TOP 5 Seattle

Where can you see flying fish in the morning, spend an afternoon on a ferryboat cruising Puget Sound and spend the evening skiing or snowboarding in the beautiful Cascade Mountains? The answer is Seattle, affectionately known as The Emerald City and home to the Super Bowl Champions, Seattle Seahawks! Seattle is famous for a lot of things such as, coffee, rain, deep green forests, clouds, breathtaking mountains, and Puget Sound, our inland sea. However, did you know my wonderful city is also home to famous hip-hop and Grammy award winning artist, McLemore, world renowned coffee company Starbucks, Microsoft’s Founder Bill Gates, grunge music (i.e. Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Sound Garden), and legendary guitar player Jimmy Hendrix?

Many get the impression that it’s always raining in Seattle. Ok, I admit, it does tend to rain here a lot during the winter months. However, once summer comes, it’s as if the skies majestically clear and the rain packs up and leaves for three months. And, while the rest of the nation and the world bakes in hot, sweltering heat, Seattle usually maintains a mild and even temperature throughout the summer, rarely exceeding 30° C.

Although, you can find lists of top attractions to see in Seattle determined by TripAdvisor or some travel article written by someone from out of town, I am here to give you a local’s take on Seattle and its must-see attractions.

So, here it is, my top five list of sites to see and things to do in Seattle!

1.     Checking in at number one is our city’s most famous landmark, The Space Needle. The Space Needle was built for the 1962 World’s Fair and is a great place to start your journey! The views on a clear day are incredible! To your east you will see the beautiful Cascade Mountains, one of two mountain ranges in the state. To the west are the beautiful Olympic Mountains. On the southern horizon you will spot the state’s most famous landmark and mountain, Mt. Rainier. Rainier is one of several active volcanoes in the state of Washington. Off to the north is yet another active volcano, Mt. Baker, which sits right near the Canadian border. The list of incredible sights to see from the Space Needle can fill up several pages! 

2.     As you leave The Space Needle be sure to visit the incredible Chihuly Garden and Glass. Put together by local Northwest and world famous glass artist Dale Chihuly this is no ordinary garden. 

 Here you can find life size trees made of glass, stunning glass sculptures of all types of different colors, and anything else the imagination could dream up! A must see!! If you go to The Space Needle, be sure to buy a combined ticket.

3.     Pike Place Public Market, a unique public market located in the heart of Seattle is a place you could get lost in for hours! On the top floor is a fully working farmer’s market where you can buy fresh from the field produce and explore all the wonderful restaurants and cafes that populate the market. One of my utmost favorite cafes is a Russian bakery called “piroshky, piroshky”. Be sure to try the beef and cheese piroshky! And, of course no visit to the market would be complete without witnessing the infamous “flying fish” at Pike Place Fish Market. There the fishmongers create an entire show around you picking out your fish and then throwing it back to the person who wraps it for you.

4.     Right below Pike Place Market is located the Seattle Waterfront. On a warm summers day there is no better place to be in the city than the waterfront! Here you can soak up the beauty of Elliot Bay and are treated to incredible views of the Olympic Mountains. But the waterfront is not just for walking, there are some great restaurants, attractions and wonderful shops located all along the waterfront making it a great experience for everyone! Probably my utmost favorite attraction on the waterfront is, The Great Wheel, which stands at a whopping 53.3 meters making it the tallest Ferris wheel on the west coast. For $13, you receive a 10-15 minute ride (depending upon crowds) complete with three revolutions.

One of THE very best and most inexpensive cruises in Seattle is a trip aboard the Washington State Ferries, where for a mere $8 per person you can enjoy breathtaking scenery of mountains, wildlife, orca whales, and so much more! Our state ferry system is the biggest in the United States and is ranked 3^rd in the world in terms of fleet size. From downtown Seattle you can take either the Bainbridge Island ferry, which takes approximately 35 minutes or the Bremerton ferry, which is a one-hour crossing. Both ferry runs will take your breath away in terms of beauty!

