California Love 012306

Hi, everyone--
I realize that I haven't written lately. I haven't really been out of the country that much lately, so I haven't had the need to write my travel log.

Updates:
I had booked all of my travel to Europe. I was set to leave on January 28 and return February 22. However, this has changed again. It looks like I will be leaving around Feb 2 and returning around March 1.

Doug, Claron's dad, was just here. We had a great time. It was really great to see him. Doug got to see both of the boys teach. He also got to meet up with some professors to discuss work. He had a great time. We went to Stearn's Wharf. I posted pictures. They are all in the Sweet Home, Santa Barbara album. Here is the link: http://community.webshots.com/user/asarnoci

Emily, Claron's sister, is due to have her baby today. I will keep everyone updated.

I don't have to go to girls camp this year! We are trying to go to Claron's best friend, Jerry's wedding in Sweden during the week of girls camp. Thank you, Jerry! Not that I don't like girls camp, but you all understand!

I realized that I have never posted positives and negatives for California. OK so here we go:

Positives:
1. The weather
2. Flowers year round
3. The beach
4. Palm trees
5. In-N-Out Burger
6. Great ward
7. Great friends
8. Laid back attitude
9. The islands
10. Lots of airports
11. Lots of motocross tracks
12. Motocross year round
13. Kickin' radio stations
14. Mexico is close
15. Uncle Butch is here
16. Did I mention the weather?
17. Strong sunshine
18. Liberal rich people
19. You can grow anything!
20. No bad news in the paper, radio or TV in SB

Negatives:
1. Family and friends are not here.
2. Real Estate prices!!!
3. The never ending expanse that is LA
4. Traffic in LA
5. Snotty Santa Barbarians (not all, just some)
6. They give away plastic surgery on the radio
7. Ocean is cold

I've been updating my blogs. Here are the addresses:
http://stanleysadventure.blogspot.com/
http://amandastravel.blogspot.com/

I've been working on the Flat Stanley when I can. I sent a package to the kids. Chris, the kid that I do it for, had the funniest comment. He said that he didn't know that they had candy in Russia! I thought this was great! In some ways, I can definitely see where he might get that.
Speaking of Russia, you may have heard that Russia is having their coldest year in a long time. I can't wait! =-(

Well, I hope all is well with everyone. I'd better run.
Cheers!
Amanda

Visas - A New Headache Every Time 011006

Santa Barbara, CA
Hi!
Just wanted to give everyone some updates. I am currently in Irvine, CA again. I talked to my contact in the UK this morning. Apparently, they are now having Russian visa issues. This is going to delay my trip to Europe probably by at least a week. This means that I will be leaving around Jan 28. I am hoping to fly into London and go from there rather than flying into Moscow. I still haven't heard anything back from Russia about my visa though! Man, do I ever hate visas!

I will now also be going to Cyprus! Yea! Bring on the tropical beauty! I contacted my friend, Charis, from UMBC. He is now living in Cyprus. We are going to try to get together while I am there. I am excited to see him! He lives in the same city that I will be auditing in.

The busy season has started for external audit. I'm currently working on an external audit team, and the hours are crazy! It is going okay though. I really like the team.

I have started two blogs. One is an archive of these e-mails that I send. It is located at http://amandastravel.blogspot.com/ I also included pictures. The other is a chronicle of Flat Stanley's adventures. I am completing this for a school project for Chris Moody. This is located at http://stanleysadventure.blogspot.com/

I was at home last week. Claron and I went to the beach almost every day. I got to collect tons of shells that washed up in the storm. The beach is recovering well. Already some of the sand has come back. Also, the inlet is now unblocked again and is looking much better. I took some nice pictures but I haven't put them up on the picture site yet, but I promise to do so soon. That site again is: http://community.webshots.com/user/asarnoci **The picture above is of a Santa Barbara sunset.

Claron started back to school. He is teaching again and taking classes. His classes are as always ridiculously difficult. He says he really likes his new professors. He has almost decided on a research group. I will let everyone know once he has made his final decision.

Claron's dad will be out in California this week. We are excited to see him.

Anyway, just wanted to give everyone a quick update. I hope all is well!

