Off We Go!

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go! (Hmm...that sounds like a great opening line for a song!) Both my bags to be checked through weigh in right at 50 pounds, the maximum allowable weight, and my carry on bags are about 20 pounds total. Thank goodness for whoever invented rolling luggage.

My neighbor Lee Hubbard is going to take me to Christ Church UMC to catch the bus at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning and then we'll be off. There will be about 9 of us getting on in Charleston and we'll pick up most of the others as we drive north on I-79. A few folks will meet us in D.C.

It's hard to believe that it's finally time to go - when I made the decision back in June, December 27 seemed so far off. I will post to the blog from Moscow if I can, but if not, I'll tell you all about it when I get back. (Note: Blogger just changed to a new version that I had to switch to and I'm not sure how if affected my previous posts. Keep your fingers crossed. I'm also having trouble with my e-mail account: Charter was bought out by Suddenlink and while I'm receiving e-mails OK I don't seem to be able to send. Again, I don't know how this will affect things if I try to get into my accounts from Moscow.)

Keep us in your prayers!

Blessings,
Margie

Merry Christmas!

We had a lovely Candlelight Service at Central UMC tonight - I hope all of you have the Christmas Spirit that we received tonight. For me it was a wonderful send-off for two weeks of celebrating Christmas with children who probably don't have a lot of joy in their lives. Thank you again for all your prayers and support.

After the first three nights in the orphanages we will move to the Hotel Ismaylovo. Their web page indicates that there is internet access at the hotel and I hope I will be able to access this blog and give you an update on how we are doing in Moscow. Just remember, I won't be able to do this till after January 1 if at all, so don't worry if you don't hear anything.

Speaking of not hearing anything, I am having trouble sending out e-mail. Charter was bought out by Suddenlink and all the Charter customers have to change to Suddenlink addresses. I worked with a techie person on the phone for over an hour the other night and we thought we had my account straightened out but now I'm not able to send again although I'm receiving everything just fine. So if you're expecting a reply to an e-mail and don't get it, you have my apologies! If I don't get it fixed by Wednesday I'll work on it when I get back.

Now I'm going to go watch the end of one of my favorite Christmas movies, "I'ts a Wonderful Life" and think about the two (!) wonderful Christmas dinners I'm going to have tomorrow. ;-)

Christmas Blessings!

Can't Wait!

Just think - one week from tonight I will be putting my head down on a pillow at the Sergiev Posad Psychological Orphanage. Keep those prayers coming!

Big thanks go out to Marsha and Aly. They both sent me marvelous donations that will really help with expenses on the trip. Bolshoi spacibo!

One Week!

One week from today I'll be on the bus riding north on I-79 heading to D.C.! I can't wait!

Yesterday I was a guest at a Christmas luncheon hosted by Magistrate Judge Stanley for her law clerks and other employees. They invited me to tell them about my trip and then presented me with a very generous donation to support my mission. I am very grateful and I look forward to sharing my experiences with them when I return.

I will also be giving presentations at my church, Central United Methodist, and probably at West Side United Methodist Church as well. I will be happy to talk to any group who is interested in hearing about my experiences with the orphans; in fact, you probably won't be able to get me to quit talking about it when I get back!

Orphanage Information

I received another "final" information letter today from Rev. Clark with our assignments to the orphanages for the first three nights we'll be in Moscow. I'm assigned to the Sergiev Posad Psychological Orphanage, located about 35 miles northeast of downtown Moscow (see the map). There will be seven of us staying together there. I talked to Rev. Clark this evening and he said "That's one of the tough ones, especially if they let you on the second floor." Pray hard, friends!

After we move to the Hotel Ismaylovo Delta we will be doing some of these things in our spare time: shopping on Arbat Street, the Underground Mall, the Ismaylovo Market and GUM Department Store. We will have lunch at Patio Pizza and tour the Kremlin and Red Square and Glazunov Gallery. We will attend church services at Christ Our Savior Orthodox Cathedral and First United Methodist Church of Moscow. We will go to the ballet on January 4th and see an evening performance (probably folk-dancing) on January 6th. We may not get to go to the circus but that's not certain. Whatever we do will be memorable!

Less Than Two Weeks!

I received a "final" update from Rev. Clark in the mail yesterday - we now know what orphanages we will probably visit. They are: Sergiev Posad (Loza), Almozovo, Podolsk and Elektrostal. You can Google these names and read about some of them.

Hep A Part 2

I had the second part of my Hepatitis A shot today. I had the first part back in June when I first decided to go on this trip and the two parts have to be six months apart. This and a tetanus shot were the only two that my doctor recommended and even they weren't required. I got my flu shot today in the other arm and it's a little bit sore.

