Days 7 & 8: Trains, Caviar and the International Incident(s) oh my!

Praise the lord - INTERNET CONNECTION!

I feel better now that I'm plugged in:) Since I could not access the internet last night, I am rolling two posts into one. I have to leave my good friend's flat to get wi-fi service. She does have it but we cannot get my iPad to accept the password:(

I'm officially tired ya'll and I'm now living with my friends mother Ludmila (and as of today, her husband Sasha) in my friends apartment but my friend is in Turkey. The last time I saw Ludmila, she was cursing me out in Russian LOL, for being a dumb 18 year old girl who, in total collusion with my friend, got into big trouble all over the globe.

Awesome:)

All is well though, she does NOT speak any English. So far so good, she has been bending over backwards to be nice to us. A little too much backward though, as I found out this morning when I spoke to our adoption team here in Moscow, I'll explain as I go through the post. She's being mama bear for me and I so appreciate it but she's also Cossak, and them sort of Russian's don't take no foolishness, or no for an answer!

So, yesterday went a little something like this:

- A morning out to buy flowers for E to go with her gift from us Region 2 Hand-In-Hand adoption agency families, plus a few other kind souls. I had NO clue what I was doing at the flower stand but I think I spent $60.00 on a bouquet, whups. They were really pretty, E loved them. In my mind, I thought I was spending $30.00, oh well, just don't call me a math major, in fact don't call me for anything math related. Thanks.




We took a last play at the fountain, throwing in all the random Ruble coins I had and which confuse me because of the denominations, so I was gald for Ian to throw in about 30 of them! To say he had a ball would be an understatement! I'm sure people thought I was abusing him when it was time to leave, he screamed and cried and stomped and all that. Oye.





A fond farewell to The Coffeshop Company, which was the closest I could get to Starbuck's - I started calling it "Rus-bucks" after a while.




- A tearful departure at the delivery of E's "Fund of Hope." The total gift was $3,300.00!! I have VIDEO of this moment but you all know I cannot post it till I get home, unless I find an iPad app that can handle mpegs. She cried and cried, and I am sure she would have continued had it not been in front of our driver Sergey. She said she has never been given a gift like that and I just know it was relief for her. I watched her breathe a deep sigh afterwards and to me, that spelled success for us in trying to help her get through this difficult period of her life with three families to care for and being so overworked with OUR adoptions.

- A 4.5 hour train ride with Ian, his FIRST ever, and my first ever on a new Russian train, kinda looks like the Shinkansen Bullet Train I rode in Japan. Cool! I love the fast train. I am SO SAD Ari is not here for this, he would LOVE this. Mommy will take you on a bullet train sweetie, I SO promise!




That's Elena and Sergey with Ian.




Thank goodness E and Sergey, our driver, took us right to the seats, or I would NOT have managed the luggage and Ian alone. You have to keep a KungFu grip on Ian or he'll be driving the train off before you realize he's gone!

It was a little hectic on the train, you have to be just about FIRST in line (remember this those R2 families going after me) to get a space for your luggage if you have anything other than carry on size bags that will not fit above your seat. These trains were not built to hold baggage, so it can be a fight to get space. There was almost an international incident when a guy from England put his thousand pound (haha, they use pounds for money in Britain yeah? ahahah) bag on top of mine, watched it crush them and then got mad because I asked him to please move his bag. This was AFTER the Italian tourist group ALSO asked them not to throw their heavy bags on top of theirs....Oye Vey! The English?? I had no idea, I thought the Italians we're known as the ruder ones. Rest assured, I'm being a very good representative of the United States, and I will be SO HAPPY to be HOME on US SOIL again.

Ian did great on the train, just playing in his seat, sleeping, and eating. He loves to eat, he laughs when something seems so absurd to him - like eating on a train, shoot, just being on a train has to make his mind just about explode. It's really cute to watch.









We were served a three course meal. Note to future families, choose the Fish and not the Beef, trust me on that one.








- Arrival in Moscow at 6:00 pm. I thought we were being met by our Moscow facilitators husband. This was not the case. We were met by a very much oder man who struggled with our luggage and who did not speak English well and who drove like a complete maniac. I didn't care for this change of plans without my notice. I am frustrated with the Moscow team, but I am trying to hold my tongue until we get home and then I will be writing a LONG letter to our agency. The things that are happening here could have ALL been avoided with some simple professional level communication. OYE!!!!!

Ludmila however, ain't holding her tongue! In fact, I found out this morning that she was furious with the taxi driver over what he charged me, $60.00 US. I did not know this yesterday, all I knew was that she and he were exchanging words. Olga, our Moscow adoption facilitator (and she is NOT an Elena at all, which is part of the issue for me, she's lacking and I'll leave it at that), told me this this morning over the phone as we dealt with another issue - the doctor.

- Arrival at my friends Moscow flat was um, ScArY! So, I told you that Anastasia's address was considered one of the best addresses in the city. So, when we pulled up and I saw this:
















I could not beleive we were at the right place. Could this be it? When Ludmila came out, I knew it was the right place and I was sure E had made a mistake in thinking this was some prestigious address, as she has used the word to describe it to me. Not that I cared AT ALL, I was just surprised. Things can look like an absolute disaster on the outside in Russia, but can be very, very nice on the inside, or not, either way, curb appeal is just in my blood and my mind has a hard time thinking that front door in the photo above could lead to a place I'd wanna stay.

Then, the door was opened and, WOW! Anastasia and I would get along famously as intereior deigneers. It looks like they own stock in IKEA. I love her place and I am grateful to be their guests. It is comfortable. Her two children are away at camp and her husband just returned from the US, buying film making equipment for a big event they will run this September in Moscow.
