Love,
Amanda

P.S. Let me know if you want anything from UK, Russia, Sweden or Cyprus! (oh, and maybe Hungary or Czech Rep. as well.) I need to start a list.

Mexico: Still Dirty, Still Great! 010505

Hello, friends and family!
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I'm sorry that I am bit late with my e-mail. It has been quite a busy holiday for Claron and I.
Also, welcome to everyone who is new to the list. Please feel free to let me know if I am missing anyone. I bcc everyone so you don't have to scroll through the names to read the e-mail.

Here are the news updates:

Good news
-Claron's dad is coming on Jan. 12 to visit us California Ridges (me, Claron, Clark and Lilly).
-My parents are coming for Spring Break (Mar. 26), and magically I found cheap tickets into the Santa Barbara airport! It is a first.
-Claron got A's in all his classes.
-I'm home this week.
-My flowers are all blooming including Mildred's kalanchoe. It has buds on it. I will take a picture and post it. I will post another when it blooms. It will be in the Sweet Home, Santa Barbara album.
-Claron's Grandpa Brown turned 88 yesterday.

Bad news
-My great grandmother, Eleanor Melvin died yesterday.
-My neighbor, Nadya's daughter, Aislyn, had a seizure. She is doing overall much better, but there still may be something wrong with her brain shunt. We have to wait and see.
-We had big offshore storms in Santa Barbara. It caused 10-20 foot waves. The surfers were ecstatic, but our beach (at the end of our street) was completely wiped out. It was once lovely, soft sand. All of the sand is gone and now it is all kinds of rocks. There are pictures in the Sweet Home, Santa Barbara album. Tim and I went down and threw the sea snails and hermit crabs back into the sea. One of the positives though is that it washed up tons of really neat shells. Further down the beach, the Goleta public beach still has sand, but the Goleta slough inlet (it is like a big creek) was blocked. It is a disgusting festering mess now. I hope that the town has fixed it. I haven't been down to check.
-USC lost, and everyone we know is sad.

Travel Updates
-I will be leaving for Europe on Jan. 21 for approximately three weeks. I will be going to Moscow, Stockholm and London again.
-I am almost out of passport pages.

Christmas was great. Claron and I came home. Clark, Lilly and Tim came up for dinner and stayed the next day. I got lots of wonderful presents-- jewelry including an amazing Ceylon sapphire and diamond ring and set of diamond and pink topazes, a PS2, my own Katamari Damacy, a Sudoku book, a lovely Chronicles of Narnia book, clothes, CDs, movies, a trip to Mexico, dishes, shoes, a silver jewelry box, a silver dresser set… I am so spoiled!

OK… as for the Mexico trip. We went to San Felipe which is on the eastern side of the Baja peninsula on the Bay of California or Sea of Cortez as it is known in Mexico. We had an interesting drive down. We had to make multiple stops to pick everyone up. So, we had to haul to get down to the condo on time. I'm not going to incriminate myself, but I think I made everyone in the car a bit nervous with my high speed driving. We drove down to San Diego then across to Calexico. The drive to Calexico was beautiful. There was plenty of desert. There was also some really interesting mountains that just look like someone had dropped a big pile of rocks. I'd never seen mountains like that before.

We crossed the border at Calexico into Mexicali. Funny, huh? Both are small cities. There are pictures in the San Felipe album. Once were out of Mexicali, it was all desert. There was scrub brush desert. There was flat desert with nothing on it. There were salt flats in part of the desert. Most of the desert was of the scrub brush variety. There were also a few sets of mountains. There were purplish pink mountains, brown mountains, and black mountains. The roads were okay. Not amazing, but not too bad either. We did see quite a few burned out cars on the side of the road. This was quite distressing! Also, it got dark about an hour into the drive into Mexico. There was a military stop right as we entered San Felipe, but we were not given any issues. We got lost when we got into San Felipe. So, after all of my high speed driving, I was 15 minutes late! It is so frustrating.

We got to the condo office and were taken out to our condo. It was really a lovely place. The condo was right on the beach. The condo had two bedrooms. It was larger than we thought it would be. The beach was lovely. It has nice soft sand. The water was a bit chilly, but I saw plenty of kids swimming in it. I went in once. We had a great vista of downtown San Felipe. Also, we could see the mountains and the lighthouse from our condo. We had a lovely view of the mountains and desert from the roof. We did have to have the TV replaced though. Also, we ran out of gas and had to come and have them refill the tank.