I was asked Sunday at church if I was fearful about going. My reply was "No, I'm excited! If I could go home, pack tonight and leave tomorrow I would." God has this trip in His hands and I believe we're in no more danger than we are sitting at home in Charleston. I'm well aware of the political situation in Vladimir Putin's Russia: Chechen rebels and the recent controversy about the former Russian spy Litvienko who was poisoned and died in London. Even so, there is violence everywhere and you can't live your life in hiding - you need to live it to the fullest seeking God's will in everything you do. That's what this trip is all about.

Starting to Pack

No, it's not too soon to start putting things in the suitcases! (Only 18 days to go!) What I've packed so far are the presents for the Russian orphans. I have 25 of all the items needed and I figure that I need to put them in first and then see how much space I have left for my own stuff. I found out that the orphans' presents will take up fully half of my luggage allowance. I have my "packing list" ready to check off and most of the toiletries and clothes that I'll need ready to go in the suitcases. I'll work on that little by little this next week and not be rushed at the last minute.

I went up to Gallian's last night for a great spaghetti dinner with Leslie and Lyndsey. Lyndsey and I practiced our Russian phrases and shared presents we had gathered for the orphans. It was a great evening.

One Last Bunch of Books

I guess that if I want to finish telling you about the books I've read about Russia before I go there I'd better get on the ball and do it!

Following up on "Nicholas and Alexandra", Robert K. Massie wrote "The Romanovs: the Final Chapter" which I read in August, 2004. The next book I read was "The Secret Plot to Save the Tsar" by Shay McNeal.

Turning to a fictional tale I read Steve Berry's "The Amber Room", a thriller based on the disappearance of carved amber panels that lined an entire room of (I think) the Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg. (The room has been restored but we won't be in St. Petersburg to see it.) Mr. Berry also used the historical background of Russia to write "The Romanov Prophecy".

You can't really say you've read anything about Russia if you haven't read Boris Pasternak's "Dr. Zhivago". The classic movie with Omar Sharif is a beautiful poem on film (the recent remake wasn't as good) but the book is a world in itself.

Prince Michael of Greece, a current relative of the Romanov family, authored "The White Night of St. Petersburg". Mark D. Steinbert and Vladimir M. Khrustalev addressed "The Fall of the Romanovs".

A couple of centuries and a continent away is the story of the explorer "Bering", told by Orcutt Frost. Following that theme I took a look at Russian America in Walter R. Borneman's "Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land". Louis L'Amour set one of his novels, "Sitka", in the era of Russian exploration of America's northwest coast.

Returning to the stories of the royal family that first attracted me to Russian history and culture, I read about "The Russians and Mr. Gibbes" (the Romanov children's tutor) written by Frances Welch. For a first-hand look at the Romanov family and the death of Rasputin you have to read "Lost Splendor" by Prince Felix Youssoupoff, the member of Tsar Nicholas II's family who murdered Rasputin.

For a general study of Russian history I turned to Geoffrey Hosking's "Russia: People and Empire". Finally, I started a new book today by Russian journalist Lilia Shevtsova titled "Putin's Russia" to learn about what is going on in this fascinating country today. For something to read while I'm on the trip I'm planning to take a collection of short stories by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Whew! That's a lot of pages about Russia but I've enjoyed every one of them. I hope it will help me understand and enjoy the people I meet and the places I get to see while I'm there.

Travel Updates

Whoopee! In yesterday's mail I received an update from Rev. Clark about our travel arrangements. Here is our flight information:

28 Dec Delta flight #1067 Washington National - Atlanta 1000a-1157a
28 Dec Delta flight # 192 Atlanta - New York JFK 0200p-0420p
28 Dec Delta flight # 30 New York JFK - Moscow 0520p-1100a(next day)

08 Jan Delta flight # 47 Moscow - Atlanta 1225p-0420p
08 Jan Delta flight # 605 Atlanta - Washington National 0630p-0815p

I will get on the bus in Charleston (at Christ Church UMC) at1000a on Wednesday, Dec. 27 along with eight other team members. Lyndsey Gallian will start out in Charleston with me as well as my assigned roommate, Janet Blount from Campbells Creek. I look forward to meeting her! I now have a picture roster of everyone going on the trip. There will be 35 of us, most from W.Va. but a couple from Va. and one from Minneapolis!

Rev. Clark will have our passports, visas and other documents for us when we reach D.C. He will also have our team sweatshirts (blue) that we will all wear so he can keep track of us!

I went shopping with Regina today and picked up a lot of the toiletries I will take with me (in 3 oz. containers!) as well as Dramamine, Immodium and Pepto tablets. I'm going to sort the presents for the orphans tomorrow and figure out how many complete bags I will be able to take. If I have extras of anything I will share them with Lyndsey if she needs them.

24 days to go! Wow!

The Best Thing About Christmas Cards

Do you know what the best thing about Christmas cards is? It's hearing from long-time friends that you love but don't get around to keeping in touch with except with holiday cards. I sent a newsletter out with my cards to the people I don't talk to on a regular basis and told them about my trip. Since I mailed them out I've received the nicest messages from old friends.

