Autumn in New York

Zooming through the parkways in my red Kia mini-van, I feast my eyes on the beautiful colors that pass by. I love autumn. Everything about it is appealing. First, it is harvest time, meaning lots of festivals featuring corn, apples, pumpkins, squash, and so much more. My favorite holiday, Halloween, is celebrated. And, Thanksgiving, that usurper of my birthday, presents a reason to get together and eat, eat, eat! The colors are so warm and the crisp weather invites snuggling under warm blankets. There is no other season that makes me sigh with contentment the way this one does.

Since my job keeps me outside, I have had the opportunity to really appreciate the change of the seasons. I am delighted by the rainy and windy days just as much as the sunny days. Being in extreme weather makes me feel alive, it awakens the struggle to live within me. I love my umbrella being taken away by the wind and stomping through the puddles in my boots. Sometimes you can go through trails where the leaves fall like rain and you are encircled by a swirl of colors. The smell of the leaves and the crunch underfoot make me feel like I am the little girl in the Secret Garden.

I have been working for the Student Conservation Association since July and have had the opportunity to see a lot of the state parks in New York. It has provided me with a unique experience. Recently, we have been working on the Green Belt Trail and building picnic tables for the parks. Both, good work.

What else has fall brought me? Well, I have had the opportunity to check out a part of New Jersey that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise and to try sailing for the first time, thanks to a special guy.

I have also been trying to concentrate on doing the things I set out to do in NYC. I have been going out and enjoying the city. I am studying for grad school and I am trying to make my apartment feel like home. The last endeavor is the most difficult. I've come to realize, people make home, home, not the place. Though, my roommate and I have gone from the Dark Ages to the 21st century, in the fact that we started with absolutely nothing, not even furniture, to now having a couch, kitchen table, and even Internet.

There haven't been too many exciting adventure that are typical of my blog but living in NYC is a whole different kind of excitement. I am independent and wholly responsible for myself. It presents moments of congratulations and of disappointment in myself.

From Spring to Fall, so much has happened and continues to happen. Who would want to know what the future holds? Isn't the mystery enough to make you jump out of bed in the morning?

The Wild World of Leslie

Since internet is still difficult to get even thought I live in New York City, I have been slacking on the blog writing. But here is what I have been up to!

Found an apartment! Well, technically, Zach found the apartment. We are living in Brooklyn! The apartment is great and the neighborhood is growing on me, not unlike a rash would! But it is great fun.

This is our first meal in the new apartment with absolultely no furniture! :)

Most exciting was the wedding of my sister Colletta! She married a wonderful guy and I am totally jealous! Now she has the most beautiful, clever, and cute son and an equally awesome hubby! Congratulations Colletta!!

As for other things, I will post more later. Things are moving at the speed of light here. Next, I might detail some dating I have been doing! We shall see!!

London, the 3rd time, the best of those times!

On my way home, I decided to stop by this little village, unknown to most people called, London. All I can saw is, "Yes, please!" I had the most amazing visit. I got to drink wine in the middle of the afternoon by a beautiful river, a private tour of parliament, a warm and inviting house to enjoy, not to mention, the best company and conversation in the world. I will definitely book with the Maddy-Kate-Fiona-Jen-Jon Tour Agency again!












Thank you so much! I had such a great time. I won't be able to out do you in New York but you gotta let me try. I hope to see you all here soon!

Saying Goodbye to Moscow

Leaving Moscow was one of those bitter sweet moments in life. I could make lists upon lists of reasons why leaving was the best decision I had ever made but at the same time, I did not want to leave aspects of my life there.




Moscow taught me lots of things. I learned, surprisingly, that I like people. It was fun to break down people's barriers, tease out a smile from their grim street faces, and destroy stereotypes of what you expect from certain types of people. In the end, I learned that Moscow has some of the best people in the world. With every interaction I had, it made my decision to study social work even easier. I would recommend to anyone, that if you need to test yourself, find out what you are made of, then spend a year in Moscow.


So to say goodbye to Moscow properly is to say goodbye to all of it's wonderful people (of course, not all of them are pictured here, the kiosk ladies would not let me photograph them! hahaha).

Irkutsk, Russia

What reaction does the word "Irkutsk" provoke in you? Perhaps nothing, perhaps disdain, or even perhaps delight. Well, what about the word "platzcart" aka 3rd class? Anything yet? Ok, well what if I put those two words together and tell you that is how I am taking a holiday? I already performed this experiment and the first reaction was: Why? and then What? Oh, perhaps I traveled there just for the pure joy of seeing people's utter astonishment! Every person had the same reaction when I told them about my upcoming adventure.


Well what ensued was a very pleasant journey by train by 3 days, with a few interesting stories. Then a visit to the deepest lake in the world, where the only fresh water seals in the world live. Finally, a great time in one of the nicest Russian cities I have been to.


