I'm Glad you Came (week 4)

Week four;
                  I came back from my host family, and was SO excited to walk into the lobby and see one of my partner and friend, Kostya, from Bolshoi New York! Later, I also got to see my friends Reika and Jin, also from NYC! It had only been three weeks, but I had missed them!  I wish they all could have stayed longer, but I had so much fun while they were here at the academy, and I am happy that they get to go spend some time at home before the school year begins!

                 The teacher that we had for week four was named Nastia, and I loved taking her class! She was quite young, and she made class really interesting and fun, but she also gave a lot of attention and corrections to each of us individually, which I really liked! We also get to take class with the Russian year-round students of the academy, which is GREAT because they always push me in class! And, they are all SUPER flexible,...honestly like nothing I have ever seen! If you can imagine someone almost breaking their hips so that their splits are literally at a 90 degree angle, THAT is exactly what I see everyday! This week, there were a lot more in class than usual, so it was really interesting and exciting to get to watch them dance and take class with them! Also, my friend Artemiy (Belyakov), who is now a professional in the Bolshoi Ballet (!!!!), took our classes too! All in all, it was a really great week for ballet!

 We are pretty sure she is "Kari the Babysitter" from The Incredibles! ;P

Here's a picture of all 15 of us US ballet girls going to see a Russian Character dance show!

          That weekend, I switched host families again, and this time went with a young woman names Liza, and her boyfriend, Толя to their country home/ "Dacha". It was about a 4 and a half hour drive to the home outside the city! In fact, it was actually closer to St. Petersburg than to Moscow! Only 1 and a half or 2 hours away!  On the way there, we got to see a lot of the countryside of Russia, which was interesting! I was with my friend Remy this weekend, so we kept each other entertained. They also had a pet dog named Ричард/ "Richard", and a cat.

        I grew up in a family of dog lovers! Ever since the day I was born, there was never a time when we did not have a dog! Needless to say, I was much more excited to have the dog with us than the cat. Cats are just not as cuddly, friendly, and DEFINITELY not as cute! Disagree with me if you wish, but if any of you had spent the weekend with THIS cat, I am sure  you would change your mind! Let's just say that my luggage, clothes, and purse still reek of cat urine after excessive amounts of washing! Thank you Remy Lamping, for helping me deal with the cat

      Despite that though, the weekend was great! Liza, Tolya, and all of their friends were very welcoming and fun! We had so much fun just relaxing and hanging out in the Russian country! It was really nice to get out of the city for awhile, and see the town that Liza grew up in! It was also really cool because we got to meet everyone that she grew up around, and her family actually lived in 4 out of the 20 homes there! Remy and I were really proud, because when we went for a walk down the road, we got to use the Russian we have been learning to speak and hold actual conversations with some of the people we ran into! YAY!
       Here are some pictures we took around Liza's dacha:

Watching Paranormal Activity :/ AHHH!

Thank you Liza and Tolya!))