Well, friends, only two weeks are left of this adventure of mine, and I must share with you all of my impressions and thoughts, if you will be so kind as to let me indulge in a moment of self reflection and narcissistic meandering.

I arrived here in January a mere pup, bounding around eagerly, eyes wide, keen to experience the different culture in which I found myself, excited and nervous and very cold. Everything was new and different and nothing escaped my attention... And now? Now, I am the face of sobriety and wisdom, no longer an innocent puppy lost in the world without a clue, but a grown up.

I have seen great kindness and also great ignorance while I've been here; I've been humbled by the generosity of my host family – without whom my stay here would have been completely different, and I've been angered by the narrow-minded and judgemental nature of some Russian folks, who I gave up trying to enlighten many months ago. I've seen the great wealth of the rich compared with the modest lifestyles of the poor... In short, this is a land of contrasts. There are some things that no matter how long you spend trying to work out you will just never understand. Russia, for me, is one of those things.

I owe it a great debt though, for it's people have given me hours of interesting and thoughtful conversation; it's weather has made a huge impression on me and I hope I will never forget these wonderful sights I have seen of snow frost mud rain and sun; and finally the food has made me realise just how much I appreciate Britain and its celebrity endorsed supermarket chains. Thank you Siberia for helping me to realise that Britain isn't that bad after all.