Multi-Cultural Personality Disorder

St. Petersburg has been great. Read the rest of this entry »

In the middle of souvenir hell we met an artist. An artist who is passionate about photography, his family, and Led Zeppelin. Read the rest of this entry »

St. Petersburg is amazing. I think I could live here. Read the rest of this entry »

A religious protest (I think)

I love the streets of Moscow. It’s been light until a little after 11pm each night, and the pulse of the city seems pretty consistent from morning until night. Moscow is filled with energy (and characters) and I’ve really enjoyed simply being here. Tomorrow we head north to St. Petersburg. Read the rest of this entry »

Moscow is seriously lacking a tourist infrastructure. It seems most tourism is group tourism, arranged by an agency, and involving a herd of people following a tour leader around Red Square. I can’t say I really blame them, as it’s faily challenging to get around here. All of the signs are in Cyrillic script, (including all of the signs in the metro), which means I’m illiterate. To complicate matters even more, I approached about five people the first day I was here to ask if I was on the correct street and not one of those people could even read roman script, much less speak English. I realize this is Russia, so it makes sense Russian language and script are used almost exclusively, but the lack of English is still very surprising in a city like Moscow.

An interesting side effect of the lack of tourism, is that Russians have yet to develop an eye for foreigners. I’m obviously never mistaken for a native in Asia, and I’m usually identified as a foreigner in Europe, but here in Russia, everyone assumes I’m Russian and just walks up and starts talking or asking for directions. It’s relaxing to know you blend in, but frustrating not to be able to communicate. So it goes when you’re traveling, I guess.

Moscow is flooded with money. I can’t confirm these facts, but I’ve been told there are more billionaires in Moscow than in New York, and that most of the wealth in Russia lies in the hands of less than ten billionaires. Mercedes, Rolls Royces, BMWs, and Porches line the streets. Dolce & Gabanna and Versace are the designers of choice. One Russian woman told us she thought the country was better when it was the Soviet Union, as the people were less materialistic and the sense of community was much stronger. People would help each other in those days, she said, but now everyone is much more self-absorbed. It’s only one person’s opinion, but interesting nonetheless.

I’m a little afraid of the police here. I’d say more, but Big Brother is watching.

Moscow is interesting. Nobody speaks English, mullets are ubiquitous (80’s fashion rules here), and it’s quite beautiful. In addition to being the most expensive city in the world, it’s apparently one of the best for people watching, too. We’ve spent hours outside in cafes the past two days, eating, drinking, and people watching, and it never gets old. Today we went to Red Square, and it completely exceeded my expectations. Absolutely beautiful.

Read the rest of this entry »

After 24 straight hours of being on a plane or waiting in the airport to get an another plane, (and lots of shameless begging at the Lufthansa counter in Chicago), I made it to Moscow. A nice gentleman who splits his time between driving a taxi and working for the Russian mafia (I’m pretty sure he was kidding, Mom) gave myself and 2 other girls stranded at the Moscow airport at midnight a ride to our hostels. I’m staying at the Napoleon hostel, which is apparently where Napolean stayed when he was giving Russia trouble in the early 1800’s.

Coming over the hill to see Red Square before me, illuminated and brilliant in the night, made the awful trip here worth it, though. I’m now starving, dehydrated, and about the meet my friends for some nourishment and a little stroll around the city. Pictures coming soon.

Why do you like to travel? I get asked this question a lot. I never quite know how to answer because I don’t like to travel. I don’t like airplanes. I like sleeping in my own bed. I don’t like living out of a backpack. I get terrible motion sickness. Paul Theroux, one of the greatest living travel writers, likes to point out that the root of the word “travel” means misery and hardship because he hates to travel, too. Travel truly is awful: waiting for planes. trains. buses. feeling dirty. exhausted. frustrated. out of place. helpless. mute. purposeless. broke.

Enter my favorite quote regarding travel: “Travel is limiting the comforts of the body to gain freedom of the mind.”

I don’t travel for sightseeing or lazy days on the beach. I travel for the challenge. To introduce myself to entirely new ways of thinking. Entirely new ways of living. To clear my mind of the mundane thoughts that so often fill our days, and focus on the deep powerful presence of life.

Some people view long-term travel as a form of escapism, and for some it may be, but I view it as diving head first into life, and emerging with an experience that will benefit you (and those around you) for the rest of your life. It’s a personal investment. I suppose the short answer to the question “Why do you like to travel?” is that I want to develop myself, become more informed, more confident, more tolerant, more secure.

My next post will be from Russia. I have a one-way ticket leaving St. Louis on Monday and arriving in Moscow on Tuesday. I know one word of Russian.

I can’t wait.