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Hellooooo,

Hope everyone is enjoying the beginning of June. This past Monday marked the beginning of my fourth week here…. I can’t believe how fast the time has gone; I’m almost half done!

This week has begun slowly, but I don’t mind. On Monday not much happened…. This week I am back with Katya and Peter. Oh! Nastya made blini. Earlier, we talked a lot about yummy Russian foods, and she decided she wanted to make blini for everyone. It was absolutely delicious…. I want to know how to make them! They’re different than crepes and different than pancakes.

I also Skyped my mom for a bit on Monday which was nice. My family is coming to visit in 2 weeks! I’m very excited to see them and show them around.

Tuesday we isolated RNA from ribosomes using different protocols. Everything went without a hitch until all of the samples were spilt after 3 hours of work…. #science

Today is Wednesday and I desperately need to go grocery shopping. It’s a little tough with one person to cook for, since I can’t buy anything in bulk or else it will go bad. Maybe I will make another batch of banana bread tonight.

Last night I was showered and comfy in bed with a movie by 8pm. Score. I also painted my nails (all 20 of them). So far, I’ve watched…

1)   The Invisible War. Documentary/Drama about sexual assault in the US Military. Such a light/fun movie. (Not. It was good though.)

2)   Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Great Rom Com with Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Highly recommend.

3)   Compliance. Drama based on true incidents of a prank phone call that turns awful. Such a great movie, and so creepy that stuff like this (or the Stanley Milgrim Experiments or Stanford Prison Experiments) happen.

4)   The Spectacular Now. Coming of age film. Solid.

This is a very short post, but so far the week has been quiet. I always see kitties and puppies outside the institute and it really makes me want to take them home. I know I can’t, but I can’t wait to have a pet of my own (not that I don’t love you, Whiskers!).

This summer is already the most perfect summer – do I have to go back to real life in the fall? I wonder how Emily and Maia are doing in their internships (dance friends). Em is in Belize and Maia is in Alaska. I wish they kept blogs too. I wish everyone kept blogs. 

Be well, comrades.

С Леким Паром

Happy Sunday all,

Today is a lazy morning but soon I am going to head to the Sandanny Banya (oldest most famous Banya in Moscow). Before I do that, I will talk about Friday and Saturday.

Friday was a tough day. It started out well and I was able to do PCR and gel electrophoresis by myself, but then we went upstairs for tea. I don’t really want to go into detail about what happened, since I’ve already vented about it quite a bit, but basically, comments were said about me – but not to me – regarding me getting lost/me not understanding things/etc.  I know that Balaban cares for me a lot, but I feel like lines are crossed when your BOSS at work starts saying mean things about you in Russian to your colleagues. I understand that he thinks of me as his responsibility or as his quasi-third child, but when we’re at work, I do not want to be belittled. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

And maybe it wasn’t so much as what was said, but how it was said. I felt like I was a tiny bug in the room, unable to say anything or defend myself.  I’m not quick enough to retort in Russian, and even if I was, what could I have said? I’m a young WOMAN American student in Russia. I’m in no place to retort anything! There was just such an obvious power dynamic that told me I was in the losing court… and there was nothing I could do about it.

Eventually I just left the room…. And then Nastya saw me visibly upset and tried to console me…. It was just all blah.

At one point Balaban was also saying comments about Obama and how he “needs to get his head on straight” and in that moment, I was the odd man out. Science is an equalizer. But politics makes me a stranger and an enemy to these people. I hate politics. I also felt/have been feeling that I have some weird “duty” to kill stereotypes of America since a) we’re not all rich, b) NYC does not equal America c) not everyone thinks Obama blessed the Earth, d) not everyone carries a gun, e) not everyone is fat. For a lot of these people, not only am I the first American they’ve come in contact with, but I am also the first native English speaker they’ve met.

There is a lot of responsibility in all of that.

