A Report from Moscow, Russia -- Part 3 of 3
Hello All,
Tuesday, 15 August, was departure day for Omsk. We spent all morning packing up and getting ready to leave Novosibirsk. Still no word on the financial situation. I will follow up when we reach Ekaterinburg (MODERATOR'S NOTE: There is an alternate spelling, Yekaterinburg, both are used interchangeably). We left for the 720 km. trip to Omsk about 12:30. I had been told the first 350 kms. were okay, but after that the road was very bad. So, our destination for Tuesday, was the beginning of the gravel road and then we would finish the trip to Omsk on Wednesday.
The countryside remained about the same for the first 100 kms. then the change was remarkable. We entered an immense marsh, for miles and miles there was marshy areas on both sides of the road. We were fortunate the road was paved. There were occasional areas of high ground where grain crops were being raised but for the most part this area is used for cattle grazing, both dairy and beef. The cowboys were mounted on very good looking horses. Every once in a while there were small herds of horses being tended by one or two horsemen. I don't know if there are any wild horses in the area.
We rolled into the half way point about 18:00, found the local police station and inquired about a safe place to park. They led us to the local hotel and we parked in front of it. Nina went inside and asked about bathing facilities and the cost. She came back with some good news and some bad. It would be cold showers but wouldn't cost anything.
Bubba had attracted a large group of curious people. I had to wait for Nina to return so she could explain to the group about the trip. Everyone seemed to be satisfied by her explanation and left, so I could go have my cold bath and fix some dinner.
It is not unusual for Bubba to attract attention when we stop. I am well aware of the unusual appearance of Bubba, and this is not the first country where it has attracted attention. Sometimes it seems as if I just landed a spaceship from Mars. The people I have met here are so friendly and helpful. It is so different from what I have been warned about. Everywhere I go people are more than willing to help. I am very thankful for their friendly, helpful attitude.
We got up early Wednesday morning to continue the trip to Omsk. After eating a light breakfast we were on the road again only to be confronted by a very rough and dusty gravel road. It promised to be a long day. The road was still running through this massive marsh with the villages few and far between. We stopped about 13:00 and had lunch beside a moderate size lake, one of many we have passed during the day.
The absence of wildlife was also unusual to me. I had not seen any dead animals along side the road since leaving Vladivostock. I am not sure if this means the total absence of wildlife or just that there is none along the roads. I have been told there is an abundance of deer and elk and that reindeer have, also, been reintroduced in some areas where they had been hunted out. I haven't seen any large animals in the wild. I was told the wild boar here are in the 200 to 300 kilogram range, don't think I would like to run into one of those critters with just a pointed stick.
Progress was slow all day until about 16:00, then the last 90 miles to Omsk was a real treat. We had decided during the day that we would find a place to park and go on to Ekaterinburg on Thursday as Nina's time was getting short. We found a Auto Service area on the outskirts of Omsk on the highway to Ekaterinburg that had a small hotel and secure parking. I paid a small sum for hot showers, and set up the camper between two large trucks. After we had our showers, we ate dinner and went to bed. It had been a long day.
Up got up early on Thursday, 17 August, and had a light breakfast and
discovered 2 low tires on the right rear. With the help of one of the
truckers I reinflated the tires, did some other maintenance on Bubba
and got on the road about 10:00. I stopped at a fuel station, the
first fuel station with a shop with soda and other items. They even
had large bottles of Pepsi. I bought two bottles for the trip to
Ekaterinburg which is 1050 kms. northwest from Omsk. Our destination
for the day is 610 kms. from Omsk. The names are difficult to
translate into English spelling as the Cyrillic alphabet is so
different from English and I have no way to duplicate the spelling.
Phonetically, the city where we plan to stop is Tomean.
We arrived about 18:30 and found a parking place. While setting the camper up the piston on the pump for the camper broke. This created a real problem, how to get the top of the camper up from now on. After I thought about it for a while, I drilled two holes in the broken part and bolted it back together. Meanwhile a crowd had formed, Nina talked to them while I preformed yet another mechanical miracle. After about an hour the camper was up, I was cooking dinner and once again, we were happy campers.
I was running short of Rubles and hoped to go to a bank on Friday in Tyumen' to replenish my supply of Rubles. We got up early and drove into the city to find a bank. I saw a sign indicating currency exchange, but passed by it. We went to the bank we had been told about only to be informed that they do not exchange dollars. So, we went back to the place I had seen earlier. It was encouraging to see VISA Card and MasterCard stickers in their window, the first I had seen in Russia. My excitement was short lived as I was told they had no Rubles to exchange. I was totally confused; why they were open if they had no Rubles to exchange? There was no explanation. We went to another bank displaying the same sign, only to be told they could not exchange money either. When I asked about the sign, the lady just shrugged her shoulders and said "I don't understand". We left Tyumen', totally confused about what had just transpired. Fortunately, Nina had a supply of Rubles and I used some to buy enough fuel to reach Ekaterinburg.
We left the marshy area and were approaching the Urals. The country now was rolling hills with heavy forests and large fields of wheat and oats. Everywhere the combines were working to harvest the crops. We stopped at a roadside stop where a man was cooking beef pieces on skewers. I asked about the wildlife in the area. He said there are plenty of elk and wild boar in the area and many people come there in the fall to hunt. It has been raining off and on all day and the temperature was about 15 degrees C. Fall was in the air already, here at this latitude.
We arrived in Ekaterinburg about 15:00, Friday, 18 August, and got lucky as there was a diagram of the city streets near the Police check point entering the city. We drew a little map and continued on our way to find the hotel. Finally we arrived at the hotel, with the help of a man, who was curious about the truck and led us there.
This hotel/eye clinic was a very busy place. We got checked in with no trouble and got settled. We were both tired after 4 days of constant travel and welcomed the hot shower and good beds for a change.
I will stop the story here, try to get connected to MCI in Moscow and send this into Cyberspace. No luck. We have arrived in Cheboksary after 2 1/2 days of hard travel. Ekaterinburg was a bust with regards to connecting with MCIMail. Now that I'm only 360 miles from Moscow, I hope to be able to receive and send mail.
Everyone take care of yourselves and do the right thing.
As Always,
Bubba and Roger
NEXT WEEK: Arrival in Moscow
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