So I made it home. Melbourne, Australia. Today is day 3 here, and I’m not sure it feels entirely like home just yet! But I’m working on it!

More to come, including some useful tips about finding buses, planes and trains in various parts of the world. I’ll probably write some of it during quieter night shifts at work over the course of the next week.

So thanks for following my travels, thanks for all the messages, emails and well wishing - I did it, I’m glad I did it and I’m going to do it again!

Keep this blog in one corner of your eye, as I will use it to post extracts from my journal, as well as future travel plans as they come to light …

I have to come back to explore this place. I’ve only seen a tiny fraction of a fraction, but it would be awesome to explore more. I arrived last night, went out with my host for a warm apple & cinnamon drink (tasty!), then grabbed a slice of pizza on the way home.
Today’s destination is Dusseldorf, tonight it’s Thailand …

Here I am at Tallinn Airport, courtesy of a healthy dose of geographical intuition, an airport that’s less than 4km from the city, and a 20 second glance at Google maps before bed last night. And it didn’t cost a thing! How do you buy a ticket? I don’t ˇknow!!

TERRIBLE keyboard like the one in Darwin, but thhis one is frree sˇo i tolerate it

to a point …

And so the adventure continues. My 9 year old passport photo was wearing a bit thin on the border control staff, who kept flipping back to the info page, then looking at my face, repeatedly. Mental note to make sure i look older for my next passport, which will be soon after i’m home.
It’s a perfect day here, light breeze, sun high in the blue sky and just a couple of wispy clouds. Fingers crossed the weather is good in berlin and parts beyond!
People are now in the duty free store, although i can’t understand why. Vodka, for example, only costs something like 5 dollars for 750ml, and cigarettes were around 1 to 2 dollars for a pack of 20. I have my Australian wine in my bag, a gift for my host in Berlin. Not being sure of all the limits in each country i’m passing through, i think I’ll leave the goodies in the shop!
Ok, now this phone will stop working as It’s using my Russian sim card, so it will be the last post for a while. Perhaps days, perhaps hours, who knows …

Look! I found the bus station! Ok, so It’s not the one my ticket was booked from, but they seem to be taking me to Tallinn anyway, so i won’t complain. 7 hours and I’ll be in the capital of Estonia … If you’d asked me two months ago, i’d have not known its name.
I may have internet in berlin, but because i’m only there for a short while, don’t count on it!
Still one hurdle to clear, outward immigration at a place called Narva. Should not be an issue as my papers are in order, but in this country … you never know.
But i’m still coming back …

11 deg C, sunny with one or six clouds

Just like coming here, my looming departure has come as a bit of a surprise! Tomorrow morning I’ll be on a bus to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. It feels like I have only been here for 2 weeks, not 4!

So I’ll take a step back a few days, as it’s been a little while since I last posted (with good reason!). Yuzha was certainly an experience! I spent time with friends of my relatives, down at a house near a lake and river. The weather was “a bit ordinary” the entire time, but we had a blast anyway. There was football, getting bogged near the lake, drying shoes practically in the fire, dancing, vodka, and many good times. Despite my decided lack of Russian skills, we managed to communicate everything just fine, with the help of the EN-RU dictionary and many many hand gestures

When the time came to return to Ivanovo, it was Sunday - and the buses don’t run on Sunday! So my relatives organised a ride in a car (a common thing here in Russia - stop a car, arrange a price and get taken to your destination!). The driver offered to take me to the train station for an extra 100 roubles (around AUD$5), but I declined and got off at the bus station in Ivanovo. Now, remember I’ve spent 2 days in this city, exploring it with locals. So I used this knowledge - combined with my ability to read the Russian alphabet and make out street names and some things - to catch the right bus into the City and even managed to find the voksal, or station. I had half an hour to spare, and the total cost: 8 roubles! Less than 37 cents!

The return train trip was not as pleasant as the way there. My compartment was next to a compartment being used by some Army guys - and it appears the train staff don’t tell the Army what to do. They were smoking, drinking and all sorts of things throughout the night, and of course I had next to no sleep. What sleep I did get was terrible due to a shocking pillow and sizeable headache from the weird sleeping positions I’d been forced to adopt! But I got to SPB, tried to sleep but couldn’t - so I spent the day relaxing and enjoying the sunshine.

Since I’ve been back in Saint Petersburg, I haven’t really done much. I went to the shops yesterday to stock up on fruit & snacks for my travels, and I’ve just been wandering around enjoying the fine weather and my remaining time here.

About 4 deg C, overcast but bright.
My train trip from SPB to Ivanovo was smooth and mostly uneventful, with three exceptions. One, the massive delay while we waited 1:30 for absolutely nothing, then started moving suddenly … Then, two of my compartment’s passengers were table tennis players, and they had a game on the small table between the seats. One word: wow! The other thing was the Mack truck on the other top bunk. Oh my goodness, i could not believe the volume and that he didn’t wake himself up! But it was a good trip regardless, with some beer and vodka helping to break down the language barrier.
Today i’m in a small town called Yuja, which is where my relatives live. It’s a nice town, with lots of parks and plenty of trees. Meeting my family for the first time was a bit awkward, especially as my Russian really is terrible to a native speaker. But with the help of hand gestures and the dictionary, we manage to get most points across.
Today We’re going to a river nearby to go fishing and enjoy some recreational pursuits. One of the lads is going to the army, so It’s sort of a farewell for him also.
I spent most of my time in Ivanovo being shown around by two lovely locals. The city, while run down and definitely not as well maintained as SPB, has its own charms and character, and i enjoyed my time there, including the Russian warm chocolate and the museum of textiles.
There are several places nearby that were recommended for me to explore, but as always time won’t permit on this occasion … But There’s always the future …

6 deg C, mostly perfect with a slight chance of snow, rain and/or fog.

It’s time for adventure! Today I’m heading off into the (relatively) great unknown of another city - Ivanovo. For those who are thinking it - yes, I know it’s the “city of brides” !! I also know it’s where my relatives live, hence the reason for my visit

I’ll be on a Russian train this afternoon around 4pm, heading east for 16 hours! It will be a record length overseas train trip for me, the previous longest being just 6 hours in USA. Must remember to pack my Russian books so I can keep studying (and keep busy!) on the train.

Mental note, must also get to Lenta (supermarket) and buy some supplies for the trip: bread, cheese, vodka, etc

This might be my last update until 26.05, when I will return to Saint Petersburg. I hope to have many photos, stories and experiences upon my return.

Stay safe & stay happy

12 deg C, some sun

After purchasing a train ticket to visit my relatives, my cousin and I headed for the Museum of Russian Political History. What an interesting find! It was full of photos, documents and memorabilia from the Soviet era, and even some items from before the first revolution. It took around 2 hours to visit and was (for me) more interesting than the other exhibits I’ve seen.

The stories of the people back in the early days of Soviet Russia are incredible, and make me very grateful that I’m living in the present day. Having said that, life wasn’t impossible - just very difficult! There are some photographs depicting a very disturbing period in Soviet history, when some guy decided he didn’t like random people and decided to eliminate people in numbers well in excess of today’s Australian population.

7 deg C, overcast

Woah! Big weekend + Small sleep = no blog updates.

I really should get around to updating the photos too …

Today, getting train ticket to see relatives on the other side of Moscow, then going to check out a museum or two (presuming they’re open - it is Monday, after all …)