One example, actually, happened on Thursday. I was talking with someone from the lab about American and Russian stereotypes, and he asked if everyone in Texas had a gun. I said, no, of course not – being conservative doesn’t necessarily mean you own a gun. And then he asked if all Americans believe that Russia is full of snow/bears/vodka, and I answered, “I hope not – it’s just a stereotype.” It was strange that he even had to ask those questions – stereotypes are stereotypes. Adults are supposed to recognize stereotypes and REALIZE that that’s what they are. Meep.

There is also still a lot of racism here – it’s less blunt than Roza’s, but people still say, “oh black people go to that university… it’s a bad school… etc.” It’s sad. I’m so thankful that I can blend in easily here and not be subjected to the stares that anyone who is not white certainly receive….

Anyways, so that was my mess of a Friday. I went home and watched a romantic comedy, drank wine, took a bath, and that was that.

OH! Balaban also sent me an emailing apologizing… so that was nice…

Saturday I decided to spend my day at Gorky Park. The park is HUGE and there’s so much to do! I should have brought my book, but I didn’t think it would be so nice. I went to a Hungarian Festival there. It was small, but I got some free info on Budapest, which I was happy about since I will be going there in a little over a month!  There was music, and I strolled about, happy to be out and about on such a gorgeous day (there were even blue skies whaaaaat).

Later in the afternoon, I tried to find the Panda Festival, but after looking and not finding it (the area was also very quiet), I gave up and went home. When I checked back on blog-fiesta, I saw that the Panda market was actually on Friday not Saturday… oops.

Today (Sunday), I went to the Sanduny banya. It was really nice and some ladies were giving me advice on where to sit and what hat I should buy. It was soooo relaxing. I did a lot of rounds of sauna, ice cold water buckets, shower rinse, cold pool, then relax in normal dry land… it was great. And I love that it’s all women and no one wears clothes. How freeing! The banya I went to in NYC with the Russian department was co-ed so everyone had bathing suits – the real Russian way in Russia is better. I stayed there a few hours and then headed home.

Once I got home, I realized that I was exhausted from relaxing (tough life), so I took a shower and then napped. What a great first full free weekend! Tomorrow is day 1 of week 4… I can hardly believe how quickly this is going.

I think that’s it for now… oh wait! I’ve watched a lot of movies.

1)   Moneyball. Film with Brad Pitt about the business of baseball. I hate sports and this movie was AMAZING so that should be reason enough to watch it. It also related to life in general and how we’re all part of this ridiculous game that we’re not aware of.

2)   12 Years A Slave. Holyyyyyy Toledo. Do not watch this movie if you’re depressed since it’s insanely heavy and graphic. I will never ever forget this movie….

3)   Appropriate Behavior. Iranian woman who struggles with her bisexuality. Pretty good, but I don’t think it deserved the 98% on Rotten Tomatoes… (that rating is unheard of on the site FYI)

4)   Ex-Machina. Film about a robotic “human”… very thought provoking. What constitutes a human? If a computer is able to feel emotion, generate new ideas, think with innovation, and understand idioms, aren’t they then a human? The biology doesn’t have to match…. Just think of trans people. The hardware only tells half the story and even then it doesn’t define you.

5)   This Means War. Solid Rom-Com with Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, and Tom Harding. Two CIA agents competing for one woman. Can’t go wrong.

Anddddd I think that was it… I forget. Tomorrow is Monday, weeeeee. Have a great week all J

Первый Блин Камом

Hiiiii,

I know I’m behind in blogging (surprise surprise), but my internet has been AWFUL the past few days (as in, I don’t have it) so I will do my best to catch up.

Monday was the start of my third week here. The last two weeks, I had been working with Peter and Katya on their synaptosome project, but this week (and next week), I am going to be working with a girl named Nastiya. Nastiya is probably the youngest one here, since she received her PhD just last year. She is very short and smiley and always has painted nails. Obviously, I liked her already.

