Once, as I drove across Canada, I stopped at an information center in Saskatchewan. As I was looking at the map, a young couple came in with a question:"What is the fastest way across the province?" They were on their way to Alberta to see the Rockies. At that time I wondered whether it wouldn't make sense to see all the provinces, rather than drive quickly through some of them to see others. Now we are in a similar situation as we drive through Russia as fast as we can to get to Mongolia. Fast, of course, is a relative term in our case.
There is also that small issue of the size. Russia appears to be endless. As we drive day after day, our perspective of things changes. What seemed to be a slightly dirty shirts just a few days ago looks perfectly clean today. The smell of the gas in the car seems to be not as pervasive and the overloaded low rear end of the car I worried about a week ago seems perfectly good now.
We are into Ural now. The temperature has cooled down, but the people here seem to be quite warm and friendly. By now we are well versed in getting lost in the cities we are supposed to go around. Suddenly, that moment back in Canada when I was looking at the downloadable GPS of Russia thinking:"Eh, no need, we will have a map" comes to mind. As a consequence, yesterday we were driving aimlessly through Ufa trying to follow the different guidance of different people. Then, at one point, I have shouted from the window at a young couple in the car next to us trying to get our directions. And it worked. Dimitri and Nastia first tried to give us the guidance, but finding out that such an exercise might not succeed, they asked as to follow them and took us all the way through the town to the highway to Chelyabinsk. All we could do is to thank them. Even the rude gas attendant responding to my:"Good morning, how are you?" with a sharp:"What?" as in "What the hell do you want?" might have a hard time to erase the kindness of the others.
As we crawl through higher and higher hills of Ural, put on warmer clothes and watch the rainy clouds, I wonder whether the Asia beyond the hills will bring us more of Dimitris and Nastia or the irritable gas attendants. I think it will be the former.
There is also that small issue of the size. Russia appears to be endless. As we drive day after day, our perspective of things changes. What seemed to be a slightly dirty shirts just a few days ago looks perfectly clean today. The smell of the gas in the car seems to be not as pervasive and the overloaded low rear end of the car I worried about a week ago seems perfectly good now.
We are into Ural now. The temperature has cooled down, but the people here seem to be quite warm and friendly. By now we are well versed in getting lost in the cities we are supposed to go around. Suddenly, that moment back in Canada when I was looking at the downloadable GPS of Russia thinking:"Eh, no need, we will have a map" comes to mind. As a consequence, yesterday we were driving aimlessly through Ufa trying to follow the different guidance of different people. Then, at one point, I have shouted from the window at a young couple in the car next to us trying to get our directions. And it worked. Dimitri and Nastia first tried to give us the guidance, but finding out that such an exercise might not succeed, they asked as to follow them and took us all the way through the town to the highway to Chelyabinsk. All we could do is to thank them. Even the rude gas attendant responding to my:"Good morning, how are you?" with a sharp:"What?" as in "What the hell do you want?" might have a hard time to erase the kindness of the others.
As we crawl through higher and higher hills of Ural, put on warmer clothes and watch the rainy clouds, I wonder whether the Asia beyond the hills will bring us more of Dimitris and Nastia or the irritable gas attendants. I think it will be the former.