Arrival in Moscow

I am making this entry from Moscow where we arrived today after our twelve hour flight. The flight went well and was relaxing after going through the waiting and controls that are now in place for our security. After landing inMoscow, going thourgh passport control and picking up our luggage, Ludmila, the mother of my old friend Roman, met us at the airport and had a taxi to take us through Moscow to their apartment where she put on a big feast for us. Roman joined us later coming from a club where he was learning about Shakespearean acting. He speaks English perfectly. I've known him since 1989 when he was a teenager in Odessa, Ukraine. Now he works at the help desk at the American Embassy in Moscow. The weather here is beautiful today, sunny and mild when we arrived. I don't feel terribly tired in spite of the time change. It is just after 11:00 p.m. here and I don't even want to think what time it is in California. Very early tomorrow we will fly to St. Petersburg. It's great to be back in Russia!