Alright. So I have finished "The Song of Igor's Campaign" and Gogol's "Dairy of a Madman." "The Song of Igor's Campaign" was actually good. It reminds me a lot of Beowulf, Gilgamesh, and protostories like those. However, "Dairy of a Madman" truly fits its name. It is CRAZY!! I like the weird and disturbed, but this guy is truly messed up. Its kind of funny to read just how crazy he is, but it makes you think about Gogol's sanity in writing it.

I'm working on "Eugene Onegin" but am not liking it very much. They call Pushkin the Russian Shakespeare, but the only resemblance I see between the two are their detail to meter and rhyme. The book is very unorganized and does not follow so smoothly. This could be due to the fact that it is not finished since Pushkin lost a duel making him dead and unable to finish it. I hear so many people rave about Pushkin, but I do not see his brilliance yet. I may need to read it several more times before I can appreciate it more, and most certainly when i am in class and get to discuss it I will get a firmer grasp on it.

I want to start "Uncle Vanya" next. I do not know why, but just the research I've done on it makes it seem like a very distinct book. Also, it apparently is a revised version of "The Devil Woods" which just sounds cool. From what I can gather it is kind of like "A Midsummer's Night Dream" mixed with a bit of "Hamlet." It sounds really weird I know, but I think that increases my anticipation to read it.

I still have "A Hero of Our Time" and "Master and Margarita" to read. I hope I have the discipline to actually sit down and read them both tomorrow because I have "We," "Anna Karenina," and "Crime and Punishment" on audiobook and will listen to those on the plane and while I am in Russia. The first two I only have access to online since I did not want to buy 500 books. I have really slacked on my academic performance and preparation for this trip. I do not really know why, but I just feel so burnt out. I see this trip as more of a vacation than a educational study. So, I've let my will to strive for completion diminish more and more each day. I will try and do better. I need a change and maybe this trip is that change. I want to come back a different person and I will attempt anything to do so.