Day 184-186, 26-28th November, Novgorod, St Petersburg
On the 26th, we drove over 300 miles to Novgorod and, after getting lost because it was dark and I failed to notice that we had crossed the river, finally … Read more
Russia
Day 182-183, November 24-25 Moscow
After leaving the splendid Slavyanka Hotel, we went to look at the Tambov cathedral and watched part of a service. There have been a couple of niggling problems with the … Read more
Day 180-181, November 22-23, Saratov, Tambov
The road from Volgograd to Saratov passes through rolling steppe land. From the top of the hills you can see for dozens of miles and the light was bright (rather … Read more
Day 177-179, 19-21st November, Volgograd (Stalingrad)
We spent much of the 19th relaxing next to the large Islamic graveyard at Kotyayevka and decided to set off for the border about 4 pm in the hope that … Read more
Day 57, 29th May, Astrakhan
A lazy day. We walked eastwards to the town’s biggest shopping mall. The aim was to buy face cream (not for me) and Euro-2018 tee-shirts as presents. They were nearly … Read more
Day 56, 28th May, Astrakhan
A relaxing day, which I needed after yesterday’s long drive. We walked along the Volga Embankment, and saw the various statues and bronze models including the shoeshine boy, Peter the … Read more
Day 55, 27th May, Astrakhan
Walked round Kizlyar for a short time, marvelling how a town with such a grisly history could recover. In 1996, Chechen terrorists invaded Dagestan and kidnapped over 1,000 people. They … Read more
Day 54, 26th May, Kizlyar
We went for a short walk in Vladikavkaz, where I took a few pics including the beautiful ceiling of the railway booking hall after going through security. A nearby building … Read more
Day 53, 25th May, Vladikavkaz
After scouring two of the most pathetic shops possible, calling themselves “supermarket tourist shop” we managed to get rid of our last remaining lari and then set off for the … Read more