I'm just going to pretend the downtime never happened and go back to October where I left off.  So much to write about!

I told you, this was a great year!  Moscow, Vladivostok, and Kiev!

I was surprised that not only did everyone speak Russian instead of Ukrainian, most of them didn't even know Ukrainian.  The only indication of Ukrainian that I saw was the different "ï" character in the name "Ukrainian" on some signs.

The first night we ate at a wonderful Ukrainian restaurant.  This was the treat of Alexey and Andriy.  Thanks so much, brothers!

Sasha from (game)land in Moscow was there.  Always good to see fellow (game)landers ;)

Sasha had brought the latest painting from Toly's dad.  It now hangs in my bedroom where I look at it almost everyday.

I do remember the Part Girls at the Arena ;)  Women singing in Russian, ...I'll always remember those!

On top (no pun intended;) of the young, beautiful, gyrating bodies, ...I'm also drawn back to my very first fantasy love when I was in Grade School, ...Barbara Eden in I Dream Of Jeannie.

Oh yes, another trip to the Motherland!  I just returned from Vladivostok.  Before I went there, I was a little worried that it would be different from what I know, and love, about Russia.  Vladivostok is on the east coast of Russia and ELEVEN times zones away from the western, "European" side.   I mean, Los Angeles is only four time zones away from New York, and you can appreciate how different those two cities are.

I was well-pleased to find that Vladivostok is very Russian!  ...and I loved it!

Jet lag was the only real negative of the whole trip.  Not only a shift of 14 hours was at hand (read: “day versus night”), but also crossing the International Dateline made things especially disorienting.  If it’s "today" here, it’s "tomorrow" there, ...how could it be Friday when there was never a Thursday, ...really fucks with your head, it does!

The word “Vladivostok” has a special meaning for me.  My generation (I will be 50 years old next month!) has seen both sides of the Cold War.  While in the U.S. Navy, I was stationed for over a year on Adak, Alaska (small Aleutian island) serving in an Anti-Submarine Warfare capacity.

We listened to, and tracked, Soviet submarines coming out of…  …you guessed it, Vladivostok! 

Vladivostok is the only port open to the Russians on the Pacific, so there was always a ton of action coming from there.  The name was mentioned often, and it carried much reverence in our Pacific Fleet.

Now, here I was visiting this city and in love with Mother Russia.  While we were there, a U.S. Navy destroyer and a battleship were ported in the harbor.  It was very weird seeing American sailors walking around the streets of Vladivostok.  Of course, there were many Russian sailors, too.  It’s a different world, which is great for someone like me ;)

First night? ...the dacha, of course!  Ilya had us spend our very first night at his uncle's dacha, just outside the city.  I was right at home!  ...sauna, cold bath, lots of food and vodka, ...this is not only my second home, ...it is my dream!

Sasha even brought some homemade vodka that his uncle makes from berries.  It was fan-fucking-tastic!

Thanks again to everyone for making this a truly great week!

Homemade vodka!  Did we mention the vodka?  There was alot of it, and there was alot of jet-lag!

As I would discover later that night, somewhere around 2am, mixing vodka, jet-lag, and a hot sauna can be harmful!

Our first breakfast in Vladivostok!  The lads brought us to a Caucasian restaurant.  Do you put an X in the Caucasian box of questionnaires?  If so, the Caucus Mountains are where your people first ventured into Europe.  The food?  ...fantastic!  The restaurant was right on the beach, with open-air tables for supping in the cool, crisp saltwater air.

Banya (steam room) OR vodka is okay.  Banya AND vodka are not so okay!  I was having so much fun the night before, I hadn't even really noticed the burns on my body.

I caught a nice one on my arm.  I remember getting that one

I got an even bigger one on my butt cheek!

That one, I didn't even remember getting when it happened.  I guess the burn deadened all the nerves.  It wasn't until the next morning when Drew said "What's that on your ass?" that I knew about it.

The next day, too, after breakfast at the Caucasian place, I remembered!  Wow, I really got burned!  The burn on my butt was the size of an outstretched hand, and it was in the shape of a bent pointer aiming to the naughty bits up front.

Maybe it was a cruel way to remind me what I love most about Russia, ...the women ;)  I still, three months later, have nasty scars.  I believe I will always carry a piece of this trip with me ;)

Well, I had forgotten that I was in Russia, and while in Russia, if you are a friend, then your are also family.  Ilya took me to a medical clinic!

There, I got bandaged and sprayed, but they also wanted to give me a tetanus and diphtheria booster!  ...no thanks!  I have tremendous respect for Russian medicine and science, but I wouldn't even accept a needle from a doctor in Fort Worth (city next to Dallas), let alone in Vladivostok ;)

The Russians do have GREAT pain relievers, and right over the counter.  Ilya showed me the best, and they worked within minutes of taking them.  They relieved all of the pain and discomfort.  I bought a few extra packets for here, just in case.

