16 March 2009

Last night my friend invited me out to a club called the “BubbleBar” off Невский Проспект. It was kind of disappointing, but at one point I did get to see a guy rapping along with a tuba and a drummer.
The way the busses work, is when you get on there is a conductor who goes around and either collects money or uses a hand-held scanner to see if you have a valid transit pass. On the occasions where there is no conductor, the driver will only open the door closest to him, and through a little window in the thick glass separating the driving cabin from the rest of the bus he will accept payment and check passes. This morning was one of the days when there was no conductor, and the bus was packed. I started worming my way through the crowd to get to the front as we approached the stop, and an old woman that was in front of me said “Metro?” and I told her it was best to get off at the next stop. It turns out she was asking me if I was going to the metro, and as the bus slowed down she said “don’t be shy, push!” and shoved me forward through a group of people. She had some power behind her…I made it through about seven people and got off the bus before anyone else.
I had my new conversation class this morning. I really liked it. It was an actual class, where we had actual discussions and actually learned, unlike my previous lesson where we would go around the room saying how we spent our weekend (unless the person sitting next to you had a long boring story, in which case you were skipped) and then spent the next two and a half hours watching cartoons.
Today I got my first Russian haircut. There’s nothing wrong with it, I suppose, but I feel like it makes me look very young. I suppose it will grow in and look better.
Right now I’m in the study lounge in the university. I’m observing Gary tonight teaching the class I’m supposed to be taking over for. To be honest, I’m having second thoughts. They expect me to start a week from today, and as of now the only thing I know is the schedule. I don’t know who I’m teaching, what the format is, what level the students are, if there is a textbook, and most importantly how much I’m being paid. I talked to Dad about it today, and if I feel that it isn’t a reasonable amount for the hours I’ll be working, I’m going to reject the offer. I know its going to be a mess for them, but that’s not really my problem. They asked me about the job almost a month ago, and I’ve been asking every week for details and they keep telling me to relax. When I tried to ask my professor about the payment, her response was that I was a typical American, only thinking about money. Tonight after the lesson I am meeting with Gary to discuss the class, and tomorrow I am meeting with the person who is supposed to be my boss. We’ll see how tonight and tomorrow go…