Gold medal winners: me, Alyona and Natya, after the 2012 ice water swimming races in Vladivostok.

On my second day in Vladivostok, I was taken on a tour around the city, and from my view atop a cliff, I happened to see a big hole cut out of the ice in a bay. As I stood there, pondering it, a man in a speedo walked over and swam a lap. A week later, the same day of the 5th annual Polar Plunge in my home town, I walked across the ice of the bay to get a better look. I thought I’d try to see if I could stick my feet and take a picture, so I could feel like I was participating in the fun at home.

This was the first glimpse I had of the Vladivostok Walrus Club.

Once down on the ice, it became obvious that this ice water swimming operation was much more sophisticated than I had realized. People kept coming and going from this shack-like area on the beach that had “Клуб Морж” on the door, and they kept telling each other “с легким паром” which is something you say to people at the banya (sauna) and roughly means “enjoy your steam.” Upon discovering that this was an organized club, I started talking to a woman standing on the shore, who’d just watched her daughter take a dip. “How much does this cost?” I asked, showing my complete ignorance of the situation. However, in the mix of Russian and English that followed, I explained how we do this in Minnesota, and she told me that her daughter and the other club members were in training, and that her daughter could help me take a swim if I wanted, and that it was fine I didn’t have a swim suit with me, my underwear would work great, and her daughter Natya would loan me a towel and sandals, and I should probably pay 50 rubles (less than $2), and Natya would be happy to take pictures for me, and, and… before I knew it I was swimming a lap, being toweled off by a new friend, being told to “enjoy my steam” by total strangers enjoying their own daily dose of exhilaration, and agreeing to join the club for their annual races in two weeks.

My first walrus swim.

A gruff older man who seemed to be in charge, was not too pleased to have a non-club member American signing up, but my new friend Natya smoothed things over for me. I still felt a little bad for imposing on his race though, until two weeks later, when I was on the home stretch of the course and his was the loudest voice I heard urging me to swim faster. And he was certainly not the only skeptic. On the day of the race, a few older women were very concerned by the fact that I’d only swam the course once, and that a friend I’d brought along, a French expat, had never swam in ice water before. But this skepticism and concern only exaggerated how impressed all our fellow walruses and spectators were when we both did well enough to win gold medals in our age brackets.

During the race some spectators watched from the ice.

We were congratulated repeatedly and handed cookies and cup after cup of tea (sometimes with a little vodka added in) as we dressed and warmed up again in the club house. I’d thought to bring along a picture from last year’s plunge in Minnesota, and enjoyed showing it to my new friends, who were rather bemused by our costumes and cause. The picture is now hanging on the wall in the Club Walrus office, and I couldn’t be happier.

Polar Bear Plunge in a Minnesota lake in February 2011.

One of my colleagues at the university introduced me to the factory’s local specialty, птичье молоко (pTIchi malaKO) or, in English: bird milk. She quickly explained that the candy does not in fact contain any bird or milk, but is made out of processed algae, or agar-agar. Thankfully, agar-agar sounds the same in Russian and English, and my appreciation for classy jello shots has acquainted me with this lovely product. The “classic bird milk” set comes with lemon, cream and chocolate flavored delights in thin chocolate shells. It’s pretty tasty!

Chocolate is becoming a large part of my everyday life here. Other people in my department are responsible for helping international students and faculty keep their documents in order, and it is customary here for people to show gratitude for things like this by giving gifts of candy. There seems to be an unspoken rule that you share snacks in our office (I also am offered clementine segments very frequently), so when a gift of chocolate is delivered, we all enjoy it.

On Friday, I was given a “candy” called “gematoGENka,” which the girls in my office seemed to think was cute. They explained to me that it’s like a vitamin in disguise for kids (Russian Flintstones!) to raise their hemoglobin… aka also perfect for a vegetarian struggling to get her nutrients!  This revelation led to a very not chocolately discussion of other things they want me to eat to keep healthy. This includes some kind of fern plant dish, maybe made from the roots, or a different kind of “fern” than I’m used to. We shall see. I bet I can find it dipped in chocolate if I look hard enough.

Leaving MSP without knowing when I’m coming back is sad

Hurray! I’m finally being paid to travel the world!

JFK has 9 terminals. srsly wtf?

And there are maybe 10 gates at each one… so dumb.