First I heard from my cousin Becky via a comment on the blog. We haven't seen each other nearly enough over the years and it was good to read her kind words. Then I got an unexpected phone call from June, a dear friend I worked with at the Statehouse. We had a lovely chat! To top it off, I was completely surprised yesterday afternoon when a florist delivery man walked in with a beautiful planter complete with purple bow and flowers for me from my college roommate Nancy. It was accompanied by a card with a heart-felt sentiment that really touched me. Thank you all.

My travel buddy Lyndsey also posted a message for me on the blog. I'm going to have dinner with her and her family early next week so we can talk, coordinate what we're taking with us and get even more excited about our trip!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm going to spend the holiday with my friend Missy and her family so I'll wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. Eat lots of turkey and count your blessings!

Values

It's that time of year. The election ads are finally off the air and we're going to be blasted constantly between now and December 24 by retailers wanting us to spend every penny we don't have on the latest hot items to win the love and appreciation of everyone around us (even some people we may not even like). What a crock!

I imagine that most of you know what the Secret Santa program is all about. You're given the name of a disadvantaged child and a list of presents that child wants for Christmas. If you like, you can also buy clothes and shoes. My child this year is a six-year old girl. Among the three presents she requested was something I had never heard of: Pixel Chix. (One of the reasons I do Secret Santa is to find out what the new toys are!) When I looked it up and then found it in the store, I was appalled. It's an electronic toy that comes in the shape of a car, house, or shopping mall and has a screen in the middle. When you turn it on a little two-dimensional girl cartoon character comes on the screen and starts spouting things about credit cards, sales, and shopping. It does nothing but promote consumerism.

I pondered a long time before I bought this toy for my little girl because I worried about the values it would teach her. I finally did buy it for her because it was one of only three things she asked for and why shouldn't she have one if all the other kids are carrying them around tied to their bookbags? However, I couldn't help but compare her list to the list of items we have been asked to gather to take to the orphan children in Russia. Rather than flashy toys that teach them to want to buy more things, we are taking such mundane things as toothpaste and socks. (I have read on some internet sites that if you do try to take nice toys to orphans in Russia that they wind up on the black market and the children never get to see them.)

We are so spoiled by material things in this country. We are so blessed to live here, but we have become blind to the basic values that really matter. Many of you know that one of my favorite websites is Flylady.net. Flylady teaches that we need to get rid of the STUFF(Something That Undermines Family Fun)that is holding us back from experiencing life on all levels, including our spiritual lives. I've found her advice very helpful as I cleaned out 60 years of clutter from my parents' house. Now I have to work on my own lifetime of stuff I've accumulated that I don't need.

My church just celebrated Consecration Sunday where we were challenged to give back to God a portion of what He has given to us. We owe Him everything but we quibble about whether we should tithe off our net or our gross. How sad. Part of the reason I wanted to go on this trip was to explore the culture of a country I've read so much about, but the closer I get to our departure on December 27 the more I realize how humbling it is going to be to share such a small piece of our bounty with these children. I have the feeling that they are going to give me much more than I will give them.

I hope you will add your thoughts to this post by clicking on the "Comments" link below.

Medical Matters

As my trip gets closer I'm starting to think about more of the details. I realized that I needed to check on whether or not my medical insurance would cover me if (Heaven forbid!) I had an accident or got sick while I was in Russia. I called the customer service number and a kind lady referred me to my benefits book and gave me the page number for overseas services. She suggested that I make a copy of those pages from the benefits book and take it with me along with my insurance card. I am covered and the preferred hospital is the American Medical Center in Moscow and its doctors. I had talked to Rev. Clark earlier and he told me that the American Medical Center is the hospital they have used in the past (thankfully for only one incident). The group has insurance that will insure "repatriation" if anything happens so I'm all set as far as insurance goes.

I still have to get the second half of my Hepatitis B shot and I want to get a flu shot as soon as my doctor has them in his office. I'm going to stock up on all the appropriate over-the-counter medicines, (especially dramamine and immodium!)

The address for the American Medical Center home page is: http://amc.rbc.ru/en/

Gifts for Our Hosts

My information packet included instructions to take gifts for our hosts in Russia. Family photo albums were suggested as a good gift so I decided to put my scrapbooking skills to work. Creative Memories sells a product called a "photo sharing card" that allows you to use eight or ten pictures and do a little bit of journaling about them. I'm going to make several and include pictures of my house, where I work, my church, Charleston's Sternwheel Regatta, Hawk's Nest State Park and the Capitol Building. That should give my new friends a sample of what life is like here in West Virginia. I put the first one together Friday night at Dee Rogers' CM workshop in South Charleston and it looks really cute!

