Confessions.

In a quick break from the Ukraine segments, I wanted to take a moment to confide in y'all. Ah, this is difficult to get out... Ok, deep breath. Ready.

I think I might have scared my first year.

There. I said it. In a moment, ok, ok, an hour's worth of moments, I might have been a little overly excited to meet him and talk about the coming school year.

We got together on Wednesday to "officially" meet (B went to my old high school- not only a state- mate, but a city- mate and a... school-mate?) In all fairness I did tell him I was just over excited at that moment and would calm down when we get to school, but at this point I'm just hoping he'll still come.

No, I'm sure that's an exaggeration, and he'll still come and learn I'm not crazy and it'll be great. He really is a cool guy and I'm excited for him to be starting this journey. We're a little different, for example B has had three pet snakes (THREE), likes physics, and theatre. But we're also alike in some ways, we both love languages and international stuff and coffee. Having a first year state mate will be fun and I hope we can be good friends!

And to B: I'm sorry for being a little... Overwhelming? I promise to chill out soon and be normal, or as normal as UWCers can be :) see ya in NM!

The [No One Goes Hungry] Games

     If you think you know anything about Russian cuisine, you're probably wrong. But it's alright, don't worry, I'm here to catch you up.
Here are the basic points you should know:

1) We eat and drink more than just borscht and vodka
2) Russian cooking is... what a good friend of ours calls "labor intensive"
3) If you ever go up to your Russian friend and try to describe that one food you tried last week, "you know, the one with meat inside of dough, it's really good, you know it?" there is a good chance they'll laugh at you. There are at least 5 different foods I can think of off the top of my head that are variations on meat inside dough.
4) You will never, ever, under any circumstance, go hungry in a Russian household. Not ever.

     I've always known that what my parents cook at home is "Russian". Duh. I just never realized how legitimately authentic our home cooked meals are. In Ukraine, I walked into restaurants expecting to get to try really real Russian food. What I was served was almost exactly what I could have gotten at home (so y'all are all welcome to skip the expensive airfare and come over to my house instead).
     There are variations on dishes, of course, just like in any cuisine. Some people add carrots in their salat olivye, some put sugar in varyeniki, and some make okroshka on mineral water instead of kvac. But what holds true for most dishes is the cooking process. I don't mean the ingredients for each dish (although if you have meat and dough you're like 90% there), but the mentality. Russian dishes are not easy to make. There are different doughs for different dishes, varied lengths for cooking, but always a lot of time spent in the kitchen. My mom often prepares Russian dinners for holidays; they usually take a full two days to prepare.
     Nevertheless, Russians will continue to spend such time on their food. Food is a big part of culture. "Well, duh, Jess, just like in any other culture". No, no, I mean like food is a central component, not just for meals but for socializing, at any level. When you walk into a Russian household, we will offer you something to eat and drink. If you say you're not hungry, we'll only bring out 2/3 of what we've prepared. If we ask about seconds, you might as well say "yes". "No" will only cause the babushka (pronounced BA-bush-ka, not ba-BUSH-ka, it's a pet peeve of mine) of the house to tell you "nonsense, you're too thin, have some more". Resistance is futile; we will feed you.
     On the bright side, you can relax and just enjoy the meal- it'll be delicious and mostly healthy. None of this additives nonsense; we like things natural and home grown (like actually, in our backyard, where my uncle keeps 5 cows, 3 calves, a plot of tomatoes, a start to some grapes, and still expanding). Once you've eaten, I'd recommend you stick around for tea and chocolate; we have really good chocolate. I'm pretty sure that in 3 weeks in Ukraine, I drank more tea (a cup after any and every meal, of course) and ate more dessert than ever in my life.
     Anyways, I hope this short look into our culinary world has been enlightening. And don't forget- Kansas is probably much closer than Ukraine, so stop on by and we'll fill you up.

