I accidentally learned a new language and now I am going to Europe

My mother is married to a man from Moscow. When she speaks to him in English she talks very slowly and clearly and her words are well chosen. This is out of habit she developed over eight years, even though he speaks English fluently. <br><br>When I was assigned a project in Russia, I thought that my stepfathers relatives would be a perfect place to do the work. I am familiar with the family through a few encounters with my mothers husband. The thing is, they are all from a town that is decidedly not tourist trap.<br><br>I went ahead and bought plane tickets to Moscow to make the project the most authentic as possible. After some reflection, I thought I may be stupid to plan a trip to Russia without being able to speak Russian.<br><br>I downloaded an app that was recommended and started to learn Russian. I also watched a lot of Russian movies and listened to Russian music. I also made the mistake of telling my husband that I speak some Russian now.<br><br>The relative in Russia was very impressed by my progress. When I arrived he tested me in Russian and found that my speaking skills were good, but my reading and writing in Cyrillic was lacking.<br><br>My husband had an idea to make my project more authentic, and that was to go to Moscow for a week to get a feel for the city.<br><br>I had the idea to extend my stay in Moscow and travel by train to St. Petersburg. My husband and our daughter agreed to take the train trip with me. I was excited, but had a problem.<br><br>I was familiar with the family on my mothers side in Russia, but I had no one to stay with in St. Petersburg. My husband however is a lot more organized in this regard, and at the time of my writing he has a room booked, and invites from a handful of people to show us around. His sister also is looking into a visa, she is an American, and will likely come if I have migrated before she has her documents.<br><br>Our daughter is very excited because she is a ballerina and she will be visiting the Mariinsky Theater. She also is in school and will have to miss two weeks, so we will have to be quick with our visas. <br><br>edit: I dont know why people are asking what app I used. It was a recommended one from google. It was a mess of information with no clear learning path. I also used some audiobooks from the library and some YouTube videos.<br><br>I am going to Russia for work, but the side trip to St. Petersburg is something that my husband planned without telling me. I admit that I am flattered that he would invite his sister to what he intended as a romantic trip. I admit that I am a little miffed that I will have to share the trip with my sister-in-law and my daughter. I admit that I can be a bit of an ass, and because they are now coming on my trip I am going to have to work harder to be more organized. I admit that this probably makes me look like an ass, that I am only trying to be a better person because I dont want to be embarrassed as an American.