Matt+Sveta: how one can fly to America
“Komsomolskaya Pravda” Smolensk keeps on following the love story of the plain girl from Smolensk and the abstractionist painter from Dallas Matthew. When Sveta was back in Smolensk from Amsterdam, she had known for sure, that she would live in Smolensk only for a while. However the real feelings must be always verified by hard times.
When the documents fly
When the New Year holidays were over Svetlana knew for sure that her life will change soon dramatically. She and Matt presented a petition for fiancйe’s visa in June of the last year. Usually it takes from 5 to 6 months to confirm this form, but for Sveta and Matt this process took much more time. Matt had to gather a bunch of different documents and pay all the necessary fees for everyone to be sure he is aware of what he is doing.
At that time Svetlana studied thru a lot of internet forums about the hard times of the “American fiancйes”. It turned out that in Russia there are a lot of girls who are in the same situation as our Sveta. The confirmation letter for the interview in the US embassy came to her on the 9th of February.
The preparations for the interview and the medical examination gave Sveta some real troubles. At first, she had to gather a lot of different certificates, then at this very period Matt had flown away to Sydney Australia to take part in the art exhibition. Sveta was very worried for Matt, because that spring different natural disasters shook the southern hemisphere. While Matt was away his mother successfully managed all the paperwork. She loved her future Russian daughter-in-law in advance.
Consular gimmicks
The interview was appointed on the 30th of March at 8 a.m. By this time Sveta was in Moscow. She was really scared, if something would go wrong. -The control was very strict, the checked our bags thoroughly, we handed in our cell phones; we went thru the metal detector several times, says Sveta. – We gave them the whole bunch of documents, paid the consular fee that is 350 Euro, and then the consuls began interviewing us. There were 7 girls there; their situations were just like mine.
At first the interview was very difficult. The man wanted to know everything about their relationship with Matt, where they found each other, how many times did they see each other, did they get acquainted with the parents of both sides, their plans for future, when is their wedding planned and so on.
Consul was very interested by their communication in social networks, but Sveta could not show him all the messages, because the memory of the social networks lasts only for two years. She showed him their e-mails and recorded Skype talks. She was ashamed to tell that they got acquainted at the dating site and said that happened at Facebook. The tense atmosphere gradually faded.
-My consul was a nice young man, he saw my photos and remained satisfied, we talked just like friends, - says Sveta. – Then he suddenly became silent, my heart sank, I thought something’s wrong, but he raised his head and said, visa is approved.Sveta did not hope for such a quick solving of the problem. When she got out of the embassy, the wave of happiness fell upon her.
At the same moment Sveta phoned Matt and told him the happy news. They have been waiting for this moment since 9 months.
Railway stations and airports
It is 3 a. m. now. I and Sveta are sitting in the small kitchen, the same kitchen where a year ago we were sitting with Sveta and Matt. Kiselyovka (the bedroom district of Smolensk) is sleeping. Practically no one in this town knows that the girl who rented a flat here will be leaving Smolensk forever. Nothing holds her here. Almost all the things, she collected while living here, are given to the nearest orphanage. She kept only a bag with the necessities for herself.
Everything she really needs is across the ocean. The new life and the man she loves wait for her there. Here she leaves only a town that gave here one year’s job of a salesgirl in a shop.
Sveta is worried, she makes her last-minute preparations, and she brushes her teeth before leaving. It seems a lot of girls can only envy her: she realizes the most real romantic dream, leaves everything for her lover and goes to the other edge of the world. But there comes a question, is every other girl ready to make such a step in the reality, if she tries this situation on her?
Sveta is a small and slim girl, but there is a lot of determination in her miniature body, I think even more than in a biggest tiger. She is ready to make this last leap and nothing can stop her now.
-Are you afraid of your future? – I ask Sveta the last question
-No, I’m really happy It is 4 a. m. We’re at the Smolensk railway station. Sveta and the three of her friends are sitting in the tiny «Daewoo Matiz». In some twenty minutes she waves to us from the window of the train leaving for Moscow. Yahoo!! I became Mrs. Anzak!!!!
That was the status Sveta posted on her vkontake.ru-page on the 22nd of June. All their friends learnt Matt and Sveta got married. They decided not to make a huge ceremony at once and just registered their marriage for Sveta to exclude her citizenship problems. She is a real American now. However that doesn’t mean that the big celebration is cancelled. In a year when Matt saves some money they want to invite Sveta’s relatives and friends from Russia to have the real international wedding party. They have a lot to do this year: they celebrate Matt’s sister wedding, present his pictures in London and New York and in the end of 2011 Matt will be the organizer of his own exhibition in Dallas. Painters from 17 countries of the world are going to come to his exhibition.
The USA online
Some days after the wedding we agreed to meet in the Internet. So one stuffy summer night (in America it was the heat of the day) we met at Skype. Sunlit lawn, shadowy door steps of the house appeared in front of me out of the dark, then Sveta with a glass of mojito appeared in the aiming unit of the web-camera. After a few seconds Matt joined her and I began asking them questions about their life in the neighborhood of Dallas Both of them were smiling, and that was great. It is clear that these two are OK. Matthew is actively preparing for the exhibitions, there a lot of them in his life in 2011. Sveta enjoys new life. -Matt’s relatives accepted me just fine, - says Sveta.
– The even wanted to meet me at the airport, but Matt asked them to delay the meeting for me to get accustomed in the new country. Now I got acquainted with everyone, they are so nice people; it seems that we’ve always been one family. Since Sveta’s departure from Smolensk she and Matt became the real family, they registered their marriage. -It has been a week since we registered our marriage, says Matt. - But I have a wonderful feeling as if it had happened ages ago. An amazing feeling coming thru. Unfortunately their humble ceremony will never go public, because Matt’s camera broke down just at the moment when they came for the registration. But this annoying unpleasantness did not ruin their new family. They had a small party near the lake to celebrate this day. But in a year they decided to have a big celebration with all relatives and friends.
Texas Renaissanse Festival and all
But don’t think that our friends just sit at home, they constantly travel. When I try to write to them they are always on their way: one day they go to LA, the other day they taste the Mexican chivichanga (Mexican food, that consists of a wheat flour tortilla wrapped or folded around different filling, such as rice, refried beans, lettuce, salsa, meat, avocado, cheese or sauce. The whole composition is usually grilled) and sometimes they hang out with elves and fairies.
Once at Sveta’s page vkontakte.ru there appeared one unusual album named «Texas Renaissance Festival». The unusual fancy-ball was pictured there, during this fest all the people can dress as magic characters and have fun together. Here the pirates with a barrel of rum on the shoulders date the kind fairies, gentle knights walk hand in hand with the Amazons, and the mountain dwarfs befriend the fauns. Here every Minotaur can find his own dryad.
This fest takes place from April till May every week-end, the people come to special place that looks like a medieval town and have fun together. This is the biggest Renaissance festival in the USA.
P. S. Author’s note To tell the truth I can’t believe I became the witness of this beautiful story, and partially even its participant. We stroll in Smolensk every day and forgot how to believe in Cinderella stories that can happen just near us in the neighborhood. And the plain neighbor girl will play the main part in this story. I believe that the miraculous stories can sometimes happen, just “keep your eyes open”;-)