Re-entry has been rough.

My daughter goes “mom, your body thinks it’s still in Russia, right?” Me: “CORRECT.”

My jet lag is slowly improving. When I first arrived, I was up at 1AM, then 3AM, then 4, and now I’m up at 5AM (with my alarm) and, for some reason, a head ache. I think it’s my body’s desire for caffeine. If my body doesn’t get it by a certain time, it develops a headache. Why can’t I be like that about exercise?

There are people at the house, “working” on our kitchen. At the moment, working on it means destroying the old kitchen and carrying the debris to the dumpster outside. I wonder if I can sneak in stuff from the garage?…

The living room and the den are still stuffed but I took some time to rearrange the items so now, at least in my mind, the mess is an “organized” mess. We use the outside grill to cook meat, a crock pot to boil pasta, and we have a microwave and an electric kettle that usually lives at work. We have a bin where dirty dishes go that we bring upstairs and wash dishes in one of the bathrooms.

Thoughts on Russia trip. Now that I have had some time to separate myself from the Russia trip, I’m ready to share some thoughts with you.

1. I’m happy I only brought the carryon. Making a journey with a regular suitcase would have been much harder: checking it in, waiting in line, picking it up, waiting in line. Most importantly I would never have been able to take public transport in Istanbul. Also, in Russia, my apartment was on the third floor, in a building with no elevator. Just having my carryon and my backpack made travel so much easier.
2. I was impressed how much my city in Russia has changed. For the better (not talking about Russia’s foreign policy). Last time I have been to my city was in 2007 and it was your typical rundown, dangerous, dirty, middle of the road city. When I saw it just two weeks ago, it was a modern city, with a much improved infrastructure. New buses, trolleybuses, and trams. Tons of new apartment and office buildings. Tons of historic buildings that were restored or are in process of being restored. Theaters and movie theaters. Shops everywhere. People: families in the parks, moms with strollers, business men, foreign students, local students, older folk taking walks in the evening. Heck – many WOMEN driving! ATMs!
3. I am happy I made the trip. It was arduous, and expensive, and inconvenient, and scary, and, and, and… It threw a wrench into my summer plans a little since had to cancel my camping trip with the kids. My biggest fear was the war that Russia is currently involved in. But many of my fears did not materialize. There was no martial law in the country, you could use foreign currency freely, there were no questions for me at the Russian customs and immigration. Most importantly, I saw my dad. And mom.
4. The trip cost. The trip was expensive because it was a. in the summer, and b. kind of last minute. Overall, Russia is NOT expensive, especially if one is outside of Moscow or St. Petersburg. Here are the numbers for the entire two-week trip: flights: $2,500 (Turkish Airlines and Aeroflot), apartment $300(!), car rental $700, spending money $800 (a chair that is a toilet, a walker, diapers, medicines, etc), activities, groceries, cafes, gas for car, and items for the kids). I also left some money for them to use in an emergency.

Pic: our living room that is now the kitchen and the dining room.