Anyways, she told me to come in for 11am, and on that day, we did a lot. Since it’s now almost Thursday night, I don’t remember exactly what we did, but in these four days, we’ve done 3 PCR, 2 rtPCR, 3 gel electrophoreses, 2 DNAase preparation, 2 reverse transcription, and I watched a cell culturing thing. It’s been a lot, but I’m learning so much with Nastiya. She describes everything a very well and isn’t afraid to repeat herself or elaborate (which I appreciate). Of course I’ve done a PCR and I’ve read about it…. But did I REALLY know what it was? No. I feel like I’m learning about nuance and about what “good” versus “bad” results look like, etc. I’ve been here almost 10 hours every day and it’s definitely paying off.

Nastiya also speaks to me almost entirely in English (when we’re working on something scientific). This has pros and cons. Since I know fewer scientific words in Russian than I had originally thought (they’re not all cognates), it’s VERY helpful for my understanding to get an explanation in English. When I go back to doing science in America, no one is going to care that I can speak in Russian scientific terms, but they ARE going to care that I know how to do this technique, that technique etc. I know I’m supposed to be conducting myself in Russian, but if I really want to learn science, then I’m going to need English too. I almost always reply to her in Russian, so at least I’m still getting practice in speaking. Overall, I think it’s good and of course people here want to speak to me in English since they haven’t had many interactions with native speakers. It’s a win-win.

Speaking of which, Katya actually found my blog and sent me a nice message. It made me very happy to hear that she enjoyed my impressions of Moscow and the lab. She also said I was brave for coming here alone… which I guess I am. When I was younger, I never would have thought I’d do something like this… ever. Hehe.

Oh! One more thing about science in Russia: apparently students at university have science classes in Russian and different science classes in English.  Americans do NOT have that obviously…. So already I’m at a disadvantage. But it’s all good. My job here is to speak as much Russian as possible, absorb as much of Russia and as much culture as possible, and to learn science things (paper is bonus). That’s basically it. And I’m doing that, therefore all is good.

One funny thing about labs here is that the culture has seeped into the science (as I’m sure it does in America too). For example, shoes. Russians are obsessed with shoes and having nice, clean shoes, and having different shoes for the street, and different shoes for inside a building or home. I knew that everyone wears тапочки at home (slippers), but I had no idea this mindset would transfer to work. Everyone has a bajillion pairs of shoes, and even MORE exaggerated, if you go into the sterile room, you have to either wear a 3^rd pair of shoes, or just socks. Socks in a lab! Can you imagine?  That made my day when I realized that.

On that day, actually, (sorry this post is very random), I shadowed Sergey (another boss-man), who showed me what he does in the culture/sterile room under the hood. Last summer I did A LOT under the hood (almost everything), so I was pretty familiar with what he was doing. He said he was working on proteins and cells in viruses, specifically HIV. That was cool to hear since HIV research has gotten a lot of press the past few months.

Today students from different universities came to the lab to hear lectures and take tours of the institute. It was funny seeing them around since many were younger than me. At one point, I saw them looking at me from the hall into the room I was in (I was doing stuff alone), and I realized that they probably thought I was Russian. It’s weird how easy it is to blend in with the right clothes. Some lab people had to talk to them (including Nastya), and they were all chuckling about it.

Also today, Balaban made me borcht for lunch! He brought it in in a plastic container, and I just heated it up, and voo-ah-la. This version had beans in it – so delicious.

Another interesting thing that happened today occurred when Nastya and I called over Sergey to analyze some results we had gotten. He was not happy that the results weren’t what we wanted (yet again), and hm, I don’t know how to explain it, but their interactions at the moment were very interesting. I don’t think Sergey wanted me to be able to understand or hear what he was saying, but I could understand a lot…. More than people think.

Also today I was talking with Nastya and another person (whose name I forget) and we were talking about books and movies, and I asked Nastya why she didn’t like current Russian films. (Katya had said that also). She answered that back in the 80s and 90s, directors were given a lot of money to make really good films, and now, film isn’t as valued and all directors want to do is make a fast paycheck and move on. No one wants to create masterpieces. She asked if this was true in America as well, and I said that it was…. But it’s more pronounced in the music industry.

