С Днем Рождения to me

This year for my birthday I received the strangest emails...one from my dentist and one from my internet provider.  The one from MTS (internet provider) is the one I like best...check out the translated text below. 


Date: 30.09.2011  
From: MTS HOME  
Subject: C Happy Birthday!  
Message: Dear (th) Sandra Flips! MTS congratulates you on your birthday! We thank you for your cooperation in this wonderful day we wish you success in your activities, warmth and love, light and joy in my heart! Suppose that all problems can be solved easily, and socializing with friends over the Internet from MTS fun! Sincerely, support MTS.

AWE-SOME!!

Mr. Unmentionable brought home 10 white roses, realizing afterwards that flowers are meant to be offered in odd numbers as even ones are for mourning -or was he trying to not-so-subtly tell me something about my fleeting youth?  I wonder, sometimes.  We went out for dinner at our local Georgian restaurant where we were serenaded to the sweet sounds of an accordionist.  Would that I could upload the sound bites of his versions of Hotel California and No Woman No Cry.  Sadly, we weren't treated to his Edith Piaf medley this time.

 

 

Carpe Delivery

OK...so where to begin?  On Thursday morning my eyes snapped open at 5:00AM and wouldn’t close again much to my chagrin.  Mr. Unmentionable was taking the day off to stay with me and help with the sea shipment (and to fuss about, quite frankly).  I decided to let him sleep a while longer as I knew what to expect based on the outgoing packing/shipping experience.  I must say, he did not disappoint.  We were both on edge as the pre-appointed time drew near.  We were both convinced that it was not to happen but alas...I stuck my head out the window and from the balcony I was met with a sight for sore eyes, indeed.  At 10:20AM the movers were sitting in their truck, parked outside our building and waiting...for 10:30AM on the nose when they rang our buzzer.  Two strapping young men came up with paperwork in hand and serious expressions on their faces.  When I asked the taller one (he was easily 6’ 5”, I swear...) if he spoke any English, he replied “Lee-tol beet.”  It turns out that it was more enough for us to be able to make ourselves mutually understood.  The paperwork was amusing...read the close up below to explain why they were exactly on time.

(NE OPAZDIVAT = don’t be late)  Apparently we are VIPs.  Huh...who knew? 

To the sound of a wooden crate being cracked open, the unloading commenced and my excitement mounted.  They began unloading box upon box of my stuff, much of which I had forgotten was coming and much of which I had been dreaming of for days, weeks, even months!!  They had a finely-tuned system in place whereby one would pack the elevator, hit the #5 button and send the goods up to the one waiting in the flat who would unload the boxes, place the dolly back in and send the empty elevator down for the next load.  While that was going on, Mr. Unmentionable would check the box # against the packing slip and then the box would be shuttled into the flat and placed in the appropriate space.  The tall one would pick up boxes as if they were feather light and deposit them gracefully wherever they needed to go.  He made things look so easy.  I realized this was all smoke and mirrors when I went to pick up a box and move it from one space to another and almost threw my back out.  I ended up sliding it across the floor instead.  The guy was an animal - 0% body fat and all sinewy muscle and strength.  Lesson learned, there is a reason he is the professional!  Before I knew it, the better part of an hour had gone by and that was all, she wrote!

 

With a terse, “Open?” answered with a silent nod, the real work began.  I knew better than to question a guy like him with a knife in his hand.  The two men tore apart the boxes in the kitchen and the livingroom with such gusto as to make a hurricane blush.  By 1:00 PM they had finished unpacking everything save 3 wardrobe boxes and 3 boxes in the office area that we had asked them not to touch.

I’ll let the photos speak for themselves...

With the paperwork filed and the unpacking complete, they disappeared as quickly and quietly as they came, taking all of the empty boxes and packing material with them and leaving behind only mountains of our “stuff” covering every surface imaginable.  My task was to find homes for all of the goods spread throughout the house.

Everything made it in great working order, nothing was broken beyond repair (I managed to squish the springform mold back into shape) and the entire operation went smoothly!  There was only one piece indicated on the inventory list that we couldn’t for the life of us figure out.  What was a mapple box (sic), I wondered?  And why was a single item on a sheet of its own and why did the movers have a copy of a sheet that we didn’t?  When I finally found the item, I had to smile.  The moving company back in Ottawa had included a beautiful maple-themed gift box as a surprise gift at our destination.  We really are VIPs, it seems.


