It started with some life-altering decisions, practicing psycho therapy and hypnosis (for the fun of it) and finally giving a shot to Pilates. In January I got my first annual Schengen visa (and all the people from the civil countries go, “Huh?”) That one sticker in my passport is a pass to any of the twenty-some European countries and a freedom to travel there whenever I want without having to reapply for permission to enter every time I want to drive 400 km to the capital of neighboring Finland, for example. In February I’ve been to Tallinn, Estonia for the first time ever. When I was born it was part of my country; when I started traveling I needed an Estonian visa for it. Luckily for me, it was all changed this year when Estonia (and other two Baltic States and some Eastern EU countries) became part of the united Schengen zone.

In March I went on my first ever business trip to a foreign country. Also, it’s been my first time in Munich, Germany. Little did I know that I’d come back to Munich for the UEFA Cup semi-final Bayern Munich vs Zenit St. Petersburg in April. On the way I passed through Riga, Latvia and it was also the first time in that former-Soviet republic. Then again, in May as luck might have it I was back in Germany to get together with the NFZ (Russian acronym for “German fans of Zenit”) to travel with them on the bus to Manchester, England for the UEFA Cup, in which my hometown national champion Zenit defeated Glasgow Rangers. What a day it was and what a night: we’d been standing in traffic jam on the highway for more than three hours, almost didn’t make it to the game on time, but when we arrived to the town of Manchester it was literally flooded with the Scots. The after-game events were all-over the news and you can still see some videos of violence that took place between the Scots and the locals on YouTube. I survived!

In June I closed the company’s biggest account yet to date though it’s not even my job to do that! As a result I grew financially and career-wise. Also I turned 26. In July I had a business trip to Toscana, which was a huge event for me. First off, it was my fourth time in Italy, yet the first when I was on my own. It was also the first time when I spoke Italian, which I thought I wasn’t ready to do. But it went great! From renting a car to business negotiation it went just fine. It motivated me to continue studying Italian and for the first time in my life I ordered a text book from Italy on Internet. Yes, I live in Russia; not many people order over one kilo book from Italy on Internet.

In August I started dating my third Italian. This time we met in St. Petersburg. That one fact gave me confidence that anything in the world is possible! I also bought my first expensive toy – Nikon D40 because I thought that regular digital cameras didn’t do justice to Italy. No other but Mr. Jason Ryan Busher of Wai'anae gave me his tips and tricks on good photography-making. I also played tennis on the clay for the first time ever. My arthritis knees appreciated my choice.

In September I traveled to Italy (“Again!” you say, but bear with me – more is on its way!). I went to Milan, where I stayed with Ali from my Erasmus days in Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland. The point of the trip was the Champions League game Juventus vs Zenit. We lost, but I met wonderful people both in Torino and in Milano. Both Italians and Russians thought that I was Italian, which was the greatest compliment ever.

In October my best friend Anton and I took a two-week vacation and went to… Italy. Yes, I did three trips for three different purposes to Italy in one year. That must be a record. I have to say that I saw more Rome with him than in three stays with my Rome-native ex. Then we went to Florence, Venice (before it was flooded), and Milan. In all locations but Venezia we hanged out with my friends and experienced the real life and not only the tourist one.