Back from Emmaus

What a wonderful weekend! I was the Music Director for this weekend's Women's Walk to Emmaus. As usual, it was a wonderful, mountaintop experience and it's a little hard to come back down to real life, but that's the way it is. I was able to share my plans for my mission trip to Russia while on the Walk and to talk to one of the other Team members who has been to Russia in the winter. Her best piece of advice was to take every piece of warm clothing I have!

Kids' Presents I Still Need

You all are great! I have almost all the things I need to make up the Christmas packages for the Russian orphans we will be visiting. (Each volunteer is responsible for 25 kits.)

Thanks to Jean Young and her granddaughters - they hit the stores and bought all the gloves, nail polish, lip gloss and most of the hats that I still needed. Also, my dear friend Elaine Anderson has pledged all the hand lotion I will need. Here's the list of what I still need:

Girls' make-up (other than lip gloss) - 25 of each item
(Since I have 25 girly items I'm not going to need boys' cologne. If you have already purchased some for me I will see that it gets to another volunteer for use in their packages.)
Winter hats - 9
Toothbrushes - 22
Toothpaste - 15
Erasers, pens, pencils - 25 or more
Girls' socks - 25

It's going to be such a joy for me to see the faces of the kids when they receive their Christmas packages. I promise to take lots of pictures to share with you when I get back!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures

I keep learning a little more all the time about blogs and uploading images and all that. I don't understand why, but I needed to post this picture before I could load it into my profile. I think I could delete it now and it would stay on the profile page but I've fooled with it too long to risk losing it now!

Anyhow, this is one of the pictures I'm going to use in my mini-albums I'm taking with me on my trip to give as presents to our hosts. I'm also going to use a picture of my house, of the building I work in, a shot of the boat races in the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta, and a picture of the choir at church. I hope that will give my new friends a glimpse of my life here in West Virginia.

Other Travelers

In this month's edition of "The West Virginia United Methodist" (the church's official newletter for the state) there is a nice article titled "Russia trip introduces Wesleyan students to global outlook". The newsletter is online but unfortunately this article didn't make the cut for inclusion in the online version. Anyhow, it tells the experiences of six students from W.Va. Wesleyan College who spent their May class term in Russia exploring the history, music, religion and culture of Russia. They also worked with special needs children.

Quite unexpectedly, I heard about two other travelers who I think will be on the trip with me in December. I e-mailed a library colleague about something the other day and sent her the link to my blog when she asked what I had been up to lately. It turns out that one of her co-worker's husband and son have been on the summer mission trip and are planning to go again this winter. I can't wait to talk with them - it's a small world!

Odds and Ends

I'm sorry I haven't posted for a while - life has been busy!

This past Friday night Central UMC held a fund-raising spaghetti dinner to go along with the City of Charleston's "Doo Wop Car Rally" celebrating the classic cars of the '50s and '60s. The rough numbers are that we served close to 400 dinners (about 75 pounds of spaghetti with meatballs, salad, bread and dessert) and made at least $1000 profit. I call that a success but boy, it was a lot of work! I was in charge of the drive-thru out in the parking lot working with six young men from Charleston Catholic High School who were earning community service credits by working the dinner with us. They were a hoot to work with - I had the best job of the day!

The other event that is taking a lot of my time right now is being on the Team for the upcoming Women's Walk to Emmaus. I'm the Musical Director for the weekend and we meet once a week for about six weeks before the Walk to prepare. (If you're not familiar with the Walk to Emmaus check out the website: http://www.upperroom.org/emmaus .)
It's a wonderful experience but it takes a lot of preparation time. This will be the third time I've been on a Team since my own Walk.

I'm starting to get some donations of glove and hats for the Russian Orphans' Christmas packages. They are so cute! I've gotten a couple bottles of nail polish, too; I wonder how "Wild and Crazy" colors translate into Russian?!?

Almost Paid For!

I mailed in the third installment toward the cost of my trip yesterday. What a relief! I have to make one more payment of $600 and then another $100 for the cost of the bus trip to D.C. I've had some much appreciated help from my church, Central UMC, and I'm talking with some folks about a couple of fund-raisers.

I noticed that next summer's trip to Moscow will cost $2700 - I don't know if this is an increase over last year's summer trip but I'm glad mine only costs $2000. I heard today that oil and gas prices are going down and that should help decrease travel costs but these days, who knows?

On an unrelated note, if you get the Charleston Daily Mail go to section C and look at the page 1 article about the Seniors' Bible School at Central. Neat!

Such Generous Friends

Thank you again to everyone who has so generously donated to the expenses and needs of this trip. My friend Regina and her daughter Jessica visited from Lewisburg this weekend; when we went shopping Saturday she helped me find and buy some of the school supplies that will go in the gift packs for the kids. She's a teacher, so she knew the best kind of stuff to buy!

My music buddy Ed was the latest to buy a Russian Circus ticket to send an orphan to the Circus. I only have one ticket left but I can still take donations for the Circus if you don't mind not getting a souvenir ticket in return.

