An end - and a new beginning awaits

My time in mama Rossiya is coming to an end; next Thursday I will already be in Lativa. I'm busy cleaning - mostly my computer in the office, planning my last days and yet trying to ignore the fact that I'm leaving.
Tomorrow we will have a big drinking-party event in the office, leaving Telphin will be hard. My co-workers are crazy, but the best co-workers in the world! :-)
Saturday - after having recovered from Friday night - my official farewell party will take place in my flat and in the center. I wanna go to Datcha once more...

I have had a GREAT year in St. Petersburg! I do believe that I was meant to be here, but I'm also ready to move on. I'm as sad about leaving as I'm happy to go back home. But I will be back in Russia for lots of visits for sure!!!

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Thanks to everyone for making this year so special... Things and people kept changing throughout the year!
@Simona: You were here when I arrived and you showed me the city and made me feel home! I'm really glad we became good friends! AND: it's your turn to visit me in Germany! ;-)
@Yuan, Pawel and John: I had a lot of fun hanging out on Nevski and Datcha all summer long! I got a pretty good idea of what it's like to be a guy :-) and sorry for abusing you as female friends sometimes ;-) You guys made my summer!
@Sonya: You know how desperate I was for real female company when you arrived ;-) but it wasn't only that which made us become friends. It just made me "sticky" in the beginning ;-) Although we disagree about things from time to time, I believe to have found a soul mate in you and I hope we will keep in touch!
@Igor: Thanks for entertaining me in ICQ and being a great travel partner to Siberia! :-))) And please drive carefully and stay in love with real people!!! Although I'm not moving to Jena, I will stop by sometime soon!
@Trainees: Armen, Chinxao, Cristina, Daniel, Jenny, Judit, Karl, Laura, Louise, Mari Sophie, Masha, Rosa, Samson, Shekar. Thanks for being my family!!! Take care, keep in touch and see you! ;-)
@AIESEC: thanks for making this year possible! As individuals you guys are great people!
@Telphin: :-((( Will just miss you so much! Keep in touch! But forget all the German words and phrases you have learned...

and to everyone else I met and haven't mentioned: thanks!!! The most important and impressive experience this year was YOU, all the people I met with their different opinions and culture!

Good bye, Russia! It's a love/hate relationship ;-) but I will mostly remember the good things!


@Germany: I'm looking forward to see everyone there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stories that life writes

It's been a while since I wrote last... We have a new managing director in the company and he kept me extremely busy. All last week long I spent editing our new product's international per minute rates (TelMe)... I have done it at least 5 times during the past 4 months... every time it was meant to be the last time and our final prices. Now THIS time I got an Excel file with ALL the world's destinations and ALL area codes, which added up to a 15000 lines file :-) Do you know where St. Pierre and Miquelon is? Or Diego Garcia? Not that I know, but I know all the destinations in Russian and English :-)))

So I was ready for a party weekend by Friday!!! And I had a party weekend! Won't bother you with details. The most brilliant thing happened to me around 4am on Sunday morning:-) I had had several drinks at that point and we all were quite tipsy. We changed locations and went to a bar called Fish Fabrica - a creepy place, but fun! I was the last one walking in and the security guy stopped me and didn't wanna let me in. I was sort of incapable of speaking any Russian, so the guy dragged me to a sign that clearly stated that people under 18 are not allowed in :-))) The guy realized his mistake soon enough and let me in! That definitely made my day!

But the best story is without any doubt Laura's weekend confusion! I think I mentioned before that my dear friend Laura is a party animal :-)))
So, after a 24h drinking event Laura arrives at home at 9 on Sunday morning, but is SURE that it is 9 in the evening! Her room mate is (still) sleeping, which Laura takes as an "early-going-to-bed" occasion. She prepares her classes for the next morning, sets her alarm clock and goes to bed at 11am. It is still bright outside and she wonders, but then it's Russia, anything can happen ;-) (And it will be daylight at 11pm in a few months). Laura wakes up at 2pm, thinking it is Monday morning and that she overslept and calls her school. Of course, nobody picks up the phone. Eventually Laura's room mate wakes up and informs Laura that it is SUNDAY. It took some time until Laura believed it, in fact, she checked it on the Internet and then went out to meet me for cake, tea and beer :-)

And last but not least, my time in Russia is almost up :-( I'm extremely sad about leaving, but looking forward to Germany at the same time. I'm going to Riga for two days on April 19th with Daniel, a trainee from the USA. Poor Daniel will have to stand my crying about leaving, but he promised to bring some tissues. April 22nd is the day when a plane takes me back to Germany... :-( and :-)))))))) Lots of fun is coming up!!! Chenita and Sveenie are getting married in September and I get to be bridesmaid!!! I'm so excited! Have to buy a dress - and find a job to be able to pay for it! See ya soon