Embassies of the World Ball Post Script

A quick P.S.

Last year I was pretty unhappy with our "portrait" from the Ball because they made me sit down and because I was about 21 weeks pregnant (so nothing looked or fit right but it wasn't obvious that I was pregnant yet).

Well, here's my redemption! I wish the dress didn't blend in with the wall...but at least they let me stand! And I certainly felt better this time!

Embassies of the World Ball - 1 March 2014

Last weekend Scott and I attended the International Women's Club (IWC) "Embassies of the World Ball." This event is the IWC's major annual charity so they go all out. Various ambassadors agree to host groups for dinner at their residence or embassy. We loved it last year (shout out to Scott's friend S for encouraging us to go!), and chose to do the dinner and ball again.  It's a really neat opportunity to meet the ambassadors and their staff up close and personal.

Program from the IWC Ball

This year, we were at the Egyptian Ambassador's Residence which was really cool. Also this year, I'm NOT PREGNANT, so I felt a lot less queasy and way more confident about my appearance. We knew more people and I could actually join the toasts, which of course was great!!

All spiffed up. Nanny R took our photo before we left.

There were probably about 30 people in total at the Residence and the mood was festive and relaxed. Last year it was just 8 guests, so it was more intimate but also pretty quiet/formal, so this was a fun difference. The Ambassador gave a very nice welcome speech.

Egyptian Ambassador giving us his welcome speech.

For dinner, they served us a big Egyptian buffet and it was delicious! There were several salads, fish with some type of tomato salsa on top, sliced meat with long-grain sauteed rice, and a phyllo dough casserole with seasoned ground beef inside. For dessert, they had some kind of flan-like thing (I'm not a flan fan, so I didn't try it), something that seemed like runny bread pudding with raisins (delicious even though that sounds less than appealing based on my description) and little square pieces of cake that must have been soaked in honey. Everything was so good and so flavorful, compared to the usual Russian fare! A rare treat.

After the dinner we moved on to the Ball, which was at the Metropol Hotel right by Red Square and the Bolshoi Ballet.

LED-lit trees near Red Square (stairway to underground passage in foreground)

Bolshoi at night

Metropol atrium where the Ball was held

AWO friends (L->R): me, Scott, Ann's husband, Ann, Harolyn and Corky Rose

Guests mingling. 

Look at us, all matchy-matchy!

Martini bar

V, S, and Scott

And of course I can't forget to include one last parting shot of my fabulous white coat - only in Moscow does this work! :)

This is me LAST YEAR; I could barely squeeze into the coat.

And here's THIS YEAR; I felt a lot less "puffy!" :)

Oven Beef Burgundy Fail

Got a tasty-looking one-pot recipe from my mom over the holidays. I need dishes like this. Things that I can make in the afternoon or morning and forget about because by dinner-time things get hectic and more importantly, I start to get too hungry and too tired to begin thinking about making something. It's also nice to make these "pot" dishes because they usually yield enough for a couple meals.

Well, I left it in the oven for over 3 hours (after checking a few times and stirring "gently" as the recipe called for) and it came out so tough it was just no good. No good at all. Yuck. It was so bad, I didn't even finish, which is a big deal for me lately since I'm always hungry. I hate when this happens! I hate my Russian kitchen and I hate that I can't figure out how to buy/cook Russian meat! Actually I hate that I always have to cook, too!!

This package of meat was even from Metro so I thought it was good quality. It cooked for so long, wouldn't ANY meat get tender?! So disappointing, especially since it smelled pretty good while it was cooking. What a waste of time and energy!!!!

Good news and bad news

I'll start with the bad and just get it out of the way. 

Yesterday I made a stir fry for dinner, which is one of my go-to dinners. Fail-safe most of the time.

The plan was to get chicken, but at the last minute I saw a package of beef all cut up and perfect-like for a stir fry, so I went for it. Mind you, I had no idea what the label said (of course it was in Russian, and I didn't recognize any of the words), but I knew it was definitely beef because it was in the section with the little cow. :) So how bad could it be?

So here's what my stir fry looked like. Not bad.

And my sauce smelled great: fresh garlic, ginger, onions.

That's where things went downhill. The meat was SO tough. Scott and I were chew-chew-chewing each bite and the whole thing was very unsatisfying!! All that chopping and marinating for nothing. Should have gone with the chicken. Boo. :(

Score, to date...
Moscow: 25,001 CB: 0

Okay, now on to the good! This one was a HUGE SCORE for Miss Siena!

There's a school behind our apartment building and they have this sport court (rectangular and self-contained, a little smaller than a tennis court). It's got 4 walls and seems very secure (ie no openings for someone to squeeze her little body through) and looks absolutely perfect for, yep, you guessed it, ball-throwing and running and general dog romping fun stuff. Whenever I'd considered it before, it appeared to be all locked up. Well yesterday I took a closer look at the gate and while there was in fact a padlock, it wasn't actually locked! Woohoo!

