Day two... where to start! We were greeted at our hotel by our host families and then driven to their individual homes. We were quite surprised at the unusually warm whether of 78 degrees. Mark and Andrew stayed together while Nikki and Joe each stayed in their respective seperate homes. We visited with each host family, got to know each other and then headed out to the country side "Dachas" on the river bank, for a very special "Mayofka Picnic". This is an annual event at the begining of May to celebrate the revolution and to welcome spring. We were greeted by the local Rotary Club and Rotar-Act members and received traditional necklaces made of bread. The day preceeded with traditional Russian games and dance with an enormous feast, complete with homemade "Summagon" (aka moonshine) and Siberian entrees (bishbarmark). The outdoor table was over 50 feet long with a toast made by several people to celebrate this special day and all our new friends. There was a small home on the riverside with a giant indoor sauna called a "baunya." It is similar to our saunas, only much hotter and they dip small leafy branches from poplar trees and tap each other's back to detoxify the body. Then...a mad dash out of the house 50 yards into the 35 degree river! They had already built a bonfire for everyone on the bank for a speedy recovery. This was truly one of those moments that we will remember for a lifetime! The evening ended in downtown Omsk at an "Insight" seminar, similar to a Landmark Education seminar in the US.

Today, day 3, we began our morning on a cultural tour of Omsk city with a local historian and enjoyed a wonderful lunch together. Afterwards, we each had our own meetings with our respective local professionals. Andrew went to an upscale Russian/European fine dining resturant to talk the owner, Mark went to meet with local Omsk auditors and Nikki met with the Marketing Director of 5 Lakes Vodka, Russia's largest Vodka brand. After our individual meetings we met for a press conference with members of the Omsk Business Association as well as the media for a Q&A about American small business, commerce and our own professions. The day ended with another amazing feast at Joe's host family's house, complete with yet again, plenty of vodka, laughter and new friends. If this is what the first 2 days bring...we can only imagine the next 3 weeks!

Stay tuned!

Group Study Exchange lands in Siberia!

Thursday, the Rotary District 6960 Group Study Exchange Team left for Siberia. We began our trip out of Fort Myers, FL traveling to North Carolina, followed by Washington DC, then on to Moscow where we spent the day. Today during our 12 hour layover, we meet with the local Rotar-Act members to tour the city. We left the airport by train on a 40 minute ride through a beautiful birch forest as we made our way into downtown Moscow. There we caught a few metros (subway) that lead us to a hilltop platform overlooking the Red Square. For the next several hours we walked to Lenin’s Tomb, St. Basil’s Cathedral, Christ’s Church, Alexander Park, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and enjoyed the amazing flower gardens surrounding each of them. We finished our day with apple and cherry stuffed crepes...a la mode! Last night, we caught an 11pm flight to Omsk, arriving at 5am to a very warm welcome. Several Rotarians, Rotar-Act members and host families greeted us with flowers, banners and enthusiastic smiles. We spent our first day in a lovely hotel to get adjusted to the time difference. We’ve already seen so many rich cultural sites and we haven’t even began our district tour yet!

We are looking forward to updating our blog frequently so we can share this special experience with you. On behalf of our team, Mark Casper, Andrew Somerville, Nikki Heil and team leader Joe Boggs, we want to express our sincerest thanks to our Rotary District 6960 and our host families for this wonderful opportunity. Stay tuned for another update on our amazing adventure!