There are several sounds that just send a chill down my spine and draw out every bit of hatred stored up inside my very being-my alarm happens to be one of those sounds. This morning's alarm elicited a bit more hatred than usual, waking up with a headache helps you reach down inside and learn more about what you're capable of. In this case, I was much more capable of hating than I ever dreamed possible.
It seems that everyone has their own cure for the headache, whether it's massaging some mystical pressure point, hair of the dog solution (fun fact, there's a verb in Russian for that: опохмелиться), or simply taking an advil. Those might work for you, but I took a different approach...fill that throbbing head with as much as possible; econometrics, museum, and opera marathon to be specific. Let's not talk about econometrics now though, I think everyone can agree on that. I think if we just pretend like we talked about it we'll all leave happier.
So yeah, after that I went to the Tretyakov Gallery to soak in that oh-so-Russian bit of culture. Last year around this time I visited this gallery, and one painting called the Thaw really spoke to me. It is sort of a grim, dirty, in your face look at the change from winter to spring here, and I wasn't super positive about things at the time I guess.
Well, this year on my return I walked into the display room for the Thaw, and to my surprise the painting has since become silent. I still remember why it made sense, but that's part of the mystery and beauty of great art I guess. It can speak to you at different times, or remain silent. This time around I really loved the painting Странник (The Pilgrim) by Perov. You can read into that as much or as little as you want.
When I saw the painting of Tolstoy I got a little giddy. It was then that I realized that I'm a bit of a nerd, and not in a good way. Still, I had to get a picture with the old guy.
See how those eyes just pierce your very soul, begging you to question everything you think you know about life, love, and god? Tolstoy's eyes are pretty striking too.
Next on the agenda was the marathon opera-Strauss' Der Rosenkavelier. It was a 4 hour presentation, and we opted for the student seats, which are extremely uncomfortable. In fact...
...they were so uncomfortable the ticket itself says неудобное место (inconvenient seat) right on it, just so you don't get any false hopes. My brief, and humble opinion of the opera is such: rough at first with the singers really struggling, but really picked up to an incredible, albeit very strange third act. By this time, my head was not alone in bodyparts that were suffering; my back, legs, and neck were burning, but I sojourned as a soldier of culture! Also, my friends peer pressured me into staying. My pain was not unrewarded though, because the finale of the opera was magnificent, and I came home with the sweet taste of opera in my mouth (actually, it was the sweet taste of mickey d's, cause I had it my way home, MC World!).
Note: any reference to enjoying McDonalds is purely satirical, and should not be taken seriously.
Note 2: Late night fast food could very well be the cause of headaches like this.
It seems that everyone has their own cure for the headache, whether it's massaging some mystical pressure point, hair of the dog solution (fun fact, there's a verb in Russian for that: опохмелиться), or simply taking an advil. Those might work for you, but I took a different approach...fill that throbbing head with as much as possible; econometrics, museum, and opera marathon to be specific. Let's not talk about econometrics now though, I think everyone can agree on that. I think if we just pretend like we talked about it we'll all leave happier.
So yeah, after that I went to the Tretyakov Gallery to soak in that oh-so-Russian bit of culture. Last year around this time I visited this gallery, and one painting called the Thaw really spoke to me. It is sort of a grim, dirty, in your face look at the change from winter to spring here, and I wasn't super positive about things at the time I guess.
Well, this year on my return I walked into the display room for the Thaw, and to my surprise the painting has since become silent. I still remember why it made sense, but that's part of the mystery and beauty of great art I guess. It can speak to you at different times, or remain silent. This time around I really loved the painting Странник (The Pilgrim) by Perov. You can read into that as much or as little as you want.
When I saw the painting of Tolstoy I got a little giddy. It was then that I realized that I'm a bit of a nerd, and not in a good way. Still, I had to get a picture with the old guy.
See how those eyes just pierce your very soul, begging you to question everything you think you know about life, love, and god? Tolstoy's eyes are pretty striking too.
Next on the agenda was the marathon opera-Strauss' Der Rosenkavelier. It was a 4 hour presentation, and we opted for the student seats, which are extremely uncomfortable. In fact...
...they were so uncomfortable the ticket itself says неудобное место (inconvenient seat) right on it, just so you don't get any false hopes. My brief, and humble opinion of the opera is such: rough at first with the singers really struggling, but really picked up to an incredible, albeit very strange third act. By this time, my head was not alone in bodyparts that were suffering; my back, legs, and neck were burning, but I sojourned as a soldier of culture! Also, my friends peer pressured me into staying. My pain was not unrewarded though, because the finale of the opera was magnificent, and I came home with the sweet taste of opera in my mouth (actually, it was the sweet taste of mickey d's, cause I had it my way home, MC World!).
Note 2: Late night fast food could very well be the cause of headaches like this.
