Schnitzel with Noodles

As random as it seems, Erica and I have found ourselves friends with a whole community of German girls working in St. Pete. We met Elizabeth on our first Sunday here, and she has since introduced us to Antonia, Lisa, and Kati.

Our German posse (minus Kati): Elizabeth, Lisa, and Antonia

Last Friday night, the six of us decided to check out the opening of the bridges. Every evening the drawbridges over the Neva river open up for a few hours to let ships come in and out. So we met the girls at a coffee shop and hung out until about 1 am. Then we walked down to the river to check it out. From where we were standing, we could see three different bridges. It was beautiful, even before the bridges were raised... St. Petersburg all lit up at night is definitely a sight worth seeing.

Afterwards we walked Antonia home (she lived about 3 blocks away) and the rest of the girls spent the night at our flat. The next morning we got up early (not an easy feat!) and took a bus to Peterhoff. Peterhoff is the location of one of Peter the Great's palaces, and it's known for it's beautiful gardens and fountains. It turned out that we chose the perfect day for it. The sun was out for most of the day, and it was one of the last warm days of the autumn (we got our first snow on Friday). The leaves had mostly changed color by then and they turned off the fountains the day after we were there, so it really was perfect timing! We got a ton of great pictures. And it doesn't hurt that my roommate is a photographer!

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Playing in the leaves at Peterhoff

The following Monday, Elizabeth came over to make schnitzel for us and a few other people. Our friend Anya showed up first and showed us how to make blini (super thin Russian pancakes), so it turned into a truly international dinner party! And I, of course, spent the entire evening humming "My Favorite Things." Now I know why schnitzel with noodles makes Maria von Trapp so happy! It was delicious!

Our international dinner party: Dima, Anya,

Elizabeth, Sharon, me, and Erica

The moral of the story: St. Petersburg is starting to feel like home. We have friends here. We have to schedule down time on our weekends. We're even running into people we know when we're out and about.

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It's kind of nice. :)

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PS. Check out my "Pictures" and "Thoughts" tabs at the top for more updates.

Home Strange Home

Well, we've been here four weeks tomorrow, so I guess it's about time to introduce you to my new home!

St. Petersburg is a gorgeous city- even our walk to the metro is beautiful. One of my favorite things to do here is take walks around our neighborhood. We live in one of the oldest districts of the city, so there are tons of beautiful old buildings and little parks tucked into the most random places. And I've heard tell of a bazaar within walking distance, which makes me happier than I can say. Now I just have to find it!

"The Castle Around the Corner"- we pass this

every day on our way to the metro

This is so St. Petersburg to me. These are the directions to our school from the metro: Walk towards the beautiful and historic cathedral.... and turn right at the McDonalds

And last but certainly not least... even though these signs are written in Russian, I bet you can still guess what they say!

Yeah, we're really roughing it here. It's almost a disappointment, actually. I didn't come to Russia to eat at Subway! But don't worry- we'll overcome this obstacle!