So...here is what I am really excited about:

-1000 thread count sheets, a duvet and feather pillows Need I say more?
-proper knives ... I just want to chop up some vegetables  BECAUSE I CAN!!!
-a KitchenAid -Yes, I made cookies on Saturday evening and have a bit of a learning curve to overcome with the oven but that will happen in no time flat.  It seems the gas stove runs a bit hot.
-mixing bowls of all sizes so we can make a bowl of hot air popped corn
-a rubber spatula!  You try to cook for 2 months without one and tell me how much fun you have.
-my high heeled boots although I will have to throw one pair away and can’t seem to walk long distances in the others -hmmm...I smell a shopping trip in my near future.  I’m just happy to have closed-toed footwear as the weather seems to have taken a turn towards the chillier side of things.

Our COSTCO order (which seemed enormous at the time but turns out to have been really quite small) has been stored on various shelves and in cupboards, surprisingly fitting behind closed doors.  We won’t have need of the two shelving units in the kitchen after all.  I’m going to try to have the sofabed in the office taken away and move the shelves into that room where they are actually needed.  Our pots, pans and kitchen stuff all have homes and have proven to be very useful so far.  I love cooking with gas elements!  The only question I have is why do I have a container of catnip in my sea shipment?

Picture hanging will happen over the course of the next week or two and decorating will be a work in progress over the next few years as we travel and acquire a variety of meaningful pieces to make our house a home.

Chocolate chip cookie, anyone?  Help yourself to the milk in the fridge but, just remember, 1% it isn’t.

Two...More...Sleeps...

As you know, these days all I can think about (aside from those awesome yellow shoes in the store window) is if/when our SEA shipment will potentially show up.  Incredibly it seems now that it is due to arrive here on Thursday, September 22nd between 10:30 AM and 11:00AM my time.  My birthday has come 8 days early!  You all will be sound asleep as it will be about 3AM EST when boxes upon boxes of my "stuff" will be hauled up 5 flights of stairs and deposited in my flat.  Thank goodness I've already rearranged the furniture (much to Mr. U's chagrin) and am ready for the mountains of cardboard that will soon litter the front hall.  If I am not mistaken, they are supposed to offer to unpack it all for me too...hmmmmm

Since arriving here, each week it seems that I desperately desire a new item or items that I know are coming in the "mythical SEA shipment".  So here is a list of things that I have been dreaming about this week and can't wait to get my hands on...

my duvet and pillows...oh, to have my pillows
mixing bowls (have you any idea how hard it is to cook with one bowl?)
my chef's knife (*shudder*)

As an afterthought, I'm pretty excited about the following items too...

bubble bath (since I have to climb into the tub, I know it will be great for a soak)
flour

spices аnd curry paste

olive oil
boots with heels (a girl has got to fit in to her surroundings)
shoes with heels (*see above)

coat (it is getting chilly here -it went down to 3° C last night)

rice (and a proper pot to cook it in that doesn't burn the bottom layer -don't ask)
chocolate chips (this means cookies, kids -it has been months since I've done any baking!)
artwork (the walls are too bare and have no character yet)

I am SURE there will be some serious surprise items that I had forgotten all about. 

How am I supposed to wait until Thursday?!!  Any suggestions?

Stay tuned for some awesome photos of the mountains of cardboard that will fill the flat for the next week or so.  At least they do come back and remove the boxes and packing paper.  I am hoping it all gets recycled because the amount of paper used by the packers back in Ottawa was obscene.  It makes me sleep a bit better at night thinking it all will be recycled despite the nagging voice in the back of my mind saying otherwise...

: )

Here are a few things that have made me smile this past week...an iPhone photo essay.

An awesome pair of shoes in a shop window.  I didn’t dare go inside the shop to have a closer look.  They might have followed me home.



Move over, duct tape...Saran Wrap is in town!

I’ll just hop on my broomstick and fly away home...They commonly use these twig brooms to clear off debris from the streets and sidewalks.

 

A sunshine-dappled bench in the park outside my building.

A completely unexpected rain shower followed by a double rainbow.  This one is for you, Mandy.

It's the little things, really.

When a very good friend asked me, “How are you doing trying to adjust?”, I responded to  him that it is all so foreign yet all so familiar.  It really is the little things that make a big difference.

Like any big city (and by big I mean gargantuan) there is serious gridlock every which way you look but, at the same time, there is pedestrian traffic everywhere.  I notice that more people walk here than back home.  Of course there are 10 (16?) million people here compared to the 1 million we have in Ottawa.  It is easier to walk here as the entire city is an urban setting with pedestrian traffic taken into account in the urban planning as opposed to sprawling suburbia where you need a car to get to the grocery store.  You can very easily get around without a vehicle and, frankly, I'm loving it.  I'll get back to you when the weather falls apart and it is -40'C outside but, for now, I'll take it.

