Adventures of an American Ronin Continues...: August 2006

Any fans of RISK out there?

It just so happened that on my Trans-Siberian trip, I stopped in Irkutsk, Russia. Now ordinarily I wouldn't think anything special of the place as I know nothing about it, but my Uncle Jack emailed me to say:

"I've been getting your emails and checking out your blog site - looks like you're having a great adventure! I thought Irkutsk was just someplace that they made up for the RISK game - I guess it really exists! ;-) "

Now I've only played RISK a few times & so I hadn't remembered that it was a place in the game (I do remember getting slaughtered when I did play). It kinda makes me want to play again now...

St. Petersburg

Here I am, sitting in an internet cafe in the middle of St. Pete's, half-watching the newest music videos (I'm perpetually out of the loop on music, movies, & TV shows thanks to being abroad), pausing between songs to tell Kristin, who's sitting just across from me, which ones I think suck & which ones rule. It's my last day in Russia so I thought I'd better post.

St. Petersburg is a beautiful city, though it doesn't feel very Russian -- in fact it's very European in many ways. I must admit I prefer St. Pete's to Moscow: it's less crowded, less crazy, more laidback, & far easier to walk around. There's a law that says no buildings can be taller than the Hermitage so there are no skyscrapers, which makes it unique & attractive. There's so much history here too & with over 200 museums you'd never get bored.

I feel like a stumpy midget in a land of tall, leggy Russian chicks, & like the Japanese, they dress up to go anywhere outside so I feel like a slob to the max in my traveling clothes. And they don't just dress up but they dress like they're going clubbing. Guys, take note: Belly baring shirts & halter tops galore; the tiniest of miniskirts everywhere; tops & bottoms so revealing you feel like you're in a hip hop music video. Not only that but they're beautiful! I've seen 4 Anna Kournakova lookalikes in my short time here. This would be an ideal spring break destination for college guys if number one, it wasn't so cold here in March & number two, Russian women weren't cold, distant & master game players (dare I say bitchy?) -- this is according to our tour leader who's spent extensive time in Russia & has a thing for Russian chicks so he knows what it's like to chat 'em up). Another observation -- there are heaps of marriage agencies here for foreign men looking to marry Russian women & erotic clubs outnumber normal bars & clubs 20 to 1.

And now for my FAVORITE part about Russia: the customer service. In case you didn't catch it & I'm sure you didn't, that statement was absolutely drenched in sarcasm. Customer service simply doesn't exist. My favorite example has to do with trying to cash traveler's checks, which was a nightmare. Kristin & I actually managed to get to the point of being flat out broke & so we went down the main shopping street, Nevsky Prospect, in search of a bank or currency exchange office. Every bank we stopped in to see if they cash traveler's checks said simply "no." It was the same story at the exchange bureaus. Apparently traveler's checks with the American Express logo are ok, but not Visa, which is what we had. The best part is, whenever you ask for help or assistance anywhere, the shop clerks give you blank, vacant stares & look at you as if you're a moron for even asking. Then they rudely turn you down. My personal favorite is the eye roll-huge dramatic sigh combo. Awesome. So one bank who had an astoundingly helpful clerk tells us that oh, there's this bank around the corner that should cash your traveler's checks. So we go & that bank closes as we walk up. Damn. Now what? We happen to wander into the Grand Hotel Europe & lo & behold, they have a currency exchange office that has a Visa traveler's checks sticker. Excitedly we run up, pull out our TC's & ask (just to make sure), "Are Visa TC's ok?" The woman pauses & mumbles, "Mmmm, this is not possible." WTF? Flabbergasted (is that spelled right?), we point to the sign & say, "But your sign says you take Visa TC's." Her: "Just a moment," while she calls someone. 5 minutes later: "Ok, those are ok." What the heck was that all about? Welcome to Russia, where they only help you if they feel like it. Grrr...

Tomorrow I'm off to Milan, Italy to see the one, the only Elaine & her husband Marco. Can't wait! See you tomorrow Elaine!

Gotta love articles like this!

I can't stop laughing about this: Las Vegas bans sleeping near feces. The very use of the word 'feces' puts me in hysterics.

Hi from Moscow

The bartender at a club in Irkutsk told us that Moscow is "like a foreign country, not really Russia" & in a lot of ways I'd agree! With a population of 13 million, Moscow is very big & very modern. At times it feels like the roads are race tracks with cars & motorbikes flying about. The Red Square is awing & St. Basil's Cathedral gorgeous. Legend has it the architects who built it were blinded afterwards so that they could never again create something so beautiful. Sounds like the work of Ivan the Terrible, doesn't it? The Metro, easily recognizable with their red, 'Mighty Mouse' M's, is uber cheap (although it feels akin to that insane boat ride in Willy Wonka's factory) & feels very WWII. I read online that Moscow was recently voted the world's most expensive city (not counting rent) but it also does seem to have something for everyone. Depending on where you go your meal could be a few dollars or a hundred. Such an interesting place!