From Moscow there are numerous ways you can reach The Emerald City. Your first option is to fly Aeroflot to LA and then take either hometown airline, Alaska or Virgin America up the coast. Another option is through Frankfurt, where Lufthansa has daily non-stop departures to Seattle. So, what are you waiting for, book your trip and come to Seattle today!!

Pushkin Through The Eyes of a Foreigner

Moscow is full of all types of hotels, most of which are waaaay overpriced, far away from the city center and lacks any type of charm. And, the hotel I stayed at, The Cosmos, was no exception! From prostitutes wandering the lobby looking for easy prey to elevators that would suddenly stop without warning forcing one to call for help (happened to me in the middle of the night), I knew I could do better and started plotting my escape from The Cosmos. I spent an hour scouring the Internet for a better place and came up with little success until I stumbled upon a small hotel tucked away down a small side street only a few meters off Tverskaya called, The Pushkin Hotel. Since I love Pushkin and had spent countless hours reading his works in Russian and trying to understand them (many times without success) I figured it had to be a good omen! Furthermore, the reviews, the location and the reasonable price……..by Moscow standards, convinced me to book it and flee the monolithic huge Cosmos.

When I arrived at The Pushkin Hotel I admit I was not very impressed, the exterior was painted a rather bland pink and sat right across the street from a half empty construction sight. I was worried that I had…as we say in English…jumped from the frying pan into the fire. However, as a seasoned traveler I learned it is best “not to judge a book by its cover”.

Luckily, though, I did not take The Pushkin at “face value”! When I walked into my “junior suite” I felt as if I had found a tiny slice of paradise hidden away in a sea of mass chaos. I was absolutely blown away; my room was not only nice, but consisted of a main floor with a small sleeping loft. With its tastefully done décor the room made me feel as if I was back in the era of its namesake, Alexander Sergeivich Pushkin.

The staff at The Pushkin provided impeccable service always striving to go above and beyond expectations! I was especially impressed by how the staff handled my complaint about a shockingly huge laundry bill. After my outrage at the bill, they quickly negotiated a fair compensation and agreed to give me a free late checkout, which was priceless to me since I was leaving late that night on the Sapsan train to St. Petersburg. 

At the time of my visit, March 2014, The Pushkin was still a work in progress and was lacking some of the simple amenities you come to expect in a luxury hotel. One such amenity missing was a full service restaurant and room service. Since I am pretty flexible and easy going I felt it gave me a great opportunity to explore all the different dining choices near to the hotel. By the publishing of this article the dining room and room service should be up and running.

Only a few steps away from The Pushkin is the newly opened American restaurant, The Bud House Bar and Grill. As an American I can attest to the fact that the food is quite delicious! Further down the street on Tverskaya is the small chain restaurant/cafe “Pelmаn”, which makes delicious pelmeni and other Russian foods, however I was not too impressed with the borsch. A few hundred meters down Tverskaya is a cafeteria-style diner called “граблы”. I love Russian food so I thought this would be a perfect place for dinner. Was I ever wrong!! The entire staff was made up of immigrant workers who spoke poor Russian and provided awful customer service. Considering the attitude of these workers they may want to change the name of the place from «Граблы» to «Грубый».  If the food had been good I could have overlooked the bad atmosphere and service, but unfortunately this was not the case L. Luckily, however dining options near to The Pushkin are endless!  

Without a doubt The Pushkin Hotel is one of your best deals in all of Moscow. I think anyone would be hard pressed to find a better place in terms of accommodation, price and location. For more information, visit http://otel-pushkin.ru/

Belarus

I’ve always been a bit different! In pre-school when everyone else was marching in one direction, I decided (much to my mother’s dismay) to march in the opposite direction. In high school when everyone else chose to study Spanish, French or Japanese I decided I would instead take Russian, a decision that did not sit well with my high school guidance counselors. So, when friends asked me where I was going for spring break, usually a holiday reserved for partying in a trendy sunny like hot destination, I told them Belarus’, which was met with stares, silence and questions of ‘why there’? Even Russian friends who knew all about Belarus were perplexed with my decision.