Unfortunately because the government gave directors money back in the 80s and 90s, they were able to have a say in what was made. My impression is that a lot of current Russian films are sad/slow in response to the fall of the Soviet Union and in response to the lifting of the “necessity of happiness.” Many Soviet films are pieces of propaganda meant to show how happy, healthy, and beautiful the country was. There was a lot of pressure on directors to be positive. Now, that pressure has lifted, and directors have more options when it comes to plot. I think people are nostalgic for the comedic/adventure plot lines of late Soviet film. Current Russian film is different, but is it really “worse”? Isn’t all information good so long as you’re learning something from it? So what if the subject matter or opinion doesn’t align with your own?

This kind of connects to the other thing I wanted to say quickly about news sources and information in general. I mentioned an article I had read in the Moscow Times (in English) to someone about the need for Russophiles in the West, and he responded that that news source is typically Russia-phobic. This made me think about how people watch the news sources that they agree with. No one wants to challenge their own opinions – people stick with BBC, or Fox, or CNN and that’s it. But I don’t understand. Why listen to opinions that you already have? Is it simply for self-reassurance? Or to feel like you belong to some larger group who thinks a certain way?

This connects to ANOTHER article I read about how spreading unpopular opinions or opinions not of the norm, is incredibly dangerous now for professors since they can potentially lose student favorability/their job if not tenured. And THISSSSS connects back to the whole idea that no one wants to rock the boat. People are comfortable in their opinions and in their mini-bubble of a life, and they don’t seek new information, new opinions, different people, or unconventional experiences.

WHY?????

A month or so ago I was talking with an old friend who I don’t speak with much anymore, and he said that he didn’t want to leave college since it was “comfortable.” Maybe comfortable is good. But I think comfortable can be dangerous.

Blah sorry, rant over. ANYWAYS, ok there is more to say, but I think I will save it for next time, since I am sleepy and want to watch movies.

PLEASE check out the two articles I mentioned. They are very interesting, particularly the one about professors/limiting points of view (Vox).

http://www.vox.com/2015/6/3/8706323/college-professor-afraid

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/the-west-needs-more-russophiles-op-ed/522930.html

Have a lovely Thursday everyone!

Steph

Почему Вы в России?

Sunday was my first full free day in Moscow with no commitments. Balaban and family had invited me to go to their dacha for the day, but I declined. It’s important to debrief by yourself, and I haven’t gotten to do that since I arrived 2 weeks ago – a day of Stephanie was necessary. Plus, I knew I could go to the dacha another weekend.

With that in mind, I had checked out my to-do list and looked through blog-fiesta (site of current events/happenings in the city), and decided to wake up around 10am to start the day. First on my list, was the 5^th annual Moscow Veloseped Marathon (Veloseped/Велосипед = Bicycle).  I didn’t have a bike, but I figured I could rent one nearby (there were advertisements online), and if not, at the very least it would be interesting to watch. There were expected to be 500,000 participants so I figured that in and of itself would be interesting. I arrived at the metro stop and found myself greeted by many bicyclers. I followed the crowd and found the entrance.

There were so many people with bikes! After getting through security, I asked many people where I could rent a bike, but everyone kept pointing me in different directions, and eventually I decided it was probably too late. One person I asked, also asked where I was from, and when I answered that I was an American, he asked “Why are you here”? That seems to be the question of the month so far.

After I had seen all there was to see (the race wouldn’t start for another hour), talked to people, and taken photos, I left. My next stop was an outdoor “7 Worlds” antique fair that was happening that day. I didn’t know what to expect, but who doesn’t love window shopping? When I arrived, I was surprised to see that there were maybe 200 (or more?) people there! The area was huge, and vendors had set up tables and blankets for customers to peruse. Some of the stuff was obviously crap (like at any other antique shop), but some of the stuff was super cool. I saw a huge Russian typewriter, old Soviet money, and of course the evolution of bears in Russia (my favorite being the 1980 “Masha” Olympian bear!). I stayed a few hours (it was a beautiful day), and after buying a few things for myself and others, I headed out.