Bah! Must turn off iPhone!! Losing connection with world for at least 20 hours!!! #panicattact

Aeroflot has individual entertainment systems? And I can watch Crazy, Stupid, Love? #neversawthetwistcoming

Juice box style white wine on the plane ftw!

Moscow’s redone Sheremetovo Airport is beautiful, glamorous and ultra convenient.

Both my bags made it to Moscow #winning

OMG, grabbed someone else’s wheeled black suit bag for 10 minutes… #fail

Bags cleared up, proper owner just teased the mortified me #whew

Got two business cards from fellow JFK-SVO passengers #boom:transatlanticnetworking

Second on the plane to Vladivostok #firstpickofcarryonspace

More Russian men need to wear deodorant.

Aeroflot gave me vegetarian meals all 4 meals in a row! #dinnerbreakfastdinnerbreakfast

I just ate 4 airplane food meals in a row…

Well, I did have some Star Wars fruit snacks too!

Flight tracker maps are so cool. I’m so close to China and North Korea and Japan! This is pretty sweet.

It’s 8 o’clock in the morning… where is the sun?

Darkest aircraft landing I’ve ever done: sparsely populated area (outside of Vladivostok) and the sun still isn’t even barely up…

I’m here! My luggage is here! So now it’s time to go into the office?

My dorm has a tv and refrigerator! But drinking is not allowed… which, unlike freshman year, I’ll probably abide by #russiawillmakemedrinkless?

I can see Russia (and the ocean!) from my house #suckitpalin

Why is everyone speaking Russian so quickly at me?! Why do I have a meeting with an important work deputy this afternoon?!

Mmmm just bought amazingly delicious bread…

Good city for walking (with the added excitement of reality Frogger) and these hills are going to kick my butt for a while #icaneatmorebread

Yep, it’s cold.

It’s 6:15 p.m…. why does it still look like early afternoon?

I stayed up until sunset (7:30 p.m.) can I go to bed now?

I get 4 Russian television stations really clearly (and two Korean ones…)

I wonder if US sitcoms seem really ridiculous to non-Americans… Russian sitcoms are odd.

I’m really not even tired! And I only slept a few hours on the planes. I’m going to read some more of “A Dance with Drag…. zzzzzzzzzzzzz

WARNING, SPOILERS AHEAD.

Only the first 60 minutes or so really have anything to do with Harvard, but here’s what I have for you…

Applause: There were two moments during the movie when the audience strongly applauded. The first what when the ever pretentious Zuckerberg character says “You don’t need to study: you go to BU.” The second was during the long, establishing shot of Harvard, immediately after the first (break-up) scene.

Confusion: there were murmurs throughout the theater as the Zuckerberg character ran through the “Harvard campus” to his dorm. Apparently many people in the audience didn’t know that no commercial filming is allowed on campus and most had been done elsewhere. My favorite comments were from the people behind me, who thought that “it must be at the Divinity school?” No, friends. No.

Harvard parties: There was a great deal of laughter regarding the absurdity of the initial “final club” party at the beginning of the film. I’ve never been to a final club party here, but as I understand it, there aren’t many lingerie-clad women dancing on tables or playing strip poker, even on weekends at Harvard. There was even more laughter regarding another party scene, at a Caribbean-themed, Jewish fraternity party. Speaking from some firsthand experience, this is much more what Harvard club parties look like.

On location: as far as I can tell, there were about 4 shots/scenes in the entire movie actually shot in Cambridge: 1.) the establishing shot of Harvard, which shows Lehman Hall and Out of Town News in Harvard Square. 2.) a shot of University Hall 3.) a shot of Weeks Bridge with Weld boathouse in the background 4.) on the Charles, rowing ridiculously early in the morning. (after watching DVD extras I’ve discovered they also actually filmed in Mr. Bartley’s burger place and the Thirsty Scholar bar).

The Harvard code of conduct: the idea of invoking (or reading, or owning) the Harvard code of conduct, or whatever they call it in the film, may have gotten the biggest laugh of all from the audience.

… but this is one audience’s set of expressive reactions. Go see it yourself and have your own.

Aside from these films, I’ve also been know to re-watch (or watch) movies of varying caliber to catch the Harvard/Cambridge shots.  ”Love Story,” “Angels and Demons,” “Good Will Hunting,” “21,” and the aforementioned “Legally Blonde” have all been watched specifically for this purpose.

