"It is unusual"

Something I hear rather often here, when suggesting something. For example, I really would have liked to show my appreciation of the play to the actors by buying a round after the performance, but fortunately I asked my friend first, and he subtly let me know that this would be "unusual". I understood that it might thus be a bit offensive or weird, and so the usual or normal thing to do whenever you leave a table at a bistro or restaurant, you just go and pay for whatever you consumated. Though Artiom secretly paid for my bred sticks, (thanks by the way!).

There seem to small differences of behavior that might make you stranger or a stranger in the eyes of people here. Thus here's some detail that especially Americans, who often find even European behavior unfriendly, might take into account when visiting: Upon entering a restaurant, do not expect to get seated or greeted. You will also not find a waiter or waitress bouncing up to your table smiling at you and introducing themselves as their waiter for the evening. You order your food, they bring it, you pay- voilà! Same thing in a supermarket. It's just the way things are done. Its' neither personal nor unfriendly.

Also, there seems to be a certain amount of shyness or waryness, and the whole way of behaving towards strangers obviously still needs to be appreciated in hindsight to the iron curtain. Though it may have been lifted over twenty years ago, the shadows remain to some extent.

I've  had some interesting feedback and questions to my blog, but generally, and for now, all I can say really is: take your time, take it all in, the atmosphere, the way people do things. So far, I have had lovely and less pleasant encounters in equal measure, as I usually have wherever I go, so I'll just go along with those people I feel happy with. Once you get acquainted, it is great to get introduced to friends. And of course, a few drinks (at least in my case) always help overcome communication barriers. Once people sing for you, you're in a good place. I should restrain from evaluating, because one week in St. Petersburg is really not even the tip of the tip of the iceberg. Bear with me.

Also, often I have heard directly or through other students, that if you come late or miss an appointment, this is considered very rude, and you will be accused of "waisting my time"! Being Swiss, I do my best to be on time, though considering the distances here, this has not always been possible. As mentioned in the school's information letter, by all means send a text message if you can't make it in time, albeit just a few minutes, and plan ahead of time. This really is important! As a matter of fact, if you are a future student of http://russianinpetersburg.com, do read that instruction letter, it will save you trouble, and frustration. (I had to learn the hard way, as I am one of those people who usually break a new device or appliance before bothering to read the manual.)

Readers who are from St. Petersburg or have been to Russia before, please do send me your reactions and correct  me whenever I am not to the point. Remember, these are just short-time impressions, there is no way I could ever make well-researched and "true" statements at this point, but I also believe that other newcomers might run into similar situations and recognize themselves in specific circumstances, which is why I chose to include such menial observations here.