parked cars

The thing to do in Russia seems to be sitting in your parked car with a friend, beer, cigarette, or any combination. For the first few weeks, I was alarmed and concerned whenever I walked by such parked cars. It seemed a bit like the sitters were lying in wait, about to do something unspeakable. But now I believe that they are just chilling.

I'm really not sure why this is a thing in Russia. Perhaps a parked car is the warmest option in the winter and they just do it year round? Sitting on benches or loitering on street corners are also popular activities, but less surprising to see.

The other thing is that the parked cars are often on the sidewalk. So there have been times when I've moved off the road to avoid the cars pointed at me with their brights only to find myself nose to nose with a car pointed at me with its brights. So I usually try to find a place on the sidewalk that would be difficult for a homicidal car to navigate.

We finished finals and classes today. So now we have all of tomorrow to loiter around the city, pack and etc. before flying off Sunday morning.