Wash...Dry...Exfoliate!

The days of the large capacity washing machine and dryer are yet a distant memory.  And the stacking washer/dyer?  Nyet.  But we are now proud users of the ever popular European “combo” model.  Our machine has two starring roles...washer by day...dryer by night.  The same machine does both functions...in theory.

Here's the little gem...in Russian, of course.

It actually does a fairly good job in the washing department.  It hasn’t turned any of our “whites” completely gray although it’s capacity amounts to a pair of boxers, a pair of socks and maaaybe a t-shirt.  Any more than that - an error message pops up and I start taking items out.  And so clothes washing is in process pretty much 24/7. 

When the wash cycle is done, turn the knob to the dry cycle....and...well, you have what might be described as more of a “dehumidifying” process.  No hot air - just tumbling which often causes the clothes to become more damp than when you started.  The drying rack has become king in our household.  We can get one single sheet to dry if we put that puppy through the “dehumidifier” about 5 times.  Yahtzee!

Check out the nap on a towel we ran through the process (this is a typical bath towel): 

Does this whisper silky softness?  How about Brillo Pad along with sand blasting exfoliation and complete skin removal??  Ah, but our skin is so dry, the wire brush-like action actually does us some good!

Stove Victory and other "one month" thoughts...

We just hit our one month and a few days (minus 3 weeks in U.S./Aruba) anniversary in Moscow!  I thought it particularly appropriate to stop and reflect on what we’ve learned in this wonderful city so far (and it truly is wonderful):

• I’ve learned that while trying out my Russian vocab, I’ve been introducing Steve as “my man” when I thought I was saying “my husband”....that explains the occasional snicker.  But then again, he IS my man!  I think I'll keep it up.

• I’ve learned that mustard, lasagna and green tea are not always what they appear to be....turned out they were wasabi paste (of a yellowish tinge), some sort of ham casserole and an unfamiliar Madori green licorice-tasting carbonated beverage.  Our learning curve is straight up 90 degrees! 

• I’ve learned you can line up most service related requests up until midnight any day, i.e. the Internet guy came to our rescue at 10 p.m. on a Sunday night (at no additional fee) and IKEA is making a delivery tonight between 6 p.m. and midnight!!  We’ll leave the light on...

• I’ve learned you can find just about anything in Moscow....for a small (high) price.  Well, maybe not Moe’s “Joey Bag of Doughnuts” burrito - but practically everything else!

• I’ve learned very few people speak English in Russia (although most do in the business community).  When acting out charades fails - DRAW!  My stick figures have improved dramatically, although recently I drew a stick figure in a shower - I was looking for a shower caddy to hold shampoo bottles, etc. I followed the employee through the store, up and down aisles and finally arrived at.....the umbrella rack!  I smiled and nodded and bought an umbrella...maybe I’ll use it in the shower. 

• And...I’ve learned when your stove is not working for 30 straight days, call your German neighbor to come over and read the German directions...viola!  We have electric burners again!  Apparently we were overlooking some obscure button on the back of the stove that when pressed and held for 20 seconds, releases the child lock....but of course!  Ugh - the insanity!!

I’ve also learned:

• getting out of your comfort zone really won’t kill you...really

• you can take on a lot more than you think 

• people are people - if you need help, someone will come

• human emotions transcend international boundaries

• creativity can be manifested during times of independence and frustration

• if you smile at someone long enough....they might just smile back

The Eurosports Channel...

If you’ve ever travelled, or lived, in Europe - you’ve probably taken in the Eurosports Channel. This is Europe’s version of ESPN with a few twists....actually quite fascinating (and sometimes not so much) with its volume of obscure sports.

Take for example...

Desert motorcross - where dirt bikes and mini trucks race across desert land up and down huge sand dunes...??

Darts....yes, Darts. (This really needs no explanation....took a championship nap watching this one).

Foosbol - this features grown men duking it out on a foosbol table complete with referees and cheerleaders.....?????  Another great sleep aid when all else fails.

