First, you'd think in St. Petersburg, city of culture, people would have a set dress code for an event like the ballet. That was most definitely not the case. It ranged from jeans and sneakers to almost-ball gown type dresses. I was glad to have fallen in the middle with a skirt and semi-fancy top. It was the only nice outfit I brought, so thanks, Deb, for forcing me to buy it. Otherwise I would have been in the jeans-and-sneakers category, and that would have been no good. Secondly, ladies and gentleman, I should NEVER be allowed to wear heels. I stupidly wore my 3-inch black pumps... I was going to wear boots and then change into my heels right outside of the building but I was feeling like a champion that day (must have been the Wheaties) so I wanted to tough it out. BAD idea. I honestly do not know how Russian women wear heels like that everyday. They must have feet of steel or have some other heel-wearing secret I don't know about. Either way, Mary walking in heels = disaster. I looked like some sort of deformed animal walking down Nevksi Prospekt.
The swans in the ballet, on the other hand, were not deformed but graceful. Obviously.... Cause they were trained ballerinas. Overall, it was a very well done ballet, and the prima ballerina had back muscles that even Billy Blanks would be envious of.
In other news: Just when I thought Russia has humbled me to the point of no return....I experience a new type of humiliation! In class today, my teacher decided to give us a lesson on how to ask for directions. Instead of just telling us, she gave us each a sheet with 5 places. Once we found each new place we had to ask where the next one was. This, obviously, required us to ask RANDOM PEOPLE on the street where things were. I found the first two alright ( and when I say alright I mean after I asked about 7 people). The last 3, however, were a bit of a challenge. I asked a 20-ish year old where a certain street was, and she immediately told me in English. (Come on lady I need to practice my Russian!) But after I followed her directions I still couldn’t find it. So I asked another woman and she sent me back the way I came. Then an old woman told me she didn’t know, but asked me if I could tell her the time. An old man told me he didn’t know what I was talking about. Three middle aged women couldn't agree with each other on where it was so just left me standing there while they argued. Obviously this started to get annoying because while I am trying to figure out where the heck I am, I also have to watch out for the falling blocks of ice from the tops of buildings and pay attention to the patches of ice on the street at the same time. Anyway, after I ask 3 more people, I finally found the street… and what a lame street it was. I think I asked probably a total of …. 15 people how to get to streets that have no significance. But hey now I know my way around Лиговский Проспект! Despite the uncomfortable nature of the assignment, I was thanking my teacher by the end. Thanks to her, I am now an expert at awkwardly asking for directions.
Anyway, here are some pics from the ballet. Enjoy!
Nose-bleed seats!
With Grace, who still looks fabulous post-food poisoning. (Note :Russia not only humiliates you, it ruins your gastrointestinal tract when you least expect it)
Hope all are doing well, I sure do miss all of you!
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