And Siberia continues to amaze me with its strangeness and its beauty. Every time I walk down to the lake, it never fails to completely take my breath away. On clear days, the water reflects a cool blue-green tropical color, and it's so crystal-clear that from the shore, you can see straight through to the stones at the bottom. The other day I went for a long walk along the beach, and when I got thirsty, I drank the water straight from the lake. It's still icy cold, and in certain areas there are still piles of snow on the shore, but I remain determined to swim in the lake before I leave!
The weather has been beautiful, but the wind is chilly enough that I'm still wearing sweaters on a daily basis. At nighttime it's uncomfortably cold, but almost every night there's a bonfire and guitar sing-along either at Nikita's or down at the beach. I've managed to make some transitory friends as tourists come and go and have also become good friends with Dima, the guy who's in charge of the internet and wi/fi at Nikita's (by the way, he is one of 5 "Dima's" that I'm friends with). A few years back he spent a year in Texas, and his English is so good that at first I thought he was an American. Unlike most Russians I know, he has excellent taste in music, and we spent a few hours the other night exchanging music (I'm in desparate need of new stuff; I go on so many long walks with my iPod and I think I've listened to my iTunes library more than 3 times).
Luckily, my friends from Irkutsk have been passing through every few days, so I've gotten a chance to say goodbye to everyone one last time. My best friend Anna is coming today and will stay for a few days, which will give us enough time to plot our next adventure together (we decided we want to travel somewhere together; I mean, after navigating Eastern Siberia, everywhere else will be so easy!).
In the two short weeks that I've been here, my Russian has actually gotten a lot better, and after having a conversation with a fellow worker during lunch today, I noticed that I didn't have to ask "what?" even once! The man I was talking to was asking me if I'll return to Russia after I graduate from college. When I told him I would have to work for a while to earn money before I could return, he responded, "Money isn't necessary. Just get married to a Russian man. And have children. This is the most important thing in life."
And then there are the conversations that I have with locals on my way back and forth from the store. Yesterday evening, I was walking in the village and a car stopped to ask me for directions to a restaurant I've never heard of (which is surprising, because there are only like 3 in the entire village). After hearing my accent, they immediately knew I was a foreigner and asked me where I was from. When I told them I'm from America, the guy in the passenger's seat, who was holding a beer in one hand and a small child in the other, jumped out of the car with the child, took a last gulp of beer, threw the can into a bush, and when I asked him what he was doing, told me that he wanted his son to meet a real American. I stood and talked to them for a few minutes and then told them I needed to get back to work. The encounter was both hilarious and incredibly sad; I just hope that they made it to their destination in time before they were too drunk to drive. The little boy was sitting on his father's lap in the front seat without a car seat or even seat belts. Luckily, there is literally no traffic in Khuzir and not a whole lot to crash into either.
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