Chekhov's Melikhovo

Here, at Melikhovo, a bust of Anton Chekhov stands between two large trees on the famous writer's much loved country estate near Moscow. A tour brought us a bit closer to Chekhov, whose plays we discussed, watched, and even performed almost daily. Also, it gave us all an opportunity to breath some fresh air and see the countryside.
Now, as in Chekhov's time, visitors enjoy the serenity of the grounds which border a quiet creek and include a large vegetable garden, a sauna, many great trees, and a circuitous walk named Lovers' Alley. As a doctor and artist, Chekhov was concerned with health and the natural world. He offered medical services to the local community without charge, indicating his clinic hours by raising a red flag above the small guest house in which he also did some of his most important writing.
Although not a great palace, the main house at Melikhovo manages to convey some of Chekhov's famous hospitality and warmth. The bedrooms of the house reflect fantastic and varied tastes, the dining room, while not fit for banquets, appeared ready to welcome several guests, and one dim but cosy room included a very old piano on which Noam Elsner played a bit of Shostakovich played excellently.
Organizers and tour guides at Melikhovo welcome and encourage the treatment of the estate as having contemporary cultural importance as well as historical value. Alongside the opportunity of horseback riding (which is also popular in downtown Moscow), Melikhovo offers small concerts, a theater festival, and even a daschund show for other admirers of Chekhov's favorite dog. The efforts to not only preserve the physical integrity of the estate but also to resurrect the kind spirit and humor that so many Russians associate with Chekhov.
Although many Russians fear that countless other Russians callously abandon their heritage in favor of western trends, evidence of cultural reclamation and revival can be found at places like Melikhovo, Meyerhold's and Bulgakov's final apartments, and, of course, numerous theaters and museums. Melikhovo is not very close to Moscow, but the place was busy with a very large group of school children and several adult tourists as well as our group.
Whatever changes take place in modern Russia, it seems that people will still enjoy slowly walking Lovers' Alley in hope of happiness in romance, ignoring Chekhov's own questionable luck, or simply browsing the books and scanning the old maps in the writer's study.

Jenny-
I feel that the Emory program in Moscow Art Theatre was overall successful and should definitely be repeated. The program gave non-theatre students a very unique opportunity to study and experience life at one of the best theatre schools in the world. Outside of the classroom, the students participated in a very rich cultural program. Through going to the theatre 3-4 times per week, visiting museums and becoming acquainted with interesting guest speakers, students were able to connect their studies with cultural life in Moscow. One of the main goals of this program was for students to improve their knowledge of the Russian language, and for many students this goal was successfully reached.
In my opinion this program is one of the best currently offered in Moscow due to its unique hands-on approach to language learning. After reading and discussing each play in class, the material was literally brought to life for the students as they attended the play in one of Moscow’s finest theatres. Due to attending the theatre so frequently students were able to significantly improve their Russian, probably more so than if they had simply been attending language classes. The dorm situation also helped students to improve their Russian. As far as I know this is the only program in Moscow that allows Russian and foreign students to live together in the dorm. Not only was it interesting for our students to become acquainted and associate with the Moscow Art Theatre students, but they also had the opportunity to constantly practice their Russian.
As I have stated above, I feel this program should continue in the future. I would also like to mention that a large part of the success of our program is due to our program director, who helped students and solved problems every step of the way. If she had not been here with us I do not feel the program would have gone as smoothly. If this program will continue I feel that it is imperative that Emory have a contact for their students in Moscow, whether it is someone sent from Emory or hired in Moscow. I am stressing this because I have been on a program without any contacts for the students and know from experience that this does not work. Emory’s program worked well because we had a very good contact.
Another suggestion I have is for Emory to open up this program to students from different universities. Even though this program is geared toward non-theatre students I feel it is necessary for the participants to have a genuine interest not only in the Russian language, but in theatre as well. It may be hard to find 10 Russian majors from any one university who are interested in studying theatre intensively, but if the program recruits students from different universities I’m sure it would be easy to come up with ten students who share this interest.
I feel like a got a lot out of Emory’s program in Moscow Art Theatre and have had an amazing experience that I will always remember. I’m satisfied and very glad that I ended up in this program, and in the future I hope it will do for other students what it has done for me.

