Upon arrival, my principal gave me a quick tour of the city and the area around my apartment. This city is beautiful. Here are some of the pictures I took from the car as we drove around the city.
I was also able to tour the school and see my classroom. My room is small, which worried the principal. However, it is larger than the modular classroom I taught in one year at Kilgour, and I will only have 14 or 15 students! I told the principal "no worries". I also met the school security guard, tech guy, and custodian, who were all very friendly.
One thing I noticed is that the Russian people (so far) have been very friendly. I had read in many guidebooks that the Russians do not smile and find it weird that Americans (some) smile at complete strangers. The guidebooks stated that Russians thought it was "simple-minded" to do such! I am happy to report that this does not seem to be the case. I'll let you know if that changes!
Everyone back home has been teasing me about my apartment and how it might just end up not being as nice as the pictures that were emailed to me. I am pleased to report that the apartment is even better than the pictures! I arrived to discover that the apartment has an extra bedroom and an extra bathroom that I did not know about. In addition, there is a balcony which looks out onto a courtyard (think "Rear Window") and a dishwasher! Yep, a dishwasher! To top it off, the location could not be better for exploring this fine city. When I exit the apartment building I can turn my head to the right and there is the Hermitage! Amazing! If I exit my apartment building from the other exit I am staring at a picturesque canal (the Moika).
My principal asked me what I thought I would miss the most and I wasn't quite sure. Obviously, I would miss my family and friends. (Actually, I am missing my family a little more than I thought I would! Thankfully, there is Skype). Well, I can share one thing that I miss and that is my memory foam pillow. Ouch, my neck hurts, which is one reason that I am typing this at 4:52 in the morning! Tomorrow I search Nevsky Prospect for a good pillow!
That is all for now. Tomorrow I will meet the office staff at school and be given a walking tour of my neighborhood by a coworker. I will try to take lots of pictures!