As soon as I exited “The Museum of Moscow” (where the antique fair took place), I was greeted by hundreds of bicyclers! One side of the road was crossed off, and bicyclers occupied the entire lane. Everyone was wearing funny costumes, waving, laughing, and having fun…. If I hadn’t known I was in Moscow, I easily could have thought the race took place in NYC. Where was the sad, grey, communist Moscow that I’d read so much about?!

After staying and watching, I headed back onto the metro to go to Ashan. I picked up groceries and сидр and left to go home. Since I had time and all the ingredients, I decided to make more banana bread while watching Greys. I also watched a movie called “Dear Zachary,” which received a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes (that’s VERY high) and happened to be on Netflix. It was good but I definitely do not think it deserved 94%. Honestly it was kind of boring…

But anyways. Overall, it was such a great first free day. I definitely wasn’t expecting to work as much as I do (or rather, as late…. 11am-9pm often), but I’m glad it worked out that way. With that being said, it’s also important to relax, and be free, and explore, and do fun things. I ammmmm only 21 after all.  More soon.

Продолжение Следует

Hiiiii everyone.  Hope the weekend has been good. I’ll pick up where I left off with Friday.

On Friday, our task at work was to extract and analyze our RNA to see if it had degraded (hopefully not) and to see if we could go ahead and sequence the RNA the following week. We followed protocol after protocol, and I was able to do a lot. Katya and I had a great assembly line going. By the end of the day, we finally got our results and lo and behold we still had RNA! Some of it was dirty (not so good), but hey, at least we hadn’t just wasted 3 days on trying to obtain obsolete RNA. Ура!

After work, I told my friend Julie that I would meet her for dinner. Julie is actually one of Susan’s friends (Susan from abroad), who I met on her visit St. Petersburg in the Fall. I obviously hadn’t made a huge/deep connection with her (we had only met that once), but I knew that she was still living in Moscow so I contacted her. (She’s been here 9 months and about to go back to America next week.) I’m so happy I reached out! We met at Park Kultyri Metro, and from there went to find a place to eat. Since it was POURING, we stopped at the first place we found, which happened to be a sandwich place.  We chatted and caught up – it was nice to feel like we had similar experiences in that we both came to Moscow alone and didn’t know anyone etc. Good to share stories.

We had been sitting there maybe an hour, when an older man sits down nearby. At the time, we were talking about different places in the USA (and of course talking in English), and upon hearing us, he asked us if we’re from the USA. I’m always wary of strangers (especially in Russia), so I kind of just nodded and turned away. But then he mentioned that he lived in America for 10 years… so that got our attention. Anyways, the three of us end up talking for almost an hour! He has a crazy amazing life and had so many stories. Apparently, he’s an executive chef, and moves to different locations almost every year. He’s lived in London, Paris, Istanbul, St. Petersburg, Austria, Pakistan, China, Dubai, Vienna, Turkey, NYC, LA, Boston, Moscow…. And that was only half of the ones he MENTIONED. There’s probably been dozens others.

Anyways, it just sounded like an incredible life…. Traveling, staying in nice hotels (since he caters a lot too), eating good food (hello chef)… What more could you ever want in life? Now he has a wife and child, so I think he’s starting to realize this part of his life is soon coming to a close; you can’t just leave your child 6 months at a time. He also speaks so many languages. In just the hour we were talking, he spoke English, Russian, German (with Julie), and a Muslim language. It was so interesting to talk with him.