When Ruth and I sat down in our carriage and gave each other excited grins, we noticed a noise that was getting closer and closer. When we turned our heads we notice it was 20 eleven year old boys getting on the train. We prayed they would pass through out carriage to the next, but alas, they didn't. All the Russian conversation we had planned was slipping through our fingers. What we got instead was constant entertainment. They were a rugby team that had won their championship game and were victoriously heading home. They wrestled, fought, covered each other in ketchup, ran, jumped, climbed, patched their seats with band aids, and ate, ate, ate. Any desire to have kids vanished. We survived somehow and we ended up drinking and speaking with their coaches.


We had beautiful weather in Irkutsk for the first two days. Then we it rained for two days. Irkutsk was a simple city to figure out and also surprising in a lot of ways. First, the people were really friendly. In a book store a young security guard (kinda cute) talked to us for like a half hour trying to help us find some books to read. It was great. We also saw a film at the coolest theatre I had ever been to. It had huge reclining chairs and phones to order food as you watched. Fantastic! Also, there were many more traditional style houses in Irkutsk. Some of the frames around the windows were quite impressive.


Oh and the Lake, I shouldn't forget about that. It was big! Really big! I was surprised. The best part of it, I must say, was seeing the seals in their tiny and pathetic museum of Lake Baikal. They were super cute. There needs to be more work done to promote tourism around the lake. We had trouble finding trails to explore the expansive forest. It could be much more interesting if someone would just invest in it.


I don't know if I would recommend this trip to your average traveler but it was just right for Ruth and I.

Euro Vision and Adventures in the Garden

The Portugese Group:
As you might be aware, the Eurovision song contest just took place. I was amoung the "lucky" few who got to go and see it thanks to one of my lovely friends who took me with her. So the performances were good but it was over in two hours. Then we watched the voting and they told us Germany won. I don't know how things go, I thought it would be live but some things are pre-recorded. I have no idea what happened. Perhaps we just saw some part of the voting and not all of it. In any case, it was fun. I am probably one of the very few Americans who has gone to Eurovision. What an honor. I did like a few of the songs even. I liked the entry from Iceland and from Portugal.

The Greek Group:The French group:After the concert my friend took me back to her apartment for tea and let me play with her bird. It was a great day!

Then I spent an afternoon in the botanical gardens with two friends but it certainly wasn't what I had expected. First, no flowers. Second, we got a tiny bit lost. And when I say "we", I mean, I wasn't supposed to pay attention, so I didn't and was absolutely useless when trying to get back to the car. I did however pick up on the tracks of a horse that had gone our way. I knew those fake tracking skills I pretended to have would pay off someday! We had a really good time. We answered questions like, if we were lost and had to eat someone, who would it be. You know the important questions of life! It was just good to walk and talk with good company.

This is Seva and Tema.This is Seva and Tema reaching for a big stick. Sticks were a theme of our journey through the garden.The Russian Entry:

The Sultanate of Oman

After a long absence I am back with one of my lastest trips. Todd and I took a week break from the snow and clouds of Moscow for sunny and hot Oman. It was a great trip and it destroyed some of my fears that Egypt had created about the Arab world.

First, we flew to Dubai. We wanted to know what all the fuss was about. Why were so many rappers singing about flying there for the weekend? (Well I only know one. Justin Timberlake sings about it and for that I am ashamed.) To be honest, I don't really see the appeal of the city. Everything is new and expansive. You can't walk anywhere. The free, public beaches were the only thing that really appealed to us. Since, most of the people in Dubai aren't native, we fit right in when we went to the beach. Plus, we went to one which is nicknamed the "Russian" beach and it felt like we were hanging out in an alternate, sunny Moscow. It will be interesting to see the progression of Dubai.

From Dubai, we took a bus to Muscat, the capital of Oman. It is amazing to see that a country that had very little infastructure could grow so much after only 4o years. The current Sultan overthrew his father in the 70s and since then, he has tried to modernize the country. Now, there are paved roads, everyone has a higher standard of living, and they participate in global economics and politics.


We went snorkling and sightseeing in Muscat. Then we took a guided tour for three days to the mountains. It was interesting to see mountains without trees. I've seen pictures of it but it was really surprising. Also, it was funny to see goats roaming the hillsides. They are expert climbers. Unbelievable. Not to mention, they are really quite good at stealing your lunch. That is what they did to Todd and I! Who knew that goats were so agressive. Lesson learned.

Our guide was a really nice man. He spoke Arabic, English, and Swahili. Apparently, Oman had some involvement in the slave trade, so there is a close connection to Africa. The people in general in Oman were quite nice. We never felt harassed and they respected us. Of course we had almost no interaction with women, which is too bad. Todd did, however, make some young girls run from him when he came close to where they were sitting. He wanted to use the ATM but I think they thought he was going to grab one and haul her off! It was really quite hilarious. :)

This certainly wasn't a backpacker's holiday. We saw very few Americans that weren't military but I would recommend it. It was a great, safe place to see Arab culture. Plus, it is a fantastic break from the cold if you are living in a northernly country.