Getting Socialized

August 22-28, 2016

I had a great week in the office working on some new projects and advancing some earlier ones. As you know all work and no play – that’s not me even at work! So I am looking at getting involved in the Embassy’s Canada Club as a volunteer. 

The Canada Club is the social heart of the Embassy and is responsible for the weekly Friday Night Happy Hour and the various celebrations large and small for Embassy staff and Canadian expats. The next big event is the Welcome BBQ slated for later in September and after that, Hallowe’en which is apparently the party of the year. I am looking forward to working with the committee and flexing my event planning muscles and having some fun.

Galina’s, the café in the basement of the Embassy, finally opened this week and I know why everyone missed her in the month she was gone. Galina is a great cook with a seemingly endless amount of energy. Everyday there are a range of culinary delights. This week, I tried her borscht, stuffed zucchini, chicken Kiev, beef stroganoff and a variety of salads. 

As you can tell, I have stopped making lunches at home to sample her culinary delights which are available for $4-5 including a drink! Many people also pick up take-out for dinner as there are always at least two options! Sadly, I will soon need to start packing mu own lunch again as I fear Galina’s cooking is a bit too tasty and I don’t want to pack on the pounds that I so recently discarded.

The process of settling into a routine at home continues. I am resisting the urge to buy stuff to “add colour” to my SQ until after my sea shipment arrives. Luckily, my new smart TV allows me to stream Netflix so I am binging on Outlander and other new to me series when I am home as a distraction. 

I did have the opportunity to go to the salon this week to try out a new service as my eyebrows have becomes quite wild. There is a different Master for that service of course.  They don’t wax your eyebrows here; it’s all done with tweezers so it’s a longer process but also more accurate.  Most women will have had the “opportunity” to have an oopsie with wax and eyebrows take a long time to correct if ever. Anyway, TMI – sorry!!

Saturday morning, Eva and I meet the boys for the biweekly Metro run.  My focus this week is booze and ingredients for a salad for the Unofficial Meet and Greet tonight at Jack and Shirly’s. Somehow, I am still the weakest link when I arrive at the cash last (again). I will have to up my game if I don’t want to get thrown off the bus. Next time, I will buy chocolate to compensate for any delay I may cause!

Back to my SQ, I unpack, grab a nap and prepare the salad for the party. Since they live downstairs, it was a pretty quick trip to the bash. Most of the Canadian staff from the Embassy and their spouses were able to make it so there were more than 30 folks there for dinner and drinks. Jack and Shirly had clearly been working for days getting food prepared so we feasted, quaffed wine and a punch that Jack affectionately called “Little Bastard” while getting to know our colleagues better.  

It was a great night and the next day was a bit slow but not as bad as it could have been if I had been hanging out with LB for the night!

Sunday has become a day for walking around the neighbourhood and while we had originally planned a metro adventure, Eva and I had decided to explore the island behind the Christ the Saviour Cathedral instead. We set out later in the day and opted for the longer side of the Bolotny Island along the river across from the Kremlin (Sofia Embankment) which afforded us some beautiful views.

The Kremlin

The British Ambassador's Residence

Kremlin Cathedrals

Kremlin Cathedrals @ Prisma

En route, we made a quick stop at Saint Sophia; a mid-17th-century Russian Orthodox parish church opposite the Moscow Kremlin dominated by a tapering bell tower. We took a quick look in the courtyard and another stop in the store which has loads of beautiful jewelry and artwork. Might need to make another foray closer to Christmas as I think there may be some nice presents for folks at home there. 

Saint Sofia Bell Tower

Saint Sofia

The island was a bit bigger than we thought so we stopped for a drink at a little café after we turned the corner to walk down the other side of the island toward home. It’s a lot quieter on this side as we walk down the canal though we did pass a children’s park with lots of activities where a variety show of some sort was underway. Off to Magnolia for a few groceries to make dinner and we made it home with about 14 kms on the FitBit. I’ll sleep well tonight!