It's a new me!

Sincerely yours, Curly Olga -)

Running City Moscow-2012

April 21, residents seemingly unremarkable neighborhoods of Moscow, saw the crowds of strange people
hurrying somewhere and looking for something, crawled in hidden areas, counted the windows and the balconies,
and the streets resounded with shouts of joy, when somebody found hidden sign around the corner.
Who are these people, why are they here and what are they doing?
This is Running City!
Running City is an urban orienteering event focused on making regional ethnography more informative and competitive.
Event participants are to find specified objects in the City as fast as possible.
Competitors can use different modes of transportation to move around the City: public or private means of transportation, bicycles, inline skates - or just walk.
Modes of transportation and course time depend on the category chosen by the team.
Since 2oo0, Running City events are held every year in Saint-Petersburg, Moscow, Yekaterinburg and Kiev. Up to 5,500 people take part in the competition!
We chose running category "Griffin", but really we just walked -)

This is our track
Distance:    38,1 kilometers
Elapsed Time: 8:18:27

Have you ever played in urban orienteering games?

You can view some photos from the event  below

Spring came in Moscow!!!

Spring came late this year in Moscow, but the main thing, that it really happened!

This is what was outside our window just one week ago!

Spring is my favorite season, because spring weather makes me happy. It's never too hot or too cold. It always is just right. I can open all the windows in my apartments and smell the freshness.
I can jogging in the park and walk long time on the streets with my hubby!
I can get rid of heavy clothes, and I can wear trendy springtime outfits.
Spring is also the time of clean the house. For me its also a time to clear the thought in my head and think about the new things I'd like to do and explore.
I love Spring because it is time of new beginnings and  opportunity.

What is Spring for you?

❤ My lovely princess Cat ❤

This is a post about my cat named Cat -)
The history of her occurrence in our house is amusing. When we got married, I moved to husband's apartments. After that I began to dream about a little kitten -)
My husband was strongly disagreed because we both work and he was afraid that no one of us will care for the little kitten.
But the fate brought her to us!
One day my husband went to the grocery store, and when he returned home, he found next to the door the little kitty! It is not clear how she got to our apartment, because we live on the fourth floor! The little kitten was meowing without stopping.
We spared cute kitty and decided to give to her some milk. And then it was a pity to leave she on the street and she stayed with us for the night. On the next morning my husband decided to send a cat away, but as soon he put her down on the grass and walked away as she ran after him and climbed on his foot and sat on his shoulder.
My husband's heart was melted and the little robber stayed to live with us.
So, here is our princess -)
In the childhood

See more photos of my princess below :-)

Easter in Russia! Christ is risen!

For Russians Easter (Paskha) is even more important than Christmas.
Every family including atheist celebrate Easter with an Easter cakes (Kulich) and dyed boiled eggs (predominant color is terracotta) today! The kulich and dyed eggs are blessed by the church before being eaten.
In Russia on Easter day people greet each other with the words "Christ is risen!", the congregation replies with "He is truly risen!" After that people kiss each other on the cheeks three times even if they are total strangers.
There is no such thing in Russia as the Easter bunny and an eggs hunt. But we have other games, i.e. children roll their Easter eggs down a hill and try to crack another player's egg.
Today we are going to visit my parents and Alex's mom, and we will relax and eat tons of Easter eggs -))
Christ is risen!

3-day Isle of Skye tour review. Day one.

My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands a-chasing the deer -
A-chasing the wild deer, and following the roe;
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.

 At 8:30 am my husband and I were standing next to the travel agency on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, where we became acquainted with our fellow travelers. We will spend the next three days in the journey with the travelers from China, Ireland, Spain, US and all of them are really nice people!
And of course, I'd like to share my impressions with you )

How I Play Skyrim: Saturday Fun!

Спасибо, Юра!

 

1-day trip to Minsk, Belarus.

