Wednesday, September 17, 2003
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Wednesday, September 17, 2003 |
Local student spends some of summer in RussiaBy MICHAEL
BOYLAN
Fayetteville resident and Fayette County High School graduate Christopher Thornburg had an excellent summer vacation, although it wasn't spent at the beach or an amusement park. In fact, much of his five weeks out of town was spent in learning experiences and was very far out of town. Thornburg, a senior at Clayton College and State University, went to St. Petersburg, Russia, this summer for a study abroad program. The program was through the European Council of the University of Georgia School Systems and involved taking three classes at the University of St. Petersburg. Thornburg was joined by 49 other students and chaperones in Russia from the last week of May until the first week of July. He took classes on Russian art and architecture, an introduction to Russian culture and the history of St. Petersburg, but admits there was a lot of learning outside of the classroom as the group took a number of field trips. One such trip took the class to Moscow for a week. Though Thornburg is a business major with hopes of becoming an entrepreneur, he admires artistic endeavors in architecture. While on his five-week trip, he got to see some of amazing palaces built during the time of the Czars, including the Peterhof. He was amazed by the wealth that the Czars had, stating that much of the buildings were decorated in gold and that the collection of jewels in the Kremlin in Moscow, also blew him away. His day began at 7 a.m., three hours after the sun came up, with breakfast at the dorms. The sun rises early and sets late in St. Petersburg during the summer due to its proximity to the Arctic Circle. In turn, the sun would not fully set until after midnight. "It was hard to get used to at first," Thornburg admitted. "Especially with the jet lag." After breakfast, Thornburg was off to class. The classes were taught in English by professors from the University of St. Petersburg. On most days, the learning would take place on field trips to one of the many palaces or museums in the area. The museums and palaces used to be closed to the public during the height of communism, but they are now open and the citizens take great pride in them. The students also got to witness some history firsthand. During their stay, St. Petersburg celebrated its 300th anniversary celebration. President Bush and President Vladmir Putin were on hand for the party, which included a laser show, fireworks and two ships exchanging cannon fire. Thornburg and his colleagues were also on hand for the 1,192nd City Day of Pavlosk, which is a town located near St. Petersburg. Residents donned traditional costumes, sang folk songs and danced and cooked traditional dishes. Speaking of food, Thornburg tried some new dishes and liked many of them, with the exception of a soup that consisted of fish broth, cabbage and beets. While Thornburg feels that Russia appeared decades behind America in some respects, he did get to watch "The Simpsons," "Jerry Springer," "Married With Children" and the new Matrix movie, dubbed in Russian and without the benefit of English subtitles. The Russian citizens he met had some misconceptions about Americans, based mainly on what they see on television and in movies. "They think we all eat fast food all the time and act like the kids in American movies," said Thornburg, who claims he avoided the two McDonald's restaurants in Moscow as well as the McDonald's in St. Petersburg. All in all, Thornburg had a great time and wanted to thank Dr. Scott T. McPherson, a dentist from Peachtree City, who sponsored part of Thornburg's trip and helped put him in touch with others who donated money for the excursion. It was a trip loaded with activities that left Thornburg with memories that will last a lifetime. One special moment included seeing Paul McCartney leave his hotel and duck into a limousine. He recommends study-abroad trips for all college students interested in taking one and would love to spend more time in Russia some day in the future.
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