A Change Of Pace

Today marks our first full day out of Moscow. We arrived in Novgorod around 6:00 AM, most of us sleeping soundly through a nine hour train ride. Although Moscow is a very historical city and contains many of Western Russia's historical landmarks, it is easy to get lost in the modernity of it all. Stark contrasts like malls filled with designer clothing stores next to 16th century Muscovite style churches throw the city into a bit of an identity crisis, at least for someone like myself who studies both modern and imperial/ pre-soviet Russia. However, upon entering Novgorod, one cannot feel like they are embarking on a journey through the past.

Our first activity as a group besides getting accustomed to our hotel was a short trip on foot to the souvenir shops around the city. Each shop displayed craftwork unique to Novgorod, including many products made with the cities famous birchbark. When crossing the Volkhov river by bridge, the Kremlin and several churches/museums await. However, these buildings are not bustling with tourist actvity or swarming with babushkas trying to sell you t-shirts with Lenin's face next to the McDonalds golden arches. Residents gather outside the Church of St. Sophia to collect blessed water to take back to their homes. The church still mandates that women wear head coverings whilst inside the building, an old tradition of married Russian Orthodox women. The city sometimes feels as if it has not yet been penetrated by Western civilization.

I wish our stay here was for more than one night, but as the purpose of our trip is going to the theatre, it only makes sense that we hit up the largest metropolitan areas. I will miss this comparably quaint, "small town"- around 500, 000 people or so. Saint Petersburg awaits...