Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Krasnoyarsk - April 11 -13

The China and Russia picture albums have been posted.  You can access them from the icon on the left.
Sams enjoying a ride
Sam playing in the pond
Monday we had a good day hanging out together.  It is a joy to just play with the Sam and Sophie and be a part of the world.  One of those joys was to watch Sophie take here her first few steps when Lucas put her at arms length from him and encouraged her to take the steps.  She actually did it twice but not again yet.  Jamie went to class in the morning and after naps, we took a walk to a park a few blocks from here they call rocket park because you walk through a space ship at the main entrance, there are space ship garbage cans and there are other decorations representing space ships.  As Sam enjoyed playing in the pond, mom and grandma were expressing their nervousness about him falling in.  He was pushing the limits of his balance but was sure enjoying himself.  The weather was beautiful but we were reminded why spring is not the most beautiful time of year. After the kids went to bed we played a game of Wizard with Lucas and Jamie and had a snack.  It was a relaxing, enjoyable day and we sure enjoy being with them in their home. 

View of Krasnoyarsk by the river
Tuesday Sam went to his preschool (8am-12:30).  Lucas, Jamie, Sophie, Roger and I took a bus downtown to walk around and see what downtown Krasnoyarsk looks like.  There is a large river that goes through the city.  There was still snow around the river and on the hills on the other side, but the day was sunny and warm and so nice to be out.  We walked on a path by the river for a while and it was so quiet and peaceful…you would not imagine that there was a bustling, dusty city a block away.  The sky was so blue and we saw a few trees with tiny buds beginning to poke out.  Jamie said the river is very busy with boat traffic in the summer and in the winter (to the north a bit where the roads become impassable) they actually freeze extra layers of water on the river once it is frozen to make it strong enough for large semi trucks to drive on.  They just do a lane big enough for the trucks but I thought that was interesting.
Corner toy store in Krasnoyarsk
Street in Krasnoyarsk
As we left the river and walked around town we saw many different types of buildings….some of the old block buildings and some with more character...and getting some historical facts on the locations and statues.  There was a dome we could see a ways off so went to see what it was and it was the original hospital in the area…pretty dilapidated and we were relived to find out it was not in use anymore!   We also saw people dismantling the winter decorations of lights that were quite extravagant.  One place was where Lucas and Jamie brought the kids and Sam slid down a very long and steep ice slide which today was actually stairs.  We saw a video of the sliding earlier and it was amazing how it had been transformed.  A lot of parks we were walking thru this day that are muddy and dirty had ice sculptures and ice slides just a month ago.  I am kind of sorry we missed all that…but then again we have that freezing cold weather issue 
:) ….  
University Lucas and Jamie attend
Historical hospital 
We went by a Cinnabon and decided to go in to see if they had a bathroom and decided to have a snack too while we were there…it was a nice treat…  then we headed to the university where Lucas had an afternoon class.  We walked around a local market for a bit…Roger bought a leather cap…they actually had one big enough for his head…the lady selling it kept exclaiming that he had a very large head!!  DUH!  When Lucas had to leave to go to class we got on the bus and headed home.  The bus was quite crowded and I felt like the middle of a sandwich for awhle and was so thankful for a young girl who stood to give me her seat…not that I appreciate that she thot I was old and all but it has its advantages.  Jamie got to sit too because they are always quick to give their seats up for someone holding a child.
When we got home Jamie and I went to pick up Sam.  His preschool is in the apt. complex which is really nice.  He ran to me and gave me a big hug….made my day!!  (it is going to kill me to leave!) 
Dinner with Cleo and Jan (Cleo shown)
In the afternoon after naps a couple French girls came over for dinner.  They are in the classes that Lucas and Jamie take.  They have made a lot of friends (the foreign students) and have them over often for meals and hanging out.  One of the girls said she did not like to fly so when she came here she took the train and it took her 5 days, 6 nights to get here from Paris….wow…that is along train ride.   It was fun talking to them and hearing their perspective on Russia and the school here.  Jamie made delicious pasta for dinner and we were talking about not having dessert so one of the girls sliced up bananas and drizzled dark chocolate (that she had brot) and some preserved cherries on top and made it so pretty…tasted great too!
Having fun in Krasnoyarsk
After the girls left and the kids were in bed we sat and talked about life in Siberia for Lucas and Jamie since they came.  They were telling some stories of funny things we had not heard…funny now…not so funny when they were going thru it…but the Father is good and helped them during that time in ways we never could have so I know I can trust Him with them in the future as well.


Throwing stones off the bridge
Trying to break a stick
Sams lunch plate
Wednesday started off another beautiful day…warm breeze…sun…blue sky.  We decided to take the kids to the rocket park we had been to before and eat lunch at a fun restaurant near there.  We a great time at the park….spent time playing on the stage, Sam running around and throwing stones in a pond with Grandpa and playing with some sticks from some of the spring pruning.  Sophie was napping in the stroller most of the time.  It seemed like all of a sudden the wind changed and the temps dropped…not terribly cold but enough to feel cold since we did not dress too warm.  Dark clouds began to roll in and we were wondering if we might get drenched.  Fortunately it was about time to for the restaurant to open so we went there.  While we had lunch it rained quite a bit and we were thankful not to be caught out in it with the kids.  The place we ate was decorated like a farm house…sort of…and had teckno music as it was next to rocket park.  It was very kid friendly which I think is a rare thing here.  As soon as we sat down they brot Sam some dough, apple pieces, and sugar to make his own apple turnover.  Then they took it and baked it for him.  Then there were colored pencils and pictures to color…..and even balloons. The food was really good too.  Lucas ordered borscht and we tried some and it was pretty good….beet soup with some meat in it.  Sam’s plate came out with a face on it using mashed potatoes for the hair, cucumber slices for the eyes, hamburger for the nose and catsup for the smile…it was really cute.

Enjoying the weather
While we were eating it had rained and when we got outside it was still sprinkling a bit so we hightailed it home…a 10 min walk and we managed to stay fairly dry.  This evening some Chinese students from the University are coming over for supper.

Rocket Park

1 comment:

  1. nice to see you in my hometown krskru@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete