Aziza, I said.
And where are you from?
Kazan.
Yeah, he chuckled, I can see now. Well, Aziza, when you come into a big city, you should be careful. You mostly dont know whos in front of you, especially if youve never seen the person before. Got it?
Got it, I sighed.
Good, the second man said. Now, heres your ice-cream. Its kind of hot today, by the way.
With these words, he took one ice-cream out of the freezer and passed it over to me. A pistachio one. Mmm One of me favorite flavors.
One more thing, Miss, the man with pigeons said. Once you fall in love with a man, be careful. Extremely careful, he put an emphasis on the word extremely. Look how youre suffering now. Because of the man who simply havent met you. Because of such nonsense, you feel so much pain. You now understand what I mean?
Yes. I agree, I nodded. Now, it was time to go. Id got to visit Vasilyevsky Island. But first, I had to go to the Kazan Cathedral. I feel much better now.
The mans friend laughed.
I hope its more because of our words than of the ice-cream!
So true! I smiled.
If you have nowhere to elapse, LETI is the only place
I went out of the Kazan Cathedral and said goodbye to both the men. Good fellows they were, the man with pigeons and his friend, the iceman.
I headed towards the Island.
The underground railway in Saint Petersburg isnt that big. So I found the station needed easily.
Vasileostrovskaya Station, the train speaker said.
I got out of the wagon and up to the ground from the railway.
In Vasilyevskiy Island, there was a sacred place Xenia Peterburgskaya Chapel. The church was named after a woman who is a patron saint of Saint Petersburg. According to the legend, she gave all her possessions to the poor after her husband died.
In the place where the chapel was located one could feel the peace and calm of the atmosphere there. I could perceive the spirit of the cemetery around the chapel. The perfect silence always makes you think the right way.
In the Chapel, I prayed the God and the Holy Blessed Xenia to give me the chance at least the only one to come across Emre, to see him.
If only They heard my prayers, I thought. If only They could let me see the man.
I was constantly repeating the prayer. I loved Emre. And I thought Id love him forever.
While I was passing the exit from the Chapel, I saw three beggars there two middle-aged women and a man, approximately the same age as the women.
I rushed towards them with a few coins and started crying.
Please, help me! I sobbed. Please, help me! Im helpless! Ill die without him!
Whats happened, my dear girl? asked the woman that looked older. Whats the matter with you?
I love him! I was sobbing.
So, whats the matter with you? asked the other woman. Tell us!
I love a man. His name is Emre. I cant live without him. But
But what? the man asked thoughtfully. Has he left you? Has he betrayed you? Has he got a more beautiful, or, lets say, a richer girl than you?
I dont know anything! tears streamed down my face. I just thought Emre would meet me
And he didnt? the older woman raised her eyebrow.
He didnt! I sighed.
Poor you, my girl! the woman looked sympathetically. Is he from Saint Petersburg?
Hes from Ankara, Turkey.
Oh, my God! exclaimed the younger woman. A Turk! You love him, dont you?
I do! I lowered my eyes.
But its quite a good feeling, isnt it? the older woman asked.
I said nothing.
Whats your name, dear girl?
Aziza.
Do you live here, in Saint Petersburg, Aziza?
No. I dont. Im from Kazan.
Ah, the woman chuckled, seems like this city is the your meeting point.
Something like that, yeah, I nodded.
So, wheres your boy now? Do you know anything about him?
Hes studying in LETI.
LETI? the man smiled. Do you know we all studied there too? It was our former place of studies.
Indeed? I looked at him.
And she, he pointed at the younger woman, helped me write my course paper and then thesis.
Wow, its quite a friendship, I thought and then said, Are all of you qualified engineers?
The two of us yeah, the man pointed at the younger woman and himself. And she, the younger woman went on, nodding at the elder one, is a musician.
A musician? Why are you begging here, then? I shrugged my shoulders.
Because were disabled, my girl, the older woman said. When youre in suc a state, you can hardly move! Just think!
Of course! I agreed.
So, she went on, is your man, Emre, a would-be engineer?
Yes, he is.
And you? the woman asked.
Im an English teacher.
What a seemingly good match a teacher and an engineer! she chuckled.
Yeah, I sighed.
So, do you love him?
I do, I said firmly.
So, whatre you going to do then, after he didnt meet you?
Err Let me think I said thoughtfully.
Will you try searching for him?
It wasnt a bad idea, though!
After a few minutes, I nodded confidently:
I will!
Oh, my God! the older woman laughed openly. Shes a brave one, isnt she?
The man said, When we were students, there was a curious saying among LETI inhabitants. If you have nowhere to elapse, LETI is the only place. Thats what many people did when they were alone or had no one to talk to. Seems like youve got to do the same.
So, the older woman asked me, will you do the same thing?
I have no choice, I shrugged my shoulders. I love him.
We hope everythingll be fine, she looked at me. Good luck to you! And, of course, well pray for you!
I said goodbye to them and headed yes, towards my destination point. LETI.
After an hour or so, I reached the University. The outer building looked like a castle. There were several inner buildings located inside the campus. The castle one opened on the street.
Id say practically every building in Saint Petersburg looked like a castle
As I came closer and closer, only one thought was running on my mind. To see Emre. At least to catch a glimpse of the man.
Emre! My Emre
It was so illogical Actually, the man who sent you off wouldnt be worth even his name pronounced and thought of. However, love is such a thing that you never know what youll think of a second or a minute later.
That was my situation. Only he was on my mind.
I need to have a look at the timetable, I thought. Whats his group number?
It wasnt all that simple, though. Because of something I hadnt even suggested before. The entry checkpoint.
Hello, I said to the security officer at the entrance. Im coming to a job interview.
Your first name? Last name? there was both the question and the answer.
Aziza Kadirova, I said.
Let me have a look in todays job interview database he took a tablet out of his tabletholder.
What? How sophisticated it all was! I desired to see Emre without the stuff like red tape!
No, the man said after a while. Im afraid your names not included in todays list. Maybe youll be able to come tomorrow in case you appear in the list he shrugged his shoulders.
So, I frowned, Im not permitted to be let in, am I?
No, Im afraid youre not, Miss, the officer sighed.
Goodness gracious! What should I do then?
What do I need to go in? I asked.
A pass. The pass is required for all the University staff and students.
How may I make it?
Well, you should address the entry checkpoint center, the man coldly shrugged his shoulders. Only then may you be let in.
My Emre!
I was absolutely desperate to see him. But how and when?
Emre was so unattainable!
I practically had no chance of getting inside!!!
I was hardly holding tears back. What was it all for?
Okay, I said. Thank you very much anyway. Have a nice day!
Thank you! You too! the mans answer was.
What should I do, then? I needed to see Emre.
A student passed by me.
Excuse me, sir, he said to the security guard. Where could I see the Masters degree entrance requirements, please?
The Masters degree. Sounded exciting. Especially if you have to go on with your education.
Suddenly, it dawned on me. What if I tried to enter a Master course in linguistics there, in LETI? Itd be fascinating!