October 6 - Day 19

It is cold. It is dreary. It hasn’t stopped raining in days and I am pretty sure there is no end in sight. There also appears to be no end to the construction on the roof that wakes me up bright and early each day. Today I was so excited because due to a schedule change I was to have the entire morning to sleep in. The very loud, slightly crude Russian men outside my bedroom door at 7:30 in the morning had other things in mind. I laid there telling myself not to fight it, the hammering, the JACK HAMMERING, will never end. I had just gotten back to sleep when a guy on my floor knocked on my door bearing ear-plugs and a smug grin in return for a favor. At that point I had no need for the ear-plugs and figured the best use of my time would be sharing the hell with someone else. I went in and crawled under the covers in Bob’s room, forcing him to fill me in on all the details I missed from the previous day’s acting class. He talked and I drifted in and out of sleep with my feet in that poor boy’s face. It was just like slumber parties we used to have in college when we would spend rainy Saturday mornings curled up in somebody’s bunk bed waiting out the storm. It was fantastic and exactly what I needed. We only had our acting class today and Igor was the sole instructor. I have to be honest; I have a total mentor crush on him. He is absolutely stupendous and he makes me laugh until my insides hurt. Today he told the most hilarious story about an accidental run in he had with pot when he was on tour in the States and even though I heard what the translator was saying, he was completely clear using only his eyes. He is such a fantastic actor. I cannot wait to se his next production. After class Katherine and I wanted to go in search of good food and a place with internet access. Katiya, one of out Russian ‘angels’ offered to show us an underground café frequented by young Moscovites and hipsters called FAQ. She wasn’t speaking figuratively. This place is literally underground – down an alley, through a construction site, down hidden staircase and through a heavy wooden door that makes me feel like I should have some sort of secret code to gain entrance. And it is AMAZING!!! It is now my favorite place in all of Moscow. It reminds me of a converted wine cellar or maybe some of the caves my Dad drug me to as a kid. There are several zones, as they say. The place is a restaurant/bar/internet café/lounge/hookah joint/library plus the food is cheap (by Moscow standards) and the cocktails are delicious. If FAQ were a man, I would marry him instantly and maybe even consider taking his name. We convinced Katiya to stay and have one drink with us and somehow we managed to spend four hours hanging out, laughing and sharing stories through broken English, basic Russian and one very large notepad that never seems to leave my side. Everyone has a story, I am finding and more than anything they are just looking for someone to share it with. These days I seem to be an easy outlet. And it is great. I am finding out so many things about people that I might not have known because I am forced to think carefully and ask questions that really matter because I want to know the answers. Hearing what relative strangers have to say, about their hopes, their fears, their lives in general, is the only thing making this silence bearable, maybe even a little fun. I guess it is my cliché silver-lining to another cloudy day in Moscow.