I wasn't crazy about getting on this Russian plane for the flight from Moscow to Volgograd. It had a glass nose and yes, that really is a guy sitting in there. Who knows what he does? Maybe keep an eye for birds?
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Here I am playing my clarinet in our first rehearsal in a tent in Volgograd.
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This is my new friend Nika, ins't she pretty? She came to hear us play, and like most Russians, was fascinated with Americans. She was kind enough not to laugh at my pathetic Russian.
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This is Mother Russia. It is an AWESOME statue in a memorial park dedicated to the 2 million + souls who lost their lives in the battle of Stalingrad (now Volgograd). She is the tallest free standing statue in the world, and she is INCREDIBLE!
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Here is a not so good picture of me and "Mother". Why didn't anyone tell me that skirt makes me look fat? I'm going home to BURN it!
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Here is the church that was built at the base of "Mother". It was breathtaking, as you can see.
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This is the ONLY building that was left standing in Volgograd at the conclusion of the battle. Hitler's forces were finally undone by the legendary Russian winter after fighting for 200+ days.
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My roomates and I, boating on the Volga River.
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Here is the Moscow skyline from my window in the 1980 Olympic Village. Moscow was smoggy, and bustling. I'm glad i went, but I liked Volgograd WAY better!
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Here I am enjoying lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe in Moscow! American food never tasted so good!
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Here is the International House of Music, where we did our Final Concert. How exciting! We should have planned more country music in our program. The Russians LOVED it!
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Here is the final rehearsal for our concert. Is that a pipe organ or what?
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We went to Red Square after the concert, and here is the entrance. It was lit up and it was just beautiful!
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Here is Red Square. How many times had I seen it on TV? It was huge, and it was awesome to walk on it's cobblestoned surface! That's St. Basil's in the distance.
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Here I am in front of St. Basil's Cathedral. This trip to Russia was wonderful. I had a GREAT time!
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