Now, it’s already been three weeks since we were in Saint Petersburg, but let me just conclude this belated report with some final remarks.
The best thing about Saint Petersburg was that I was there with Kirke and Hanna. Hanna and I started first grade together. Kirke joined for second grade. That makes almost 20 and 19 years of friendship. We’ve been to many places together, ski resorts, viking islands, Greece, music festivals, Belgrade. And now Russia.
Now, don’t get me wrong. It’s not all pink clouds and rainbows. Having known each other for so long, the fuse has shrunk when it comes to certain issues, compared to how sensitive we would be with other people. We fight a lot. But all that time also makes it so much easier to see behind the fight. What is real, and what is just blowing off steam. Letting go. Being around these two, I can be my grumpy, eccentric, controlling self and they will tell me when I’m being an ass, but still love me anyway. Safety. That is what it is.
We ate so much. It is insane. Two Georgian three course meals, one lunch of blinis and soup, and one Russian dinner with vodka on the side. It’s amazing, eating food. With hilarious meal companions, who all know how to enjoy the good things in life. I foresee three old fat ladies waddling around the food capitals of the world, laughing on their way from restaurant to restaurant. Bright future.
The last evening, we tried to find an Azerbaijani restaurant, but it seemed to have disappeared and we ended up at this hip, but quite empty bar with the loveliest bartender. He did not speak English very well, but he tried and brought out his tablet with Google translate when our shared vocabulary wasn’t enough, Kirke joked and he joked and we ended up with lingonberry cocktails, home-brewed lager, a pizza and pasta. A very haphazard, but cozy finish to our decadent visit to Saint Petersburg.
Katja Malmborg 