Yesterday was a long day. It seemed like we were anchored in our chairs in this same conference room forever (I think my butt went to sleep twice)!
But it was an interesting one. In the morning there were two lectures, the first on Russian and Eurasian geography (and ethinic groups), the other on Russian environmental issues. The program folks bought us lunch in the dorm dining facility (it was palatable) and then the afternoon sessions picked up a bit. We spent a good 3 hours with THE premier Russian history expert (and prolific author) of our day (as he is know around here), a U. of Illinois professor named Mark Steinberg. This guy's presentations were fascinating (to me, anyway); he is especially interested in the 1917 revolution and the life of the last tsar, which he talked about for half the time. The last portion of his lecture was on Russian peasantry (doesn't sound like an overly stimulating topic, I know, but it was good, too!). After that was a lecture on Russian folk music-- by the time the nice lady was ready to begin, we were all ready for a nap... But hers was interesting information, as well.
We walked a few blocks for dinner (and to restore blood flow to our internal organs-- brain, mostly) and then, as fate would have it, there were technical difficulties, so we didn't sit through the planned hour and a half of videos. I was glad, because I was ready for the rack (and I wasn't the only one)...
Today we have politics, politics, and-- you guessed it-- more politics. Then a group dinner somewhere and nothing afterward.
So, as is my now-established routine, I must go get coffee. Or perish. :)