Downtown San Felipe was quite interesting. There was lots of shopping of course. All along the water there is a strip called the Malecon. It is like a boardwalk. There are shops and restaurants. That is where we mostly hung out. The food was great and ridiculously cheap. (When I say cheap, I mean cheap. The five of us would eat for $20 total.) My favorite thing was sincronizadas. They were these little taco sandwiches of cheese and carne asada. They were great. We went to a few different places, but our favorite was "El Chuy." They had great tacos, salsa, and guacamole. Everyone kept offering us free margaritas and beer with our meals. Another note, none of got sick from the food. The shopping was pretty good. Believe it or not, I didn't buy anything. There wasn't any room in the car to buy what I wanted to.

The overall feel of San Felipe was interesting. It kind of felt like the track. Everyone down there had four wheelers, dirt bikes, and dune buggies. You can ride anywhere you want to and everyone does. You would see people riding on the beach, on the road, in the desert, along the Malecon. People (kids and adults) would ride to dinner on their dirt bikes. You saw people in riding gear everywhere. The people next to us had about 10 4-wheelers in their garage and were out on them every day. Note: If you want to ride in San Felipe, bring your own gear. I saw people coming from the rental lots in bicycle helmets!
The drive home was much easier. First of all, it was in the day. Also, Tim drove all the way to the US.

Mexico is still dirty and a bit crazy. I love it though. The people were very nice. We had a great time.
I have put up pictures on the web site. The address is: http://community.webshots.com/user/asarnoci
Well, I hope everyone is well. California is lovely today-- as always.
Anyway, I'd better run. I have tons of work to do.
Cheers!
Amanda

Irvine, CA: Only in the "OC" 122005

Greetings from Irvine--
Claron and I arrived here last night and are staying in a hotel across town from Clark & Lilly (Claron's twin & his wife). Claron chills with Clark during the day while I work.
Irvine is a bit odd. I am leery of any place that is entirely owned by a private company. http://www.blogger.com/www.irvinecompany.com Everything in Irvine is owned by the Irvine Company… all 44,000 acres of it. Everything around here is lovely though. Everything is perfectly landscaped and clean. However, there is a bit of smog about today. It may be creeping in from LA though. However, from my birds eye view of Irvine, I can see an outdoor pool in which I have seen multiple people swimming today. It is about 70-75 degrees outside. I think the pools are heated.
Irvine has a mall with a ferris wheel in the middle of it. Also, none of the store are inside. It is completely outdoors. I think it is quite an assumption that the weather will always be nice enough that you do not necessitate a roof for your mall. The individual stores do have roofs of course.
Last time, I was in Irvine (Foothill Ranch) I had to laugh. It is so funny. For anyone that has ever seen Laguna Beach, they are not pretending. That is really how all of the kids around here are. One of the kids that went to Moscow with me the first time went through a lot of cultural shock. He'd never really seen any place with poverty or where everything is not perfectly in place. I've been assignment now with a few OC kids and I have developed a set of questions for them. So far, none of them have had mothers that have ever had a job while they were living or cooked dinner every night. In fact, most of these "stay at home moms" do not really know how to cook. They don't garden. Some of them clean. What do they do? They go to the gym, go to lunch with their friends, go tanning, and don't forget… They must frequent the lovely outdoor mall! This is amazing to me. I want to know where I can sign up!
OK… I started some albums to contain my travel photos and such. I have downloaded some Flat Stanley pics. Here it is: http://community.webshots.com/user/asarnoci

Tonight, I have a firm function that I can actually make! I am having dinner with some partners. I will let everyone know how it goes.
In the mean time, I know you are all ridiculously busy getting ready for the holidays! I am thinking of all of you.
Happy Holidays!
Warmest wishes,
Amanda