Since I'd visited some of the other dictatorships in the ex-USSR, such as Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, I felt Belarus’ was a natural choice! Plus, I was quite intrigued by how my Russian friends told me Belarus was like a miniature Soviet Union frozen in time. I crave different experiences, off the beaten path adventures, so Belarus would be the perfect fit.

I had visions of the old Soviet days, propaganda instead of ads, old Soviet Ladas in place of BMWs and Soviet style shopping centers substituting for the new giant glittering palaces one sees once they venture a few kilometers outside any Russian city. Nothing could have been further from the truth!

When I arrived in Minsk, I quickly realized that the Russian myth of Belarus everyone in Russia spoke of was just that, a myth, an urban legend, a tall tale. Besides the national Coat of Arms which retained the Soviet look and the national police still being called KGB and some propaganda here and there, these were the only real glaring examples I could find of Belarus being some sort of mini-USSR.

Due to the full annihilation Minsk suffered at the hands of Nazi Germany in World War II the city is devoid of any real historical buildings. Even though historical buildings are lacking, the city is still charming, full of modern buildings, casinos on every other block and everything else you expect from a modern world city. When it comes to famous places and attractions, Minsk and Belarus is at a real disadvantage when compared to Moscow, Petersburg and Russia. But, no worries, not all hope is lost, here’s a list of my top places to visit in Minsk and Belarus:

1.     Number one on my list of places to visit in Minsk is the Belarusian National Library building.  Be sure to visit the viewing platform at the very top of the library for a sweeping view of the entire city of Minsk.You may ask how could a library building be exciting, especially one that looks like a big black and grey cube sitting on top of a pedestal? During the day the library looks like some type of Soviet architecture experiment gone terribly wrong. But at night it becomes a whole different animal, serving as a colorful urban light show, which is best viewed from a distance.

2.     The 17^th century gothic Mir Castle Complex is located over an hours drive from Minsk. Mir Castle is the highlight of any trip to Belarus! The castle itself is a stunning display of architecture inside and outside. Allow at least a few hours to see the entire complex and museum.

3.     Nesvizh Castle is just down the road from Mir and is equally as stunning a monument. The castle displays relics and artifacts of the noble Radvila family. Nezvizh should definitely be combined with Mir as an entire day’s excursion.

4.     October Gates, twin buildings built in classic Soviet/Stalinist style serves as the city gates to Minsk and is one of its most distinguishable landmarks.

5.     Victory Square is a beautiful monument to those who lost their lives in the Great Patriotic War. One of the main highlights of the square is the stunning 38-meter high granite monument crowned by a 3-meter replica of the Order of Victory.

6.     One of Minsk’s most beautiful places of worship is the Russian Orthodox Holy Spirit Cathedral in the city center. Be sure to pop in for a look at all the beautiful icons and the famous “Minsk Icon” which is believed to be miraculous. Also, be sure to walk around the grounds to have a look at the other quaint church buildings.

7.     National Opera and Ballet of Belarus is a national architectural gem complete with a beautiful park and fountains. This is the perfect place to indulge your cultural side and a wonderful place to hang out on a warm, sunny Minsk day.

8.     On a nice day I would highly recommend a walk through Minsk’s Gorky Park! This park serves as a wonderful oasis away from the urban grind that is Minsk.

9.     Александровский сквер/Alexander Square is a small open green space where one can escape the hustle and bustle of the city. In the center is a well known beautiful fountain with a small statue called “A Boy with a swan”, which is otherwise known as “Panikovka” named after a character, Panikovski, from the famous mid-20^th century Russian novel by Ilf and Petrov, “The 12 Chairs”.

10. Октябрьская площадь/October Square is a massive open space in the center of Minsk and is home to a variety of imposing Stalinistic and Soviet buildings. Some of the highlights include, The Presidential Palace (home to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko), the дворца республики Palace of the Republics, and the House of Officers/Окружной Дом офицеров. Next to them stands the beautiful National Academic Theater of Yanka Kupaly or Национальный академический театр имени Янки Купалы. And, no visit to October Square would be complete without a look at the Tank Memorial dedicated to the liberators of Minsk in World War II, the Soviet Red Army. 

