at moscow airport i had 15 minutes to catch the next plane, which would have been ok if it hadnt been for passport control..this took 15 minutes. i prayed that my flight might be delayed..unfortunately not. flight missed.next flight available?..8.30pm the following day - well after the wedding. after a great deal of swearing and general downheartedness, i texted the groom to explain the situation - he said there may be another option..book another flight from a different airport leaving in the morning. he sorted this out over tinternet.. so a day and a half later, i reached my destination..at least im here and caught the wedding.

a damp send off at leeds bradford..

time for a slight bit of r&r in the freebie posh hotel in moscow (note beer, which was most welcome)

getting on the plane bound for syktyvkar at moscow airport - it was absolutely roasting..

a great setting for the wedding

the bride and groom with immediate family

a wedding dance practice in a posh hotel

the wedded couple pose

and again

the following day, some of us go to the father in laws dacha to relax - we were later treated to a display of dry lightning which i'll post later - off to bed now - as its the trip to the urals tommorow...so no posts for a few days..hope alls well in riot britain.?..

final day in blighty

2011-08-11T07:34:00.000-07:00

sorting out all the pain in the asp documents, and getting stuff packed..
a rather rude flight time tomorrow morning..

Fly on Friday!

2011-08-08T09:12:00.000-07:00

at some ridiculous hour i'll be winging my way to syktyvkar in russia- with stop offs in amsterdam and moscow..

its going to be action packed and fun no doubt and i will have a diary on here with lovely pics...

but for now you could familiarise yourself with / revisit last years trip - see below..

my last blog 4 def - moscow et al

2010-09-28T10:03:00.000-07:00

on the road to moscow- people like to marry on bridges before throwing themselves off..

first sight of red square

rather nice mass going on in here

one of the many ornate buildings

lenins morsoleum

the most sinister building ever

outside the kremlin

the monument in victory square

monument to the oppression of russians by nazis

riga

pottering around in boats in helsinki

penultimate blog

2010-09-18T03:22:00.000-07:00

haha access to a computer. 15 hr trip by car yesterday to moscow. oy! about to head to centre to sight see and stuff..will post some pics later...

last blog

2010-09-16T06:27:00.000-07:00

well this is the last day i'll be able to get on a computer, so an update on the last few days.

mm recording, recording and more recording

all vocals more or less done - some extra bits and bobs to record at home

to do -
photo shoot shortly, then some bars, beer and vodka..
tomorrow the car journey to moscow - all 650 miles..
the day after- moscow sight seeing

the following day heading back to helsinki then home..

gonna miss here..
hopefully will bring some russian ethos back with me..

thanks for following my trip
see you soon

typical road..

return of the giant hogweed (it may not look it on photos, but was about 15 ft high)

lost in russia

2010-09-12T22:57:00.000-07:00

lots of recording and as seeing as it was a sunny day - we decided to go for a walk in a forest, and got lost. well for a while anyway. forests here are extremely still and quiet, but in all other respects very similar to our coniferous jobbies..no bears seen unfortunately..

dacha

2010-09-11T12:00:00.000-07:00

well the snow eased and after a tad of recording we headed to nomys parents dacha (summer house). which was about 30 miles from syk..situated next to a lake and surrounded by forest, it was very tranquil..we drank russian vodka and albanian cognac and i had my first experience of a banya (equivalent to a sauna). which consists of stripping off and getting beaten with birch twigs in extreme heat. i could get used to it to be honest...

snow!

2010-09-10T22:46:00.000-07:00

yes today its started snowing..mm as i write its just started coming down heavy.
last night we met up with Dorans brothers and played pool. good fun. today after recording we head off to a family dacha (country house) to see the scenery and maybe try a banya (sauna)..was shown some photos of the aftermath of a bear attack..not much left of the poor guy..the bear was shot and it was eeeenormous. the paw was nearly as wide as a mans shoulders.

some photos from the school visit

'in british schools we have a budget this big'

essential knowledge for any child

keep hold of that signature young man, it may be worth pounds in the future

en masse

2010-09-10T09:38:00.000-07:00

last night went to a friend of Nomy's who is a chess master..also in attendance was his friend Anastasia. we had tea in a hotel cafe to start then went back to his pad, where we talked about music til the small hours and drank more tea and fine cakes..
the following day i attended mass in the amazing church pictured..it was the full orthodox catholic monty. with angelic voices and priests wandering around swing their inscense. very aesthetically pleasing but complete hogwash

typical tower blocks

close up

tower blocks next to wooden houses..

same

that nice church again

every school should have a tank...

ah finally, where i belong; the judges chair in a courtroom ..

calling the religious types to mass

school day

2010-09-10T08:51:00.000-07:00

two videos - one of a rehearsal by very good local band 'the kite runners' in a very nice practice room..the other from when i visited a school to talk about england etc..here they sing a russian song for me.

nice song with some great guitar lines

ive no idea what they are singing about...but they were nice kids with some interesting questions..