Now for Nizhny Novorgod

                                                   Nizhny Novorgod Trade Fair

                                                 Nizhny Novorgod Kremlin

Nizhny Novorgod is also going to be one of the places I go for a day. Sadly it doesn't posses as many wonders as St. Petersburg or Moscow but when staying in Russia, since it is the largest country in the world, there are not very many choices of where to go on day trips. Nozhny Novorgod is mainly a city of art museums and monuments to famous Russians of the past. This is good because Moscow and St. Petersburg are both very different from Nizhny Novorgod. Of course the fact that Moscow is a booming art established city might make you think that I am wasting my time going to Nizhny Novorgod, but the truth is that Nizhny Novorgod has a far more cultural view of art while Moscow is more in the modern era Nizhny remains to be fascinated with the old pieces of art. The Nizhny Novorgod Kremlin is a place I want to see just so I can compare it to the Kremlin in Moscow. The Nizhny Novorgod Trade Fair is another placve of interest due to its old yet kind of modern looking architecture. I mainly want the go to Nizhny Novorgod because it is a city of many many contrasts and has no defined old or new part of town but is more mixed if anything. Also another reason I want to go is because it is Russia's center of industry and art and is also the third largest city of the “Modern Russia.”

Off to St. Petersburg

                                                     A Palace of the Tsars

                                                       St. Petersburg Cathedral


Well now that I've already addressed everything you need to know about Moscow I'm going to tell you about a couple of other places I am planning on going to for a day trip. St. Petersburg is a place I have thought about going to visit for a long time because it is home to over 500 bridges that are both wide and narrow, and long and short. The main thing that is different about st. Petersburg and Moscow is the fact that they are basically polar opposites due to the fact  that they have been competing with each other for over 300 years. This rivalry can be compared to that of Edinburgh and Glasgow or Washington and New York which have both been going on for a couple of centuries. It would take about 36 hours to get to St. Petersburg by car due to the constant traffic jams. But if you go by train like I am then it should take around 5 hours and there are a whole lot of options as to what train company you wish to ride with. The main site I want to go see is the St. Petersburg Cathedral because of its exquisite beauty and amazing architecture. I would also love to get the opportunity to see some of the palaces of the Tsars because it interests me to see what it would have been like to be royalty. Plus I like the film Anastasia and she lived in one of the palaces so that is another reason I would like to go there. St. Petersburg will definitely be a major highlight of my trip.  

10 Things You Need To Know About Moscow

                                                         The Square of Europe

                                                            Kremlin Square



When in Moscow you have many places you can go, but one of the coolest ones I have found is the Square of Europe. This bridge used to be a rail terminal but was made into a beautiful lit up fountain in 2002 and ever since has been a great tourist attraction. The Kremlin Square is another widely visited place in Moscow due to the fact that it is surrounded by some of the most amazing buildings in the entire city. GUM and TSUM are the two over-the-top shopping malls in Moscow and are both places that I would urge you to visit. 35 MM is another go to place because it is one of the nicest cinemas in the entire world. Gorky Park is amongst the things that I would enjoy seeing in Moscow because it seems that it shows more of the medium-class peoples of Moscow and not just the rich and poor. Another reason I would want to go there is because I don't want to simply visit the huge things in Moscow but I also want to be able to experience what it is like to be a Russian at its simplest. Cafe Pushkin is another place I would like to go cause the fact that it is a cafe with a giant library in it just fascinates me cause I love reading and I also happen to love my coffee too. I'm hoping to go to all these places at their ideal times in my stay in Moscow but if I could only go to one I would have to pick Kremlin Square because I've always wanted to see it in person after seeing Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol.

Communism: Pros and Cons

                                                              Vladmir Putin



Well it is probably obvious to the world that Russia is a communist country. As far as the economy goes Russia is ranked 144th of overall freedom of the economy.. This is no surprise to find out because when people think of Russia they think big powerful and healthy, they do not think of the fact that because it is a communist country it is limited at what its economy can accomplish. With Vladimir Putin becoming president of Russia on May 7th 2012 things could change but I don't think they will let communism go. Russia suffered a rather large blow to their economy in 2008 during the global stock market crash, but is now bouncing up because of the rise of oil prices and the governments $200 billion rescue package to increase liquidity in the banking industry. So far this has proven to work and Obama is planning something along the lines of that except he is wanting to take money from the older people of America and use that money to fund the banks which are already loosing money quickly. Another interesting thing about Russia is that 75% of surface water is polluted and 50% of all water in Russia is now polluted. Another thing that Russians love is their nuclear power plants, and amongst the many problems they are having is poaching and deforestation. So overall Russia is somewhat stable but that's kind of how communist countries are, they are worse places to live but they tend to last longer. Just look at America and all the debt we have with China and even though we havn't payed them back they remain to do great.

