Two Days to Warm Weather

I watched from my train bunk as the bright sun twinkled on the blue water of the Black Sea. A pod of dolphins soared out of the water and dove back under. What an exceptional welcome to Southern Russia! We had been on the train from Saint Petersburg for nearly 47 hours and now we were nearly arriving in the beautiful resort city of Sochi. The ornate train station greeted the tired and excited students as we gathered our bags to board the bus that would take us to our hotel. During the semester, we take one long trip to another city (or a number of cities). This semester we had the opportunity to spend 6 days in the future center of the 2014 Winter Olympics, also known as the “Miami” of Russia. After much needed showers and rest, the next day brought us a tour of the city by bus and a visit to a tea plantation where we learned about the history of the introduction of tea into Russia and the techniques for producing and brewing different kinds of tea. After our short lecture overlooking the rolling hills of tea plants, we gathered in the tea house to enjoy the singing of famous Russian songs (accompanied by the sounds of nearly ten differently-sized accordions) as well as tea brewed from a samovar and breads, honeys, and jams. The next day we hiked up one of the mountains in the Western Caucasus (в Агурское Ущелье) for nearly 6 hours. Although the hike was physically challenging we were rewarded with some of the most amazing views I have seen in Russia. The mountains of the Western Caucasus region are spectacular, not mention we were also able to see the Black Sea from where we stood. After our hike, we dined at a Georgian restaurant, which was very appropriate seeing as how close we were to Georgia. The next day, we hiked 11 kilometers up another mountain (Гора Ахун). It was great we were able to see how people lived in the different villages as well as admire the home gardens. From there, we were able to take pictures with a baby lion, a peacock, a parrot and a monkey. I also had the most amazing Jasmine tea with lemon and honey and sweetened figs. The tea was served from a samovar of course. We visited the tower from which we were able to see gorgeous views of mountains to one side and the sea to the other. We were up so high we were able to see the city of Adler and Abhazia (region which was once Georgia). The next day brought up to Krasnaya Polyana, the mountain and area which will hold the Winter Olympics in 2014. We stood on the snow capped peak after an hour long ski lift ride. The view was incredible. I felt like I was on top of the world! Afterwards, we visited a pacery (honey farm) and sampled different types of honey (i.e. Chestnut, lime, white, etc.) as well as honey vodka and honey wine. (These were both interesting and surprisingly delicious.) We had an excursion at a trout hatchery where we fed fish. Interestingly, amber colored trout are specific to this area. I had never seen them before. During then downtime we had (i.e. when we weren’t on our excursions) I really enjoyed swimming in the salt water pool at the hotel and going to the rocky beach to look for sea glass. I loved to explore the stunning resort city with my friends. Unfortunately our time in the sunny and warm Sochi had to end with another two day train ride. (A necessary Russian experience) I hope I can return to Sochi one day; it has left such a wonderful impression on experience in Russia as a whole.