My other music buddy Carr gave me a generous donation this morning to help buy presents for the orphans. Here is a list of the items I still need:

Make Up and Nail Polish for Girls/Cologne for Boys (25 total items)
Winter Gloves and Knitted Winter Hats(25 of each)
Socks for Boys or Girls (25 total pairs)
Erasers (25)

If you want to help provide these items you can purchase the actual items and get them to me as soon as possible or you can make a cash donation. (If you want to make a tax-deductible donation you can make a check out to Central United Methodist Church and mark the memo line "Russia Trip". I will be sharing these donation with my co-traveler Lyndsay Gallian.)

Blessings

There are many, many blessings in my life, but here is a special one I was given last Sunday in church on a beautiful Thomas Kincaide card:

BLESS

1. BODY - Lord strengthen Margie physically in Russia. Grant her safe travel and protection on the whole journey.

2. LABOR - Father bless Margie's efforts as she helps the children in Russia. Bless her labor in all that she does while on this mission trip.

3. EMOTIONAL - Help Margie trust YOU so completely that she won't be afraid or worried and so she can sleep peacefully at night.

4. SOCIAL - Though she's away from family and friends, help her connect with others on the mission team. Bring a friend to her so that she will not be lonely.

5. SPIRITUAL GROWTH - Help Margie to trust YOU, depend on YOU, and not lean on her own understanding. As she serves other, may she sense YOUR presence in real ways and receive the reward of growing closer to YOU on this trip.

Love & Prayers,
Ruth Ann & Bill

I will be sure to carry this blessing with me throughout my trip!

More books!

I don't really have anything new to report today so I'll fill you in on a few more books I've read about Russia. (I keep a "book diary" so I can go back and refresh my memory about my favorite books and authors.)

Edvard Radzinsky wrote "The Last Tsar" about Nicholas II and his doomed reign as the last of the Romanov family to sit on the throne of Russia. In the same vein, Greg King and Penny Wilson explored "The Fate of the Romanovs", researching what happened to some of the extended royal family during and after the Revolution. "Once a Grand Duchess: Xenia" focuses on the life of Nicholas' sister who spent her last years in rural Canada.

When Nicholas II abdicated the throne for himself and his only son, Tsarevich Alexei, his brother, Grand Duke Michael, would have been next in line for the throne. Micheal refused the crown (in a carefully worded way that left things open for future speculation) but was executed by the Bolsheviks shortly thereafter. Given his marriage to a divorcee, Natasha, he wouldn't have been eligible to rule anyway - he had married without the Tsar's permission which was a major no-no. Their story is told in "Michael and Natasha" by Rosemary and Donald Crawford.

Rasputin, the so-called "Mad Monk" was another major player in the tragic end of the Romanov dynasty. Edvard Radzinsky tackles Rasputin's life in his book "The Rasputin File".

Robert K. Massie, mentioned in an earlier post as the author of "Nicholas and Alexandra", moved back in time to profile a more successful tsar in his book "Peter the Great". Joan Haslip explores the life of Peter's granddaughter-in-law in her book "Catherine the Great" as does Carolly Erickson in "Great Catherine". Returning to the 20th century, Dominic Lieven gives us another biography of "Nicholas II".

Leaving the royal Romanovs far behind, I read "Last of the Breed" by Louis L'Amour. Louis L'Amour? Didn't he write westerns? Yes, but he wrote a lot more than westerns. Louis L'Amour was Daddy's favorite author; when I inherited all his books I started reading some of them just to find out why Daddy liked him so well and I was hooked! "Last of the Breed" is a spy novel about an American officer (who happens to be a Native American) who is shot down over Siberia in the midst of the Cold War and spends months evading Soviet authorities and living off the land in the taiga, the great forested area in northeastern Russia. I certainly didn't expect to learn about Siberia by reading a Louis L'Amour novel!

How cold will it be?!?

Several people have asked me how cold it's going to be in Moscow in December and January and how I will keep warm.

Well, the average temperature in Moscow in January is -10C! http://meteo.infospace.ru/moscow/html/index.ssi

As for keeping warm, that's what long underwear is all about. Several people have recommended "Cuddlz" brand so as soon as J.C. Penny has some in stock I'll buy a couple sets. They also recommend layering clothes with T-shirts underneath sweaters or sweatshirts. I have lots of gloves, mittens and winter scarves and a good pair of snowboots. I have several warm coats, too, so I just have to decide which one to take.

However cold it is, I bet that when I get back to Charleston I'll think it's summertime!

Mission Moment

Today Lyndsay Gallian and I were the subject of the "Mission Moment" at Central UMC. Lyndsay is Leslie and Dave Gallian's daughter and she is going on the trip to Russia with me and the rest of the group! I'm thrilled to have her going along. I was talking to her Mom one day at work about going on the trip and Lyndsay listened carefully and quietly spoke up and said "I want to do that!" Her Mom and I both looked at her and said "Are you sure?" and she said "Yes!" It will be great to see the experience through her eyes.

