Vinnoye Horses

Autumn begins in Vinnoye

Fall chickens in the backyard chicken coop

Baby ducklings with their mother take twenty minute tours across the garden ten times a day

By November these guys will be served with a side of buckwheat

"Baba" Ira prepares tomato juice by grinding fresh tomatoes, onion and horseradish; the juice can be stored all winter.

First Bell for the Second Time

First Form Students Start School

September 1st was my second time experiencing the "First Bell" ceremony, this time in a Russian village as opposed to an Uyghur village last year. All things went about the same, the ceremony began with the Director addressing the students and wishing them success in the coming year and ended with an 11th form student carrying a 1st form student on his shoulders while the youngin rang a small cow bell with all her might. They run into the school together, followed by all the rest of the grades 2nd through 10th.

All the students were dressed in their traditional uniforms left over from Soviet times and these days used for a handful of school related ceremonies. In the short span of three months many of my students have grown inches in height and facial hair. A new school year begins.