 

11. Ok, so it was only supposed to be ten, but I would not be giving justice to this wonderful nation if I did not mention one of their main assets and attractions, their women! It’s been said that Belarus is a “Super Model breeding ground” and nothing could be more accurate. The girls are drop dead gorgeous and “according” to my guide are one of “Belarus’s top exports”. I hope to one day export one of these national treasures!

I am so grateful to have experienced all the wonderful sites the nation has to offer and look forward to returning someday soon! After all, I never can visit places only once! I encourage you to give Belarus a chance and guarantee you that you will not be disappointed! Happy Travels!!

English Language Learning

One student I just began to work with asked me bluntly, “How long does it take to become fluent in English”? I paused a moment and tried to explain that unlike a lot of things in life, which have fixed prices and times, i.e. it takes $42,860 to buy a new 2014 LEXUS convertible or a flight from Los Angeles to Seattle is 2.5 hours, language learning/mastery has no set timetable, mainly due to the fact that each person is different and varies in the way they learn (learning styles). Many language companies, i.e. Rosetta Stone, Pimsler, try to tell you otherwise promising clear results after a set amount of time working with their courses.

I compare language learning to climbing a challenging mountain. You need the right tools, equipment and lots of endurance to get you through the crucial times where it’s do or die. The trick to language learning is to never ever give up and to keep going until you reach the summit. However, unlike an actual mountain, the “summit of language learning” can be hard to distinguish, as there are always a series of other new peaks to try and scale.

I know this journey rather well as I have studied Russian for 25 years! There’ve been times, where I feel like I’ve reached the summit, only to find I haven’t even come close to base camp. And, then there are the times where I feel as if I’ve walked straight into a fierce blizzard. One aspect of language that likely makes every language learner feel as if they’ve walked head into a blizzard is slang and double meaning. One perfect example of double meaning is the verb, “to put up”. To put up usually means something like, “to put up a sign, or put up the curtains”, but when you add the simple preposition “with”, it becomes as we say in America, “a whole new ballgame” (meaning a completely different situation) and means, “to tolerate” something unpleasant, like “she barely put up with her son’s poor behavior”.

One of the cold harsh realities of second language acquisition is, age. It’s been proven many times that those who begin studying language as adults normally cannot reach near or at a native speaking level like children can. I have noticed this with a lot of the students I teach. The ones who are younger and have been learning English since childhood usually exemplify a much better grasp than those who are older and had only a few years of formal English study.

For example, I have one student who is 16 and has only four years of English study, yet speaks nearly impeccable English. Her level is so high that I find it difficult to develop material that will challenge her. On the other end of the spectrum I have an older student who studied English all through school and university, but has real difficulty with understanding and speaking.

In my opinion one of the keys to teaching language and facilitating a student’s acquisition and success in a foreign language is using the communicative approach, which I’ve found to really be the best method of teaching. In a nutshell, this concept believes language is best learned when there is equal interaction between student and teacher. I prefer to see my role with the student, not so much as a teacher, but more of a facilitator, helping students discover the ideas and concepts of foreign language on their own.

I feel this is where many nations have gone wrong in teaching. When teaching is a one sided matter, i.e. the teacher lectures, students listens and students complete monotonous, mind numbing written exercises, only to repeat endlessly the student gets bored and loses interest therefore losing the motivation to achieve a higher level. Whenever I begin teaching a new student I always prefer to know their history with English. Since I mainly teach Russians, I hear the same story, over and over again, they studied English in school and then university where the emphasis was almost entirely focused on learning grammar, grammar rules, spelling, etc. with little or no speaking, therefore leaving them at an extreme disadvantage.

Before I started teaching Russians I noticed nearly the same pattern when I taught Asian students, but even worse! At least with Russians they would actually speak, many times incorrectly, but nonetheless they spoke. With Asian students it was PAINFUL, as if pulling teeth without Novocain! I would ask them a question and they would sit there silently or would talk with a very, very QUIET voice.

