Day 12 - Novosibirsk Centre

3.08.09
Planning day, I get my route through the north of China sorted to Beijing and decide to risk it at Vladivostok for the adventure and don't book a hotel. I will arrive at about 6.30am, so it will be enough time to jump on a bus to China or if not get a hotel sorted.
In the afternoon we head to Novosibirsk centre to meet Andrey and Anya who are going to show us around.

We take in all the main attractions among which are Lenin square and the opera

house named after him and a small Russian church in the middle of a road. In one of the parks we are joined by Sasha (Alexandria), who studies advertising part time with with Anya.

After Sushi for dinner, we realise that we have missed the last train and bus back to Berdsk and Andrey and Anya have missed their last link to Akamdemgorodok. In this situation there is only one answer, several litres of beer, lots of snacks and we camp out in Sasha's flat for the night.

Me, Igor and Andey sharing a single sofa bed, all in just boxer shorts, it was what can only be described as an intimate male experience.

After speaking to Sasha about what she's up to and her asking about my travels, she gives me the short stories of Ernest Hemingway to read on the train. It's a long journey and she said I will need something to do. Andrey and Anya also give me and Igor small Novosibirsk Crests carved out of wood I make some origami models and give them to everyone as it's the only thing I can give, and am touched by people's generorsity once again.

Day 9 - Berdsk and Novosibirsk

31.07.09



 Row row row your boat gently down the stream is today's motto. We take a short walk down to the river banks with the rubber dinghy, a homemade life jacket which is quality and a pair or oars. Igor's dad takes him out first and explains a bit of river safety, then we head out together and end up towing Nikolaj around the river.It's quite a small dinghy for two tall people and so if you relax too much you deform the boat and let water in, we also manage to pop the seating boards out of their position, which creates a small moment of panic. Both decked out in aviators in a rubber dinghy, we look like real tourists! On the way back from the lake, we also stumble upon some more mushrooms randomly growing next to the path, my newly learnt scavenging skills come into play and we harvest some fantastic fungi.

The evening excursion was into the academic part of Novosibirsk called Akademgorodok, where we meet some ex students who Igor's dad used to teach, Andrey, his wife Anya and their friend Katia. Andrey's English is almost flawless, although like most people I have met he is adamant he can't speak very well. The special thing about Russia is that you can walk into shops with 1,2,3 or even 4 litre plastic bottles, pick a beer from a list of about 30 and get it filled with live beer straight from the keg. Absolutely amazing!
We go to a subterranean joint that seems to be a beer shop combined with a pub, meet an ex police major who was fired due to corruption, a massive Russian guy who tries to teach me various informal language and a guy who spent several years in Texas and has the accent to match. A lot of beer and cured seafood saw us away until the early hours.

Unfortunately for both activities today I deemed it too risky to take my camera and so no photographic evidence exists.