What a Way to Greet

                                                      2014 Winter Olympics Logo



Russia has many different social customs that separate it from other countries. Russians are very proud people and they are prideful that their lives are difficult and that they have managed to flourish. As far as etiquette goes in Russia you must give a typical bone-crushing hand shake while maintaining direct eye contact and giving the appropriate greeting for the time of day. Also when men shake hands with women, they shake less firm. When female friends meet they kiss on the cheek three times, starting with the left and then alternating. When male friends meet they pat each other on the back and hug. Due to the years of communism in Russia, women have been given equal rights in everything in Russia and as far as treating women you would treat them just as you would treat a man. Another thing that is interesting is that Christmas in Russia is celebrated on January 7th. Russia also happens to view Easter as a bigger holiday then Christmas! May 9th is another big deal in Russia because it is national Victory Day which celebrates the defeat of Germany in WWII. One of the coolest things about what is happening in Russia right now is the fact that the 2014 Winter Olympics are going to be held in Sochi, Russia. Ice hockey of course is one of the main sports in Russia due to the fact that it is freezing in Russia practically year round. But the most popular sport in Russia is soccer because Russia was the very first European country to win the European soccer championship. So overall Russia's social customs are far different from Knoxville, Tennessee.

Living In Moscow VS. Living In Knoxville?

                                                    (The Apartment I'll be Staying in)

                                                 (The street by what will be my home)

So it's obvious that there are a lot of differences between Moscow and Knoxville. But for now I'm gonna keep it simple and talk about the differences in living. Right now in Knoxville I live off the corner of a busy street in West Knoxville and I am currently homeschooled. I eat three square meals and go run three miles a day, also I get to play guitar and every Sunday I go to church and lead worship in youth and then go work in children's ministry and preform in choir. In Moscow I will be living at the address 5 ulista Novyy Arbat right near the central part of Moscow. I will be living with the Krovskys, a family of five. They are strong Christians and the father Antonin is the head pastor at their church and their mothers name is Svetlana. They have three boys Burian, Casimir, and Dmitri. Dmitri is my age but is a grade above me even though the schooling system is a little different. I will however be attending the same classes as him and will be moved up into his grade because if I were Russian I would be in that grade. It is a very busy part of town and the traffic is crazy all day long. The average size of a family in Russia is 4 including parents of course. The standard of living in Russia is a little bit worse then the United States but the family I will be staying with is rather loaded so I'll be able to do pretty much anything. Lastly for fun the people of Moscow is watch tv, listen to music, and go see the latest ballets.

Learning the Basics

So this past month I found out that in 3 months I am doing to be leaving to Moscow, Russia as a foreign exchange student! I've just started looking at places to go while I'm there because I never thought I would be picked to be an exchange student! God has blessed me with the opportunity to not only go to Russia and live there for a year and attend a Russian school but has also given me the opportunity to minister to the people of Russia that I come in contact with. If you didn't already know Moscow is located in the far eastern part of Russian and is just about in the middle of the country height wise. Moscow is roughly 2,215 feet above sea level and ranges from full out city streets to calm snowy country roads. The weather in Moscow is what keeps a large crowd of tourists away except in the summer when it is around 70 degrees F but in winter it only gets up to the low 30's. Moscow is the capital city of Russia and has a estimated population of 11,514,330 which for one city is pretty large. It will definitely be hard adjusting from nice and warm Knoxville to cold and crowded Moscow. Ever since the 14th century Moscow has been building its self around the Kremlin and is largely populated by white people. Russian is the official language and they use the Rouble as currency and the main form of transportation is the Moscow Metro and hitching a ride on a trolly. The main religions in Russia are Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Judaism. In the past couple of years Russia has developed some major economic and political problems and has been working constantly to fix them unlike our current president. I am super excited to go and live in Moscow and I hope you will all pray for me as I plan on the trip.