Discussing theater, of course. (Jenny, Ginger, Bela)

Robert -
This was a great program; it accomplished its academic, social, and cultural aims. Coming here I truly wanted an experience that would make my language better, and I think this aim was met very well through the methods used in the program. Studying (in both English and Russian) and watching the plays (sometimes numerous times) really helped increase my language ability, especially my ability to understand Russian. In addition, Russian was used in every class, which helped me improve my confidence in speaking and understanding Russian in real life situations. Also, there is no better way to learn Russian than by being in Moscow, where we heard the language and were forced to speak it literally everywhere we went (including in the dorm as we lived with Russians).
In addition to language, my social goals of the trip were also strongly satisfied. The camaraderie I felt for the most part with the people on the trip could not be equaled in any other situation. Perhaps it was living in such close quarters, or spending so much time together in class, but especially towards the end of the trip, there was a great communal feeling between all the members of the trip, sometimes it felt like we were one big family. It was also great living on the same floor as Russians because it allowed us to befriend them, which greatly helped our language ability and our cultural understanding of Russia.
The opportunity to understand Russian culture was also strongly present on the trip. Seeing and discussing the plays at different theaters helped us gain an appreciation for different viewpoints and ways of interpretation of the same thing. Also, several times we had conversations through the program with Russians in or out of class about their views on Russian society, culture, and politics, which greatly helped to understand the Russian mind set. What possibly helped the most though, was living with the Russians and being able to talk to them and observe their living patterns and the way that they go about their lives. For all of these reasons, the MXAT program in my mind was an overwhelmingly positive experience. I would recommend it to any one who wants to learn Russian and experience Russia, not just people interested in theater (I certainly am not).

Acting Class is Great! (Robert, Christina)

Noam -
Being in Russia for the last three months has definitely been an experience. When I came here I was more afraid of the cold than anything else but after the first month the worst of winter was over and I survived intact. I really had no idea what kind of program I was getting myself into, I only knew it involved the theater. When I arrived I found out it was actually one of the best, or maybe even the best theater school in the world. The opportunities we have had in the last few months to work with extremely talented people have been amazing. On my own I have even been able to study with a professor at the conservatory on top of the great faculty at MXAT. As one of the few students who had never been to Russia before, though I studied Russian culture in the United States I didn’t really know what to expect once I actually arrived here. It’s true people on the street are cold and typically emotionless but once we got to know the people we lived with as well as their friends the Russians were amazingly open and willing to share with us.
On the weekends we did not have class, and though we usually went to the theater at night during the day I had a chance to explore the city. With my student ID that deeply discounts admission almost anywhere in the city I saw almost every major art gallery in the city. I got to see the biggest gallery in the world in Petersburg as well as many amazing museums here in Moscow. Many of my favorite Russian artists just do not have exhibitions in the US and getting to see their work in it’s full size was absolutely breathtaking. Overall, this semester has been an amazing cultural experience as well as a chance to see how similar life can be even on the other side of the world.

Noam playing Chekhov's piano at Melikhova

David-

When I arrived in Moscow, I found myself in a city I almost believed only existed in literature and films, I was somewhat intimidated by the goals of our program, and I spoke Russian hesitantly and with a combination of shame and fear that left me a little manic and quite exasperated. In addition, I was cold, much colder than I had ever been. Every now and then I would learn a few new words, understand more snippets of conversations, but I felt unsure that I could ever advance much further in Russian. Without a better grasp of the language, I could not begin to appreciate the plays we were seeing or, to be honest, feel comfortable doing anything alone that required words. Language was a real problem, but our program moved at a fast pace, leaving little time for anxious moping.
I began to grow comfortable with the routine of our classes, and our constant work with Chekhov, both in translation and in Russian, mandated that I learn Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, and The Cherry Orchard almost by heart. After reading these plays several times in English, I picked them up in Russian, I had already read excerpts and started memorizing some lines. At first, the process was a little difficult, and I constantly had to reference my English text.
However, when I watched Seagull at Moscow Art Theatre after reading it in Russian, I realized the ingenuity and efficacy of this program. To study for an exam and get a good grade is one thing, but to be able to enjoy a Chekhov play at the theater named in his honor was simply wonderful. This motivated me to try to read every play in Russian, or as much as possible, before the performance. In this way, I began to improve my vocabulary and ear for Russian grammar.
Soon, I found myself capable of conversing with ordinary people, hearing their views regarding everything from the state of Russia to their favorite beer. These exchanges acquainted me with the great generosity and hospitality of Russians, as well as their willingness to discuss controversial issues passionately and honestly. This amazing culture, which at first seemed out of reach, has become very dear to me, and I even feel a bit at home in Moscow.
This program aimed to immerse us in Russian language and culture with the goals of improving our understanding of both. It was an enormous success. I feel comfortable with the language and capable of studying on my own. Also, I have been introduced to authors and artists I had not known before, ranging from Fonvizin and Griboyedov to Erdman and Shwartz. I will take from this semester a colorful array of experiences from theaters such as the Maly, MXAT, and others, as well as from trains, walks around the city, and the homes of people I was fortunate to meet. The scope of this program’s successes makes it the most important semester of my four years at Emory, and I hope that other students are able to experience it as well.

