Thursday 22 December 2011

Ded Moroz/Father Frost

Ded Moroz is a fictional character who in some Slavic cultures plays a role similar to that of Santa Claus. The literal translation of the name would be Grandmother Frost, although the name is often translated as Father Frost. Ded Moroz is said to bring presents to children, however, unlike the secretive Santa Claus, the gifts are often delivered "in person", at  New Year's Eve  parties and other New Year celebrations. He is often accompanied by Snegurochka (Снегурочка), or 'Snow Maiden,' his granddaughter. The traditional appearance of Ded Moroz resembles that of Santa Claus, with his coat, boots and long white beard.  Unlike Santa Claus, he is often depicted as walking with a long magical pole. The official residence of Ded Moroz in Russia  is considered to be the town of Veliky Ustyug.

Ded Moroz/ Father Frost came to visit the children at Atlantic International School.



Wednesday 21 December 2011

Christmas at Atlantic International School - We performed the Nutcracker

Children before other Nut.cracker Performance

Nutcracker

Father Frost

Children waiting for Father Frost


The Children in Year 1 and 2 performed "The Nutcracker" for their parents. They did a brillant of learning the words for the play, the dance routines and some Christmas songs. Lots of parents came to
watch the show. All children from Pre-Nursery (age 2) to Year 2 (age 6) took part in the show. After the
school - Ded Moroz (Father Frost), came to the classes and gave the children a present. All children had to sing a song, perform a dance or recite a poem for Ded Moroz. Children are not given presents without performing a party tricky -they have to prove that they have been working hard and behaving.

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Sunday 18 December 2011

The Armoury and Christ our Saviour Cathedral

Jewels inside the Armoury
Beautiful dresses inside the Armoury

Outisde the Armoury

Inside the Armoury



The Kremlin from the Moscow river.

Christ our Saviour Cathedral

Christ our Saviour Cathdral

Christ our Saviour Cathedral





Out for dinner

Martini!

Birthday Celebration (Suzanne and Jenni)

Myself and Jenni (Year 1 teacher) had a jointed Birthday Celebration at Torro Grill and Bar. The meal was really nice and we all had a fantastic evening.

Birthday Celebration - Rebecca and Suzanne

Birthday Celebration - Natalie and Elizabeth

Birthday Celebration - Nastia and Amy

Birthday Celebration - Daniel

Birthday Celebration - Jenni and Suzanne

Birthday Celebration - Amanda, Carrie and Amy

Birthday Celebration - Jenni and Suzanne

Birthday Celebration - Natalie, Carrie and Amy











Saturday 17 December 2011

Gifts from pupils

Some of the beautiful gifts that I got from the pupils in my class. Two of the parents came into class with a bunch of flowers to thank me for getting their children back safely on the underground after the trip disaster. Also I got some lovely chocolates and a teddy bear to celebrate from Birthday. The children made a beautiful birthday card for me and some brought some gifts into schoool.

Thursday 15 December 2011

The Worst School Trip

 I went on a school trip today to visit the Christmas lights at Red Square. We took the children off the bus to see the decorations and unfortunately the mini bus couldn't stop (the police wouldn't allow the bus to park). The bus driver was instructed to drive round the block and we would be back at the bus in 15 minutes. But the bus and the driver disappeared and we waited in Red Square with 15 children (age 4-6) for over an hour. The bus driver supposedly got stuck in traffic, so our head teacher gave us two options.
  • to wait another 30 minutes for the bus driver and then drive half way across the city.
  • or take the children on the metro.
So we took 15 children on the second busiest underground in the world. The children were really well behaved, probably because they were out of their comfort zone. Most of the children had never been on the metro or a escalator! We got back to the school 2 ½ hours later than expected. We asked the children which part of the trip they enjoyed the most and all of the children answered the metro!

I am waiting for lots of parents to complain tomorrow, the majority of our children all have drivers don't do public transport. They have had a real life experience – how the normal people live in Moscow.
Red Square - Christmas tree in front of the State History Museum

GUM Shopping Centre

Red Square

Sunday 11 December 2011

Protest - 10th December 2011

Photograph from a website- Protests re elections. Supposedly over 50,000 people attended the protest on Saturday. I decided that it would be safer to avoid the area. Went into the centre today (11th) and saw thousands of police officers. I am used to the police standing in groups of 20, but today they were in huge groups (probably over a 100). Reports stated an 30,000 extra police officers were in Mosocw this weekend.

Tretyakov Gallery


I didn't know anything about Russian art; this gallery was a great introduction. I saw unusual paintings, such as the one of Ivan the Great looking with horror upon his son, the crown prince, who he's just murdered.
 The Tretyakov Gallery is well organized and you could spend a full day there.  There is a very large Icon section as well as some other fine works from Russian artists. Only a few exibits have English labels, so itg was definitely worth getting the Audio guide - I would have been lost wihout it.

Suzanne and Amy throw a Christmas Party

Christmas Party - Amy and Suzanne's flat
Amy and Francis

Marina, Nastia, Natalie and Jenni


Natalie and Marina
Jenni, Natalie and Marina

Daniel, Amy, Francis and Elizabeth

Amy and Elizabeth

Amy and Suzanne

Daniel and Nastia

Sunday 4 December 2011

50 Facts About Russians

I found this list on a website - but it is so true!