“Expedition Freeride Spirit” - where the craziest of the crazy snowboard down untouched, no trail,  steep snow terrain at night with little head lamps lighting their way.... they catch massive air doing triple backflips, etc. and almost always have a near miss landing in the pine trees they’re bobbing and weaving through.  Do their mothers know they’re doing this?

And of course endless coverage of hockey and soccer (er.... futbol). You can also catch alpine sports pretty much 24/7 - the type we Americans typically only see every 4 years during the winter Olympics:  ski jumping, luge, snowboard cross, cross country skiing, Super G, downhill slalom.

I’m actually fairly intrigue by the biathlon (cross country skiing + shooting) and have started asking around about a club team...

I just flipped through the channels to see if I was missing something and caught the last 30 seconds of female arm wrestling...whoa.  It appears Russia wins this a lot.

(this is not me)

With all of these crazy sports....why is it that Europeans don’t understand our love for American football??  C’mon man!

Bare Bottomed in Aruba...

Kite Boarding....our new fave sport.  We are hooked!!  If you have ever had the slightest interest in learning - do it!  It was more fun than we ever imagined.

Steve and I were planning to take one lesson in the morning the day before we left Aruba.  After the first lesson - we signed up for 2 more and exited the water after our last lesson an hour before we left for the airport our last day.  As we moved from "learning on land" and honing our kite management skills to "learning in the water" - our instructor asked if our bathing suits were on tightly - we laughed and didn't think much of it.  One of our "dragging" drills had Steve lying on his belly, managing the kite, with me holding on to the back of his harness (also on my belly) so he wouldn't fly 30 feet out of the water (strong wind day).  The instructor told me to hold on tight and not let go...no problem, so I thought!

We really didn't know what to expect as this was our first release from "shore learning" to going off on our own - but as we started - the wind was so strong that it would pull both of us about 20 feet, basically whipping us through the water, then catapult us in the air about 15 feet, then smash us back into the water for another 20 foot drag...on and on.  This was a crazy ride and I was laughing the whole way, holding on to Steve, gulping water..............until.............my bathing suit bottoms came off!

This continued for about a minute and a half - and when we finally came to a stop - we were about a mile off shore.  The instructor told me not to let go of Steve - so I held on until I was holding on to my suit bottoms with my big toe and finally had to let go.  I knew the instructor was coming after us in the rescue boat and I really didn't want to greet him sans britches!  The good news - we were so far off shore I only mooned a newbie wind surfer who had veered off course and didn't know how to get back to land and a few pelicans.  When we came to a stop - Steve said "thank goodness" - his swim trunks were around his knees!

Me - solo - on a dragging drill heading to the deep waters!

Steve - solo - at sunset!

Ahhhh Aruba...

Aruba was just what the doctor ordered....I believe our core body temperatures are now hovering around a rationale number as the combo or Moscow and Colorado was keeping us at something far below 98.6.  Aruba is fantastic - we highly recommend it!   We're taking kite boarding lessons in the morning....more to come!

From out balcony...bliss!

Snowboarding in Colorado...

Had an absolutely amazing time with the Moellering clan in snowy Snowmass Colorado.  Steve and I held our own as the only 2 snowboarders out of the family of thirteen.  Not too much hissing and booing from the ski squad as we reeeeeally didn't shear too much snow off the mountain for everyone else.

Arrived back in the ATL for several days to ring in the new year and heading to Aruba in the morning to thaw out!!!

Happy New Year!

The day arrived....

                                 
                       THE HAT HAS BEEN PURCHASED! 

When in Rome....and, quite frankly, you kind of stick out if you aren't wearing one of these.  Steve said he'd only wear one when hell freezes over - well, I reminded him where we were and that it's beyond freezing - so I guess there's a chance!!  (By the way - we are not in hell - Moscow is quite wonderful).

We depart today for the trek back across Europe and the pond to Atlanta.  Catch our breath for a day, then on to Snowmass, Colorado to team up with the Moellering clan for a week.  Glad we decided to pick a new climate to give ourselves a break....?  But we can't wait!

Here are some shots we took at Red Square on Sunday.  I was loving the fact the Zambonie and ice rink match my blog design...thank you Red Square!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!