Lots of Lip Gloss

I attended the West Side United Methodist Church Street Fair today and they were giving away lots of stuff for kids to get ready to go back to school. An Avon Lady had donated lots of tubes of lip gloss to them for give-aways and Pastor Rhodes gave me 25 packages for the Russian Orphans. That's one thing I can mark off my list. Spacibo! (Thanks!)

This and That

First of all, many thanks to my colleagues in Richmond this week who bought lots of circus tickets for the Russian orpans. I was over there for a staff meeting and "coerced" them into it. It didn't take a lot of arm twisting - they are all warm-hearted, generous people. I still have some tickets to sell and I can take donations ($10.00 per ticket) even after I run out of the souvenir tickets to give you in return.

I ordered a couple of "microfiber" towels to take with me. They are supposed to be super-absorbent but they are finely woven and don't weigh much. (Weight is very important in what I'm going to pack!) I also got some neon yellow name tags to put on my luggage. I don't think I'll miss them on the luggage rack at the airport. :-)

During the drive to and from Richmond I got to work on a couple more Russian lessons. I'm now learning how to order in restaurants and terms I will need in a hotel. I don't know that I'll need to use much of the language on my own since we'll have a translator with us at all times but it's fun to learn.

Visa Application

No, not the credit card! In addition to my passport I need a visa to enter Russia. The application, which was part of my information packet from Tom Clark, is from the Russian government. They want to know everything about you before they let you across their borders. Among the questions asked were my parents' full names and birth dates, every educational institution I have attended beyond high school, my current place of employment including address, phone number and supervisor's name and my last two places of employment with all the same information. They want to know if you have any relatives in Russia, any Russian relatives in the U.S., have you ever had a visa in Russia, have you ever overstayed your visa in Russia, have you ever been involved in any criminal activities (especially drugs), etc. I had to provide a lot more information for the Russian visa than I did for my U.S. passport!

Many thanks to those of you who have donated to my trip, either money, circus tickets or presents for the children. It is very much appreciated!

Presents for Children and Youth

Along with winter clothes, towels, washcloths and toilet paper, each of us will be taking along at least 25 gift packs for the children. Here's what goes in each pack for the children and youth:

Make Up and Nail Polish for Girls/Cologne for Boys
Winter Gloves and Knitted Winter Hat
1 Tube of Chap Stick, 1 Tube of Hand Lotion
1 Toothbrush, 1 Tube of Toothpaste
1 Pad of Writing Paper, Erasers
2 Pencils, 2 Pens, 1 Pencil Sharpener
Socks for Boys or Girls

All of this will go into 2-gallon zip lock bags and I will add a signed Christmas card to each package. (I already have a donation that will cover the cost of the zip-lock bags.) If you would like to help me provide these gifts for the orphans you may either send me a donation marked for that purpose or, if you wish, you may purchase the items themselves and bring or send them to me. (Please let me know if you buy the items themselves so I don't wind up with duplicates of one item and not enough of another.)

There is also a list for Infants and Toddlers that includes items such as crayons, coloring books, stickers and dolls but Rev. Clark tells us that it is unlikely that we will be visiting those orphanages. However, if you prefer to provide those items get in touch with me and I'll be glad to fix some packages with those items, too.

Thank you all for your interest and your contributions. Blessings!

My Passport's Here!

My passport came today in the mail! Now I can finish filling out the rest of the forms I need to send to Rev. Clark.

This new passport looks quite different from my old one. The 1974 passport was green and a little bigger than the new one and the new one is blue. There are a lot of new security measures, too, like holographic backgrounds. There's supposed to be an electronic chip in the cover, too. With all that's going on these days it's quite an honor and privilige to have a U.S. passport.

Speaking of what's going on these days, I'm glad to see the new security measures but it really makes you stop and think about what you really need to take on the plane with you. The only thing I'm really concerned about is my contact lens solution but by December they may be able to make some accommodation for such things.

Airlines and Hotels

We will be leaving Charleston by bus on December 27 and making our way to D.C., picking up team members on the way. After spending the night in Washington, we will fly out of D.C. at 12:05 p.m. on December 28 from Reagan National Airport on Delta flight #843 to Atlanta, arriving at 1:54. We will fly out of Atlanta at 3:50 p.m. on Delta flight #46 and arrive the next day (December 29) in Moscow at 10:30 a.m. (Moscow is 8 hours ahead of us.)

Our return trip will leave from Moscow on January 7 at 12:30 p.m. (Delta flight #47) and arrive in Atlanta at 4:15 p.m. We will leave Atlanta at 6:30 on Delta flight #776 and arrive in Washington at 8:24 p.m. The next morning we will climb back on the bus for the return home.

After we spend the first three nights in Moscow at one of the orphanages, we will probably stay in the Hotel Izmaylovo in Moscow. Here's the link http://www.hotelizmailovo.ru/eng/ .

