My Russia - yes it is my second home country! Maybe it's late to realize some things in the age of 23 - but now I had this strong feeling that this country is so important for me - the people, culture,language, food, weather...
I was invited to chair a conference in Ufa - a city that I didn't know almost anything except the name :) Russia is so big and diverse - i didnt realize that - you can travel for 30 hours with train to get in the nearest big city, there are different republics with their religion, culture, language :)
Well, now I can say Ufa is an amazing place - mainly cause of the people living here, you can feel great warmth, hospitality and honesty in them...I always believed all people are generally good - in Ufa I could feel it really all the time... living in big city and working for MC makes you sometimes too hard, too demanding and little bit impersonal - hm, maybe it's normal but why we don't just live nice, why surroundings change people...i don't want to live like that my whole life...:) Whatever...
The interesting point was that while being so nice, friendly and somehow naive AIESECers here work very hard, make things happen and don't complain...it was so motivating for me! Chairing was very inspiring experience - being just me and people liked it - they don't criticize or judge, just enjoy and have fun :) Working with faci team - one of the best teams I worked with - simple, powerful, warm, professional, deep, funny and emotional people...thank you Diana, Alfiya, Gulnara, Petya, Delya, Pasha, Lena, Ira, Victor, Manana, Regina, Yulia, Liza and Masha! Thanks also to Danil - the OCP of the conference - one guy that impressed me with his inner strength and potential!
Speaking Russian - another challenge for me - in the end even i facilitated sessions in Russian with my bulgarian accent, I so much want to stay here more and speak fluently...have you ever had the feeling that speaking another language makes you stronger and smarter? :)
the FOOD - without any doubt I can say for me this is the country with the best food in the world! I got used to drink tea every 2 hours and didnt have coffee for almost 5 days:)
I also visited my lovely aunt in Moscow - a crazy and not-normal place to live according to me:) so many people, lost identity, modern and old in the same time, traditional and extreme, rich and poor - so many contrasts - as whole Russia btw:) Standing on the Red Square and walking in Kremlin is an experience you should try - there you feel how great and powerful is this country with all its contradictions!
This trip was more personal than professional - made me think a lot about my life, future plans, what I like, etc. One is for sure - I want to come back and live here for 1-2 years - i want to explore more and more Russia...it's much more deep than you think...
here is a song that i use for self-reflection:
