How do you say....

Zdrasvutya! Hope everyone is doing well back in the States. My iPhone weather app tells me that y'all are experiencing some pretty hot weather over there. Well, Moscow (Mosk-oh, not Moss-cow.) has been sunny and pleasant at a relatively constant temperature of 73 degrees every day. (Yes, I'm rubbing it in.) I apologize for not updating this here blog for a while: every time I sit down at the computer, I feel overwhelmed with what I should write about. So, I thought I would blog in lists this time around. Hope you enjoy this! Maybe you'll learn something super interesting...

Fashion Trends in Moscow:

• Braids. French braids, standard braids, fishtail braids. Tons of girls wear beautiful braids in their hair. I have happily embraced this trend, as have my fellow female project mates. :)
• Parachute pants. No, I'm not kidding. They are definitely "in" here. I should've listened to you, Luke Williams, and bought a pair to wear around here...except I don't think I'd ever wear them at home.
• The mullet. Or more specifically, the Euro-mullet. Usually men sport this hairdo, but I have also seen some Moscovite women with mullets... Ay. Once again, a shout-out to my buddy Luke, who can actually pull off a nice-looking Euro-mullet.
• Shoes. I love them. Flats are "in" for girls, but I see tons of brave ladies walking around in ridiculously tall heels. I dunno how they do that in a big city. I LOVE the shoes that men wear here! They're a lot more classy than your average Nike or New Balance tennis shoes that most guys wear in the U.S.

Food:

• McDonald's? Seriously, folks. Russians love their Mickey D's. McDonald's is our little taste of America over here, and it's a quick (dangerous?) block away from the Napoleon (our hostel). You can get a moroshenae rajoke for 16 rubels, a steal over here, so our team frequents the restaurant for a little snack. The staff there just loves when we visit.... And, McDonald's here is much tastier than it is in the States. Don't ask me why, because I don't know.
• The Blini. Blinis are essentially crepes. They are delicious. I eat them very often, which may or may not be a bad choice, but I figure I should embrace Russian eating habits while I'm here. My favorite blini meal consists of a ham and cheese blini and a wild berry blini. So. Good.
• Shashlik. Shashlik is a Russian shish kebab, served with a piece of round flatbread. I tried my first bit of shashlik at Ismaylova market on Sunday! It also was the first time I've ever eaten lamb, to my knowledge. It was amazing. I can't wait to return to the market for more shopping and more shashlik. :)
• PASTRIES! Oh my goodness, I don't know how I will survive back in Flower Mound without eating pastries. There is a small pastry stand in our home metro station where I grab breakfast some mornings. You can smell the little treasures before the stand is in your line of sight. My favorites are apricot (which is a very popular fruit here) and lemon. Yummy.
• Cactus Water. It's this green juice that we all buy from our grocery store. Technically, it's cactus-lime juice. We can't really read the bottle, but it's very tasty. Very refreshing after a long day on campus.
• Business Lunch?! MSP veterans, Business Lunch has changed its menu to read, "Home Dinner." But we still call it Business Lunch. Essentially, you can get the meal of the day for 145 rubels, which is a great deal in Moscow. However, since we can't speak Russian, sometimes we don't know what we're ordering. However, I have never been disappointed in my meal. Pretty fun to try new Russian food!

Things I dislike:

• Pigeons. They are rampant at metro entrances, and especially like to fly right in front of Abby.
• Crowded metro rides. Speaking of the metro, have you ever been on a train where you had to stand with nothing to hold on to except for your friend's purse, and you are packed like sardines with Russian citizens, half of whom do not see the need to wear deodorant? No? Lucky you. That describes my metro ride to the linguistics university today. Suggestion: try to avoid rush hour on the metro.
• Cigarettes. Lots of Moscovites smoke. Now, it doesn't bother me a whole lot, but it is annoying to leave a coffee shop with your clothes smelling like an ash tray....

Things I enjoy:

• Long (not crowded) metro rides. I love riding the metro, despite the occasional cattle-drive feeling that you experience every once in a while. There is time to decompress, to listen to music, just to people watch. However, it is customary to sit quietly on the metro with un-crossed legs. Not much talking goes on. We Americans have difficulty blending into the crowd at times because we are loud and chatty.
• Architecture! There are beautiful, BEAUTIFUL buildings here in the city. I just love it. I think I owe it to my dad for being interested in what buildings look like. There is a lot of art-deco style art and sculpture around town, and a lot of old, traditional, onion-dome churches sprinkled here and there. Metro stations, in fact, have some beautiful mosaics and statues and murals here and there. They are so neat to discover!
• The weather. Holy Moses, guys. The weather here is glorious. I think my friends and I have thanked God every single day for the beautiful weather that He has provided us on this trip. We have yet to experience any rain, although it is in the forecast later in the week. Just sunshine and cool breezes. :)

Things I Miss:

• Ice. I've heard that Europeans don't like ice. Well, I miss it. I miss having a nice ice-cold beverage at meals.
• Dr. Pepper. Enough said.
• Warm showers. Although, I am learning to enjoy a nice tepid shower.
• Um, I feel like it's just a given that I miss my family. I haven't talked to my parents as much as I would like while I've been here in Moscow. Love y'all bunches!

I appreciate all of the people praying for me at home! It has been so amazing to see the things that God is doing here. I am learning tons about Russian culture, human nature (the fact that students here really are just like students in America), and a heck of a lot about myself. I've especially taken to heart that He is sovereign and He isn't surprised by anything that happens while we're here. It's a very comforting and humbling thing to realize. I hope to write more about my adventure soon!

Grace and Peace,

Laura