Like nomads, but with more stuff

Sunday morning we were up, packed, breakfasted and ready to go at 10am.  First stop: Yuriev Monastery. Natasha showed us an original surv...

Novgorod - "New City" - was new around 859 when it was first referenced in writing. It has a fascinating history unique in Russ...

I planned to spend part of Sunday evening writing about our recent trip to Veliky Novgorod. Instead, it was entirely derailed by a phone ca...

What were the odds? Saturday we went to the zoo for the very first time ever even though we have lived here 3 years. Monday when I come hom...

The parks are open after the April "drying out" and the weather is increasingly sunny and occasionally warm. As a true Petersburg...

Budapest it ain't, but it wasn't nearly as traumatic and depressing as I had been led to believe.  Some areas are still from the 19...

I am supremely new to "foreign service blogging" as a community. In fact, I am pretty sure my readership is still entirely made u...

So, Alex broke her arm about a week ago. Since then things have been interesting: - Since the break she has been asking for help getting ...

May 8 commemorates the day that WWII ended in Europe. As the capitulation document was signed after midnight Moscow time, May 9 is V...

It's now the tail end of Mother's Day.  This is how I celebrated it, thanks to the hilarious and fabulous ladies at Rants from Momm...