En Route Home: Delays, Stanley and the Artic Tundra 121905

Greetings from about 35,000 feet about the Arctic Tundra of Canada! There is ice and snow for as far as the eye can see.
Many of you on this list may know John Moody, my former colleague from MBNA. Well, John asked me to do a Flat Stanley for his son's school project. Some of you may know of this project. It is based off of a book about a boy who is flattened by a billboard and then mails himself to a friend for an adventure. Now, Stanley is sent all over with different people for adventures. I will attach some Stanley pictures. They are funny.
So, this morning before my flight I went around Moscow (as much as possible at 8 a.m.) and took some pictures of Stanley. People were looking at me like I was crazy! They are right.
One of the exciting parts of this flight has been Greenland. There is nothing even remotely green about Greenland. In fact, I think it might just be a huge joke. Greenland looks like a big, snowy iceberg! I looked for polar bears, but they are hard to spot at 30K feet. In fact, I could not see any flora or fauna. It is very odd!
I saw a bunch of people that I flew in with in the hotel lobby this morning. They were all coming here to adopt, and they had their new additions with them. It is so heart warming! I love to talk to the kids (the ones that are old enough). They are always so excited to go to America and so proud and thankful to have their new parents. I also think they are often very thankful to speak to someone who understands them and can communicate with them and their parents. The parents often have translators with them, but the translators don't really take the time to just talk to the kids unless the kids want something. I think it is a cultural thing. Also, the translators are only with them when they go to the orphanage, so when they are at the hotel, the communication is limited.
My Russian has been improving dramatically. With each trip to Russia, my fluency is getting better and better. I think the biggest improvement has been with the speed of my reading. Before, I had a hard time reading signs, especially on the highway, but now, I am doing so with ease. This has been very helpful with my work, as some of the tests that I have to do involve reading parts of contracts in Russian.
I'm thinking of making a web site to post travel reports and pictures. Let me know if anyone has any suggestions.
So, the first flight that I was on left the gate about 20 minutes late. When we got into the air, I saw that we had 170 mph headwinds, so I knew that we were not going to make up time. We ended up landing 45 minutes late. It gets worse though! When we landed, we didn't have a gate, so we sat on the tarmac another 30 minutes. Mind you, as this was my "first port of entry" into the US, I was required to go through immigration, retrieve my luggage, go through customs, re-check my luggage, go through security, then go to the gate for my connection to LA. So, finally we get a gate, most of the plane has already missed their connections. I was supposed to have a 1 hr 55 min layover. By the time, I was waiting for my luggage, I had 30 minutes left. My luggage was one of the last to come off the conveyor. I got through customs amazingly fast. Of course, in security, I am behind this lady who just adopted a Russian baby and has about a million things to put through the conveyor. Thankfully, the security guard waved me ahead of her. So, I sprinted through the airport to my gate. I didn't take time to put my shoes on or put my laptop in my bag. My plane was set to leave at 5:55 p.m. EST. I arrived completely out of breath at the gate at 5:54 p.m. to be told that my flight was delayed until 7:00 p.m. I was so happy. So, I put my shoes on and hauled over to the other terminal. By the time I arrived there, everyone was in line for seat reassignment. Well, another hour later (7:40 p.m.), my flight had still not boarded. We finally boarded, just to be told that the first officer had not yet arrived. We sat on the ground for at least another hour. Finally, I arrived back in LA. My luggage was found. Yea! Claron and I arrived home at approximately 2 a.m. PST in Santa Barbara.
I have adjusted to the time well. Claron and I attempted some Christmas shopping yesterday. What madness! I did get a lot of it done abroad thankfully. Today, I am working from home. Tim, Claron's brother is set to come in this weekend for Christmas. We are very excited to see him.
Anyway, I'm happy to be home. Today is my mom's birthday! So, happy birthday, Mom! We love you!
Hope everyone has a great holiday.
Cheers!
Amanda

