One Month Left...

This is my first entry as a 24 year-old. Thanks to everyone who sent me birthday greetings via text, email, etc. And a special kudos to those who took the effort to send me a "С днём рождения!" It feels pretty good to be 24. I mean, I'm not married with kids and a guitar like I thought I'd be when I was 18, but I woulnd't have it any other way.

I got back from the Land of Milk & Honey (Helsinki, Finland) on Sunday. For one of the older cities in Europe, it has a real North American feel to it. It's the total opposite of St. Petersburg. It's small, quiet, clean (very clean!), the people are polite, pedestrians have right-of-way, and you can get out into nature quite easily. About the only thing the two cities have in common is an efficient transportation system...though when a tram runs by in Helsinki it doesn't feel like a tank is rumbling down the street. The downside (if you can call it that) is that it's not a particularly exotic city. As Liz said, "It's not a super exciting place to visit, but it seems like a great place to live." I'd be inclined to agree with that. It's expensive, but apparently that's because I'm not making a Finnish wage. Those of you who want to live in a society with high taxes and excellent social programs, you should move to Helsinki.

Liz, my friend Kat, and I went to Tallinn, Estonia for a day on Wednesday. The altstadt is one of the most beautiful I've seen in awhile. It has that medieval charm that reminded me a lot of cities like Ljubljana, Slovenia and Freiburg, Germany. We simply walked around the town looking at old buildings and windy streets. We found a beautiful old Anglican Church where the organist was practicing. We just sat for close to an hour and it was so simple and beautiful inside. It was a nice reaffirmation that Orthodoxy is not for me (but that's another blog post). If you should find yourself in Tallinn, there is an excellent Italian restraunt which is very affordable there.

Anyway, it was a great change from Russian life for a week and it was oh so nice to see good friends like Chris, Linda, and Liz after such a long time and to meet new people like Iris and Chris and all the Timos and Mikkos who were there. Maybe I'll go back one day.

Well, my battery's about to die here. I'll post again soon. The only other major news is that I scalded myself on Tuesday night. I poured boiling water on my hand accidentally and MAN did that hurt. I'm alright except for a few small burns on my fingers. No blisters though, fortunately.

Well, I'm off to the ballet. Talk to you all soon.