My Information Packet is Here!

Good news! I received my envelope full of information about my trip today from Tom Clark. I now know my payment schedule, what I need to pack, how we're getting to the plane in DC (by bus) and what we'll be doing with the orphans in Moscow. There are LOTS of forms to fill out including my visa application and health insurance .

I also have tickets to sell for the Moscow circus - $10.00 each! Unfortunately we won't be able to go to the circus with the children because they're going the day we leave Charleston but we still want to pay for as many tickets as possible. If you want to participate in this you can send $10.00 per ticket to me or directly to WV-VIM.

We'll also be taking nice West Virginia souvenirs as gifts for our hosts. I plan on getting some nice calendars, prints and postcards to take with me. I can't take anything too heavy; Tom reminded us that we have to carry everything we pack!

He also reminded us to travel in the spirit of humility and with a genuine desire to learn more about the Russian people. This is a mission trip and we are going to share God's love and to build cultural bridges with the Russian people.

More details tomorrow!

Comments and Advice

If any of you have tried to add a comment to this blog and been told you have to be a member that's not true any more. I changed the settings so that anyone can comment. You need to know that if you add a comment it will be published on the blog unless I delete it. If you want your comment to be private send it to my e-mail address. All nice comments are welcome!

My advice came last night from Rev. Barry Moll who just returned from the summer WV-VIM trip to the Russian orphanages. We had an absolutely wonderful parish dinner and program at Central UMC last night and I pestered Barry while he was trying to eat to tell me all about his trip. He told me about seeing "Pirates of the Caribbean II" in Russian with two little girls clinging to him during the scary parts, of all the good food we will be served at the Christmas parties we attend (at least two parties a day), about the care packages we will be assembling to take with us (more about that later - you get to help me!), shopping and wearing long underwear with lots of layers on top!

This has nothing to do with Russia, but the program last night was provided by the Martin Luther King Jr. Male Chorus and they are FANTASTIC. The Chorus is made up of African-American men of many different denominations who sing black gospel style music - they really brought the house down. If you ever get the chance to see them, do. They will be singing Sunday afternoon at the Capitol as part of Charleston Multi-Fest.

Scrappin' My Trip

You may know that my favorite hobby right now is scrapbooking. Of course I plan to take lots of pictures while I'm in Russia but to make a great memory book of my trip I'm starting now to collect things that will tell the story. One of my buddies at my scrapbooking workshop last week told me about an online store called www.ScrapYourTrip.com - it's great! They have specialty papers, die cuts and stickers for just about any country you can think of and I was able to order several items relating to Russia. My order just came today and it's really nice stuff. I wish I had known about this site when I was working on my scrapbook about my 1974 trip to Portugal and Spain!

Books about Russia

While I'm waiting to get my information packet from Tom Clark of VIM and waiting for my passport to come in, I started reviewing some of the books I've read about Russia.

Of course, my interest in all things Russian was first hooked by the story of Anastasia and I read "Anastasia, the Lost Princess" by James Blair Lovell in 1992. (I love the movie with Yul Brynner and Ingrid Bergman but it has very little to do with the real story of the end of the Romanov dynasty. The Disney animated movie doesn't even have that much reality about it.) From there I moved on to Robert K. Massie's "Nicholas and Alexandra", the inspiration for the movie of the same name. Although somewhat romanticized and written before much archival information was released after the fall of Communism, it gives a fairly accurate picture of the last years of Nicholas II and his immediate family. Anna Anderson Manahan wrote her own story "I Am Anastasia" (with the help of Peter Kurth, I think) claiming to be the long-lost surviving Grand Duchess.

I left the royal family behind for a while to read ice skater Ekaterina Gordeeva's poignant story of her life and love with her husband in "My Sergei" who died during a skating practice session.

Anastasia wasn't the only royal child supposed to have escaped the slaughter in Ekaterinburg; Vadim Petrov wrote about "The Escape of Alexei". In "The Flight of the Romanovs" John Curtis Perry and Constantine Pleshakov wrote about what happened to the Romanov survivors who made their way out of Russia before and during the Revolution. Back to individual biography, I read about Nicholas' wife in "Alexandra: the Last Tsarina" by Carolly Erickson.

In the realm of fictionalized history, Robert Alexander wrote about "The Kitchen Boy". The real kitchen boy was sent away from the Ipatiev House in Ekaterinburg but Alexander turns the story into an escape plot for another Grand Duchess, Maria. He also wrote a novel based on the life of "Rasputin's Daughter".

I have a lot more books to write about but I'll save those for later. Stay cool!

Important Phrases

Hooray! I finally learned the most important phrase of all: Gde tualet? (Where is the restroom?) "Hello", "goodbye", "please" and "thank you" are certainly valuable words to know but you can go a long way if you know where the restrooms are!

