and, so, we clean concrete...

about once every two months, it our turn to clean our hallway (dvor). because it is so dusty outside (and muddy when it rains), it has to be cleaned often. i decided to share this lovely experience with you...


first, sarah sweeps... b/c we are the 1st floor of apts, then we have to clean our landing, our stairs, and all the way outside... awesome... ;)

then, i follow behind here to mop it all. i look way happier than i actually am! ha!

our doorbell... and the D that denotes our turn...

i LOVE moscow in the springtime!

We went to Moscow to show Sarah's dad's students around. We had a WONDERFUL time!

St. Basil's Cathedral in Red Square. I have been here so many times... yet each time, it takes my breath away! I LOVE Red Square!

There is a famous park in the city called Gorky Park. It has some rides and some very beautiful gardens. It is located along the bank of the Moscow River. This is the Ferris Wheel. We set our sights on it and headed towards it. We wanted to ride it b/c it would give us an incredible view of the city. When we got to it, however, we noticed that it wasn't running....

and when we saw the rust on the carts, we understood why!

Sarah and I with one of our good friends, Jimmy.

Kostromo...

Sarah's dad was recently here with a group of students doing a travel study. We accompanied them one day to a city along the Volga River called Kostroma. This was the hometown of Michael Romanov, before he became the tsar of Russia. It is a very beautiful and clean city... Many tourists travel here each year.

The inside of the Orthodox church inside the Kremlin (where the Romanov home is). Every orthodox church looks like this. The inside is completely covered in gold and icons and mural paintings on the walls. The smell of incense can sometimes knock you down!

The Kremlin of Kostroma. See the Golden domes... that's the church from up above.

The Lenin stature in downtown Kostroma. Each town has one... This one happens to be quite tall!

The beautiful Volga river... I love the river walk!

and we learned to cook... russian style!

Since the first time we ate dinner at this precious family's home, Sarah and I have wanted Natasha's mom, Olya, to teach us how to cook some Russian dishes--Borsht (beet soup that is GREAT) and Blini (Russian pancakes; a mix between pancakes and crepes). We were finally able to make time! We don't have pics of the borsht.. sorry! And so blini making begins...


Olya... isn't she adorable! She is a PRO at blini-making! :)

She is explaining to us what to do... I was the first to try...

So... this was my first attempt... not very successful as it split, BUT the ones after this one were quite beautiful... if i DO say so myself! ;)

Our blini all rolled up! There are two fillings: one is filled with boiled egg and green onions (I don't even LIKE onions, but it was GREAT!) and the other is fried mushrooms and onions with rice (also VERY TASTY!). When eating them, we dipped them in sour cream... seriously, amazing goodness! Thanks Olya! and Natasha! We love you!