Ginger -
With less than a week left in the program, the time for reflection has dawned upon us. For me the question of “what worked” seems so simple, everything. Through classes taught in Russian as well as weekly trips to the theater my understanding of the language has improved drastically. Having studied abroad last summer in St. Petersburg I am able to compare the two. In terms of cultural knowledge of Russia both programs match up equally, which is to say I learned a great deal about Russian culture in both programs. However in terms of the language I have made greater improvements here, due to I believe more exposure which came from going to the theater so often as well as opting for our teachers to speak to us in Russian a lot of the time. Looking back, my time here has gone by extremely quickly which I believe is not due to our busy schedule but rather because of my comfort level. I was incredibly comfortable in our dorm, at school, with our group and in Moscow in general. Because of this I never anticipated going home and just let the time flyby naturally. I am a big proponent of learning outside of the classroom and while I learned more about Chekhov than I ever dream imaginable and don’t get me wrong I enjoyed it .My favorite part of the program was developing personal relationships with the other members of the group. In the beginning we were all thrown together, some of us having never spoken to each other before and now three months later I think it is safe to say that although we are not all “best friends,” we have all learned something from one another as well as had fun and laughed together. The reason trips like this can never be replicated is not due to where you are or what you learn but rather who your with. So I am grateful I came to Moscow as well as grateful I met a bunch of wonderful new and different people.

The Hermitage Gardens in Moscow (Walker and Maria)

Christina -
What I liked the most about this program was that we were able to see many plays and to learn the language through the cultural experience. Before I came here, I was not sure about how this program would benefit me in terms of learning Russian, but now I think “learning the language through theater” really helped me to learn Russian. We went to theaters two to three times a week, and watched plays by great Russian playwrights like Chekhov, Bulgakov, Erdman, Gogol, etc. Watching plays in Russian was a great way to expose us to the language. At the beginning of the trip, I could not understand the plays very much – I could understand about fifteen percent- but now I feel that I can understand most of it, which really surprised me. Moreover, I had not watched many plays before I joined this program, so it was a very new and different experience for me. Also, in the acting class, I had to memorize a monologue from one of Chekhov’s plays in Russian and a Russian poem, which really helped me to improve the language skills and pronunciation. By memorizing a short Russian text, I was able to use the vocabulary and certain phrases from the text when I speak Russian in real life. In addition, I am very happy about how organized this program has been, thanks to Elena, and how comfortable I felt on this trip. Even though we were exposed to completely different culture, we were able to understand the culture and to accept it since there were many people who were willing to help us to explain any misunderstanding lost in translation or to overcome difficult situation. Because of their help, I could feel like at home, even though living in a foreign country could be very uncomfortable and scary. And I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone on this trip for kindness and help.

Sarah, Noam, and Robert outside Chekhov's house

The group on our last day of class, just after we completed our final performance.

