September 8th, 2014 marked the beginnings of a new adventure-the day I stepped off the plane and onto Russian soil. To say I was nervous about this is an incredible understatement, because I was second guessing myself the entire flight. Fast forward to today and I just have to look back at the past and smile.

To start, I’m just pinching myself. Time flows by way faster than you can ever imagine! Wow. It’s surreal seeing my own transformation from a recent college graduate to someone who’s been there, done that. Year three has brought several changes, especially some personal ones. Don’t worry, I still love it here! I think for me, I’ve learned to take care of and simply be myself. I also feel more at home with teaching (not that I wasn’t already), though the fact that I’m teaching in Russia probably won’t ever fail to seem like a dream.

It’s also been interesting, as I’ve now just started to feel like I’m a quote unquote “grizzled veteran”. Certainly, three years may not be exceptionally long in Moscow (I know people who have been here for a decade or longer) but I feel like that it’s been enough to be able to dole out advice. More importantly, there’s an increasing feeling that I’m an adopted son of the city. To demonstrate this, prior to returning from my annual week at home, I had to catch myself saying, “I’m going home.” Inevitably, this was followed by some awkward backpeddling. The point is, Moscow does feel like a second home to me. Which is why, when the question is posed, I don’t know if and when I’ll come home for good. After all, I like what I do and have met dozens of fantastic people along the way. Большое спасибо for everything so far, Moscow! It’s been a blast, and I hope I’ll be able to still say so this time next year!