Ukrainian Sports

     Across history, one of man's favorite pass times has been sport. For centuries humans have shed sweat and blood in the pursuit of glory, banded together for a common goal, or torn each other limb from limb in passion. Now, you may be thinking "alright, alright, that's all very nice and dramatic, but sports today are controlled and play out on neatly manicured soccer, ahem, excuse me football fields, and in arenas". Not so, my friend. Let me tell you about some of Ukraine's favorite "sports". 

 

Arguing with Policemen: this sport can accommodate multiple players but is most commonly acted by 1 policeman and 1 civilian. The object of the policeman (hereafter known as P) is to leach as much money from the civilian (C) as possible. This can be done one of two ways: convince C that it will be easier for he or she to bribe P, or, if C is tougher and unwilling to submit to such bureaucracy, to stop two more drivers to act as witnesses and write C a "protocol" (ticket). C's objective is to weasel his or her way out of paying. This can be accomplished through arguing, pleading, yelling, crying, or any other way C can imagine.

*It should be noted that C is often stopped for no real offense or for having offended an invisible sign.     

Pot Holes: Most countries pride themselves on clean, smooth roads for their citizens to use safely, with as few bumps (physical or metaphorical) as possible. Ukraine has evolved past this stage and instead allows drivers to use their time economically, both driving and playing games, in this case: Pop Goes the Pothole. In this game, the player must dodge as many potholes as possible. There are virtually no rules, meaning drivers/players can ignore all rules of traffic (i.e, speedlimits, lanes, and direction) in the prestigious, yet nearly impossible attainment of a smooth journey.     

*Players are cautioned that Pop Goes the Pothole may have minor consequences, including but not limited to injury, loss of vehicle, collision, becoming stranded, or death. 

Guess Who: my sister's personal favorite, this game can be played virtually anywhere with anyone, as long as a conversation is in session. The object of the game is to keep track of who exactly is being talked about. Sound simple enough? The more challenging version is played when the player is actually named one of the more common Russian names; the goal in this case is to respond to your name only when you are actually being referred to. Our particular round (a round may continue indefinitely) included 4 "Natasha"s, 2 "Nastya"s, 2 "Lyuda"s, 2 "Sergei"s, 2 "Igor"s, 2 "Olga"s, and an infinite number of "Sasha"s. (Needless to say, I am quite happy to be named something as completely un- Russian as "Jessika")     

 

Pear Dodging: may be played with variations of fruits or other falling objects. The game is played when enjoying time outside; do not worry about searching for falling edibles, conveniently there will always be a pear tree exactly where you need to be sitting/standing. Players are advised to cover head immediately upon hearing the rustling of the falling item. Fear not: being hit is not (usually) fatal.     

 

Hay Wrestling: this game can only be played accidentally, preferably when not properly attired. The name of the game does not refer to wrestling in hay, but rather wrestling the actual hay. Materials include: 1 ton of hay (the pricklier the better), 1 transportation truck, and as few players as possible. The object of the game is to load the hay into the truck with no injury or allergic reaction. Bruises or other battle scars are awarded extra points; allergy should be treated with decades old rubbing alcohol. Haha, good luck!     

*It should be noted that all above- mentioned sports have not been exaggerated, but are the actual reality of the Ukrainian people as observed by my family and me.

Europe 2013

 I named this blog "25/8" in the aspiration to live life to its fullest. This past month feels like I've actually been living 25 hour days of an 8 day week. No one can say we wasted a single moment of this trip. 

     When my mom first called me at school and told me she was planning a trip to Ukraine, I immediately asked to stop in London. Having just looked at a university there, I figured since we'd already be in Europe, why not make a pit stop? Turned out my little sister, too, had requested London, so off we went. 

