I am Leaving Tomorrow

I have been thinking about writing a conclusion blog for a few days now and I am not entirely sure where to begin. The truth is that there are so many memories I have made here in Russia, it is impossible to attempt to describe them here. I don’t have the writing expertise to explain how utterly amazing it was to go on the roof of our 22 story hostel to watch the fireworks going off for Victory Day. I can’t put into words how inexplicably beautiful St. Petersburg was with it’s grey skies that made the colors of the buildings stand out like beacons. And to save my life, I can’t describe my strange attachment to this place with these amazing people who have undoubtedly changed my life.

There is something about Russia that is so incredibly intangible, it’s impossible to understand. I will try to describe it though. There have been so many times where I have been walking with a fellow American friend and something inexplicable happens. Perhaps an older woman enters onto the Metro in a floor length fur coat in May. Perhaps a gigantic group of 100 people breaks out into song and dance in the middle of the mall (yes, it happened, I’m not kidding). Or maybe even someone engages in the simplest act of kindness: smiling at a complete stranger (it wasn’t until I arrived here that I realized how precious smiles are). But at any length, these serve as very very small examples of the mystery that is Russia.

I already miss this place. It’s absolutely beautiful this time of year. I never thought that the snow would melt or that I would see the sun again, but it’s stunning here. The sun stays out until 10:00pm and the city just feels alive. We were walking near red square the other day and the sun was shining, the tulips were in bloom and the grass was a perfect, Kelly green. It was just such an extraordinary contrast from the cold and grey (but still beautiful in a magical kind of way) winter I experienced while here. I suppose the weather serves as another token of Russia’s slyness: you never know what the day is going to be like.

So, in an attempt to wrap things up I will simply say that Russia was the most uncomfortable, different, strange, enlightening, beautiful, influential, stunning, amazing experience of my life. I will never trade my months here with anything. Many of the memories I have made here are so incredibly precious (some are too precious to blindly share on this blog- sorry!) that I consider them like a collection of diamonds. This time here has been worth everything to me and I want to come back to this place again.