Moscow: Working all day, "partying" all night 121605

Привет, семья и друзей!
To recap: For those you that I just added, this is my travel log. I am currently in Moscow, Russia. It has been an interesting trip so far. I had tons of visa issues. I had to fly home from Sweden just to get a visa. It was an extra 24 hours of flying! Then I almost didn't get it at home as my "invitation" to Russia was sent to Sweden. The airline lost my luggage when I got here, and my coat was in it! It was brutally cold at the time, but I survived. I did get it back a few days later. My driver didn't show up one day, and I ended up getting really lost in Moscow (Someone told me the wrong Metro (subway) station). I found my way home eventually. Everything else has been okay though.
Apparently, I have everyone concerned that I am about to die of hypothermia and starvation. Please rest assured. I am fine. I have my coat, and Yuri now picks me up on time every morning. He learned his lesson! =-) And, I have broken down and started ordering room service. Of course, the food here is crap, unless you get real Russian food. Most of what is at the hotel is not real Russian food.
Yes, I have been working all day and "partying" all night. That is of course, if you define party as sitting at my computer and working (well, and some procrastinating, i.e. writing e-mails to my friends and family). This is one of the biggest draw backs of working internationally. I work all day, go home, and the US is just getting up. Then they all want to talk to me. Last night, I went to the company holiday party. It was quite fun. I must say it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, except for the meat jello. That did not surprise me! I was expecting everyone to get drunk, but no one did. It was actually very similar in format to an American Christmas party. They talked about the year, gave out presents, and danced. The food was interesting. It was Russian fare… different salads (I can't understand the affinity for mayonnaise, but hey! whatever makes them happy), meats (of course meat jello and lots of pork), desserts (chocolate macaroon rolls, and this stuff that is kind of like a mix between mousse and flan, but with way less sugar), and beers, wine, and juices. The dancing was interesting… we shall say that they dance to their own beat. Also, way more men danced than in the States. It was still a 4-1 girl to guy ratio though.
It has been an interesting week. I have gotten into arguments with a taxi driver (He kept telling me that the address I was giving him for the hotel was wrong and he didn't know where it was to run up the meter!) and the hotel (hence, why I changed rooms. They told me that they had overbooked the hotel and I no longer had a room. The travel manager here cleared things up though; however, this is after I had packed my stuff, checked out, and brought my bags to work!). Russian inefficiency drives me up the wall!!!
The accounting department at the company that I've been auditing threw me a birthday party. It was really nice of them. They brought me some gifts and sang me happy birthday. It was really nice of then. Then, tonight, the other American from the company I'm auditing and I went to dinner. We went to a Georgian restaurant. Georgian food is really good. It is very similar to Greek food, but definitely has some Russian influence.
Fashion Report: As you know, I report on the fashion in each city. In Moscow, there is some of the "Tattered Eskimo" look that I saw in London, but mostly, it is "Cold Tramp". This look involves tall boots, fur coats, and lots of makeup. Under the coat, the see-through shirts are still around. There were quite a few of the infamous see-through shirts at the holiday party last night. Everyone was considerate enough to wear undergarments under them though. There is a haircut that I see a lot here on the boys my brother, D's, age. I will call it the "Punk Mullet". The punk mullet is Billy Ray Cyrus crossed with Syd Vicious. It is long in the back (not quite Nascar long though) and shaved on the sides. I have seen the Punk Mullet elsewhere in Europe, but they are way worse in Moscow. I have to agree with those that have said that the Punk Mullet is way worse than the Faux-hawk of London.
Music Report: MTV Russia is soso. It is nothing special. I tend to watch MTV UK which I can get here in Russia. I will attach the links to the videos that I like. The songs are okay, but it is the videos that are funny. We don't have them in the States.
http://www.altsounds.com/vbulletin/hangout/upload/lastpostinthread42593.html
http://www.clickmusic.com/videos/articles/video_hardfi__cash_machine.cfm
http://www.jcbsong.co.uk/jcbvideo.asp
Anyway, sorry that I have lax on my e-mails. I haven't been doing anything but working. I hope all is well in the US.
I'll be back soon!
Cheers!
Аманда

