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Mission To Moscow: February 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Friday, February 26, 2010. Sometimes it takes a lot of patience to hold back when other people rip into your country and your culture, proclaiming their nationalist superiority at the expense of your own. Russians are particularly fond of telling themselves how superior to all others their own country is (not unlike many Americans and Brits). Yesterday in class I gloated to my students, pointing and laughing hysterically at each of them in turn. When Russ...
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Mission To Moscow: January 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Friday, January 29, 2010. The Glitter of Teaching. As I walked home at 3 am, the snow on the sidewalk looked like glitter. Little perfectly-square dots of sparkly light reflected from the street lamps danced across the path in front of me and I couldn't help but wonder how I could possibly describe this to other people. It was as if though I were walking across a cold white disco ball. Now I'm writing this entry. Monday, January 25, 2010. The first known sign...
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Mission To Moscow: March 2011
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Thursday, March 31, 2011. Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch. For those of you who enjoy my stories of playing with currency, lapdances by drunk Russian strippers, treks through Thai jungles for mushrooms, redneck rampages and run-ins with corrupt police, you won't like this next entry. Even our hockey games have become politicized (candidates are declaring which hockey teams they support)! Canada is a very regional country, encompassing vastly different outlooks o...
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Mission To Moscow: April 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Tuesday, April 27, 2010. As I progress through my 12-month contract with a "McSchool" in Mytischi, Russia (a moniquer that I protest against as the particular company I work for, LL, has been nothing but wonderful during the past 7 1/2 months), I often take time to stop and reflect upon what brought me here in the first place. It all happened because of a cat. In what seems a different life, in Port Hardy, British Columbia, I had a great neighbour named Debbi...
atethepaint.blogspot.com
Mission To Moscow: March 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Thursday, March 25, 2010. Some people believe that a quick mind, the ability to be flexible in one's thinking and a sense of adventure are the most important things to have when traveling internationally. They are wrong. All a traveler needs is a good pair of clean shoes. Okay, turn left at the big wall, go past the shops with baked bats hanging in the window, go through the crowd of prostitutes and at the far end of a big empty space you'll see the bus depot.
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Mission To Moscow: February 2011
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Sunday, February 27, 2011. Tuesday, February 22, 2011. A Breath of Fresh Air. I've been in Halifax for just over 1 week, and in that time have decided to stay here, begun looking for a job, scored 3 interviews, acquired a car (a nice 2000 Volvo) and started looking at apartments (mostly on the Dartmouth side). I've also managed to not spend all my money I brought from Russia! Not bad for one week! I felt bad and said "Hey no problem.". In comparison, people i...
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Mission To Moscow: January 2011
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Monday, January 31, 2011. One incident in particular stands out as the best weekend I've ever spent. A national public holiday in Canada is Queen Victoria Day. It is officially on May 24 every year but always falls on the weekend closest to the 24th. A case of beer, with 24 bottles, in Canada is called a two-four, and Victoria Day is likewise called May Two-Four. No coincidence there. He cried out in deep annoyance. "You drank ALL the beer? He decreed, and we...
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Mission To Moscow: December 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Tuesday, December 28, 2010. Christmas, as we understand it in the west, isn't celebrated in Russia on December 25. They reserve that for New Years, thanks in large part to the Russian Orthodox Church and the Communist regime Russians lived under for three-quarters of a century. Because I am from the west and December 25 is still the biggest day of the year in my mind (and soul), I decided to celebrate Christmas as best as I could. Katya and I travelled to...
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Mission To Moscow: June 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Friday, June 18, 2010. Battle of the Dnieper. After the Soviet victory at Kursk, culminating in the liberation of Orel and Karkhov, German forces on the Russian Front were completely unable to regain the initiative in the war. Two years of ferocious, continuous fighting and several strategic defeats at Moscow, Stalingrad and Kursk had stretched the Nazi war machine to its breaking point. In Moscow, Stalin and the Stavka. The Soviet plan called for the liberat...
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Mission To Moscow: November 2010
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A Canadian English teacher in Moscow, Russia. Monday, November 22, 2010. When I woke up on Thursday morning and prepared for my day, a new thought entered my head that would lead me on a mission in Moscow. The thought stayed with me throughout the day, tormented me with such a clarity that it caused me to salivate. I thought of a meatball sub from Subway. It had began to rain and snow when I emerged from the metro. Although it was only 5:30, it was already dark, and fat drops of rain intermixed with ...
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