school can be grades 1-11, no fourth grade. some schools have 4th. pupils (students are college) may be 14 in seventh grade as they just began later. after ninth grade, some pupils go to a trade school. med technician, teacher, welder, hairdresser, etc. at 16 many go to the university. teachers, engineers, doctors, lawyers. school is mon-sat, but is not rigid as it is in usa. lessons are very difficult in russian schools. exams can be verbal answers to a question drawn on a card. hard to cheat! children may be seen at any hour on the streets walking (it is safe to do so, nationwide) to and from school. some sit most of the day in a classroom. some leave to music school across town then return later to other classes. special schools exist for sports, military, dance, music and others. karate, judo...
teens meet each other at home more than usa. common interests like computer games, music, playing a guitar, etc are common. loose actions like sitting on the floor at school are not tolerated.
sometimes they will just walk around the town with a friend or two.
as adults, parties are often had, again at home. drinks may be well-known vodka, newly popular beer for maybe last ten years. tea is served to almost any acquaintance coming to your home. coffee too is popular, but russians drink more tea per person than any except the british!
marriage is an option for anyone. not being married is as respectable as being married. a person's soul is more important than their status, marriage or monetary. russians are not snobbish, but tend to live as if aristocratic. that is, a poor man could be seen wearing slacks and a jacket as well as a wealthy man. ladies wear dresses, even at home, when visitors come. shoes are left in the hallway, as you do not bring street dirt into your house...
traditionally, in the soviet union, women made up a great part of the workforce. if you had a degree in teaching, and yo ucame to a new city, you would be given a job in your profession. (russians have professions, not just jobs, even if it is as a cashier in a store).
it is really an interesting place. people strive for the higher intellectual state rather than being bad to be cool.
