Russia
My day was quite busy. It was my last day in Moscow, but I decided not to attend the conference even though it was the final day. Instead, I slept until 9 AM and then started packing my things. The whole routine took around two hours and turned out to be a bit challenging. I had several presents with me, and it was difficult to pack them properly with the rest of my belongings. Because of that, my backpack ended up being overweight. Fortunately, nobody checked the weight at the airport, so everything went smoothly and I had no problems with it.
My day started at 8 a.m. When I woke up, my first thought was that I had overslept and missed my transfer to the congress center. For a few seconds I felt really stressed. Fortunately, it was just a wrong feeling, and when I realized that everything was fine, I felt huge relief. It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I really didn’t want to take a taxi because it was expensive, and I didn’t want to spend extra money. Public transport was also not a great option because I would have needed three transfers. It was cheaper than a taxi, but still inconvenient.
I received this bag of memorable gifts today at the conference. It was a pleasant surprise because I didn’t expect to get anything special. Inside the bag there was my badge. The orange rope was for the organizers, and the blue one was for participants. There was also a special notebook, a pen, a circular plate celebrating Infostart’s 20 years, a paper birthday hat, and a special set of tools for cleaning devices. All of these items were packed inside a blue decorated bag
Even though I am currently in Moscow, I began my day with fasting. The fasting schedule here is slightly different from what I am used to. Suhoor was at 04:47 AM, and iftar was at 06:27 PM. Honestly, the different timing did not cause me any inconvenience. I managed to begin and complete my fast quite comfortably. However, I had to skip breakfast at the hotel in the morning and lunch during the conference. Naturally, my colleagues noticed this and asked why I was not eating with them. I took the opportunity to explain the significance of the month of Ramadan for Muslims.
Today I started my business trip to Moscow, and everything is going well. Yesterday I mentioned that I didn’t really want to go. That feeling was related to my unsuccessful day yesterday, but today everything turned out differently. I woke up feeling calm and surprisingly positive about the trip. The weather was also awesome. The temperature was warm, the sky was clear, and overall it felt like a real spring day. When I arrived in Moscow and left the airport, I noticed that the temperature there was also around +11 degrees.
It’s very cold in Kazan right now, the temperature dropped to -30°C. Despite this, i went to my last swimming training today.
There is almost no snow left in Kazan, and the temperature is +3°C, even though it's only early february. Usually, this weather comes in mid or late march. Let's see what happens in march and april, i hope there won’t be freezing temperatures
During those days, the city felt truly festive. Bright lights decorated the streets, shop windows were shining with colorful garlands, and a huge Christmas tree stood on the main square. People were walking around, taking photos, and kids were happily sliding down hills and skating on ice rinks.
Now, after some time, the memories are still vivid. New Year in Kazan was warm and cozy, even though the weather felt more like spring. Maybe it was one of the most unusual holidays in recent years.
Tomorrow I will walk around Kaban Lake and take a few pictures of the Kamal Theater
Today, it got much colder — the temperature dropped to -18 degrees. It’s real winter, just as I expected.