Last summer my husband and I had a business trip in Minsk, Belarus and we had some free time to explore the city. While I am working on the review of the 3-days tour to the island of Skye, I'd be glad to tell you about 1-day trip to Minsk.
Minsk was founded in 1067, but this city looks quite new. This is not surprising, because most of Minsk was destroyed during World War II, and within the city almost no historical buildings, excepting a tiny area in the center of the city.
People nostalgic for Soviet times love Minsk, because that city has retained all the best traditions of USSR of the 1980s. I like Minsk, because the streets are wide and clean, air is fresh, and there is no traffic jams. It's the real island of Soviet life, that's surprising for Muscovites.
Well, let's take a walk  )

Teddy Bears in Edinburgh

I fell in love with Teddy bears many years ago. I buy my new friends in each trip, so you understand why "Canongate Crafts" is my one and only hidden treasure in Edinburgh.  They sell absolutely adorable hand made teddy bears.
On this photo you may see my traveling teddy bear Puzyrek ('Phial', hi is second from the left) with his new friend Angus (second from the right) and Angus's friends.

Where to eat and drink in Edinburgh

Edinburgh has many very good restaurants and other eating places. We were pleasantly surprised by the food because we had no problem finding what we wanted to eat. From fish & chips to haggis, even the fried foods were good and didn't give us any problems, even though we don't eat much fried food at home. 

The list of my favorite places to eat and drink in Edinburgh is below

3 days in Edinburgh. Day 3. Arthur's Seat

On third day we decided to walk up Arthur's Seat following this route.
Arthur's Seat is one of the must-do's in the Edinburgh. There are numerous different options for hikes and walks and several different ways to reach the peak, all of varying degrees of difficulty.
There are two parts to Arthurs Seat, The Crags and Arthurs Seat. The easiest and simplest ascent is from the East, where a grassy slope rises above Dunsapie Loch, a small artificial loch located between Dunsapie Hill and Arthur's Seat.

Reach for the star

It's Kotelnicheskaya Embankment Building in Moscow [Stalin's skyscraper]

This star is very interesting due to that fact, that only birds and builders sat on it. And one man - roofer  Artem Pirniyazov.

He says: 'This is the most dangerous thing I've ever MADE in my life, please don't repeat under any circumstances!'

  

3 days in Edinburgh. Day 2. Calton Hill and Britannia

Today we go for a walk on the Calton Hill, after that we will take a bus tour to Leith for the Royal Yacht Britannia.

3 days in Edinburgh. Day 1. Royal Mile

At first a few details about Edinburgh. The central area of the city isn't very big, and if you walk fast, you can get from one end to the other in a couple hours. The city is split into 2 parallel areas, the Old Town, which was the central part of the city for centuries, and the New Town which was started in the 1700's to alleviate overcrowding in the Old Town. The center of the Old Town is called the Royal Mile, and stretches from Edinburgh castle to Holyrood Palace, home to the British Monarch on her visits to Edinburgh. The Royal Mile is full of interesting places, stores, museums, restaurants, etc. The New Town and the Old Town are separated by the The Mound (once upon a time it was the city's garbage heap) and connected by the Waverly Station, the main train station. Also in between the two parts are the beautiful Princes Gardens, and the National Gallery, the main city museum.

Useful links for visiting Scotland

Undiscovered Scotland - my favorite site for planning trip to Scotland.

The Internet Guide to Scotland - another excellent site for planning

Highlights of Scotland  - thematic self-guided tours to Scotland

Highland experience tours - guided tours in Scotland

Taste of Scotland - cuisine and restaurants in Scotland

Walk Highlands - guide to walks and hiking in Scotland

Walking Scotland - another site with walking routes in Scotland

Edinburgh - things to see and do in Edinburg

Scottish tourist maps - amazing illustrated maps of various areas around the west of Scotland and Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. Every map is masterpiece!

You can read more about trip to Edinburgh here:
Men's day trip to Edinburgh (Only photos)
First time to Scotland. Trip details
3 days in Edinburgh. Day 1. Royal Mile
3 days in Edinburgh. Day 2. Calton Hill and Britannia
3 days in Edinburgh. Day 3. Arthur's Seat

Stay tuned!