Another three-day weekend this weekend, as it's International Women's Day. All these days off are really disrupting my timetable... life is hard. But... International Women's Day - which other countries celebrate it? I'd love to know. Probably the Ukraine, and Georgia, and that's about it.

Talking of disrupted timetables, my groups are changing around a lot at the moment as Trevor the Canadian has gone back to Canada. Also Jamie is ill so it's only really me and Anthony holding down the fort in our little corner of Moscow.

Lots of adminy stuff too recently. We have just had a quality control exercise, which I seem to have made it through. And next week I'm getting observed, just to check I'm not a totally duff teacher. So if I'm back in England in a week's time you'll know why! No, I'm not too worried.

Found a great electronics market in the west of Moscow called Gorbushka. Actually, it was recommended to me but it really is colossal, 1200 little shops and stalls (it's indoors) full of pirate CDs and just random stuff. You can even buy English-language NMEs... well, I know this will interest precisely no-one, it doesn't even count as an anecdote but I felt I should write something.