Lost in Russia 121205

What a way to start the day! First, I must tell you that my luggage arrived at 11:30 p.m. last night. I think everything is in it. I can't find my nylons. That is probably just me forgetting them though. I have a coat though!
In any case, it didn't matter that my luggage was so late as I didn't sleep last night. I am really thrown off by the time and a bit worked up about everything that I need to get done. I finally went to bed at 6:30 a.m. This morning I had my wakeup call at 8 a.m., and I actually got up because I was afraid to miss my driver. So, I got a grand total of 1.5 hours of sleep last night.
I went downstairs at 8:15 a.m. The driver was to arrive at 8:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. passes and then 9:00 a.m. then 9:15 a.m. and still no driver. Previously, I had asked which Metro station the office was at. Everyone had told me Novoslobodskaya, and that it was very easy from the Metro station. So, I hauled my butt to Belorusskaya Metro station, bought some tickets. I took the train to Novoslobodskaya. I have never seen so many people jammed into one place in my life. The Moscow Metro in the morning makes NYC look like a ghost town. I exit the Metro into the city and it looks nothing like the area of the office. I walked for an hour and a half and must've asked at least 20 people if they knew where Vyatskaya Ulitsa was (in Russian of course). No one knew. I walked until my legs were numb from the cold. I guess this is just the exercise portion of my special Russian diet. Finally, I looked for a taxi. I could not find a taxi. So, I went back to the Metro station and went back to the hotel. Alexei was waiting there for me. So, I made it to work today. I, of course, didn't eat breakfast this morning as I refuse to pay $15 for breakfast. However, two cups of tea and some Trident, and I am feeling better. I am making one concession at the hotel. I am paying $28/day for the internet.
For all my lamenting about Russia, there are a few things that I like. I really like seeing the adopting couples. They always have such a light in their eyes as they are coming to meet their baby or pick up their baby. Two of the people that lost their luggage with me were going to pick up their 10 month old in Siberia. She was so upset because all of the supplies for the baby were in her luggage and she was supposed to leave the next day to go to Siberia. I also like the subway stations. They are very lovely. I have a new favorite. In Novoslobodskaya, there are the most amazing stained glass scenes. I will try to find a picture to attach. I found some. They are courtesy of one Mark Thomas.
So, I'll end on a happy note. I'd better get to work! I have tons to do.
Cheers!
Amanda

Welcome to Moscow. We hope you freeze to death. 121105

Greetings, friends and family!
Yesterday afternoon I arrived in Russia. I amazingly got through passport control with no issues. This is where my luck ended. I waited at the luggage carousel. The carousel stopped and no Amanda luggage. They lost my luggage. It had my coat in it. Yes, I know this was not the best idea! Trust me, right now I fully understand. Luckily, my hat, gloves and scarf were in my computer bag, and I was wearing a wool sweater. Hotel reception told me that they receive two shipments of luggage from the airport each day. No one ever said that Russia is efficient!
And before everyone starts giving me advice to carry on a bag with my coat and another pair of clothes, I have to carry on my laptop. It is company policy not to check them, and it would be a real disaster if they lost my laptop. I would then be unable to work, and I would have lost all work that was completed Sweden. Also, according to all airline policies, you are only allowed one carry on and one personal item. Maybe if I get a smaller bag for my laptop, it could be my personal item?
