Big Sergei
Here it is, the little alleyway.
Well, my Russian visa finally came through so here I am. Today I spent three hours trudging the streets of Moscow to get the visa registered. Two of those hours were spent asking passersby, “Skazhite, pazhoulista, vy ne mogli byi skazat gde nakhoditsa Bolshou Sergeevsky pereulik’?” or approximately “Tell me, please, there is no possible way you could tell me where is located Big Sergei’s Little Alleyway?” Nobody could tell me. One old man even insisted that no such alleyway ever existed, nor would ever exist. “It’s simply impossible.” he kept repeating, “It may not be!” Finally I found what according to MapQuest looked like Big Sergei’s though it wasn’t marked, and walked into to a swanky apartment building called the Millenium House where the front desk girl assured me she had no idea what I was talking about until the doorman interrupted, “Big Sergei’s is the very little alleyway we’re standing on right now!”
So I got my visa stamped and I’ll post pictures of me standing in the alleyway tomorrow, don’t worry.
Also, in more fellowship news I’ve interviewed a total of one journalist, rocked a bus tour, and seen a Chekhov medley? performed on by students in an abandoned gallery space near the Arbat – in one scene a seagull peed on Irina’s head while she lamented her life at the post office. I thought this was really funny, though the rest of the  audience found it to be serious. Eventually everyone else started laughing, too, and I thought, yes I am quite correct. This is indeed funny and thank God I was here to make that clear to everyone.