|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
My lovely host family.
|
A Home Stay with the Kondratov Family
My family includes: Victor, who works
in a refrigerator factory and hopes to be a lawyer, Sacha, a
nine year old, who wants to follow in the footsteps of Jacques
Cousteau and Elena, who is so talented, works two jobs, gets
paid more for her second job as a tutor than for her first job
as an assistant principal, and worries about her family. Victor
was a great host, but he didn't speak much English, and I spoke
no Russian. This was certainly a disadvantage for conversation.
|
|
|
 |
|
Notice the Lays Potato Chips. Even Russians can't eat just one!
|
The
hot water in the apartment comes from this water heater, positioned
over the sink. This way the water falls down into the sink
insead of dripping on the counter. After the dishes are washed
they are stored in a draining rack over the sink. This way
they can drip dry into the sink. My family was able to secure
this apartment when Victor’s aunt died. She was the former
resident. Although the family would like to have more space,
larger apartments are hard to acquire.
|
|
|
Elena spent one evening teaching me Russian geography. We used
a large, 8-foot square map that was divided into 3 pieces. We
compared the size of Russia to other countries, traced my host
family's roots, and relived the travels they had taken.
The apartment was full of personal artistic touches; Sache’s
pictures, Disney outlines, and Victor’s sketches of Elena.
Sache gave me his bedroom. He slept in the living room on a
big, comfy chair with a hassock pulled up.
The family owns a parakeet which was flying around when I first
arrived. Later, they decided it needed to stay in the cage because
it kept landing on people’s heads.
|
|
|
 |
 |
| This is Elena and some of her friends who wanted to meet the American, but were shy about speaking English. The women had become friends while attending the University in Pskov. |
This is the bed where I slept. oriental rugs are popular in Russia. Many families not only have them on the floors, but also hanging on the wall. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
