Kazan — summer 2010

Lazy day. Did almost nothing. Explored the snack bar at the back of the Chekhov farmers market. They sell manty (Russian ravioli) covered with mayonaisse. Very tasty! Was stunned by the quantity of alcohol consumed there. Saw two ladies walk in with prepared salads, and they ordered shots of vodka to go with it. Salad and vodka? Depending on the brand, you can get a shot of vodka here for about 50 cents.

This afternoon we had another great lecture by Ruslan Garipov and his cohorts. This time it addressed indigenous rights in Russia, plus family law and human rights in general. Garipov started off his lecture with a video that he point together and actually won a prize for. The video is below.

Today our group went to a piano and voice recital. I love piano music, and some vocal performances I enjoy as well. Here was our program:

1. Chaikovsky's "Reflection"
2. Purcell's "Music"
3. Handel's "Dignare"
4. Bach's soprano aria from "Magnificat"
5. Mozart's "Fantasy in D-minor"
6. Schubert-Liszt's "Morning Serenade"
7. Schuman's "In Snow-White Lily Flowers"
8. Schuman's "I am not angry"
9. Schuman's "Reveries"
10. Rachmaninov's "It is good here"
11. Rachmaninov's "They answered"
12. Rimsky-Korsakov's "It is not a wind flowing from the heights"
13. Chaikovsky's "I would like in a single word to say"
14. Bom's "Night-time silence"
15. Klyucharev's "Bashkir dance"
16. Pechersky's "Tumbalalaika"
17. Pechersky's "Tarantella"
18. Mancini's "Moon River"
19. Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata", parts 1 and 3

There is something about classical piano that is simply remarkable. It pulls at your heart and mind at the same time, pulling you ever higher and filling you with this amazing internal tension and when the piece is done you are simply bursting with astonishment at this incomprehensible beauty.

On more prosaic fronts, the opera soloist wore an astonishing ivory and black art nouveau dress that fitted her figure perfectly. Her voice was flawless to my ear, but the concentration she was putting into the song was reflected in her eyebrows and her forehead. It was rather distracting. I had never thought one would have to train one's eyebrows and forehead to give the appearance of effortlessness. In retrospect, though, that's obvious.

PS. I translated the Russian program on the fly, without looking up spellings or verifying the English names of these songs, so if they seem odd, it's because I didn't want to put the time into a professional translation for a blog entry.

Well, crud. The leg injury is bumming me out. Today we had on schedule a camp for gifted children. So, should I hobble around the camp like an old man, or should I stay at home like an old man and let myself heal? I decided to stay home. I have seven weeks left here after all, and I won't be of use to anyone if I can't walk.

Of course, just sitting still is impossible for me. So what have I done all day? I've gone back and forth between lying in bed and sitting and reading. And what am I reading? I'm reading "Twilight" in Russian. I'm up to page 258 as I write. Here is a line I never need to read again: "Our lips met like two flowers in a bouquet."

Click 'read more' for details.

Full story »