Reading Ahead

I'm going on this wonderful trip with some very experienced people who know the ropes and can get us through customs and all other officialdom with the least amount of trouble but I can't help myself - I had to get a guide book and start reading. The two biggest names in foreign travel guides are Fodor's and Frommer's. I got the Frommer's "Moscow & St. Petersburg" guide because it had the better reviews on Amazon.com. It's so neat to read about the sights we will see in Moscow and its neighborhoods. I would love to see St. Petersburg too but maybe next time. (Did you catch that? NEXT time already!)

Of course, the highlight of the trip is agoing to be something the guide books don't talk about - the children. Our Mission Committee Chairlady presented my trip to the congretation yesterday and talked about sledding and snowball fights with the orphans. I can't wait! Yes, I know it's going to be cold in Russia in December and January, but we haven't had a really good snow here in West Virginia for several years and I need to get involved in a good snowball fight.

Do svedanya!

Language and Donations

I was a language major in college - I thought I was going to be a Spanish teacher! It's a long story, but I wound up in libraries instead (and very happy that I did). I understand a smattering of other romance languages but Russian is something else. The Cyrillic alphabet is based on the Greek alphabet and it looks really strange at first. Actually it's not that bad - each letter in the alphabet has it's own sound so once you get those in your head you can pronounce any Russian word you see. Then once you pronouce them a lot of them sound close enough to English that you know what they are. For example, "taxi" sounds like "taxi". I've got a set of Russian language tapes I'm working through and so far I can say "I don't understand Russian very well." I need to keep working on it!

It would be really nice if the airlines, hotels and restaurant people thought this trip was such a wonderful idea that they would donate their services, but unfortunately that's not the way it works. The cost of the trip per person is around $2000. I'm blessed that my church (Central United Methodist) has decided to make my travel one of their mission projects and I have resources of my own. However, part of the purpose of the trip is to buy Christmas presents for the orphans and you can take part in that if you wish. There is a link on the right hand side of this web page to the West Virginia Volunteers in Mission where you will find information about how to donate and a form. If you have problems finding it let me know. Also, I understand that I will be selling tickets to take Russian orphans to the circus for $10.00 each. Let me know how many you want! Blessings!

Passports, Shots and Fish Bread

I have to get a new passport! My first passport expired in 1979 but I still had it. I had applied for it to go to Spain in 1974. It's not even the same color on the outside as the new passports and it certainly doesn't have the "intelligent chip" technology contained in new passports. It's supposed to make it easier to get your new passport if you have your old one though so I'm one step in the right direction.

I had my passport picture taken at J.C. Penny's. The retail price was $14.00 but I found an online coupon that took it down to $10.00. Maybe if I had paid the full price they would look better (you can't smile for a passport photo) but I'll console myself by thinking that only customs and immigration people are going to be looking at it. The bad thing is that your passport is good for ten years so I'll be stuck with it for that long.

My old birth certificate is somewhere in my house and I'm sure it will show up after I get my new passport but I can't find it now for love nor money! That was another $5.00 to get a new one but if I had waited till after July 1 it would have been $10.00. When I turned in my application at the Post Office I had to show my driver's license (photo ID), my old passport and my birth certificate. If I had to have my birth certificate to get my license and my old passport then why did I have to give them another copy of my birth certificate? How could I have gotten the first two without it? Oh, well. Bureaucracy at it's best!

I hadn't had a tetanus shot since I went to Spain in 1974 so it was definitely time for one of those. The only other shot I needed was for Hepatitis A. It's a two-part shot so I'll have to get the second dose just before I go in December. My doctor's daughter went on the summer mission trip to Russia a couple of years ago and he said she had a great time. Her biggest complaint was that they kept serving them "fish bread" to eat. Fish bread? Sounds like a good way to go on a diet!

Decision

I've been thinking about going to Russia with the United Methodist Volunteers in Mission for the last couple of years. I've been interested in Russian history and culture for some time and have read quite a bit about the Romanov Dynasty and current conditions in the Russian Federation. When I attended the West Virginia Annual Conference and walked through the Ministry Fair I would see the display for the Volunteers in Mission and stop to talk with Tom Clark and buy another set of nesting dolls (matrioshka?). I've joked that this was my kind of mission trip - shopping, decorating for a party and playing with kids. The serious side is that these are children who desperately need to be loved. I know that we have many needy children in this country but I believe that we have the resources here to care for them if we will. The same can't necessarily be said of conditions today in Russia.

Anyhow, as much as I felt the call it just didn't seem like the right time till this year. Something clicked at this year's Conference and after much thought and especially much prayer I decided to go for it. I've talked about it with my pastor and with the Missions chairperson at my church and they have been very supportive. I'm very excited and have started the process for getting my passport and learning what I will need to do to get ready to go in December. I decided to publish this blog to keep my friends up to date on my progress and to share the joy and excitement of this adventure in mission to serve God and to expand my horizons. More to come!