Spring!

This week, I learned that in the former Soviet countries, the first day of spring is celebrated on the 1st of March. Luckily, the weather is beginning to change along with the title of the season, as every day, the red line on our porch thermometer migrates a little further north.  The constant sunshine helps the state of affairs, as everyone feels more hopeful for a warm spring when everything looks a little brighter and more beautiful.
Not only is this week the first week of spring, but it is also maslenitsa!  Maslenitsa is the week long celebration of...pancakes! (or blini, as they are called here...basically crepes).  I think the holiday has pagan roots, as many holidays do, and Eastern Europeans will use any excuse to celebrate for an entire week.  On Sunday night, my roommate Jon and I went over to our friend Teodora's place and kicked off maslenitsa with a night of making blini and drinking some shitty wine.  It was lovely, of course, as we had both sweet blini (filled with honey or jam or cinnamon and sugar) and savory blini (filled with caviar, sour cream, and cheese), and red and white wine!  On Saturday, we are planning on taking a trip to Peregova, the outdoor architectural museum located not far from Kiev.  It is a nice little place to get away from the city, and apparently, they have pretty rockin' maslenitsa festivities planned for this weekend!
For my work at the American English Center, this week is also unique, as it is FINALS WEEK.  Yes, my first semester working has absolutely flown by, and my last day of teaching before an entire week off is Sunday.  Today, I am giving the final to my students at Klovska.  It will be kind of a bittersweet day, because I am not teaching at Klovska school next semester (only at Nivki), and I will miss a few of my really great students!  However, after work tonight a few fellow teachers are planning to go out and celebrate with some students, which will be a nice way to finish up this amazing two month stint :)