Leaving

The events leading up to leaving my site were kind of crazy. People constantly invited me to spend time with them, and each time, I said yes. I think this was the right decision, since I won't see them again for some time, but it took away from my time spend packing/pitching. This meant that I slept for about 3 hours last night, and my morning was hectic, to say the least. But I managed to say goodbye to almost everyone properly (as opposed to 'the English way'- what they call leaving without saying goodbye). I failed to say goodbye to my ground floor neighbor, Baba Galya, and also the salesgirls at my favorite store. Otherwise, I think I got the job done.

I also made out like a bandit. I told people that I didn't want anything big or heavy, for travel reasons, and they listened. I got:
-a large book about Strana, with pictures from the English department
-a beautiful hand-embroidered pillowcase from my co-ordinator
-a small icon from my neighbor's mother
-a sweet wallet/keyholder with a Versace logo (and a fabulous aroma) from my neighbor
-a collection of the writings of Babel from my Russian tutor
-a small traditional ceramic pot for cooking meat and potatoes in from one of my friends
-earrings made of seashells from the Black Sea, from a co-worker friend

Then, this morning, I thought I would not be able to properly part with my Russian tutor, because she had been ill all last week. And at 8:30, she called, not bothering to identify herself, and said "Girl, when are you leaving? What time will you be at the train station?" And she came. I was so very happy.
And then, after I had gotten all of my baggage onto the train, and it was starting to pull away, my landlord and neighbor realized I still had their keys. My landlord ran alongside the train, and I, panicking, threw my whole keyring to them. Clever fellow that he is, he got the keys off and tossed my rape-whistle/flashlight/bottle opener back into the train. No departure is complete without a train chase, is it?