Oh yes, & I did manage to survive the 3 day/3 night train ride. In fact, I was surprised to find it was quite pleasant. We happened to get a nice, clean, new car. Our train attendants were good. The dining car was expensive but very tasty. I even got to take a shower on day 2 when I got particularly nasty & for $4. Excellent! We unloaded in Vladimir & headed to Suzdal, a small Russian 'city' (more of a village) for a night. Did I mention our hotel rooms there were amazing? Too bad we weren't there for longer. After sightseeing & drinking the local mead (honey beer) we bussed it to Moscow & here I am. Tomorrow night we catch the midnight train to St. Peterburg. As for tonight some of us are going to check out a Moscow bar. We gotta check out the local scene here too!

I'll try to post a few pics if I can get them loaded up. Next time you hear from me will probably be from St. Petersburg...

...it seems Ronaldo's got fans even in Mongolia!

Contemplating who knows what in UB

Kristin & I with all our crap in UB, Mongolia; pre train to Irkutsk

"They're all mine!"

Lake Baikal

deepest lake in the world (located in eastern Siberia)

Doing a runner (possibly to the toilet?)

Siberia

I'm currently in eastern Siberia in a college town of 600,000 called Irkutsk, which is on the main Trans-Siberian railway line & about an hour from Lake Baikal (the deepest lake in the world). I've found a broadband internet connection again, yessss. Ah, gotta love broadband internet!

Did I mention that I went clubbing in Mongolia? It turns out Mongolia has a few good clubs (& with 70% of the population under age 35 they're even thumping on weeknights!) so a group of us headed to one called Muse one night. They played mostly American music & of that mostly hip hop, which was fun. There were even some impressive Mongolian breakdancers really goin' for it! And with a liter of vodka selling for $3 in supermarkets & $6 in clubs, drinking is super cheap. Super cheap = good.

Yesterday we arrived in Irkutsk & bussed it to Listvianka, a fishing village on Lake Baikal. Both were stunning. We've been lucky to have beautiful sunny days too, which makes for good pictures. We stayed with Russian host families for the night -- Kristin & I were paired together with one lady who was nice enough & just let us do our own thing. Unfortunately I must've eaten something bad on the train to Russia (my bet's on the sausage I got at the station) cuz I suffered through all day bouts of diarrhea. That accompanied by severe stomache cramps & waves of nausea made for some serious unpleasantness, but I'm heaps better today. It seems to be cycling through the group too as at least half the group has been through the exact same thing. At least we can sympathize with each other & someone always ALWAYS has toilet paper on hand. Fun times & noodle salad. It's all a part of traveling. ;o)

Last night a group of us went to a Russian-style sauna (banyan) where you alternate between sitting in the boiling sauna & sweating your @$$ off, taking lukewarm showers, drinking hot tea in the cooling room, & beatching each other's backs with birch branches (!). It's all supposed to be very cleansing & I did indeed feel refreshed afterwards.

Today we drove back to Irkutsk, the "Paris of Siberia", toured a museum, ate some Russian pancakes, & now I'm now sat at an internet cafe. It's a student town so will probably go to a bar tonight. Tomorrow afternoon it's back on the train for 3 nights/3 days -- the longest stretch yet! Then we'll be in western Russia. At least the next train has a dining car -- our last one didn't & we had to bring enough food with us to eat (slightly annoying). The traveling life can get a bit old livin' out of the backpack & such (good thing I brought lots of clothes so I have lots of choices) but seeing all these new places is very cool indeed! Thanks to everyone who's emailed & I'm REALLY looking forward to seeing you all when I get back!

Mongolia

Posting from Mongolia, oh yeah! Would you believe it, broadband internet access from Mongolia? Fantastic! (^o^)

Recap of the last few days:
We arrived in Ulaan Baator (Mongolia's capitol) late Thursday after a rather hellish day & a half train ride (we were stopped at the China-Mongolian border for nearly 6 hours from 9pm til 2am, being woken up every hour with people demanding our passports & no toilet access & a constant jerking due to changing all of the wheels on the train as the tracks in Mongolia are a different width than in China. Craziness! We were filthy, tired, & hungry when we rolled in & that shower post-train ride was definitely in the top 10 best I've ever had. I have a feeling the next one will be even better as we've got a 2 night/1 day stretch...the one after that is a 3 night/3 day one (the worst -- ergh!). Had a filling & rather tasty meal of horse fillet & went out for a few drinks at a local club with some of my group. All in all it's been an interesting experience! Yesterday we went to the Mongolian ger camp & spent the night there. We all went for a 2 hour horseback ride on Mongolian horses (they're so tiny it's a wonder the Mongolians conquered half the world from their backs) & they even let me have a few gallops, which was fantastic. Mongolia as seen from the train & elsewhere besides Ulaan Baator was just as I'd imagined: gentle rolling green hills & plains with loads of horses & sheep & randomly dotted with ger camps. Ulaan Baator is a bit different than expected as it's quite modern with hotels, restaurants, bars, internet cafes with broadband, and a surprisingly fashionable youth! They all seem quite smiley & open & friendly, which is a nice change from China.

We leave tomorrow evening to head to Russia & Lake Baikal is our next stop. It's a 2 night/1 day stretch, worse than before but still not as bad as it'll be the last stretch. I'll post a couple of pics right now for ya'll to enjoy...

View of the Great Wall from the train

Because everything's so much cheaper in China, Mongolians & Russians smuggle in everything you could think of (food, booze, clothes) & the border control kinda turns a blind eye. This is the 4-person sleeper cabin next to ours, absolutely crammed full!