Couch Surfing in Tomsk!

The train trip from Irkutsk to Tomsk was uneventful. We shared a four-berth with an old lady (who reminded me of Mrs a, my year five teacher) and her granddaugher who very kindly let us use bottom bunk during the day - we had he two upper bunks. Luckily we slept alot, and didn't have a midnight border crossing for once! We passed farms and villages with wooden houses falling down and sinking in the marshy fields, and a village surely for midgets - the huts must have only been one room. We had an hour stop, an hour before Tomsk but were too intimidated by the Russian security men to get off and explore the station.
We arrived in Tomsk about 2.30 pm and were met by Tatiana, the mother of the family we are couch surfing with. She had a sign with our names, and a notebook with the essential phrases - she doesn't speak English very well. She helped us buy our ticket to Moscow, a bargain, about $120 for 3rd class sleeper, a 56-hour trip! Then Tatiana brought us to their home, an apartment in a pretty nice block, no as decrepit and dirty as some Soviet monstrosities we've seen. It's a two-bedroom aparment; the two daughters share a room, and Tatiana and Yuri have given us their room, which is what they said on their couch surfing profile, but we still feel very bad.
Tatiana fed us and we showed her online photos of Australia before Galina, the fluent English speaker, came home from university where she studies linguistics. Galina took us for a walk around the neighbourhood, where there's still many old wooden houses with intricate wooden lace carvings.
"See that - fake. It's plastic, but it looks just like wrought iron".
Tomsk is famous for its architecture, and Galina knows all about it for some reason. Some of the houses were beautifully restored, others just waiting to fall down, or 'accidently' burn down, so new apartment blocks could be built. Tatiana is in a society to save the wooded buildings. The roads were puddles of mud from all the snow melting; takes a bit of the romantacism away.
On Thursday, after over the phone translating between Tatiana and her sister Natasha (Galina was at uni), we left armed with instructions for the bus to Lenin Square, the centre of own. A kind English speaking man told us when to get off. We walked around the theatre, along the river Tom for a bit and up the main street before heading home. After lunch we went with Tatiana to her physio appointment...a little weird...but her sister met us and took us for a walk while we waited. Then, after some very complicated tram changes, we were in the 'burbs, and an artists studio. Leonty Usov (which took ages to Google) is famous for his wooden carvings of famous people. He had jut returned from a tour of Australia and were were invited to the exhibition opening in Sydney in a year. We hadn't the heart to tell him or Olga, his 'director' that we would not be home by then. The whole situation was quite amusing - there were two translators, his manger, his other art friends, all seemingly there to show the Aussie tourists Tomsk's favourite sculptor. His works were pretty cool, abstract but still distinctive. Many were 'famous Russian playwrights/poets/philosophers' that we had never heard of. Shakespeare, we knew.
After that bizarre meeting, we met with Galina and went to Tomsk's museum if political oppression. Galina and Natasha very professionally translated the signs and told us the stories of the ridiculous amount of people accused of going against the government in the 20's and 30's - intellectuals, priests, people with glasses....'so just take the glasses off...' It was Lenin's birthday and they had a whole room of ridiculous Lenin paraphenalia. After, Galina took us home, fed us, and we watched Coraline on DVD before it stopped on us.
On Friday April 24th we were sent on the bust to Lagerny Gardens, memorial gardens for the servicement. The weather was lovely, the view of the Tom river was amazing and the paths weren't completely covered in slushy snow. We saw a few weddings - Friday weddings are popular! - and sat in the sunshine amongst the birch grove. We came home for lunch - this couch surfing business has turned into full board and accommodation - and waited for Galina to finish at uni - she has lessons six days a week! For five years!
We had a bit of a relax, then went to the University and walked around, tried to get into the Botanic Gardens, but they were closed. We saw many buildings of historical significance to Tomsk, some gardens, the Tomsk football stadium, and lots of slushy streets. Galina has an art lesson every Friday, so we tag teamed with her mother at the art museum. Tatiana is ver involded with the art scene in Tomsk so she knew everyone at the museum and recruited English speakers from a passing uni excursion to translate the curator's descriptions of the artworks. It was another odd situation - perhaps we are the only foreigners in town, but everyone's willing to help. The translator' friends all stood around giggling while she spoke to us in perfect English.
After the museum we promenaded, along with half of Tomsk, in the sunshine by the river, which is still frozen but expected to crack soon.
That nigh we broke the ice (segue!) with Yuri, the father, whose English extends to grunts. Vodka - you could crack Lake Baikal with it. We had a few shots, the men drinking more, because they're men. I was sniffing and coughing real bad like, and Tatiana made me a steam bath for me to breathe. We feel terrible being ill in someone's home, especially since Tatiana ha started coughing as well. We have both had bad coughing fits at night and hope we haven't been waking everyone up. The air is very dry and there's a cat. Tatiana has given me tea and medicine, just like mum would. But we feel like we have made their home a sick bay.
Our first couch surfing experience has certainly been memorable. It is not what we expected. The Vesnina family haven' hosted since September, perhaps because it's too exhausting for them. They have organised activities and schedules for us every day, fed us every meal and given us medicine. But this means that our independence is no more. Obviously we don't get keys to their family house so we aren't free to come and go. The whole situation reminds me of foreign students mum and dad would host for a week - not a word of the hosts' language, activities planned every day and very difficult to help out around the house.
But the awkwardness that comes with staying in a family's home is a small price to pay for this unique experience. We have seen Tomsk's sights with Galina as a personal tour guide. She has translated for her mother, and museum's curators, at the oppression museum and the museum of wooden architecture. Tatiana's contacts around the city have made us feel like visiting royalty, with personal tours and explanations.