We stayed at the Hyudai Hotel.  It was very, very nice!  Great service and fantastic people running the place.  The Levelord was actually recognized a few times, too.

The headquarters for Hot Lava!  Deep inside this foreboding entrance, ...back along a dark and ominous alley, sometimes secreting neer-do-wells doing their dirty duties (I mean, besides the Hot Lava folks;), ...was the office for Hot Lava!

The Russians are well-fitted for making games.  They are highly educated and very technical, they are extremely creative, and they still have that old-world work ethic.

Here we see the Mighty Kostya teaching everyone the Powers of Absinth!

I didn't partake, thankfully, because since long ago I have found vodka, and she has found me, and we already understand each other!

We visited the submarine base and museum.  This was like the exclamation point on the sentence that described the strangeness being an American in Vladivostok.

I mean, it seemed like only a few years ago I was intently listening to these submarines in great fear (and respect).  Now I was chatting with a few Russian sailors.  That was very cool!

Ilya arranged for a rented boat.  It looked like an old, retired military patrol boat.  It had now, though, been rigged for fishing trips like this.

The plan was to fish for a few hours, then beach on one of the public-owned islands to spend the rest of the day cooking the fish and drinking.

I caught the first fish!  It was a nice sized flounder.  Later, as it turned out, Drew was the real fisherman, catching more than all the fish total of the rest of us.

Amongst the various forms of zakuska (read: "vodka munchies"), we also had the freshest fish soup ever.  The catch-of-the-day was soon filleted, chopped, and in a pot stewing.  It was delicious!

One of my favorite sites, ...the Russian flag flying.  It makes me happy because it means I must be "there", ...ya doma (I am home)!

Why are so many flags based on red, white, and blue?  Look at the flags of the world, so many have these (and only these) three colors.

As I recall, the article was saying how I am one of the few Westerners that seem to pay attention to the Motherland.  Be it known, I have seen the future for many, many years.

Some day soon I will be able to carry complete conversations with these women, in Russian!

On Tuesday we had our official meeting with the entire team.  It was a get-to-know-you sort of meeting as we detailed Mumbo Jumbo and Hot Lava.  It was really cool to hear each other's stories and history.

In fact, I enjoy the carefree attitude and intimacy.  On the other side of things, when I’m here in America, I’m American.  I have this strange sense of personal space and a weird bubble around me.  When someone, in a bar or car, brushes his (and that's the important pronoun, ...when it's a girl, then everything changes;) ...

We brought a PlayStation 3, a Wii, and an XBox with us.  It is difficult (read: "expensive") to get such things in Russia, and even more so on the Eastern Front.  There is still a great distrust (and rightfully so) in credit cards and online purchases.  So many things I take for granted here, are more special there.

Again the Russian sense of intimate culture - The Hot Lava folks go around the office each morning to handshake and greet each and every person.  The same is done at night as each leaves for the day.  It was very refreshing, this sense of comradery.

This is a good friend of Ilya's.  It was his birthday, and we felt it only fitting to give him something to celebrate.  Notice my T-shit!  I can't remember the exact words, but it means something like "Kill the Germans, and everything else that gets in our way!".  The image is of a Cossack on horseback with a huge, slashing sword.

I think I remember getting our asses handed back to us?  I didn't play, being way too old and feeble, but it didn't look good for the Texans ;)

One night, Matt arranged to get together with some guys he's jammed with before.  "Dude!  The band's gettin' back together!"

The lads played real well!

These are just a few of the more "interesting" menu options at a restaurant we went to after the gig.

Notice the "Beef Stroganoff" made with pork (no beef), and the "Faggot Tea".  Not sure if this means "sticks" or, ...na, must be "sticks".

Just felt they were picture worthy;)

Remember Drew catching the most fish on our Sunday trip?  Well, strangely, there is a brand of beer called "Skipper" that has an image of a face that looks like, ...well, like Drew's!

The waitresses were stunningly beautiful!  I fell in lust, ...I mean love, many times that night.

There was also a gorgeous woman singing Russian songs.  I was in heaven for a brief few hours!

Vladivostok is the only major city within four time zones, and the city has five major universities!  By the end of the week, my eyes were blurred and my neck wrenched as I tried to view all these lovelies.  Such a beautiful city, this Vladivostok!

It was like watching a ballet.

I managed to get to a DVD store.  This is a great treat for me.  I already have 40+ Russian movie DVDs and use them for both entertainment and education.  The movies I buy here, though, are all Russian movies.  Now, I bought well-known Hollywood movies that have been dubbed in Russian.  Sometimes, you can even hear the original English dialogue underneath.

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