Instead of getting all verbose on these exciting cinematic moments, I played with Google maps and made this. Enjoy the map and the beautiful sights of Cambridge!

Not their best, but at least it’s somewhat Boston-themed.  This one is probably their best and at least most popular:

1. Get the most out of your lodging.

• Free breakfasts, proximately to hot spots and friendly service are big pluses when finding the best place to stay. I’ve recently found air conditioning  can also be crucial (though if it is hot, men will likely go around shirtless, and that can provide some hunky eye candy).  Reading reviews really helps with finding a good place, whether you’re looking for a four star hotel on a site like Expedia or Travelocity, a hostel on Hostel World (which helped me find the excellent Sydney Hostel in Istanbul). That said, sometimes you just need to show up at a place your guide book recommends and ask for a room (as I did at the Fatima Hotel in Kazan, Russia this summer).

2. Get creative with airfare.

• If you can afford to be flexible with dates and times, and want to cut costs as far as airfare is concerned, get creative. I love using kayak.com to compare flights (as it even lets you compare prices with other online travel services). Weird flight times, random or possibly long layovers aren’t really that much of an inconvenience when you’re flying around the world, so just suck it up. Being creative with your flights can even lead to more adventures along the way; if you wind up with a 22 hour layover in London (as I once did), you can take the money you saved for the cheaper flight and jump into the city for the $16 cost of tube fare. This summer I also wound up with a 7 hour layover in Riga, Latvia on my way to Odessa, Ukraine. I got to experience two countries for the price of one (almost)! That said, do not fly Aeroflot.

3. Eat cheaply.

• The best food I had this summer since leaving the US was at a falafel stand in Odessa, Ukraine. For 11 grivna (less that $1.50) I was able to get a delicious falafel wrap that didn’t even make me sick! Granted, street food can be super sketchy (there are so many stories of people disposing bodies by giving the meat to shashlik/shishkabob stands…) but if you do it right, and approach the situation with healthy skepticism it can be great.

4. Ask the locals for advice.

• During a business trip to Kazan I met with many people and in our social exchanges I asked them what they were most proud of in their home region. Through them I got great recommendations for sights like the Raifskiy Monestary, which isn’t even in my Lonely Planet guidebook. Sometimes asking locals can even have a monetary advantage: in Russia foreigners are charged a higher entrance rate at many sights, so if a Russian recommends a sight, they may also offer to buy you the cheaper ticket! (Спасибо, Рома!)

5. Prepare for any weather.

• The average summer time temperature in Moscow is supposed to be 75 degrees F. This summer I think we had a straight month where the high of the day was over 95 degrees. I also went to Arizona one year for Christmas and was thwarted from seeing the Grand Canyon by a snow storm.  Extreme or atypical weather happens. Pack accordingly.

6. Do not fly Aeroflot.

7. Know what to expect with your travel companions.

• Travel priorities differ greatly, so it’s good to at least have an idea of whether you’ll be eating big, long meals or quick, small ones; frequenting beaches or museums; putzing along for hours or hitting the town at full speed. It can get frustrating if you’re just too different, but being flexible and patient with someone else goes a long way. (I’ve generally had pretty good luck with this, but have heard some horror stories).

8. Don’t be afraid to travel alone.

• Okay, it can be unsafe to walk dark alleys late at night by your lonesome, but I had a great time this summer roaming Kazan and Riga by myself. I always thought I could only enjoy places when I could instantly share the experience with someone else, but you observe a lot more by yourself and can share great stories with other people later. Plus, you get to be completely selfish in your travel plans.

9. Take pictures that tell stories.

• Pictures can be “worth a thousand words” but only when they actually have something to say.  Since approximately 1 billion people have pictures of famous monuments, I think it’s better to make the picture your own, by purposely not cropping out the couple with the ridiculous PDA in the corner of your Eiffel Tower picture, or including the crazily dressed tourists in your Kremlin shot.

