minats_zone

Hi there, It's been long since I posted. The reason is a long period of bad luck and misfortune after happy vocation in Croatia. First, I got seriously ill (kind of virus with temperature and persistent coughing) just after I'd experienced strong stress. The problem was that I got two new hot/cold water meteres put in our toilet shortly after vocation. They cracked when we were at dacha. We received a phone call from our neighbour who said that you'd already flooded all flats underneath. Can you imagine my state while drining a car back home??? Well, my illness started right on the following day doubled by strong pain in my spine. However, the good news is that today (one week later), the repairing we launched at dacha before our vocation,with Marina and Kostya keeping eye on the repairmen, has been over and we had I new kitchen furniture put in it. Despite my illness, I cleaned up after all this and now we really enjoy bright orange colours of our newly looking kitchen at ...

Sent from my iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

This place in Croatia is under UNESKO protection.. It's really unique and worth visiting. Several emerald lakes connected with rivers and waterfalls make it really unforgettable. See and download the full gallery on posterous

We really got tired after this trip but it's worth it. The lakes are connected with each other with rivers, streams and waterfalls. which makes the whole area absolutely unique and gorgeous. The water in lakes is cristall clear and full of big tame fish and ducks. The colour is emerald because of a strange combination of water moss and local soil. We took one boat trip and walked for 3 hours around the place.Have a look at some picks...

Hi there, Our vocation in Croatia seems to meet our expectations after so much heat in Moscow. Here the climate is very mild with day temperatures slightly over 30C and pretty cool and refreshing evenings and nights. More importantly, the sea is so welcoming and warm (24-25C) that even Slava swims in it with flippers. It's really a welcome change after so many days of non stop heatwave in Russia. Our hotel is good and all inclusive, so we don't need to take care of food and other basic things. The only problem is the internet connection, which is charged and is available only at the hotel lobby. Croatia is quite an expensive country, which is going to join EU in a few years. We've been to one trip already to the Krk island and the town of Opatia where A. Chekhov and S. Esenin stayed in local hotels. It's really beautiful and welcoming. After that we visied a Frankestian monastery with old manuscripts of Bible and ancient icons. Have a look at some piks...

Hi, It's been unbearably hot (over 35-38C) for the whole July already. Many places in Russia are in flames. Some people died or lost their houses, e.g. in Nizhny Novgorod and Voronezh regions. Here in Moscow we have smog and haze all across the city and region as a rezult of forest fires in the south eastern parts of Moscow region. But more importantly, Russian people mostly don't have air conditioning (it's still regarded as a kind of luxury and not so essential in our climate) so you can imagine how many people suffer from heatwave these days. God help us as it's too much for our poor people. We use fans which simply mix up hot air but don't really help whatsoever and we are really looking forward to going to Croatia on Saturday (tomorrow) for two weeks. It will be a survival as Slava can't stand heatwaves and all the pollution in the air. I'm slightly better as I originally come from Georgia and love warm (but not scorchig hot)weather. Have a look at the...

Hey there, It was so nice to see a friend of mine Gulia living in Nicosia (Cypros) who is currently visiting Moscow to see her elderly Mom (Hanifa). Hanifa used to be a prominent all USSR opera singer from Tadzhikistan (Dushanbe)but now is comfined to her bed in her regular Moscow flat. She is being looked after by a helper (Tadzhik woman) but it's realy hard to compare her life now and what she used to have in the times of the USSR. It's a great pity as she is absolutely helpless and lonely now. Gulia and I also visited a Muslim cemetory in Mitino (a distant area of Moscow) where her Dad was buried in 1998. So the day passed slowly full of sad duties as I was obliged to help Gulia with all those sad things. But the good news is that Gulia's daughter Despina is going to have a baby in August. Hope this will comfort Gulia...

Hi there, Today I've been to Yaroslavl for the whole day. We went there with Marina and Kostya by their car. We started at 7am and arrived there very quickly, by 11:30am. The tempetarures outside were extremely high (35-36C), same as in the rest of Russia these days. Thanks God, the conditioner was always on so it was not so bad. We settled our business with Sberbank, which moved to a new place on ul Svobody. The town of Yaroslavle was not only very hot and busy but under construction all over. I don't know why, but it took us 1,5 hours to find our way back to Moscow as all roads were blocked or unpassable.I'm not sure they will complete this huge construction by September when Dima is going to arrive...Have a look at some shots of the town, which is somewhat very special and dear to all of us...

Here you are:

What do I need it for? by minats Hi from 'Wallwisher' This is my post

Can you get my note? by minats This is my post

I really liked this PLN (Personal Learning Network) discussion and are trying to embed it on my blog. You can see and hear it here My image is 38th or 39th. Hope you like it.

Hey there, This summer days are really dry in Moscow, even unbearably hot and scorching. It's over 30C and doesn't seem to get any cooler. But it's not so bad at our dacha which gives us a welcome shelter and fresh air. Today Marina has brought little Stepan to the dacha so our life here is going to be more vivid. Some of my flowers are blooming even though there has been no rain for many days...Have a look at some photos. Love to all of you.