November 2008 - Meandering home

Moscow. Puh-ha!

I arrived savely in Moscow. And met many nice Russians.

The first night I stayed in a hostel, for a change. Ann had given me the adress, and it was - for Moscovian measures - very cheap (650 rubles). I took a good shower and had some coffee, before walking around in ...

28 November, 2008

bar, hostel, Moscow

Travel

Working days until Moscow.

The next couple of days are not so interesting for the reader, I guess. I just wrote and wrote. In the morning at the kitchen table, in the afternoon in a cafe, and the last day in a huge bookstore. That is a nice story though. Max helped me to buy a train ticket to ...

27 November, 2008

hostel, Moscow, St Petersburg

Travel

St Petersburg #3. Hermitage.

I was in to some culture, and the next day I found some time to realize an old dream of mine: Visiting the Hermitage museum. It is located in seven huge buildings, and its collection is just huge. I concentrated on impressionist paintings, with the side-effect that I didn't feel like an absolute novice in ...

27 November, 2008

Hermitage, St Petersburg

Travel, Writing

St Petersburg #2. Rock hard.

The next day I rolled in the snow. Why and how remains a little secret here. It caused me to be too late for the Hermitage, and I spent the afternoon writing in a cafe: business as usual. In the evening I met Marikka, the blond one, who took me to a concert of Igor, ...

27 November, 2008

bar, concert, St Petersburg

Travel

St. Petersburg #1.

So I arrived in Saint Petersburg in the morning, in a huge train station, and I called Katja, the girl whom I had contacted on the couchsurfing network. It was quite easy to find my way around the city, since there are only four subway lines, neatly intertwined around four large ploshads (squares). So I ...

27 November, 2008

band, bar, St Petersburg

Travel

A 27 Hour Trainride.

In the morning, Alyona brought me to the station with the tram, where a woman sold the tickets on board. The train was already there, but I had to wait to get in. My passport was doublechecked and I entered a clean new waggon (you might be less lucky if you try to take a ...

27 November, 2008

Murmansk, St Petersburg, train

Travel

Murmansk. Alyosha.

I waited my five days in three different places, with three totally different kinds of people, who were all so kind. The last two nights I stayed at Evelyn's, a member of couchsurfing and a German who teaches Russian in Norwegian (!). So I enjoyed a conversation about linguistics, history, politics, which nourished my mind ...

19 November, 2008

Kirkenes, Murmansk

Travel

Quantum of Solace at World´s End

Although it is not really that spectacular, Kirkenes has been called the end of the world on several occasions. Of course, during the Cold War, it was obvious. It´s on the edge of Europe, often not on the map (I have to tilt my google maps all the time). That is why the cinema complex ...

17 November, 2008

Bond, Kirkenes, vacuum

Travel

Kirkenes. Writing and a Do-it-yourself Crashcourse Russian.

I started to realize that getting to Russia from here was too easy to let the opportunity pass, and I got the necessary documents. The travel agency provided an "invitation". So I was invited without knowing anybody in Russia. Well, they knew me, or they knew all they wanted to know about me, and that ...

15 November, 2008

Joyce, Kirkenes, Miller, novel, Russian, visa

Travel, Writing

Tromsø #3. On the Big Truck.

Monday passed, I wrote. A friend dropped in and we played the oldest Super Mario game. I was very bad at it. At night, I went to a bar where they had a Blue Monday, which meant beer for just 39 Kr. That was just cheap enough for me to have one beer, no gulping ...

14 November, 2008

bar, border, gas station, Kirkenes, reindeer herd, Russia, Tana Bru, Tromsø, truck

Travel, Writing

Tromsø #2

On Sunday we woke up with strong coffee, and went to explore the Fjord of Tromsø. It was really beautiful, and we left the car several times to take pictures of it. [ picture of the Tromsø Fjord, thanks again to Tasos ]

I got a bit sad about the fact we'd split ...

13 November, 2008

Amundsen, bar, Fjord, Tromsø

Travel

Tromsø #1. All the way up.

Saturday. We woke up early, had some breakfast with Piita, scrubbed our car window, took in some groceries and gas, and headed north-west. We had a long drive ahead of us, through beautiful unspoiled land, first on the Finnish side, and then in Norway. Still on the Finnish side, we stopped over in a roadside ...

13 November, 2008

bar, Norway, Svalbård, Tromsø

Travel

The Arktikum and the Aurea Borealis

The next morning I went up early enough to walk my way to the Arktikum Museum and enjoy some time looking at the great exhibitions there (it won a prize for the best museum in Europe in 1994). I learned about the Sami people of Lapland, their clothing and how important it is for them ...

9 November, 2008

Arktikum, car, Muonio, Northern Light, Sami

Travel

Visiting Santa Claus on the Polar Circle

The next day I decided to revive the tourist in me that had almost died, and went to Santa's village. One of our considerations in the bar the other night had been about the answer to the question why Santa lives in Finland. Since my companions studied law, I suggested there must be something like ...

6 November, 2008

happy, Michael Jackson, Rovaniemi, Santa, sled

Travel

Finally: Lapland

The next day I said goodbye to Tuomo and tried to hitchhike to Rovaniemi. This turned out to be very difficult. I remember walking along a highway, and decided I had had enough, so I got back to Oulu, where I waited in a "cafe de Provence" for my train to Rovaniemi, writing, of course.
...

6 November, 2008

Obama, Rovaniemi, Santa, sauna, train

Travel

Oulu. With John Lennon and Che Guevara.

Monday morning I left, and my friends dropped me off at a bus stop on the road to Ylkaviesa, a town 28 kilometers away, where I waited with my cardboard sign and my thumb. After a while, I decided to walk and began to sing, inspired by the many car that passed by, ignoring my ...

6 November, 2008

Ché, Che Guevara, Finland, Hammerfest, John Lennon, Lennon, Motorcycle Diaries, Oulu, photographs, serendipity

Travel

In the Middle of Somewhere

So I had been quite incredibly lucky: having been picked up by two such friendly people and invited to stay with them for a while. I remember I took my first real sauna in Finland the first night, and we talked at the fireplace, sitting between elk antlers and an old guitar. Rosanna is a ...

1 November, 2008

dog training, Eskola, friends, Husky, sauna

Travel