St Petersburg Expatriate

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that no one else is blogging from St. Petersburg. We've been living here since 2000 and I think I am the only American retiree. Although St Pete appears cosmopolitan it's rare to hear an American accent on Nevsky Prospect and we don't have ready access to foreign newspapers as, say, Paris does.

I found the British library on Fontanka within a year but had a lot of trouble finding the English language library, which it turns out is in the same building! Also on Fontanka are two bookstores which cater to English, French, and German speakers. I am contemplating ordering some books from Amazon as I have read through much of the limited selection of classical authors the library and bookstores offer.

Living in Russia is generally a positive experience if you can recognize the good as well as notice the bad. I have had extensive experience with the Russian hospitals and cardiologists. Sometimes the results have been good, sometimes disappointing.

Now the days are getting shorter and darker and colder!

My wife Larissa and I enjoy cooking, with my specialties being American stews, Scottish meatloaf and mince, and Italian dishes. My other great enthusiasms are reading books and the internet, and collecting rough gems from shore stones along the waters of the Volga.

We spend June, July, and August at a little village where my wife's cousin has a farm... wonderful scenery, delicious milk, and tasty vegetables from our garden! We, along with much of St. Pete, anticipate life at the dacha as a balancer to life in a big city.

I plan to concentrate on one topic or experience each week and look forward to any questions you would like to ask.