Russia - "You speak very good Russian..."

I've heard that phrase before, its not unusual and I guess for a foreigner I do speak decent russian. Its a site better than Parker's thick accent but he actually knows and understands Russian grammar rules, well some of them. I just have more practice conversationaly. But we'll get to that in a moment.

I'm not sure where the days begin and end anymore. I don't remember what I did when I woke yesterday or when I actually woke. I'm thinking it was late, I don't remember. That's the problem, everything is just one long period of light into faux dark and back to light... that's the problem here, but you already knew this.

Right ok, so now its all coming back to me. I went to the theatre after waking up late and having a snack in the cafe, then coming here. Well I'm back here, but its been a long 24 hours with little sleep and high adventure on the Russian seas.

So the opera... the Marinsky theatre is gorgeous. The celing has cherubs and muses dancing in a ring around a three tiered crystal chandelier that glows and defracts light emanating from its center. There are three kingly boxes, stage right and left, and one in the center of the first tier which I can only imagine was occupied by the czars and czarinas that sat there. The theatre itself houses artifacts and pictures going back many years and feautres displays of the Kirov ballet. We sat on the highest tier, on benches that were brutally uncomfortable. The only perk was that we were closer to the air con. I can only imagine how stuffy that place would have been a hundred years ago with canldes for illumination.

I didn't know the story of M. Butterfly going into it. I had heard the music and loved the arias but never read the libretto. Somethings you don't have to know in any kind of wrote form to understand. The stage was set minimally and the floor had a high laquer finished that made it look like water. There were Japanese styled gondolas floating across the stage and the back scrim was always the solid color of pure emotion. It went from the red of passion to the blue of night and the purple of betrayal. The drape that went across this lighted scrim would go at angles, dramatically cutting out the light so that it seemed the stage had a bend to it other than the rake from rear to foot. The costumes were gorgeous with masked individuals and a whole parade of geisha. Yet, as far as stage set, it was minial, at times larger pieces where whelled out, but the majority of the action took place on a minimally set stage with two walkways that enhanced the feeling of both courtyard and seashore. The finale of the third act was breathtaking and received a standing ovation from the audience. The orchestra, directed by Alexander Pechkin, soared in a flurry of strings and reeds as our heroine was accosted by three figures. One of them took the sleeves of her kimono and held them out while the other two tied a red sash around her abdoment tying it in back. Her head was kinked back in a pen-ultimate ecstacy. The figure on his knees released her kimono sleaves and the two that tied the sash held her by the wrists as he unsheathed a tanto blade, stood and placed it in her palm. The rear curtain went up to reveal a blood red scrim with a sun hanging in the middle: a yellow corona and a black center. And slowly she walked toward this not quite setting not quite rising sun under the blood red sky and as her lover came running out to stop her in vain, she plunged the kinfe into her sashed abdomen and fell to her knees, an arm stretched out toward the sky in a lingering and hanging crecendo of agony that finally stopped to a thunderous aplause as the house went insane. She was magnificent. We were on our feet. This was the premier and it was perfect.

I almost feel like stopping here but I'll press on... There was a general consensus that food was necessary. I went to the hotel with the rest of the kids after procuring some rubels from the ATM at the tinkoff brewpub near my hostile. This is the only restaraunt in St. Pete's that requires you to pass through a metal detector. The entrance is guarded by rather large brootish looking gorillas that have sizeable bulges under their arms, but its the nearest ATM, and the sing that reads "No guns, bombs or fiery explosives" always makes me chuckle.

Funds in hand I met the rest of the crew to a flurry of phone calls. Did I mention I was on "Notchnoy Dazour?" Yeah, I was the night shift. We had a large group of participants hanging out at club Gribojedav (like the canal but different). Jennifer Davis, an expat that lives in ST. Pete's, does these avante garde rock and roll and jazz tours for the program. She plays in several bands, had a show that night at this club which is sometimes called "The Bunker" as its in an underground bunker with a patio on its roof, which is at street level or just above. The club is near the Moscow Metro stop on the other side of town. Its a good 40 minute walk, or maybe 30, and the city was still realing from the graduations of both military and civilian schools. We took two taxis with the group from the opera that wanted to go (no food for me *sigh*). I didn't mind as I wasn't planning on drinking, and I didn't, a liter of beer and a shot at this point has the effect of curing my thirst, nothing more. We arrived to find our group downstairs. The cover was 200 rubels, almost 7 bucks, pricey for this town.

The music was wonderful and the joint reminded me of the basement of DV8 where Spundaes, when it was first being thrown, was held on 2nd & Harrison in SF (now a furniture store.) I moved form the upstairs, meeting an expat expat, russian girl who lived in chicago and moved back to moscow named Jhenya, down to where the real debauchery was happening near the bar on the lower levels. Evntually I found myself on a tiny, sweaty dance floor twisting to deep and funky house music reminiscent of felix the house cat, or jay-j. I danced for nearly two full hours taking short beer breaks to cool myself down. I must say, they're particularly bad dancers here, or maybe it was the lack of oxygen and room. That's beside the point, everyone was having a genuinely good time and that made me ecstatic.