Here's her majesty's first freedom run (video) in our new "dog park." Such joy, this little dog has for living. 

And here's another fun video (longer). This sweet girl always cheers me right up.

Updated score, to date...
Moscow: 25,001 CB (and Siena): 2

Marine Corps Birthday Ball - 9 November 2013

This is a short post...just wanted to share that we went to the Marine Corps Birthday Ball on 9 November. It's a neat event because all around the world, the Marine Corps honors its birthday in exactly the same way, with a fancy dinner ball, a ceremony honoring the youngest and oldest Marines in the room and of course, a birthday cake. This was birthday #278 and we were proud to have the chance to participate.

Us heading out to the ball

Mimi was still in town so Scott and I left our boy knowing he was in excellent hands. Bonus!

A little bedtime reading.

Victory Day Part II (Our 1st Dacha Outing!) - 9 May 2013

~~ Masha, Dasha, and Boscha at the Dacha ~~

So, as I described in my earlier Victory Day post, we attended the big Tverskaya parade of tanks. That was in the morning and very entertaining/interesting.

Equally entertaining and interesting in the afternoon, we all -- me, Scott, and even Siena! -- were invited to one of Scott's coworker D's dacha (aka summer house) for a Victory Day celebration/dinner. They invited one other family who had a son and a dog as well (D has a small dog and the friends have a chihuahua). We've decided that dachas are the method by which Muscovites survive the city. In other words, they put up with living in small, tight quarters on the weekdays in the city by also owning a tranquil escape outside of the city where they can spread out and relax.

The closest thing I'm familiar with in the US is the Hamptons, as a retreat for Manhattanites, but I believe in general dachas are a bit more "rustic" than most NYer's Hampton estates. Likewise, the type of Manhattanites who can afford to own a house in the Hamptons usually have slightly more spacious apartments in the city. But the larger concept is similar, especially in the summer: everyone spends hours and hours on Friday afternoons driving out of the city, grumbling about the traffic and the city literally empties out. Then they do the same on Sunday night in reverse.

Anyway we were very flattered to be invited, since Victory Day is truly one of Russia's biggest holidays and most people spend it with their families. D's house was a mix of contemporary and traditional styles. It was 2 stories, built on a hill, with lots of wood inside with stone and wood accents on the outside. In the backyard, there was a deck and then some very steep steps down the hill that led to a large above-ground cement pool and sloped yard. Inside, I believe there may have been just one bathroom; for sure there was only one on the first floor. Perhaps there was another one upstairs but it looked more like a loft than a full second story. Overall, the words I can use to describe their house are natural, humble and modest. This may be the main point of differentiation between Hamptons houses and Dachas, although I've heard there are some really "pimped out" dachas as well.

Before I forget, I should probably explain the subtitle of this post. When Scott and I arrived,  we were introduced to everyone: there was Scott's coworker's wife, Maria, who went by "Masha," his daughter, "Dasha" and then his dog, "Boscha." And we were all hanging out at their "Dacha!" Heehee. Scott and I had a nice chuckle. Changing a name to end in "--sha" is actually very common as a Russian nickname so it really wasn't a big deal to them but we enjoyed it between ourselves. :)

From what I understand, the meal we had was quite traditional for a Victory Day feast; most Russians all over the country were eating similar meals that day too. D and his family certainly spoiled us with all sorts of delicious dishes.

We didn't get too many photos of the experience because we didn't want to be "those people" and it felt sort of rude. But, we managed to grab a few.

First we started out with lots of fresh, colorful veggies and salads. The plate in the foreground is ALL pickled items, a serious staple in the Russian diet (helps the vodka go down easier!). Behind the pickles was sliced tomatoes with basil, and to the left was "Russian Salad" (mayo-based egg/potato/carrot-type salad).

More salads further down the table. Masha's mother's special marinated mushroom salad (made from wild mushrooms that she picks herself; Masha assured us they were safe to eat) in the front (yellow dish). The red dish contained a salad made with fish, beets, and green onions; I didn't feel adventurous enough to try it. Then there was a "regular" salad and a plate of cold cuts.

Here's a better view of the full table, along with Masha and Dasha. It really was a huge feast.

Then, as if all those salads weren't enough, there was the BBQ portion of the feast, with marinated lamb Shashlik (skewers). These were so good!

Complementing the Shashlik was an Uzbek-style Pilaf (pronounced "Ploff") with dark rice, sausage, chicken, peppers, dried fruit, pomegranate seeds, and roasted garlic, cooked on a wood-fire grill. Scott now wants this type of setup (regular grill + wood-fire grill) whenever the time comes that we have a backyard/grill setup again. This was delicious as well.