We were talking about traveling and why it’s so important, etc, and he said something in regards to the fact that people are often stuck in their own ways. It’s not about not having time to learn new cultures/languages or even laziness….. it’s about opening yourself up to a new life and a new mindset. People don’t do that. He said that when he was in Pakistan, he saw children brainwashed from birth to like certain ideas, to not like certain ideas, to have these sets of rules, to know what this is, to do this every day, etc. They are taught how to think and how to act not only from their parents or inherited genes, but also from society. I don’t think America is much different. Maybe guns aren’t thrown at children, but kids are still taught what to think and HOW to think. This is a huge problem. Traveling opens your eyes to be able to think through different lenses. And maybe not even “think” through a different lens, but BE that lens.

He made some comment that of course “Russia” and “USA” don’t get along…. But that’s all political bullshit! Go to Russia! Meet the people! Live there! Eat the food, study the language, be the culture… We talk in countries as if they are these faraway ideologies, but WITHIN countries, there are real people. So many conflicts could be resolved with such simple and elementary solutions. Sigh.

Anyways. It was great talking. He advised us to do the work we love, but to also make money so that you can do OTHER things you love. He also somehow knew I was Irish…. He said I could almost pass for “Slavic” but not for “Russian” since my eyes were too lively.  I guess I am not the closed off Russian soul, am I? L 

After a while, Julie and I left. She had invited me to go to a bar with some of her friends, so I agreed (not in a place to deny friendship), and off we went. I had a White Russian, and we sat and chatted, and waited for her two friends to come. It was nice talking (one was Russian), and eventually I went home via metro. 

The next day was Saturday! I got up around 10am in order to meet Balaban and the family to go to the aquapark. I explained what an aquapark is when I was abroad in Petersburg, but just to reiterate, an aquapark is an indoor waterpark with huge slides, other water games, a lazy river, a pool with ocean waves, places to eat, etc. etc. The aquapark in Petersburg was even complete with a full Banya! This one was a little smaller, but still really nice. 

We all had a great time in the water. I was mostly hanging with Dasha and Katya and we were going on all the slides and yelling and having just so much fun! I'm so sad that they're going to live with their biological father now for 3 months. It's fun hanging out with kids that age (especially girls) since I was exactly like them and am able to relate to them. We were at the park maybe 4 or 5 hours (we all ate food too), and then left. 

Balaban had also invited me back to their house to learn how to make borcht. SO we did that, and I wrote down all the steps and ingredients. When I get back to the US, I want to make borcht for everyone! So please find me and let's cook weeeee! 

After cooking, chatting, eating, and tea (duh), the girls and I went for a walk to a park. The park was equipped with rides and roller coasters for kids, and when the girls found the trampoline, they quickly jumped to it (pun intended). I mostly people-watched and took videos of the girls. They loved the videos and asked that I send them via Viber later that day. Afterwards they asked that we go watch a 5D "horror" clip (obviously the horror part was not my choices). Luckily, the movie wasn't scary at all, and it was cool to be in a little black box theater the three of us, getting water sprayed on us, and getting shaken around. There was also wind, 3D glasses, and supposedly Dasha felt something grab her legs. We were all laughing and screaming, it was great. On the way home, I learned how to ride a Doska! I had never seen one before, but they look kind of like a skateboard but instead of 2 wheels on each side, there was 1. With the help of the girls, I was actually able to ride it. Turning was difficult, but hey, who needs turning anyway? 

One interesting thing on the way back happened... We were just talking, and somehow marriage came up. I asked both of them if they wanted to get married, and they both said no! I was surprised they answered this way, since I know there is still a lot of pressure on women in Russia to get married and have a family. They asked if I had a boyfriend, and I answered "yes," and then they wanted to hear the story and see a picture, etc. It was cute; I felt like an older sister. I miss my real sissy poo! (HAIIIIII KRISTIN). 

I honestly can't emphasize enough how lovely and caring the family is. They did NOT have to do nearly as much as they have done for me; to say that they've gone above and beyond would be an understatement. I'm so happy to have met them and to have had the conversations and shared experiences that we did. When I finally left them in the evening, I hugged everyone, and we bid our goodbyes. It's sad how life brings people together for such short amounts of time.