Minsk 11

As most of you know by now Scott and I were among the diplomats who left Belarus on May 3rd.  Ten (10) American diplomats were declared persona non grata and the 11th (Scott) left for administrative reasons. 

This news wasn’t widely covered in the United States, but did finally make the May 12th episode of the Colbert Report.  We also managed to make it to YouTube.  This video was taken on the day we left.  Max has a cameo.  I fortunately did not make the video.  I was probably off to use the restroom as my traveler’s bladder was calling.

What this video depicts is the pre departure and the convoy heading toward and crossing the border to Lithuania.  What this video does not depict are the friends and co-workers that we left behind.

Yesterday the US imposed further sanctions so I’m sure this is all far from over.  Stay tuned.

 

Iron Man

 

I went to the movies tonight (alone of course as my husband has no taste in movies and opted to stay at the hotel).   There are actually several movies that I want to see right now…Indiana Jones, Fools Gold, Horton, What Happens in Vegas and Iron Man.  I opted for Iron Man tonight and think I’m going back to see Fool’s Gold tomorrow.

So Iron Man was good, but I was a little disappointed.  There was so much press saying how good the movie was and that it was the “best” comic book movie ever so I was ready for a much better show.  Don’t get me wrong, the movie was good, but not GREAT!  Robert Downey, Jr is almost unrecognizable as the Robert Downey Jr that I remember.  Gwenyth Paltrow is just ok, but definitely no award for this role. 

The worst part of the whole movie was that I had to once again settle for popcorn with butter flavor and NO Milk Duds.  No wonder Europeans aren’t fat like us americans!

A few days ago a friend was debating whether or not to take her daughter with another mom (and her kids) to see this movie.  I’m so glad she decided not to go along with this other mom.  This movie is definitely rated appropriately.  PG - 13. 

Hogwart’s is Accepting New Students!

WOW!  I can’t believe it.  HSKS5 has room for more students.  If you knit and like to have a lot of fun, this is the place for you.  There aren’t too many spots left so head on over to the main site and see what you need to do to register.  You won’t want to miss one more minute of the fun!

From here to Baku?

It’s been a whirlwind kind of day.  Overcast, cold and windy here in Belarus with this news coming this afternoon. 

Looks like it’s official now!  We’ll be heading for a new destination in the very near future, possibly Baku, Azerbaijan.

Not really crazy about that, but hey, at least I’ll be able to speak Russian and continue building on the language that I’ve already started.  That’s a bonus - I won’t have to stress out about asking for a bag at the market or trying to figure out what is sour cream and what is milk and trying to read labels because I can already do all that stuff!  I’ve done a little reading already and it looks like there will be a better variety of fresh fruits and vegetables available there and it’s right on the Caspian sea which likely means FISH!  Another bonus is a house over an apartment which means hopefully a yard for the little man!  I’m keeping my fingers crossed…of course nothing is for certain until I’m sleeping in a bed in Baku! 

I wonder how long it will take for me to get my stuff?

Orthodox Easter Monday

Today was a Holiday for Orthodox Easter Monday.  I had lunch with some friends and then spent the rest of the afternoon photographing various churches around Minsk.  Here are a few of the better pictures of the day.

 This is an old Russian Orthodox Church near the Old Town and Town Hall.  The church is called Cathedral of the Holy Spirit.  It’s a beautiful church and was built from 1642-87.  The church has withstood time and two wars.

     This is the Russian Orthodox church of St. Mary Magdeline.  It is very near the embassy and I could smell the bread baking at the Bread Factory No 2. which is right next door.  The church is beautiful with ornate gold and black roofing.  The grounds are beautiful with tulips and water fountains.

          This is a very popular church for wedding photographs.  All most every weekend when the weather is nice you will see many brides here getting their picture taken.  I’m not sure if they are actually married here but they definitely use the beauty of the church for photographs.  Today we were lucky enough to hear the bells ring 6pm and were pleasantly surprised to see that the bells are actually operated by a human bell ringer.  This is the orthodox Church of the Protection of the Holy Virgin.  It is a beautiful church and sits right off of the main road…also at the beginning of the road to Luka’s house!  You can see the big barrier off in the distance!  This is also one of the prettiest areas of the city.   The curbs are painted bright white, the park is well manicured and there is no trash or graffiti in sight.  Of course the rest of the city is pretty clean, but this area is noticeably “cleaner”.

 

Food Porn (not really)

I was tagged bytransplantingme for the  so here are my responses. 

1. What food do you consider the best “date” food? In other words, what meal or food item do you think is sexiest to eat in the company of someone you would like to look sexy around?   I have had some of my best dates over a steak, or sushi.  I don’t know if those count as sexy foods but they are meals that last a while and you are able to have good conversation.  One food I would definitely not recommend eating on a sexy date night….asparagus!  Thanks to Glenn Bass for the tip that saved Valentine’s Day - 1999!

2. What well-known person would you like to share a meal with?  I have a few that I would like to share a meal with: 1) Barack Obama  2) Howard Stern  3) Reba McIntyre  4) Alan Rickman

3. What does your perfect breakfast-in-bed look like? (Food AND the details, please. Candles? Music? Flowers? Hot tub? Dancing girls?  I would love to have breakfast in bed….this would be a FIRST for me…pathetic I know!  The ideal breakfast tray would consist of a bouquet of daisies, french toast with white cheddar cheese and maple syrup, turkey bacon, fresh squeezed orange juice blended with ice to make a froth, and a BIG bowl of tropical fruit topped with shredded coconut.  The music…wooden flutes or the sound machine set to ocean!   

4. What do you consider the best application of whipped cream to be?  On my hot fudge sundae or hot chocolate/white chocolate mocha of course.

5. Oh-God-No, Biff, the yacht is sinking! You are sent to the galley to retrieve the food. What luxury food items do you snatch first? The champagne? The caviar? Smoked Salmon? Truffles? Chocolate? Or something else?  I would grab the Malibu, red orange juice, banana juice, raspberries, smoked salmon, triscuits and Easy Cheese!

The Rules…
“Answer each of the five questions. Tag five bloggers you would like to pass the meme to. Have them link back to you and to this post as the source meme. You and they can take the graphic from here if they like.”

Hmmm, my five?  Here goes….

1.  Heather, Laura, Kariola, Clare, and last but not least Nadine