St. Petersburg

This past Thursday, our group boarded an overnight train and headed north to St. Petersburg. For three days we took in the sights of the historic city while enjoying a change of environment. While walking about, we were able to bask in sunshine and something close to warmth as well as get a taste of the Baltic Sea winds and heavy, wet snow that make Petersburg such a charming place in which to live during the winter. The weather changed about every fifteen minutes or every few blocks. This kept things lively, and it also urged us all to become well acquainted with a very
wonderful collection of cafes specializing in pirogi and great soups. For most members of the group, these three days were a chance to roam in familiar territory, but a few of us encountered Petersburg for the first time. Everyone wanted to spend a bit more time in the city, but we had a train to catch and classes to attend on Monday. Everyone took a good deal of pictures, and I hope that they will present a colorful and meaningful description of our stay in Russia's northern capital.

Cathedral on Spilled Blood

Kazan Cathedral

At Pushkin's Petersburg Home (From left to right: Christina, Ginger, Robert, Noam, Elena, Jenny, David)

The Bronze Horseman

Problems and Some Good Things, Too

Jenny -
Best
The 8th of March, International Women’s Day, turned out to be a very interesting day for us. A group of us were interviewed by the television station, Russia Today, on our thoughts and opinions regarding the holiday. It was a unique experience and we received flowers and candy from the TV station as a thank-you.
Worst
Overall, everything on the trip has been going very well, so the only negative aspects have been sickness and injuries. Food poisoning, hospital visits, flu-like symptoms, injured knees and ankles have been a part of our experience, but all of this has been successfully overcome.


Laura -
We have been in Russia for about five weeks now, and I can’t believe how fast each day goes by. I have probably seen more plays in Russia than I have in my entire life before now. Usually we read the plays in English before going to see them, but I decided to try an adapted Japanese play that I heard was good with very little idea of what would happen. It actually ended up being very comprehensible because it was interwoven with a Chekhov play we have studied, and all the women were fighting for the position of the actress I have played in class. Some things still weren’t clear but it is amazing how much music, lighting, and acting all combine with the dialogue to convey the meaning of the play. One of the most memorable experiences I have had was my short taste of Russian high society, when I was invited into the VIP room of a downtown restaurant only to find myself at a party for the Moscow soccer team that had won that night. Money was clearly not an issue, there was an entire lamb being carved for them in the corner of the room while we drank bottles of wine each worth many hundreds of dollars. Though it was pretty exciting to hang out with the athletes, this absolutely extreme end of society doesn’t really appeal to me, I noticed how little of a role women played, really only serving as decorations for the man they were with. No really awful experience stands out to me, every time I get frustrated I try to appreciate the different aspects of Russian culture. The other day during rush hour one of the escalators was closed and everyone was being crushed as we all tried to get down. The man behind me actually put his forearm across my back and just pushed me through the crowd and I got spun around in the process but made it to the escalator pretty quickly--I guess he thought I would be easily visible. I think it’s better to ride the metro with my violin, if people cut me off I can just “accidentally” hit them in the knees and keep going on my way. The Russians have a soft spot for musicians, the only times I get smiles from strangers are when I am carrying my violin around; all the old people especially look at me like they might hug me. It’s pretty exciting to know I can survive day to day life here even with my minimal language skills and I can’t believe our trip is half over in just a few days.


Christina -
After almost five weeks in Russia, I started to have a new found love for the city of Moscow. It has everything I love about city life as well as ‘culture.’ The only problem that I have encountered is that we never have enough time to enjoy living here because we are so busy with classes and homework. Also, we don’t have enough time to learn the language which is frustrating for me. Before I came to Russia, I thought this program would be a ‘Russian language program’ rather than the ‘Russian culture program’ that we have right now. It is true that my Russian is improving day by day, but the result so far is not satisfying (yet), but I hope that by the end of the semester our Russian will get much better and be enough to communicate and to read Dostoevsky in Russian, which has been my dream in learning the language.

Robert -
The biggest problem that I have run into is both a blessing and a problem. The program actually keeps us so busy with school, plays, and activities that we don’t have a lot of free time to explore Moscow ourselves and do things that are not related to the theater world. When we do have free time we are always so exhausted that we don’t have the energy to go out. The blessing of this is that we are completely immersed in the theater world we are studying, and therefore learning a lot.

Noam-
Russia is a strange country in that it seems to bring to the surface problems that nobody realized were there . I could be referring to its effect on people on our trip, or on its own populace for the last thousand years but whatever. My personal belief is that before we all become underground men (and women) there will be a great catalyst for change and our "russkaya handra", or "angliski splin" , perhaps even our "bulgarski peretz" will be cured by the emergence of that great shining object around which our world revolves ... no, not Maria Corrigan, but the sun. So in essence, everyone's problems are pretty minor issues which will probably ..hopefully go away.