The night wore on with discussions about Kenyan writing, poetry, poetics, the world's obsession with Uranium (Fiona is working on her thesis which is a book about Uranium.) The fuzball table is incredibly popular in this country and people congregate around them like there's no tomorrow. Its hot action on the fuzz.

Around 2 in the morning people began to go home and Tanya arrange taxis for them as they piled out 4 to a car. At first she was ferrying them home in groups of three and riding herself, but that was proving inefectual, so we just shooed them out of the club. Our kenyan friends decided they were heading to Datcha, that fucked up little club that is nothing more than guranteed trouble! By this point there weren't many people left at the bunker, and the rest could be hanlded by Tanya. I looked at Parker and said, "they're going to datcha" he replied "well man, do you want to stay here and let Tanya go there or do you want me to go with you over there?", hesitantly "i think we need to go there man, they're a big drunk group right now."

Parker and I headed back to the hotel in a gypsy cab. When I got in and asked the price he said "give me a sensible sum" I gave him 150 rubles to take me back to the other side of town with three others in the car. We took the griffin bridge to Datch and found our mates inside, drunk and drinking more. I stepped out cause it was too too packed and I didn't feel like dancing to the beastie boys, although sung with a russian accent by a bar full of drunk Russians, it really does take on a new life. As I step outside, I see Billy, one of the Kenyans being led away by the "oxrana", my first thought, SHIT!!! Martin is staning next to me and I tell him to go get Parker now!

I run across the street and begin to speak to the security guard who is leading one of my participants away. I ask him what the problem is he says: "Ohn rashuronya". I'm not entirely sure what this means, but he asks me who I am and what I'm doing. I tell him I'm responsible for him and a large group here at Datcha and that I would like to be of service as he speaks no Russian and is a little drunk. I still don't know what's happened. The security guard tells me he's broken the law and he's called the cops, they are on their way. He keeps saying something about doing something but he's not being specific. The guy asks billy for his documents, like an incredible genius he has his Spravka from the university (Student ID), a copy of the visa page of his passport, but guess what, no front page with his picture and name!!! Great, problems just keep compounding.

The police arrive and asecond black fatigue clad security guard comes out. "Ohn rashurony, ti zdes nechev nemoshish delat... "

"But listen he's one of my students, I'm resposbile for him. We have classes tomorrow"

"Well there's nothing you can do says the guard"

Parker runs up to me. I tell him, they're taking him to the drunk tank for the night and I don't know what for. Parker says, dude, I don'tw ant you to, but someone has to go with him, I hand parker my jacket and ask him how much money he has, he hands me 1500 rubels and I walk over to speak to the captain while parker rings Misha who knows some high ranking people.

"This isn't your crime, why are you concerned."

"I'm responsible" I tell him.

"Well he's borken the law, maybe he can do this in Kenya, but not here. Its not serious but we're going to take him."

"I'm still not clear what he's done."

"On rashuronyi"

"listen, how can we settle this?"

"you can get him from precinct 27 tomorrow"

"I understand, but I rather just take care of it now, there's a fine right?"

"Yes, he will stand before the judge and have to pay a fine. By the way, you know your russian is quite good, where are you from?"

"I was born in Tashkent, but grew up in the USA. My mother says I speak like a child in a kitchne"

we all laugh at this point, and parker is saying that he has Misha, our director, on the phone and he would like to speak to the cop. The cop doesn't want to talk to him and begrudgingly takes the phone bu thte connection is bad and he looses him.

"So this isn't your problem, go back"

"I understand and I'm very sorry but I can't go back without him. His passport is in the hotel, its 500 meters away from here we can run and get it."

"Thats not the problem. Ask him how much he ahd to drink"

"Billy how much did yuo have to drink?"

"3 or 4 beers"

"he had 5 or 6."

"I can't smell alcohol from him, ask him why he pissed on the wall"

BIG FRIGGIN LIGHT BULB GOES OFF AND I'M TEMPTED TO LET THEM TAKE HIM...DUMB BASTARD COULDN"T WAIT FOR THE SINGLE JOHN AND SQUIRTED ON THE WALL!!!

"Well then I apologize for his being and idiot, but I still think we can settle this here and now"

"Well you see everything is on video tape and the security guard will have problems tomorrow"

"I respect that and that you have a job to do but I will make it worth your while."

"Everything is being recorded above." pointing over my shoulder.

"Then I suggest we all walk around the corner, it looks like you're doing your job and I will settle the fine there." The bit about the security camera was bullshit... and here's why.

"Come with me, lets talk about how we can settle this..."

"Sure thing"

Five minutes later I'm having a $55 dollar handshake with the captain thanks to the money parker handed me and taking billy away, advsiing him if his penis ever comes out again, I will hack it off myself... period... piss your pants is what I told him...

I paid my first bribe to a russian cop... what a night.

I fell asleep around 7am... today, as payment for a job well done. Parker, Burke and I went to a Banya, whipped ourselves... with birch and sat in a sweedish saune, drank sweet kvas and ate dried salted squid... it was just what the doctor ordered... I'm heading to the garden and have three minutes left...

Dad happy father's day again...

e vsem... udatchey!!!!