1: Russians distrust anything cheap.
2: The English word "bargain" can not be adequately translated into Russian.
3: Although Russians distrust anything with a cheap price, they are fine with freebies.
4: A Russian who reaches high levels of power feels it his his/her duty to put down those who don't.
5: In Russia you need to call the lazy waitresses over by aggressively yelling "Girl!"
6: One needs skills in hitting people with your elbows on the Moscow Metro.
7: In Russia you can drink beer on a park bench without getting arrested.
8: Russians gather in the kitchen and stay up very late, talking about "life".
9: Russians usually avoid talking about work.
10: During any reception in Russia people are immediately separated by gender.
11: There are a lot of police in Russia, most of whom do nothing.
12: Russians never throw anything away. Ever.
13: However, if Russians throw out half of their things, nobody notices.
14: A Russian stranger is likely to call you with familiarity, like "man" or "woman".
15: Russians don't usually say "please" or "thank you".
16: The Russian proverb "Arrogance - the second happiness" cannot be adequately translated into English.
17: Russians drink a lot of vodka. It's not a myth.
18: You don't have to fear for your life when walking the streets in Moscow alone at night. Only fear for your life when you cross the road - you are a moving target!
19: Russian men are convinced that feminism has led to the collapse of the West, and Russia's historical mission: resist.
20: A myth within a myth: Russians believe that Americans believe that bears walk the streets in Moscow, but this myth of a myth is a purely Russian invention. Americans actually believe all the bears in Russia are dead.
21: Russians simply do not understand it when a foreigner from the west applies for permanent residence in Russia.
22: Dentists are very surprised when people show up for a "routine" check-up. So are doctors.
23: Russians drink tea with a centimetre of sugar on the bottom of the cup.
24: All Russians, from young to old, abuse emoticons.
25: The number of brackets in an email or sms infers the importance of a message. For instance - Birthday party tonight ) means a birthday party, but Birthday party tonight )))))) means a fantastic birthday extravaganza.
26: Moscow has the best subway system in the world.
27: Despite having the best subway system in the world, there are millions of Muscovites who refuse to ever take it, and spend half their lives stuck in traffic.
28: A Russian will use the slightest reason to bring everyone gifts of chocolate. "It's your birthday in four and a half months? Wow! Chocolate for the entire office!"
29: Anyone who speaks a language other than Russian is automatically suspect.
30: On New Year's, don't surprised if you are invited out at 11:30 pm, drink champagne and cognac until 6 am, eat herring under a fur coat and olivia salad in a kitchen, and then party in a flat for three more days.
31: The only alcohol-free zones in Russia are McDonalds.
32: Smiling for no reason makes Russians angry.
33: Borscht, cabbage rolls and pirogies are actually Ukrainian.
34: Russians don't send their elderly to nursing homes or make their children leave after 18; instead they all live together in the same 1-bedroom flat.
35: Despite the small roads and the frustrating traffic jams, Russians still buy giant SUVs.
36: Sushi is more popular in Russia than in Japan.
37: In fact, Japan is more popular in Russia than in Japan.
38: Russians are very rude to strangers. But if you've known a Russian for at least a week, you will be invited to meet their family.
39: Russians are also extremely emotional and passionate, and although they don't show emotion in public, they cry and laugh and shout and play more than Italians.
40: Russians care more about the philosophical side of living than the material, and have a folk song for every situation.
41: Most Russians are very superstitious, and new-age superstitions are en vogue.
42: Russians wear lots of fur and leather.
43: Russians love to criticsize their own country, but will be offended if a foreigner does.
44: If a cashier manages to not break anything while scanning your items, they have provided good customer service.
45: Russians love McDonald's, KFC, Subway and Burger King more than Americans.
46: Russians spoil their kids rotten, and then magically expect them to behave responsibly at the age of 18.
47: Although Russians eat more fast food than people in the west, Russians are still healthier.
48: Russians cannot do anything that requires putting a car in reverse. It can take the average Russian driver ten minutes to parallel park. Cars are left abandoned on the street and in the middle of the road.
49: Winters in Russia are actually quite beautiful, and Russians are fantastic winter drivers.
50: Russians honestly believe that Russia won World War 2.

Christmas - Another beautiful Christmas tree in Moscow

Vasnetsov House Museum

The Vasnetsov House Museum
The museum is a 2 story gorgeous wooden house built in pseudo Russian style (terem), and filled with original works by the Vasnetsov brothers, late 19th Century painters. The paintings are beautiful and most are of famous Russian fairytales.



Painting inside the Museum

Inside the Museum - Dining room

Beautiful painting

Outside the Vasnetsov House Museum





Friday 2 December 2011

Thanksgiving

Photographs from a Thanksgiving Party.

Jenni, Elizabeth and Amy

Rebecca

Amanda and Marina

Marina and Rebecca

Amy, Elizabeth and Amy

Jenni and Lauren