David -
Dostoevsky’s underground man, living alone in a Petersburg garret, describes in his famous notes how he finds himself repeatedly ramming his head against a brick wall, knowing that it will never give way to him. This anti-hero and I may have little in common; I live in a second floor dorm room with a good friend, and my liver, thanks, perhaps, to my aversion to vodka, seems well. However, a formidable barrier stands before me, and, at times, I cannot help but feel that my efforts are Quixotic at best. My problems, unlike those of Dostoevsky’s character, are more linguistic than spiritual, but, then, not being able to express oneself, for whatever reason, can be an exhausting and even depressing business. True, ordering sandwiches and coffee has ceased to be terrifying, but to have communication limited to casual exchanges regarding the simplest of issues highlights my separation from this culture and the people I see everyday. My ability to understand Russian has improved significantly over the past few weeks, and I gain a great deal of confidence when I sit down to read a play without needing to constantly make reference to a translation. I even understand much of what is said around me. The real disappointment is understanding others without being able to say much, and this is my most significant problem. The gap between my levels of speech comprehension and production has reached its greatest extent. This makes conversation very difficult. I can sympathize with others when they do not believe that I have understood what they have said. After all, I could not, in many cases, repeat their words without sounding like an exotic bird, minus the exciting plumage. My impulse is to not speak, but this will simply exacerbate the problem. So I do need to continue my charges at the wall, which right now seems as thick and sturdy as those of the Kremlin. This is not a joyless task, and being able to sit and understand much of a wonderful production of Gogol’s The Inspector General, for example, was a fantastic reward, though not the only. That experience gave me a taste of what I hope to enjoy later. My task now is to speak Russian not only as a quiet consumer, stammering co-student, or anonymous reader, but as myself. Only by doing this will I be able to bring not only my bags and body from America, but also my mind and spirit. So, I suppose that this linguistic problem is also, to some degree, existential. My liver is really fine, though.


Maria -
99 Problems . . . But Prof. Corrigan Ain’t One
Maybe it’s because this is not my first time living in Russia, but I have not encountered many problems over the past month of our program. There is, of course, the usual lethargy I associate with the changing weather, the difficult choices to be made when one lives in a city that has a lot of good theater, movies, and music going on every night (as well as bad theater, movies, and music), and the fact that if any one is too noisy or messy on our floor, our Russian floormates immediately blame the Americans. All of this, though, is not very difficult to deal with - especially because the city is presently melting and the sun shines a lot more than it did when we arrived.


Walker (a.k.a. Vova, Vovchik, Yasha, and Volk) -
Here's a little story about going to the hospital in Russia:
Sunday afternoon, I met with my professor (Elena) at a coffee house. I had some coffee and a really sketchy chicken sandwich. That evening, we went to a play. I had diarrhea at the play, so I decided to play it safe and go home early. The next morning, I woke up with feverish-style chills and severe nausea accompanied by yet even more loose stool. I made the decision not to go to class. Instead, I tried to get some sleeping done. I was awakened by a phone call from Elena, who wanted to know why I wasn't in class that day. I told her about my symptoms, and she began to freak out and demand that I go to the hospital. I didn't put up a fight. That might have been a mistake. She came over to the dorm with some guy in a car. She said it would be better for us to drive to this hospital. After about an hour and a half of being stuck in traffic and getting lost a couple of times, we arrived at the hospital. It honestly would have taken less time for us to walk there. I go in, and an English speaking doctor sees me. He asks all sorts of questions about my illness, and Elena keeps insisting that the chicken sandwich is the cause of all my problems. After some x-ray action, the doctor concludes that I most likely have a bacterial infection due to something I ate. He then tells me that he'd like to keep me in the hospital overnight and put me on an antibiotic drip set. I'm not inclined to argue, so they cart me off to the ER, where they start an IV on me and prepare to take me off to my room on the second floor. I get carted off to a room with 5 or 6 beds to be looked after by some nurses that don't speak a word of English. Fortunately, nobody else was in any of these beds at the time, so I got the room to myself. This also meant that I didn't have to share the one bathroom with anybody, which turned out to be fantastic news. By the time they had me in my room with the antibiotics working their way into my blood, I was getting pretty hungry (I hadn't eaten anything since that chicken sandwich). I asked about when I could eat and was told that I wasn't allowed to have anything to eat due to the nature of my illness (or something along those lines. Remember, these nurses didn't speak any English). Eventually another (English speaking) doctor came in to tell me that she'd read my medical report and she knew all about my illness. She then proceeded to ask me the exact same questions the first doctor had asked. Eventually, I was left alone in order that I might sleep. That was impossible, as I kept waking up every 45 minutes or so from the pain in my arm due to that damn IV or because I needed to poop or both. Twice in the middle of the night, I needed to press the nurse call button. The first time I called for a nurse, I got a very grumpy woman who didn't seem to much like her job. Here's how that went:
(NOTE: conversation in Russian)