Yuri, my driver from last time, was thankfully there to pick me up at the airport. On the way home, there was this billboard for a cell phone company. Instead of giving away free cell phones, the billboard advertised a free "Alkosensor" with your cell phone plan. I asked Yuri was an "Alkosensor" was. Yuri informed me that an "Alkosensor" is a device to detect blood alcohol levels. I asked whether this is common and yes, out pulls Yuri his own "Alkosensor." Only in Russia! So, friends and family for Christmas, "Alkosensors" for everyone! Just kidding!
Anyway, as I was waiting to check in at the hotel, I started talking to another American who was planning on going to the city. As I was giving him advice, another American came up. He'd been living in Russia for about 3 months. Doug works for BP is from Houston and has 5 kids with 4 in college. Dave, the guy I first talked to, is from Bountiful, UT is the only non-member in the city works for Intel and has 3 kids. They are super nice and happy to have me as they do not speak any Russian. Doug said that his driver (Yes, no Americans drive in Moscow, even if you live here.) was taking him to the bazaar to buy souvenirs. This is the cheapest place to buy souvenirs. He said that he wasn't planning on staying long but wanted to pick some things up. He invited me and Dave to come along.
So against my better judgment (yes, no coat) I went along. We had a great time. It is true that the souvenirs were much, much cheaper at the bazaar and it is an "experience." However, it is the coldest weather that I have ever experienced in my life (and yes, I just left Sweden). I should have gotten the clue when I saw the Moscow River frozen over. There were people literally walking across the Moscow river. When I say "river", I don't mean river like the Platte. I mean river like the Elk.
By the time that we were done shopping, my hands were frost bitten through my gloves. I couldn't feel my hands, feet or legs. Even though I came home and took a hot bath (which was extremely painful), my hands still burn from the frost bite. I wasn't the only one though. The guys, even with their coats, also were extremely frost bitten. We were outside maybe an hour.
I was supposed to go out to dinner with the other expats, but I fell asleep and missed dinner. The jet lag is crap! I am 11 hours ahead of CA now. I am living on Trident White (yes, the gum!) as I do not want to leave the hotel and am too stubborn to pay the hotel prices. It is a great "diet" though-- a smaller waist and sparkly white teeth (especially as my toothbrush is also in my suitcase)!
So, I'm here in Moscow. I have 1 pair of jeans, 1 T-shirt, 1 sweater, sneakers, my laptop, a stick of deodorant (I luckily threw it in my laptop bag last minute), my hat, gloves and scarf, and some Trident White. We'll see if I can make it a whole week on this. It is Survivor… Russian-style. No make-up, hairbrush, glasses, saline, extra contacts, toothbrush, clean underwear or COAT! Did I forget to say that it is snowing and the wind chills are negative? Oh, and if my contacts fail, I'm blind too!
When I called for my luggage last night, they said they have no clue where my luggage is and to call back this morning. I received an answering machine which said that they don't answer the phone between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Oh, well!
I hope all is well with the Christmas craze at home. Here, Christmas isn't until Jan 7, but New Years is much different than at home. There is a holiday craze here as well, but it is a bit different. First, no Santa. Here it is Father Frost, who is much skinnier than Santa. Also, no Merry Christmas signs. They all say "Happy New Years." I haven't seen any Christmas lights (except on the tree in the lobby).
Cheers!
Amanda
P.S. - Let me know if anyone knows Andrew's, Uncle Den's, Aunt Ev's or Paula's e-mail addresses.