Recently I asked a Russian friend how she learned English best. I expected her to name the usual methods, books, dialogs, conversation, etc… but to my surprise she told me she found watching ads as a helpful tool to her success. I had never thought of this, sure I had heard of the urban legends of people learning English by watching soap operas or specific movies, but this was a new one!

So, as we speak I am trying this experimental tool with some of my more advanced students, those who can speak in full sentences and understand main ideas in a conversation. By no means is this the magical solution to being able to master a language, but nonetheless it’s worth a try. I feel this should be a great learning tool, since ads usually are only 30-60 seconds long, use every day American English/slang and always have a specific point, to convince the consumer to buy their product. Ads can also help the student get down the rhythm, tone and flow of the language. Plus, many are quite entertaining, funny and can really keep the student’s attention, which cannot help but beat the old (as us language teachers say), “drill and kill” method.

As I grow older and wiser, I am starting to understand that I will never know everything there is to know in the Russian language and that language learning, just like life, is a never ending learning process. However, many times this is cold comfort when I’m conversing with someone in Russian and I totally miss the meaning of the conversation and end up having to ask them what exactly they meant. I suppose patience (hard to have in this digital age of everything being instant) is the most important key to success in language learning. So in other words, I would say patience is the most important trait to have when learning a new language.

The Captain

Captain R.H. Stephens

Travel! It’s in my blood, literally! Some families are fourth generation engineers, third generation teachers or fifth generation lawyers. I on the other hand am a fourth generation traveler!

The person most responsible for instilling this acute case of wanderlust in me was my grandfather, Captain Russell H. Stephens. Grandpa began his 37 year long aviation career when in 1941 fresh out of flight school he was hired by United Airlines. His adventures as a pilot and then as a retired pilot spanned more than half a century, took him to countless nations and provided hours worth of gripping stories to be told around the dinner table on Sunday nights.

Back in the 1980s I loved to watch the short cartoon “The World of Commander McBragg”. Each segment began with the main character, a retired British naval officer simply known as “Commander”, spinning a globe and pointing his finger to somewhere on the globe. He would then proceed to tell an over the top unreal heroic story about himself to one of his men's club friends. In a nutshell this was grandpa! I’ve embedded the video below this paragraph. Worth a watch!

You could name any country, place, continent, whatever it was and grandpa had been there, done that and had an incredible story to tell! One of my favorite stories was back in the 1950s in Egypt when my grandfather was on leave of absence from United Airlines flying for Transavia Airlines. Upon landing in Egypt it was discovered that the airline company was out of money and had no way to pay the gas tab to fill up in order to continue to the next destination! When the Egyptians demanded payment he took matters into his own hands and paid for the plane’s gas with his own Mobile gas credit card.

Another one of his brave adventures came in 1959 when grandmother and grandfather along with some family friends flew a piper Apache airplane into Cuba. This was no ordinary day in Cuba; this was when the US backed government of Batista fell to Cuban Communist leader, Fidel Castro. Once they landed they were met by soldiers with semi-automatic machine guns and were escorted off the airplane.

My grandfather was not afraid to take chances and never worried about possible consequences. His attitude was reminiscent of a captain who was not afraid to go down with his ship! This was exemplified on a chartered flight during the height of The Cold War over some Alaskan Islands, which touched the Soviet/Russia border. He thought it would be fun if his passengers got a “taste” of the Soviet Union. As the plane approached Soviet territory, he deviated a slight bit from the flight path tipping one part of the airplane into Soviet territory while the other side was in the US and then repeated this with the other side.  Therefore passengers could say they had “visited” the Soviet Union.  

The volume of incredible, death-defying stories told by my Grandfather Stephens is much like the universe, endless! And, many of these tales did not just involve him, but my mother and grandmother, thus making the stories even more gripping and interesting. Stay tuned for many more stories from the vault of Captain Russ Stephen’s travel tales!!!