DAY 105 Finally I Can Get My Hands Dirty!

DAY 105

July 11

Finally I Can Get My Hands Dirty!
DAY 108

July 14

A Very Special Space Show!
DAY 111

July 17

Training in Slow Motion...

DAY 105 July 11, 2009

Finally I Can Get My Hands Dirty!

Mockup (Russian part of the ISS). It’s really impressive!

Mockup interior. This represents about 80% of the space where I’ll be living with Maxim, Jeffrey and the people who are already there. It seems very cramped, but the volume isn’t the same as on Earth and you can position yourself in the nooks and crannies. So I’ll try to find myself a little corner to sleep, between the panels (making sure not to snag the Exit button)!!

My little “pedal bike” that I ride every day to get to class!

At the beginning of the week, I had some wonderful news: I’m a godfather again! My brother and his wife had a little girl on July 3. I’d really like to see her in person, but I’ll have to settle for seeing her on Skype.

Introduction to the computer system of the ISS module. It’s fascinating... and complex!

You pass from one module to the other through this kind of cylinder. As you can see, the space is very confined (even smaller than my shower)! It’s a good thing I don’t weigh 100 kilos, because I’d surely get stuck!!

Barbara and me with our spacesuits on. It takes a long time to take off if you gotta go!

The theme of my dreams this week? Japan!

The content of this post is an adaptation of an original text written by Guy Laliberté.

Last week was very busy and I didn’t have a chance to sleep more than the week before. We learned a lot of new things, including an introduction to the Russian part of the International Space Station, with explanations of its internal components and systems.

Of course, I have continued my Russian classes, which is definitely the hardest part of my training! It’s not going as fast as I’d like, so I’m really concentrating on the basics, which will allow me to be as independent as possible. Sometimes I wish it could work like in the “Matrix” movies, so that I could learn Russian in 30 seconds just by plugging a connection into my skull!

A large part of our training concerned our spacesuits aboard the mockup. I like the simulations a lot, because they really give the impression that you’re experiencing the real situation, assimilating theory and putting it into practice. Since I’m action-oriented, I find that this concretizes my learning and makes me realize that things are going to happen... very fast! As I put on the spacesuit, I’m becoming increasingly comfortable inside it: This isn’t a Halloween costume, but something I’ll be wearing every day in space!

It was cold and rainy all week. The sun toyed with us and timidly poked its nose out just to give us hope. Apparently the weather is similar in the rest of Europe and in Montreal, which reassures me a little. I tell myself that at least I’m not the only one who’s freezing! Too bad: We haven’t seen anything yet in our courses to counter this kind of problem! Maybe that’s why we’re going through all these hours of training: It keeps us from getting depressed! Like they say here: We’re experiencing the Russian summer/winter!

My evenings are still devoted to study and meetings with my gang in Montreal. Let’s say that all these subjects give our brains a real workout! I’d really like to see whether my brain has expanded or developed new synapses since my medical tests in May... ;-)

We have also made a lot of progress on the creative aspects of the project. And we’ve had some good news... which we’ll announce to you at the appropriate time! LOL ;-)