Parting Shots

I've taken a long hiatus from the blog for a number of reasons... because we've been busy with the move, because I've been lazy, but mostly because by the end of our assignment, I couldn't find much to say that was nice.  And the old adage about not saying anything if you can't say something nice holds particularly true in the Foreign Service.

Now, with several months of separation behind me and the prospect of our next assignment rapidly approaching, I'm ready to add the closing chapter of our Russian adventure to our story.

By the time I got back to Moscow from Sochi, the situation in Ukraine had gotten much worse, and as everyone now knows, Putin annexed Ukraine.  At the time, I was feeling very frustrated with the situation.  Everyone knew that the Russian narrative was false, but there was relatively little I could say publicly about it.  When the State Department came out with the list of the top 10 lies coming out of Russia, I was thrilled.  The Russian propaganda machine is clearly formidable, but now there are concrete things I can say to contradict them.  I've linked to two of the lists from the State Department's website for posterity:

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2014/03/222988.htm

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2014/04/224759.htm

While the conflict in Ukraine continues to simmer, at least international coverage is no longer focused on the things the Kremlin makes up about it.  Pushing back in a misinformation war like that is one of the things I signed up to do when I joined the Foreign Service.  With my upcoming tour in Baku as Information Officer, I'm looking forward to taking a more hands-on approach in the effort to get our story out and combat the false narratives spun by others.

The sad thing about leaving Moscow at the end of March was that we never got to see another Moscow spring, but we did get a couple of nice days to do a farewell tour.  One weekend we trekked up to Moscow State University for views over the city.  It was easier said than done since the hillsides were still dangerously icy.  We had to abandon our walk in the Sparrow Hills area and take the metro up to the famous university.

For our final date night, we spent a long afternoon and evening out to see a ballet based on a classic Russian fairytale by Pushkin - Ruslan and Liudmilla - at the Kremlin State Palace theater.  Aside from being another chance to slip inside the Kremlin walls, the ballet was fantastic.  We followed up with dinner at our favorite restaurant - Vatrushka.

The end of our assignment also saw the end of my Early-Medieval Christian Music singing group as the British DCM and his wife, who were co-creators of the group, were also leaving.  We did get to say a fitting good-bye as we were invited to their farewell reception at the British Ambassador's residence.  It's possibly some of the best real estate in the city, located directly across the river from the Kremlin in a 19th century mansion.  The interiors are incredible with beautiful dark wood paneling and brocade in the entryway.

Unfortunately, photos weren't allowed inside, but I managed to find one photo online for a small glimpse.

The farewell also gave us an excuse to take one last walk past the Kremlin, which seemed a fitting farewell.

Looking back, it's still fairly easy to see the negatives more than the positives;  unfriendly people, rampant anti-Americanism from the government, seemingly never-ending winters, pushy babushkas in the grocery stores and metro, overpriced restaurants with bad food, lack of privacy, and so on.  And I guess in a lot of ways, the bad parts obscured the good.  At least, moreso than in Dushanbe, which we remember far more fondly.  But that doesn't mean that there aren't good memories. 

We made great friends in Moscow.  And the stunning architecture and faintly echoing grand history are everywhere.  There was great food, which we found with a bit of effort, and we saw some amazing places - I'm thinking specifically of St. Petersburg and Siberia.  All in all, I am glad it's over, but I wouldn't undo it.  There is greatness and beauty in Russia and hopefully someday it will be more readily apparent with much less digging. 

In terms of my job, working in the Consular section was far from easy.  And yes, it was often draining and sometimes monotonous.  But it could also be engaging and was frequently very meaningful.  I think back to my work in immigrant visas and particularly our efforts on behalf of adoptive families from the U.S. before the adoptions were shut down as part of a local political stunt (that's still how I see it).  And I got to interact with some really interesting people.  I've kept a list of some of the more unexpected background among the applicants I interviewed for non-immigrant visas.  The include, but are not limited to; Science fair participants, Fake crab stick manufacturers, Horse breeders, Astronauts, Hot dog manufacturers, Arm Wrestling Coaches, Trout Factory Managers, Rogaining Participants (not baldness fighters - look it up), Sex toy company representatives, Cheerleaders, Eyebrow Tattoo Artists, Cross-country Motorcyclists, Rock opera singers, Movie stars, Chernobyl Victims, Concordia victims, M-1 World Champions, Doctors Practicing Telemedicine, Gold prospectors, Murderers, Mass spectrometer salesmen, Snowmobile Congress participants in Summer, Wheelchair curlers, Attempted murder victims, DNA electronic researchers, Race car mechanics, Hip Hop Dance groups, International bread conference, Assassins, participants on the Russian version of The Bachelor, Mannequin dressers.  

These are just a few examples that stood out to me and I think they demonstrate just how broad the ties between our countries are if you get below the surface political issues.  I hope those connections are strong enough so that when political change comes to Russia and relations thaw, we will still have a solid base to build on.  In addition to that, I'm proud of my work protecting American citizen and ensuring our national security.  I wish more people at home understood all the things the State Department does abroad to promote American interests. 

Since we returned from Moscow, it's been a busy summer and I'll try to summarize all that's gone on since then before we get to Baku in August.