     My friend, M, lives in London (though unfortunately she was abroad when we visited) and she always gets annoyed when people stereotype London as gray and rainy. Nevertheless its a stereotype for a reason, and we packed accordingly for our visit. Armed with umbrellas and jackets we arrived just in time for a dry spell and the hottest day in seven years. Despite the heat we tackled nearly all of the major tourist sites, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, Big Ben, a cruise on the Thames, Millennium Bridge, St. James Palace, Westminster, the Horse Guards, and St. Paul's Cathedral. We also visited some "culturally important" sites including Shakespeare's Globe theatre, Platform 9 and 3/4,  Sherlock Holmes' house at 221B Baker Street, and the Churchill Cabinet War Rooms. 

     As I've been learning in my anthropology class, to understand a culture its important to go native. I'd say we did pretty well; in 4 days we managed to conquer the metro, excuse me Tube, and bus systems, get thrown out of a pub, and enjoy fish and chips. 

     It was an incredible trip and a lot of fun. I always love exploring new countries and cultures and London didn't disappoint. 

     From London we flew to Amsterdam and then on to Ukraine. The following three weeks were... interesting, to say the least. In short, we spent 4 days in Kiev, 9 days in Donetsk, 1 in Slovyanagorsk, and 3 in Milekina. All the adventures cannot possibly be described in a single post so I'll have a short series of posts summarizing some of the highlights. Hope y'all enjoy learning a little about Ukrainian culture! :)

Summer

     Hey y'all, hope everyone's enjoying their summer (or winter, if you live in the southern hemisphere). Sorry it's been so quiet on my end, haven't had a whole lot to report. Mostly I've just been hanging out at home, with friends and family, and, of course, working on my loooong extended essay and college research. I've also been keeping in touch with UWC friends- though maybe not as much as I would like- but it sounds like everyone's enjoying themselves.
     I do have one UWC-ish piece of news to report: I'll be in London soon and am hoping to meet up with my third year from UWC-SEA; yay! It'll be really exciting to hear about another school and another set of experiences. Also, while flying/ moving through airports I'm planning on wearing a UWC hoodie and hoping to run into some cool people :)
     If you're a UWC grad in London or Ukraine let me know and we can try to get together!

Best wishes from Kansas!

"See you later."

     I've begun writing this post at least 10 times now. How do I capture all of the past year in words and begin to express the gratitude I feel to all of my co-years and, especially, my second- years, for making it so special?

     I just don't even know.
     I could write millions of words on the last year- recounting stories, telling jokes, explaining traditions, but I think it might be better just to keep it short and sweet.
     Thank you. Thank you SOOOO much. To my parents, family, and friends for helping me get to UWC. To my national committee and Shelby Davis for making this experience possible. To my co-years for being some of my best friends ever ever ever, for embarking on this journey with me and for making it all the better. And to my second years, for welcoming us into your home, for being incredible role models, and for being even better friends.
     I won't bother saying good bye. This isn't good-bye, it's see you later. Because y'all are always welcome in Kansas, at school (please come visit us this year!!), and I hope to maybe even see some of you in your own home countries.
     Love you all.
     See ya later. 

Wrappin Up

     I absolutely cannot believe the year is nearly finished. With less than two weeks left, I feel like I can't possibly have already completed half of my UWC experience, but also like I've been here forever and learned so much and had so much fun. Looking back on it all, I can't help thinking how unbelievable UWC is, and how lucky I am that I get to live it. And comparing the person I was at the beginning, and who've I've grown to be is strange- on the one hand, I don't feel like I've changed radically, but on the other, I definitely feel more mature and ready to take on the world. I see the same changes in my classmates. I'm excited to continue next year, to meet our firsties, but first we all have to get past the next couple of weeks. First years have kicked off final exams this week, and second years are in their third week of IB exams (shout out to my IB Buddy, good luck, O! :)), and once testing finishes, packing, graduation, and saying good-bye will be here much, much sooner than I would like. I guess that too is part of the UWC experience, but hopefully we'll all still stay in touch and visit each other and continue the legacy. But for now it's just important to study for tomorrow's exam. Wish me luck!