HER: (in a somewhat angry sounding voice) "What happened?"

ME: (timidly and frightened) "Uh, could I get some more toilet paper in the bathroom?"

HER: (sighs angrily)

Well, she did give me more toilet paper. That was good. I pressed the call button again, roughly two hours later. I was very frightened and thirsty. This time, a different nurse showed up. This one also spoke no English, but she was very nice. Here's how this conversation went.

HER: Can I help you?

ME: Could I get some more water?

HER: Of course!

I liked that one better. So the next day (yesterday) is kind of a blur to me, as I kept falling asleep. I did eventually recieve some good news that I would be able to leave with some antibiotics which I have to take for the next week. I was getting ready to leave the hospital, when Elena called to tell me to wait for her to come get me. I waited another two hours. She then called to tell me that she wouldn't be able to make it, and I promised her that I would be able to get home safely. I Then went on to walk home (which did indeed take less time than the drive over). After the walk, I arrived feeling not so well. I tried to sleep last night, but my sleep was regularly interrupted again. At least I don't have that IV in my arm anymore. As it stands, I still have yet to eat anything since that chicken sandwich, and I still feel as though I wouldn't be able to hold anything down if I did eat it. At least my fever's gone down, and I'm pooping less.


Ginger -
Likes:
I really like the amount of exposure we have to Russian, through plays and class. We see a lot of plays and even if you did not particularly enjoy the plays, through exposure, they help improve your Russian. Naturally, I also really like the city of Moscow.
Dislikes:
This isn’t particular to Russia, but I don’t like the uptight attitude of MXAT. It results in everything becoming a bigger issue than it really is. Missing class, being late, and forgetting things are often blown out of proportion. That is the only thing that has given me a negative perception of the program, but perhaps it is our fault after all.

Adjustment: Impressions of the first week

Adjustment: Impressions of the first week

Laura-
I have survived one week in Russia, though someone guessed that if one of us might not make it--it would probably be me. I have learned to use the metro pretty well and even can get Russian out well enough to order things without causing massive confusion. Russia definitely has character, the Boogie Woogie World Cup let a few of us experience some of that. I can’t wait for the worst of winter to pass so we won’t be so hesitant to go out at night, but I am still really excited to see new things and take copious amounts of pictures. The food and people have been amazing, two things I was worried about. The last thing I really worried about was the cold, which is bad. Not as bad as I thought, but definitely getting tired of having to assemble eight layers just to go outside for even a short amount of time. Even just a short amount of time without gloves makes my hands feel like they are going to die and never work again. Overall, I am so excited to have a semester with so much time to take in the arts here in Moscow, meet amazing people, and truly have the experience of a lifetime living in a totally new place.

Christina -
When I first came to Moscow, my initial shock was how developed the country was, contrary to some people's misperceptions. When people think about Russia, the first image that often crosses their minds is the image of the Soviet Union when people had to line up for distribution under communism. However, as capitalism spread throughout the country, industry grew fast -- especially in Moscow -- and everything became Westernized. Last week, I had to go to the hospital because of my knee injury. Elena and I went to the European Clinic for an X-ray examination and I was extremely surprised by their hospitality (which one cannot always take for granted in Russia) and all the equipment they had in the hospital. It was nothing different from other hospitals in Western countries. In addition, I was really shocked to see how developed industry was. There are many nice restaurants, designer clothing stores, and expensive cars in the city, which I did not expect at all.