Where in the World is Amanda? 120205

Hello friends and family,
OK… Plans are a-changin' again. I'm still in Sweden right now. As you may have heard, the Russian consulate here in Stockholm gave me some issues. I was unable to procure my visa in the time period needed. Therefore, I will be flying back to the States on Saturday (tomorrow). I will be home for one week. I can obtain a visa the same day in the US. I will then fly to Russia on 10 Dec (I will fly via Atlanta. Frieda, I will send you my itinerary.). I will return to the States 17 Dec.
There is good news in all of this… while I will be in Russia for my birthday (blah! 21 again!), I will be home for my wedding anniversary.
In other good news, we have firmed up our trip to Mexico. We will be going to San Felipe. This is the northern most tourist area on the Sea of Cortes. Everything I read about the Sea of Cortes raves about how stellar it is. I will let you know.
Anyway, I've got to run. Today is my last day in Stockholm and I have so much to do, and I was up all night making travel arrangements due to the blasted time difference.
Best regards,
Amanda

Update: Still in Sweden 112905

Hello,
Just wanted to give everyone a quick update. I have been working with Claron's friend, Aaron, to come up with a lovely trip for the week after Christmas. I will keep everyone up to date on what we find. Right now, I think we are down to Catalina, Rosarito, or San Felipe (on the Sea of Cortez in Mexico).
I am feeling much better today. No more coughing or fevers. I still have some sort of stomach virus though. I'm thinking positive though. This stomach virus is definitely helps to make me ready for the beach!
Tomorrow, I have to go to the Russian consulate to get my visa for Russia. Hopefully, it will be okay. Having previously dealt with Russian bureaucracy, I am skeptical. Keeping this in mind, I am set to be home (Los Angeles) some time the weekend of 10 December-- barring of course any difficulties with the Russian gov't. I have to fly back to London then to LA. It also looks like there will be some sort of layover with that trip as well. When I get home, I am still not sure where I am scheduled… the joys of consulting!
OK… so, here are more positives and negatives for my Sweden trip.
Positives:
The bathroom floor of my hotel room is heated!
Everyone leaves at 5 p.m. and expects you to do the same.
Everyone is super nice.
They take credit cards everywhere. (And, all over Europe, they bring the credit card machine to your restaurant table!)
They have the coolest coffee machine ever. (Yes, I know I don't drink coffee. I can't even stand the smell, but it is quite interesting to watch this machine. It grinds, then brews and shows you the whole process. It can also make tea and hot chocolate and add foam.)
I have a lovely view of the water and the snow covered inn from my room.
Everything has interesting design.
Bad UK fashion is not here (No tattered Eskimo or rumpled bag lady looks!).
I have yet to see a "faux-hawk".
MTV and Comedy Central are here. I watched Pimp My Ride, South Park and Chappelle Show last night! I also can watch Letterman. No more bad BBC mystery dramas!
Free wireless internet in the hotel. Trust me, this may sound small until you go to a hotel that only has dial up and charges you 15 pounds a day for it.
Super food! It may just be my hotel, but the food has been amazing, especially the bread. (Not that I've been able to eat too much. See above.)
Less smoking than in the UK.
Sweden has very health-minded and environmentally-conscious people.
Negatives:
The sun doesn't rise until 8:15 a.m. and sets at 3 p.m.
Ice!
There are no cash machines anywhere.
I can't figure the phone out at the hotel.
"Ice skating" to work.
The time difference is horrible!
Truths:
Yes, everything looks like Ikea. Yes, I have seen more Volvos than ever in my life. No, everyone is not blonde. Yes, those Ballerina cookies from Ikea are popular here. Yes, there are not many fat people. No, everyone is not tall. Yes, it is quite expensive. No, I have yet to see Swedish meatballs (this does not mean they are not here!).
Today I went to McDonald's for lunch. Yes, I know it is bad. But I find it interesting to go to Donald's around the world.
Back to work!
Amanda

Foggy London and Snowy Sweden 112805

Hello, friends and family--
I am currently in Heathrow airport. It is huge! I took the underground (aka Tube) here. The train system here is so nice and simple. The airport, however, is another story. OK, so you know how in the US, you check in then there are signs directing you where to go…. Well, it is a bit interesting on that note. Then do you know how you know which gate you go to from check in. Well, it is 5:40 p.m. I start boarding at 6:15 p.m. and my gate is still not listed. Actually, it is not empty. It does list, "Please wait."
Thoughts on London:
Positives:
It is truly an interesting point in the world. It is not a melting pot. There are so many interesting and distinct cultures here.
The city itself is lovely.
The tube can get you anywhere (but it does close fairly early. I think 1 a.m.).
There is so much history.
The people are pretty nice.
The city is making quite an effort to clean itself up. All over you see street workers cleaning the streets.
The people are not as racist as in the US. They are more accepting of other cultures. Oh, and the black people are much different here than in the States. They even look different.
I saw a "Smart" RX-8. I'm still not quite sure what it was.
Getting anywhere in Europe is easy from here.
They already have clean diesel!
Negatives:
It is so expensive!
The food is pretty bland. The Indian is good though!
It is cold.
Some of the people are rude and hate Americans.
Smoking! Everywhere! They are getting better about controlling it though.
OK… So, now I'm in Sweden. It is truly beautiful here. My hotel is absolutely fabulous!-- think Ikea + the Ritz + Nautical = the Hotel J Nacka Strand. It is right on the water too.
So far, here is my preliminary list for Sweden:
Positives:
Things make sense here. Everything seems to be fairly practical.
The people are pretty.
The city is gorgeous!
Believe it or not, the language is not that hard to understand (to read anyway). Think German Jar Jar Binks-style (Don't tell Jerry I said that!).
It is snowing… It really makes it feel like Christmas.
I'm definitely getting a workout! Walking up and down the mountain back and forth to work. (Up hill both ways in the snow! Seriously!)
They have these great cookies for Christmas. They are like thin ginger snaps.
EVERYONE speaks English… and fairly well.
The city has never burnt down or been bombed, so most of the history is still intact.
Negatives:
Cold, cold, cold
I still haven't been out much. I just got here of course. Anyway, I'd better get to work. I have lots to do!
Cheers!
Amanda