As many of you know, I’ll be returning to the Russian Federation within a week and half. It is so exciting, but less stressful than the first trip. My flight is scheduled to leave on the 31st of August. I’ll arrive on September 1st. I’m writing this blog for two reasons. Firstly, I didn’t write a blog during my first trip, as the excitment for the event was so great that it blew by me completely. It wasn’t until I read a blog from a friend of mine in Russian that it dawned on me that these things maybe important. I suppose the novelty of the act of writing said blog was also nifty. Secondly, I wish to keep a better record of the things I do, the places I see and the people I encounter during this year overseas. Not only do I wish to document the happenings for myself, in regards to future reflection, but I also desire for you all to understand the part of the world I’m living in.
My hope that by writing a contemporary blog, this gives a record of my thoughts and acts in a timely setting without the mess of hundreds of posts on Facebook. They instead will be in one place, organized posts of events. I hope (depending on the availability of the internet) to writing once or twice a week, depending on that is going on and if it is worthy of writing about. I wish to writing not only of experiences I have, but also of the observations I have concerning the people I live and study with. I also want to channel my passions for history and new locations by discussing the long memories of the places I travel to and the people who live in them.
As some of you may know, my first trip to Russia was during my Junior year of college and was studying at Pyatigorsk State Linguistic University in Pyatigorsk Russia, a city in the North Caucasus region. This mountainous area is home to many ethnic groups and the desire to learn and interact with them as well as to start seriously learning the Russian language was why I picked it. I did so much there my first time around, from studying in a multi-national environment, having cross-cultural moments, seeing the wonders of a foreign land and studying ehtnic groups that most people have never heard of was all apart of the appeal of this place for me. During my second time here, I wish you see new and exotic places while revisiting the old ones, see old friends while making new ones and continue researching national identity in this region, finding out what makes people “tick.”
I hope that I can keep in touch with many of you while I’m on this new jounrey and share with you my passion for the North Caucasus and it’s peoples. Please feel free to comment or ask questions, as this helps me both reflect on the events happening here and allows me to give you all better information.
Pub and Politics 