10. Do NOT fly Aeroflot.

1. Drinking culture: Though there are certainly people out here who know how to throw a few back, I have not seen a keg here and still continue to be appalled by the lack of drink specials.
2. Library obsession: While there are libraries at Minnesota (around 27, actually), none are open 24 hours, they don’t have strict key card access to get in, or to the stacks and they don’t have hundreds (thousands?) of study carrels where students can be seen feverishly scrambling to finish term papers or study for exams. It would be impossible to exaggerate the obsession with libraries  at Harvard.
3. Customer service: Dear Boston/Cambridge cashiers, would it kill you to smile? Or say thank you? Contrastingly, I have had some of the most pleasant conversations of my life with cashiers in Minnesota.
4. State pride: Yes, I’m from Minnesota. Yes, can be cold there. Yes, we have lots of lakes. Yes, I say “bagel” oddly. And yes, my state is way more awesome than where ever you happened to grow up and no, it is not a barren frozen wasteland. What, you don’t love your state and think it’s the best thing ever? That’s because it’s not Minnesota.
5. Identity: Related to #4… most people don’t have much state pride and will identify with their undergrad (Princetonians…), or maybe their boarding school, or are mainly ambivalent. Midwesterners, and Big Tenners specifically LOVE sharing that identity and when I’ve met other people it’s amazing how much we have in common instantly. The Midwest identity is truly pure gold.
6. Holidays: What the hell is Patriots’ Day, you ask? I still don’t really know, but I think the first gun shots of the American Revolution were fired that day or something. I guess Minnesota has some specific holidays too. I mean, the fishing opener is celebrated pretty well across the state.
7. IM sports: Getting to be on the IM crew and fencing teams this semester was awesome and gave me a great opportunity to try two sports I’d always been interested in but had never had a chance to learn. Indeed, the most obscure IM teams at Minnesota continue to be ultimate frisbee  and  broomball, because really, what Minnesotan doesn’t love any game on ice?
8. Bad weather: Both regions can have their sucky days, but I would hands down take snow, blistering wind chill and subzero temperatures in Minnesota over the dreary wintry mix days with lakes of water covering all sidewalks that you get in Massachusetts.
9. International atmosphere: Between my language classes, international students and foreign tourists, it’s a rare day when I don’t hear at least 6 languages being spoken. Some of the regulars:  Russian, Chinese, French, German, Welsh, Turkish, Uzbek, Korean, Hindi, Polish, Japanese and Spanish. I kind of feel like I’m always in an international terminal at the airport and I love it! It would be hard to find a similar experience in Minnesota.
10. Guilty pleasure food: I probably eat a bit healthier here in Boston, where my fave food places serve up delicious frozen yogurt (Berryline!) and veggie burgers (Grendal’s Den or b.good). In Minnesota it’s all about the cheese and carbs, whether at Mesa Pizza in Dinkytown, or a Noodles and Co. And of course there are those amazing Idaho nachos at Granite City…

The differences between these two places make me appreciate each of them each more. I’m sure when I jet off to Moscow for the summer I’ll miss both!

However, there are some extremely sleep deprived days where everything about grad school can start seeming like an epic virtual world of adventure.

Take the libraries for example. There, after finding a reference code you race around the stacks, which in Widener are a complicated labyrinth of staircases, hallways, secret study rooms and tunnels connecting different buildings. In this 10-storied building (just one of score of libraries at Harvard) there is also an east and a west wing and these don’t attach on every floor. So, the challenge becomes, how can you most efficiently travel around the library collecting all the books you need?

Avoiding slow moving tourists is another constant task while on campus. This can be reminiscent of a game of Frogger, and you can definitely look as ridiculous as a jumping frog when maneuvering around those massive tour groups, but hey, at least you’re not getting squashed by them!

A final joy I’ve gotten to experience is the Tetris-like calculation it takes to pack up a dorm room to put in storage for the summer. Unfortunately, when you get things to fit together perfectly together in this “game” there’s no satisfying flash of bars disappearing, but rather you get to lug the meticulously packed box down three flights of stairs…

However, moving things into storage and finishing all my finals does mean I’ve reached the big “level up” in my grad school experience, as I am now a G2! Only a year until I complete this very spendy and time-consuming “game” and move on to the game of life.

Now, I didn’t actually make these data sets into drinking games, but, generally when I was going from the CIA World Factbook, I would pull up an indicator and try to guess what countries would be at the top or bottom. It was addictingly awesome. If one was making this into a drinking game, I would suggest you look at an indicator, everyone takes a  guess about what country is best/worst and the person closest gets to choose who has to take a drink. Intoxicating in education and fun!! I also recommend using data from the UN database and Freedom House.