Like back home, people make appointments for service calls and they call to confirm their arrival.  UNLIKE back home, the guy who called to say he'd be there in an hour decided after talking to Mr. Unmentionable that we didn't speak enough Russian, he wasn't going to bother coming.  He never called to cancel, he just never showed.  Back home you'd get in shit...here, nothing.  The guy who came on Monday was better about it.  He never called to confirm, he just showed up about 20 minutes before the scheduled time.  Mr U got a detailed email about time and price for the hook up.  Neither were correct.  We ended up having to kick in an extra 540 руб  for the phone jack filters.  There was no fine print to that effect, we're just lucky that we had more cash on hand and exact change at that.

I've also noticed that people here look like people that I know back home.  I am constantly doing a double-take as I think I recognize people but, really, they are just Russians who look like people I know.  Unless...Ted, were you on the Stariy Arbat the other day?  I swear I saw you there!  Best check his passport, Lan.

I love shopping at the local markets for fresh produce.  Back home the farmer’s markets have prices posted so you know how much you will pay and can compare form booth to booth.  Here the price is a means test.  I can’t even begin to budget for a shopping trip so I just bring tons of cash and pray for the best.  The more you frequent a stall, the better your price is.  As an example, on one occasion, the “nut girl” from whom I usually buy cashews and walnuts was not able to help me so her mother stepped in.  When she came back from her errand her mother was trying to charge me 800 руб for 200g of cashews.  She shooed her mother away and charged me 80 руб instead.  I had been coming to see her for a few weeks and was entitled to “local pricing”, I guess!  The same goes for our fruit and veggie guys and the cheese/dairy lady.  Our cheese price fluctuates between 80 and 300 руб depending on who is at the counter that day.

If, by some chance, you find yourself out and about leaving a bar at about 2 or 3 AM (just sayin’ is all - I’m admitting nothing) and are searching for a way to get home that does not involve a trek in high heels, you always have the option of catching a local horse.  Yes, I said horse.  Not a horse-drawn carriage, nor a calèche, nor a rickshaw...a HORSE.  I’m not even going to go into detail here.  Suffice it to say that it is apparently a commonly accepted use of late night/early morning transport that explains the mysterious piles of dung that I have noticed during the morning trek to the gym.

Other than that, really, things look about the same only they are spelled using Cyrillic letters and they are HUGE! 

Cribs -Moscow

Welcome, everyone, to our humble abode.  We’ve just moved in and as you can see it doesn’t quite look like “home” just yet.  When the mythical SEA shipment arrives and I manage to unpack everything and make the place our own, we’ll have you back over for drinks and another tour.

Once you cross the threshold, you find yourself in a spacious reception area.  To your immediate right is the guest bedroom, past that is the large eat-in kitchen (we’ll get back to that later), ahead is the guest washroom (complete with shower), to the left of that the master suite followed by the office area tucked in behind the corner.  On your direct left are the livingroom and diningroom.  Let’s go check them out.

Notice the high ceilings and crown molding details.  The furnishings here are a neutral-toned, eclectic mix of IKEA contemporary chic and traditional estate -perfect for entertaining the pearls-and-sweater-set crowd.

Shall we adjourn to the office area?  Follow me through the French doors to the left.  Don’t get lost now, this is tricky...Ah, good, I see you’ve made it!  The office area is well-illuminated with windows that almost span the distance from the ceiling to the floor.  In case you get sleepy while at work and feel the need to catch a quick catnap, there is the obligatory pull-out couch in here for your comfort.

Come now, to where the “magic happens”...Yes, that’s right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Mistress’ bedroom suite, err, I mean the master bedroom with en suite.  The flat is facing east so the morning light streams through the windows and wakes me with its gentle touch when I forget to draw the curtains.  The luxurious, queen-size bed has (just) enough room for two and the sleigh bed frame, mismatched drawers, dresser and closet add an interesting touch and somehow tie it all together.  Fortunately for those 2 AM potty breaks, the commode is not far away.  Just remember to push the big button on the wall to flush!

At first I was taken aback by the tiles on the floor and walls but I have since come to appreciate them as they sure make cleaning quite easy.

Let’s get out of the loo and head back to the entrance where we’ll take a tour of the guest facilities.  Just off the front entrance, you’ll find your luxury accommodations.  Again, you’ll find the room filled to capacity with grandma’s castaways to store a year’s worth of clothing and personal items and a single bed where you can rest your weary head after a long day spent playing tourist in this incredible metropolis.  Your room faces west so the spectacular Moscow sunsets are your backdrop.  A quick peek out the window reveals the tip of one of the Seven Sisters.  The nighttime skyline seen from here is remarkable.  If you are in need of a quick, refreshing shower, no need to ask -just go ahead and use your own private (tiled from floor to ceiling of course) washroom.  Again, the flush button is on the wall.