The grill-master himself, D, chilling with a glass of wine. This is Scott's coworker. Boscha the dog is behind D (he's a mix between a Yorkie and a German Shepherd, of all things!).

Last but not least, here's a parting shot of one really tired pooch getting loved on by D's daughter Dasha. This little girl was really so sweet with Siena throughout our entire visit. They ran around, played fetch, played tug, did lots of snuggling and belly-rubbing. You name it, Siena got a LOT of attention that day!

Speaking of dogs, I should mention that our hosts very graciously offered Siena and their dog each a fresh lamb bone from the Shashlik scraps. Both dogs happily chewed away on their respective bones at opposite ends of the house/yard. When Boscha finished his bone, he tried to hide it under one of the cars in the driveway. Siena chewed on hers for a while and then did something she's NEVER done before: she dug a hole in the yard and buried it!

Then she immediately went sniffing around and found Boscha's bone and took THAT one and proceeded to chew IT as well. And when she was done with his bone, she dug a hole and buried that one too! Then she went back to the first bone, dug it up to check on it, and moved it to a new spot. She kept on doing this for a while, instinctively, like it was her job to keep the bone(s) safe. It was the funniest thing for us to watch, considering she's had raw bones before but never behaved in this way. But, come to think of it, we never gave her the bones outside where she could dig in the dirt and we also always take them away before she gets too far along...this just goes to show you, she really is a DOG after all!

We decided that this day was probably the best day of Siena's life so far. :)

Embassies of the World Ball - 23 March 2013

"Ball Season" in Moscow! 

Scott and I have a friend (I'll call him S) who is really "into" going to all the charity balls around town and we've heard a lot about them for a couple years now. There are actually a series of balls that happen every spring in Moscow, each sponsored by a different organization, each benefiting a charity.

So when the American Women's Organization (AWO) started promoting the International Women's Club's (IWC) annual ball, we thought it might be fun. The IWC ball is supposed to be the most formal, and you have the opportunity to get a ticket that includes a small dinner party at a participating embassy before the actual party. I'm a member of the AWO and we have a couple of women who volunteer on the IWC's special events committee so of course they want to get as many people as possible from the AWO to attend. Besides, one of my favorite things is getting dressed up for black tie events and then people-watching all the outfits...and I already knew I had the perfect outerwear! A little more on that later. :)

We asked the organizers if we could be assigned to the same embassy as S and his date (I will call her N), and the four of us were placed for dinner at the Hungarian Embassy. Cool!

Dinner turned out to be so so great, and I think it was the highlight of the night for me (besides getting all dolled up for a fancy evening). It was just really a unique opportunity to participate in an intimate dinner (there were only 6 couples in total at the dinner) with the deputy ambassador to Hungary and his wife! Wow. What a cool experience.

The meal had several courses but first, the non-pregnant dinner guests all got to do some Hungarian wine tasting! Our host was quite knowledgeable about wine, and explained to us that Hungary is large enough geographically to support a number of different wine regions. He then walked everyone through each wine and why it was special. Yum.

The subsequent meal was delicious, all prepared by the Embassy's authentic Hungarian chef using imported Hungarian ingredients! The elegance of the dining experience prevented me from taking any photos of the food, but trust me: each course was beautiful and flavorful. We did, however, manage to save the menu.

Of course the ball afterwards was fun too. It was at the Intercontinental Hotel, about 2 blocks from our apartment building. The theme was "Ooh La La Paris" so there were (not-so-subtle) French touches everywhere.

There was even a professional photographer taking pics of all the ball attendees, with a very archaic-looking setup. Why do the ladies have to sit?? And what's with the fake flowers?

When we got our photo back I told Scott I didn't like how I looked (he certainly looked handsome) - all fat and round and seated submissively next to my dear husband - and what does he do? He posts it on Facebook for everyone's entertainment! Ugh!! So while I originally wasn't planning on sharing it with anyone, that ship has sailed so there you go.

Back to the party. The IWC had found a great 5-piece band who played covers of recognizable songs and a couple French opera signers kicked off the night. I'm not an opera aficionado so I have no idea how good the singers were, but it was a very nice touch.

Scott, N and S at the ball.

Before we left the party, there were a bunch of raffle prize giveaways which unfortunately we didn't win but here are our ticket stubs, proving our participation in a good cause. :)

Last but not least, I said I had the perfect outerwear for this ball. Oh yes I did! I wore my spectacular cream-colored fur-edged coat! Boy did I fit right in with the IWC crowd with this number...I'm so glad it still fits, too!

Me in my fabulous white furry coat! How can you not have fun in a coat like this?!

All in all, we had a fantastic evening. Great company and fun people watching, tasty food, good music and a chance to dress up, all for a good cause! Sometimes, Moscow ain't too bad.