July 15th: Murom to Vladimir to St. Petersburg

This the front of the Murom Institute, affiliated with the Vladimir University, on the morning of the 15th of July. Irena, my hostess, came to see me off. It has been a short visit, but memorable for many reasons. Irena, an English professor at the Institute was a great hostess. She, her sister Elena, and her daughter Dasha were very gracious and willing to put up with an American for a few days. I enjoyed discussing many a topic at Elena's flat. They are very proud of their accomplishments in and out of the classroom and the piano studio.

On that morning, I was up for zaftrak at 8:00. They had bought me exactly what I wanted for breakfast: Strawberry yogurt, bananas, and tea! Thank you, Irena! We ended up waiting an hour longer than we thought for the bus to come and load our luggage. Long goodbyes are not easy. Post 9/11 goodbyes in airports have been made shorter due to security checks. Goodbyes on busses and trains seem to be too long for words and are a little uncomfortable at times. Such was the case today with the bus and later the train to St. Petersburg. It was a two hour bus ride back to Vladimir for the afternoon. We ate lunch at a tractir (bar/restaurant) that we had not been to before. It was excellent! Thanks to Alexei! When we arrived "home" at the American Home, Galya said that I should go "home" to Olesya's flat. So I took the bus one more time to the flat I had stayed in for two weeks. We had tea, sweets and exchanged even more gifts - shot glasses made in nearby Gus- Krystalny and a sand painting done by Olga! It was nice to relax during the afternoon. We took the taxi back to the AH for our last supper in Vladimir, a pot luck of sorts. There were more gifts and presentations with vodka. We walked to the train station and said many goodbyes. We boarded the train and were on our way to St. Petersburg. Vladimir had been an amazing place to call home for two weeks. My host family, the Mayorovs, were the best possible Russian family for me to stay with. They weren't just hosting, they were 'family!'

In the picture, Olesya, Olga, and Alex surround me in front of the flower garden behind the American Home. Olesya, the English teacher, made my stay so incredible! I hope that Olga remembers the American states I taught her with a map of the US and lots of US quarters from each state! Alex, the independent truck driver, was so easy going and welcomed me into his home like a best friend. I challenged him to be able to own his own trucking company in the years to come. It could happen!! Thanks for a great visit to your wonderful city!