And now we head to the kitchen for the obligatory glimpse into the fridge.  No chocolate or beer or even Monster drinks here, kids.  You’ll find fresh veggies, fruit and meat from the local farmer’s market and some cheese and butter from local dairies.  There may be a bottle of wine in there for special occasions too.  Laundry and ironing day is considered a special occasion, right?

The storage and counter space in here is quite generous with an island and a nook as well as a long counter with a built in dishwasher and full-size gas range.  The doors in the eating area give on to a fire escape and the area below the window is actually a great place to sit and read on the iPad while dinner is happily cooking away.  A few throw pillows would be perfect for that space.  Tucked discreetly in the corner are the laundry pair so thankfully I don’t have to lug any clothes to a laundromat any time soon -not that I have even seen a laundromat around here. 

The last tenants were allocated two full fridges and a full stand up freezer.  I’m going to return the extra fridge as I really don’t foresee any reason or occasion that could possibly warrant its use.

Well, that’s it for now folks...you’ve seen the entertaining space, the “magic” room, the washroom wall flush buttons and the contents of my fridge -it is time for you to sign off the blog and get back to work!  Thanks for stopping by and we’ll be sure to have you back when the flat becomes more of a home with our own, personal touches added in.

до свидания !

Подмосковные вечера

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8LjuCMETO8&feature=related

Hmmmm....what to do on a cloudy, crisp late summer evening?  A trip to the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is in order, I do believe.  Which building shall we visit, I wonder?  Well, let’s try this one as I know that Mr. Unmentionable prefers the works of the XVIII and XIX centuries.

For the modest fee of 300 руб (60 руб if you are a resident of Moscow or free if you are an orphan) you can visit these hallowed halls Tuesday through Sunday.  Sadly, there were no photos allowed so you’ll have to make do with my description of the visit.

Here is the official website’s version of the collections housed here:

European Painting of the Early and Mid — XIX Century

The first half of the XIX century was marked in Europe by a great variety of artistic trends. While classicism still held its ground, romanticism and realism were shaping up. The great French romantic masters — Gericault and Delacroix — are represented here by small yet characteristic works. The Museum also has excellent works by the reformers of the European landscape painting — Constable, Corot, and the Barbizon school, as well as some works by Courbet, Millet, and Friedrich, many of them from the collection of S.M.Tretyakov.

Painting of the Late XIX — Early XX Centuries.

The unique collection of French painting of the late XIX — early XX centuries possessed by the Museum is world-renowned. After Moscow's former Museum of the New Western Art was closed down in 1948 its collection was divided between the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (Moscow) and the Hermitage (St.Petersburg, then Leningrad). Originally it had been made up of two excellent private collections assembled about the turn of the century by S.I.Shchukin and I.A.Morozov. Thus the Pushkin Museum was enriched with paintings of rare artistic value including masterpieces by Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro, Sisley, Cezanne, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Bonnard, Vuillard, Denis, Matisse, and Picasso.
http://www.museum.ru/gmii/defengl.htm


Here is my version of the collections housed here:

*ahem*
When they casually say they have “works by...”, I think that qualifies as the understatement of the century.  I have to admit I was literally moved to tears while walking through room after room of absolutely exquisite masterworks.  The paintings in the collection (remember I can only speak about those that were on view - I can’t imagine what is in storage or on loan) are not insignificant works, either.  Often in museum collections you will find one or two large canvases or significant works by an artist and a series of prints, drawings or even studies but that is not the case here.  At the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, the visitor is presented with a feast for the eyes with canvas after canvas after canvas of works by each artist serving nothing less than ambrosia for the senses.

This collection of what can only be described as jewels of the XIX and XX centuries is modestly displayed in a beautiful, yet unassuming, building facing Christ The Redeemer Cathedral in central Moscow.  The simple flow of one intimate gallery space into another allows the viewer to concentrate on the plethora of stunning artworks that adorn simple, white walls.  The quiet volunteers sit patiently in their chairs, observing passersby and sharing intimate conversations in hushed tones lest they disturb the tranquil and reverent atmosphere evoked by the canvases.  Each artwork possesses a power and energy all to itself and at the same time each salon resonates with such a force as to engulf the viewer in the collective power of each of the vignettes that line the walls. 

Sculptures by Rodin punctuate the galleries and afford you the rare opportunity to see, close up, this Master’s art.  The play of light and shadow on marble surfaces lovingly polished to a glow or roughed up just enough to appear as delicate as silk remind you (once you realize that what you are looking at is a sculpture teased from a single block of stone) of how exquisite the human form can be.  Rarely do we have the chance to observe a body at rest, immobile.  Rodin has given us this ability through the work of his gifted hands and exceptional vision.

The experience is intoxicating.

The Exercise Yard or The Convict Prison
Vincent Van Gogh, 1890