by Tom Disney, No.2

Tom with Anton (left)

Ever since taking up Russian in the Hundred (year 11) I have longed to go to Russia. Although I had been taught about the Russian revolution in history, I had very limited experience of what the country was really like, and thus was virtually unprepared. Thankfully, my Russian teacher, Mrs Angling, and her family came with me which was reassuring, even though she expected me to use my rather limited Russian all the time.

Upon arrival in Russia I was nervous, anxious but mostly excited. Although I had been in contact with Anton, with whom I would stay for the next twelve days, I had not actually met him or his family. The airport was nerve racking, the woman at passport control had a face like a tombstone which as you can imagine wasn’t amazingly welcoming. After filling in the reels of forms for foreigners I finally met with Mrs Legin (Anton’s mother), who was very friendly and helped to put my fears to rest. When I arrived at where the Legins live I was surprised. I’m not sure what it was I expected to see when I arrived, one can correctly assume that it was something supremely naïve, but I’m sure it was not the 1950’s Soviet apartment block before me.
One of the main pieces of advice that Mrs Angling gave was to eat everything I was given and the warning was that there would be a great deal to eat. This could hardly have prepared me for the amount of food I was given. Anton’s family was very generous. When answering “Yes” when asked as to whether or not I was hungry after my flight, I expected perhaps a light meal or a snack, not the four-course meal that was set before me! I attempted and failed to complete the immense challenge. It seemed the ‘small’ amount of food I consumed never ceased to amaze the Legins, which made me realise that our perception of proportion was dramatically different. Also, when I tried to help clear the plates I was looked at in total amazement and was then told to “sit down” and “this is not your job” (please try to imagine this being spoken in a strong Russian accent).

The Church on Spilt Blood

St Petersburg is the most amazing city, totally unrivalled architecturally. But then Peter the Great was not a reserved character and was responsible for the creation of the ‘Venice of the North’. The ‘Church On Spilt Blood’’, called so due to the fact it was built as an act of remembrance on the spot where Tsar Alexander II was assassinated, is truly magnificent. But the most amazing of buildings in the city is probably the Hermitage, which is seven buildings long. The rooms are vast, each one with its own individual carving on the walls which are painted with gold paint, marble pillars and floors. It truly is opulence incarnate. But the Hermitage also houses some of the most amazing art, artefacts and treasures of the Tsarist regime.

Peterghoff Palace

There is only one building that could be considered more opulent that the Hermitage and that is Peterghoff. A palace outside of Petersburg with pristinely white walls and golden domes, and acres of gardens filled with golden fountains that do not require any pumps.

One night when watching a pirated version of ‘Terminator 3’, Anton’s brother, Kirill, came in holding a bottle of something vaguely resembling whiskey with leaves and something else. “Ah! Caucasian vodka....Home made with herbs!” I tried to look appreciative without necessarily wanting to drink the concoction but apparently it didn’t work. “We must drink!” I had a sip and felt my mouth burn fo rthe next twenty minutes, home made Caucasian vodka has a ......unique flavour.

Country life at the dascha

I had imagined that I would be staying in St Petersburg for the whole twelve days but I was fortunate to have the opportunity to go to the family’s Russian dacha (countryside house). The dacha was with some other dachas about 250 km from St Petersburg, in the Shkov region, and was surrounded by kilometres of forest. We (Anton, Kirill and Mr Legin) stayed with Anton’s grandparents who were very kind but unfortunately for me spoke no English at all and felt sure that if they spoke to me in Russian that I would somehow understand them; it didn’t exactly work to that effect. I slept in the loft of the dacha which was covered in straw and, as Kirill excitedly informed me, housed rats. However, the main factor within the loft that was startling was when I woke in the morning the first sight that appeared before me was a black and white photo of Lenin staring proudly at me. I never got used to seeing that at six o clock in the morning. We spent a great deal of time in the countryside, swimming and something I had not really expected: mushroom picking.The enthusiasm with which the Russians went about picking mushrooms surprised me, but to go mushroom picking we had to dress in old Soviet army clothing, which honestly wasn’t for enjoyment but to defend oneself against the myriad of mosquitoes (one of the words in Russian which I will never forget).

My exchange visit to Russia was an exhilirating experience and someday soon I hope to go back to St Petersburg and visit Anton’s family, and I recommend anyone to visit Russia if they can, as it truly is an incredible place.


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