Ginger -
I have been to Russia once before, so I was not culture shocked. However, there were a few things I needed to get used to. Our dorm rooms are small to say the least, and at first I thought ti would be impossible for me and my roommate to live in such a small space. This fear soon disappeared, and after a few days the small room became quite comfortable. That was my first negative impression. My first positive impression was our teachers. We have about six, and they were all immediately open and friendly. Our classes are rather interesting and very different from what I have been taking at Emory, such as stage movement and acting. The whole classroom experience so far has been great and left me with a wonderful first impression of MXAT and my Moscow life.

Robert - My Most Shocking Moment
This morning, I bought a bottle of water to eat with lunch. It was cold when I bought it, but normal. After about three minutes of walking around outside, ice crystals started to form inside the water bottle, and after five minutes I could barely drink it because it was so frozen. It was very shocking to me that it could get that cold!

David-
Arriving in Moscow, exhausted from eighteen hours of travel, I found myself in a world I had known for so long only through literature, art, film, and history. From the formidable apartments in the suburbs to the historic center, every sight translated academic knowledge and opinion to reality. Vocabulary lists suddenly became the food on my table, and abstract notions of culture changed into visible behavior. That first evening, emerging from an underground walkway, I saw through falling snow, the walls of the Kremlin. Walking through Red Square, seeing St. Basil's and Lenin's tomb, I realized that I was, at last, in Moscow. No longer a far-away place, but an energetic and powerful city in which millions of people live there lives. Here, where some of the most daring and important human efforts have been made, my own struggles to speak and understand often become overshadowed by complete awe as I catch tastes of this city's spirit. This adjustment is more than linguistic, and it involves great joy and sometimes terror. Carefully planned sentences too often tumble out as incoherent ravings, but I increasingly find that I can understand those around me and sometimes even get my point across. Studying at MXAT is a beautiful experience. So much talent from around the world is gathered in this one place, and our teachers are both kind and experienced, willing to literally beat a correct note out of us or twist our arms into the right position, all with a smile and a little laugh. My main task at this point was clearly revealed to me by Elena after a particularly difficult class. After clenching her fist, she looked me in the eye and slowly let it relax into an open palm. As my fears and anxieties dissipate, I find that I appreciate more around me, and even in myself.


Walker -
For me, this entire trip has been something of a shock. It's not unilke the shock of going outside when the weather is really, really cold (I'm still getting used to that, by the way. We still don't have this thing called "snow" in Mississippi yet.) It's pretty tough having to navigate frozen, icy sidewalks. That's especially rough when it's a thirty minute walk to class with traction!. The most shocking thing about this trip for me is actually not the weather; it's the people of Russia. I had this expectation in my mind of Russians being cruel and harsh toward foreigners (and humans in general), but that hasn't really been the case for me thusfar. The people of this country have been especially kind and patient with me in everything from giving me directions to the nearest drugstore to helping me buy a cell phone, even though my Russian is still marginal at best. I know there do exist harsh Russians (I've actually been here before. There are indeed a lot of them. Just trust me.), but I haven't managed to find them yet. When I do happen across such people, I don't know that I'll be truly prepared for the encounter. We'll just have to see...

Elena-
Well, we survived the first week, and I think, we did more than survive it. I am probably in the most turmoil, looking for the reading lamps, frying pans, light bulbs and trolley passes in the city that consolidated only the most expensive and elite shops in its center. And a complex city it is--I feel like a figure in Chagall's paintings about Vitebsk-I am the silhouette flying outside the buildings where once I had a home, but the world changed. This is developing into the outstanding program though. Our theater going is about to develop speed. The choices within the next two weeks:
Macbeth in Satiricon
Gogol's Land-owners ( a dramatization)
Woe from Wit by Griboyedov which we are studying in my class
Chekhov's Lady with a Lapdog (another drammatization)
Inspector General by Gogol
The Infant by Fonvizin
and Chekhov's Platonov.
We have also understood how to cook, clean, and keep our rooms manageable.I think at this point all is well. I think that everyone's Russian is improving hourly.

MXAT