With a constant grin and easy manner, US first lady Michelle Obama charmed Russian children and nurses on Tuesday while her husband conducted summit diplomacy in Moscow. On day two of their trip, the wife of US President Barack Obama visited a school for poor children and a nursing college, both attached to a Russian Orthodox cathedral a 15-minute drive from the Kremlin. “The work you do is very important,” she told a group of 22 nurses. “Thank you for your warm hearts.” Earlier in another room at the St Dmitry Cathedral, 24 children, dressed in their best clothes sang in English and Russian for Obama, who nodded her head and clapped along with the music. The school teaches about 160 vulnerable children, including some orphans and others from large, poor families. A few hours later at a theater in central Moscow, about 600 children saw Obama with her two daughters - Malia and Sasha - and the wife of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Svetlana. The children roared and cheered when their guests entered before sitting down for over an hour of traditional Russian folk music and songs. Afterwards the chattering children, aged between four and 16, all agreed the US first lady was “brilliant.”