They have a maid, her name is Larissa. She cleaned last night for two hours and all day today. She is still here cleaning. Last night, Ian had another first with this jetted, LIT bathtub! Heaven would not even describe where I think he thought he was!




Settling in last night went a lot better than I had expected. Of course dummy, Nastia's parents would not still be mad with me over things that two dumb 18 year old girls did! Thank goodness. She has been very, very kind to Vasya and I.

She's a grandmother. Enter BIG problem and another AMAZING thing about this orphan no more in our midst. When you go to grandma's house, you get to do and sometimes behave, in ways that are not allowed at home. This is why grandma's house is the bomb! So, Ian GETS THIS concept and took full advantage of it from jump. Ludmila does not get it about him and this is his FIRST time ever in a HOUSE.

BAB Luda has replaced Mama for the time being, as most favorite person. She speaks Russian for one, and since Ian understands all that is said to him, this no doubt comforts him. She could care less about his behavior and keeps telling me I can fix it all when we get to Amerika! Baahahaha - so you are riding on the plane with me and him then right! With Baba, so much is possible, like running freely in the water soaked muddy pants (where he promptly FELL and was COVERED in mud, crying and screaming). This was the sight of international near miss incident #2 in which a group of Russian's laughed at Ian when he fell and was crying. It took ALL of me not to freak out and start giving them a piece of my mind. I did the "how dare you" stare and got him out of there.




Where I get to swing in a swing that mama said no to for several reasons, but that Baba said yes to (I'm not mad, it's funny really, I'm just SO exhausted mentally at this point, and I've put in A LOT of hard work last week in getting Ian with a program of behaving before that plane ride. To see it all kind of fall apart, it's just hard)




EATING flipping CAVIER by the SPOONFULS! (I swear, this has got be a FIRST, out 5 days from an orphanage where he's spent his ENTIRE life and eating Caviar by the spoonful in the house of a Russian filmmaker - OYE!)








OHHHHH he has been SO SO Naughty! Yelling, screaming, refusing to hold my hand outside, touching things he knows he should not touch (granted the apartment is not child proof as Nastia's kids are 10 and 15), HITTING me and laughing about it, not listening to anyone. He's behaving like he did those times we met him and he was like a caged animal.

So, here is where I guess I get to keep it real. Rose colors nowhere in sight,
it never fails that when I SAY things are going well, they inevitably tank. This time it has to do with three things: (1) the Moscow team and I don't gel, at all; (2) Ian is TRIPPING! and (3) my attitude again. I'm so ready to be done with this trip. I could get out of here in 2 days but it would cost me $500 and I don't want to spend it because we need it for Ian when we get home. His Caridogram will be half that right off. I don't want to wast money because I feel blue, that seems like a quitter to me.

I need some help with Ian, he's more than a handful now. The screaming and yelling are really wearing on me. There is simply no way to keep him from doing this. He is VERY impatient and is ALL about instant gratification. He's off his routine and I can tell it is bothering him. He just has SO much to take in, it's nearly impossible for me to expect him to be appropriate, but I have to make all attempts. Lordy, I need a break for just a moment. I sleep when he sleeps so every waking moment we are together, just me and him, I have no one to talk to, adult wise. Not having Skype yesterday was so depressing because I've been talking to my mom and my son at home everyday and that has helped me to get through this. Craig is out of touch as you know on his retreat so I can't confide in him other than in emails that cannot be answered right now.

Yikes, I will freely ADMIT that this IS much harder than I thought it would be. I'm tired and I wanna go home:(

AND GOD KNOWS THIS....so you know what he did for me today? THREE THINGS! He countered the 3 things that were getting me down with three things lit me up!

(1) Ian and I went for a walk this morning. When I turned onto the main drag outside of Nastia's flat, BAM there it was!




Not sure what I'm showing you? How about closer:




Closer!




STARBUCKS!!!!!! Oh joy of joys, something that reminds me of home! Of course, I hurried 10 blocks up to the nearest street passage, UNDER THE STREET (you cannot cross on the streets in Moscow on top, you will be run over trying to cross 8 lanes where they drive at highway speeds)







Up the steps and then back 10 blocks and we were there, sitting, laughing, eating cheesecake, and feeling so much better! I am self-medicating with Cheeesecakes and Coffees - don't judge, it's helping:)




and guess who got a Starbucks Barista bear from Russia! Haha, Ian did! and I was not mad that I had to pay $25.00 for it. It made him happy.




(2) Nastia's husband came home last night and I met him today and HE SPEAKS ENGLISH! yeah! He fixed the Skype and translated some stuff Luda has been telling me in Russian that all I can do is to respond with a deer in the headlights look.

Last night, Luda talked to me for a while, then called someone and that person attempted to translate what she had said. Luda wanted to get a babysitter for me so I could have a little break. Luda does not apparently watch kids, or clean LOL. She does cook, well. She watches television in Christian Dior sunglasses and eats Caviar at dinner.

(3) I'm blogging from a "Rus-Bucks" with free Wi-Fi and I got my break. Ian is HAPPY as a clam as there is another LUDA babysitting him right now (who also incidentally has a son named Vasya) 2 Luda's and 2 Vasya's, wow. She is the professional babysitter for the major film studio here in Moscow. She's a grandmotherly type and of course, speaks Russian, no English. Ian's in 7th heaven.

Tomorrow: Another free day with which Ian and I will go to the Moscow Zoo! I'm excited about that. Red Square is within walking distance so we will also pay a visit there for the obligatory Red Square photograph. I have many memories of that place, it will be strange to be back under these circumstances.

Tuesday: 11:30 am interview at the US Embassy to process Ian's VISA and other things.

I have no idea what happens after that. We leave on Friday morning for Frankfurt and then a final flight home. I will lose it at the airport, and I'm looking forward to that.

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Location:Moscow, Russia