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Author Topic: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land  (Read 21565 times)

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Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #75 on: January 15, 2013, 11:11:45 AM »
We wake up the next day approx mid-day (maybe a little after) at this time I would have expected the world to be up and running (that being our current housemates) but I was more than a little surprised to learn that we were the first ones up that day – so eventually I drag myself out of bed and into the shower then down to the kitchen for a much needed coffee. Now the strange thing about virtually every FSU house I visited was the distinct lack of fresh (or any type of) milk – most would just use the powdered variety – which is fine in all fairness because by the time I left I was actually beginning to really enjoy the stuff – actually when I do get the opportunity to look in the supermarket back home I will be buying it myself as a direct alternative – in-fact a tastier (but probably less healthy) alternative at that. I found on your travels to FSU there’s always something that you get a craving for which you enjoyed during your trip that you want when you get home!! For most guys its the ladies – you can tell I’ve been married to long when I am taking about powdered milk!! Of course I’m joking :)

Once the others surface we have breakfast (or lunch) and then get ready to go out and check out the new sights of the city – since the city has acquired new bridges since our last visit there, this would be the ideal place to start, we do this by car as Natasha has an aversion to walking – personally I would have preferred to walk some of the journey but it wasn’t offered as an option! We drive over the first bridge and then make our way over to Russky Island – which was previously unreachable on my last visits  (to the best of my memory) – this area has started to take shape with many new investments and buildings, it is my understanding that this is to be developed into a large scale resort type complex – I would imagine if we return again in 2 years time the area would be completely unrecognisable. One of the things that struck me the most was how much easier the inclusion of the bridge made getting to other parts of the city as previously it used to take hours at the busiest periods now its just minutes – hopefully at some point in time they will re-address the city centre traffic as well – or maybe that’s taking it one step too far!!!

We get back to the apartment and the jet-lag is kicking in deep again – time for a nap!! We have a few drinks later in the evening but Natasha must work the next day and the festivities from the evening before are starting to take their toll – this was and remained the earliest we went to bed during the entire journey at a mere 10.00pm – babies time!!!

The first few days are rather sedate – so as off tomorrow we decide to get out a little more and explore the city further, it is a long while since we have both been here so essentially we are both just tourists – only difference being I look like one and she doesn't :)
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline cufflinks

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #76 on: January 26, 2013, 04:52:42 PM »
Just curious how the remainder of the journey to the In Laws home town was - conjuring up images of the Alaska Ice Road Truckers reality show...  was it train, bus or air into the remote East of Siberia?  How did you cross the river in winter?

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #77 on: January 27, 2013, 04:33:22 AM »
Just curious how the remainder of the journey to the In Laws home town was - conjuring up images of the Alaska Ice Road Truckers reality show...  was it train, bus or air into the remote East of Siberia?  How did you cross the river in winter?
Cuffy – I’m getting there mate, just haven’t had the spare moments to get writing and uploading the photos!!

But to give you a heads-up – yes, it is very similar to Ice road truckers – just more uncomfortable :snivel:
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!


Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #78 on: January 27, 2013, 04:52:53 AM »
Lenin in Vladivostok :thumbsup:
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #79 on: January 27, 2013, 04:54:33 AM »
Vladivostok Train station
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #80 on: January 27, 2013, 01:19:29 PM »
Coolest bar in Vladivostok (IBHO) - German Beerhouse "Hans"!!
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Chris

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #81 on: January 27, 2013, 01:42:24 PM »
What was the beer like Bruce?
Слава Україні

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #82 on: January 27, 2013, 01:45:29 PM »
What was the beer like Bruce?
Really good Chris - I was in Czech Rep for my company Xmas party before we left and it was better than that!! Probably one of the best beers I've tasted + the snacks were free ;D
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline cufflinks

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #83 on: January 27, 2013, 02:16:04 PM »
Just curious how the remainder of the journey to the In Laws home town was - conjuring up images of the Alaska Ice Road Truckers reality show...  was it train, bus or air into the remote East of Siberia?  How did you cross the river in winter?
Cuffy – I’m getting there mate, just haven’t had the spare moments to get writing and uploading the photos!!

But to give you a heads-up – yes, it is very similar to Ice road truckers – just more uncomfortable :snivel:

LOL - Sounds like a modern day Dr. Zhivago epic without the horses!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #84 on: January 29, 2013, 11:25:10 AM »
S-56 submarine - Vladivostok, probably here in the RUA vaults somewhere - but here goes again anyway tiphat
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #85 on: January 29, 2013, 11:26:42 AM »
Maybe a better photo of the same subject
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline cufflinks

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #86 on: January 29, 2013, 12:13:58 PM »
BL:  Very kool picture ultra sleek WWII Era style Pacific Fleet Boat surface hunter...  (Similar to the US Versions my father served on during WWII and Korean Conflict)  but very sleek design - have to look close to find the forward Torpedoe Hatches and a great picture juxtaposed with the ultra modern new Cable Stayed Bridged in the background.

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #87 on: January 31, 2013, 12:04:45 PM »
BL:  Very kool picture
Cheers cuffy, and thanks for the interest :thumbsup:

LOL - Sounds like a modern day Dr. Zhivago epic without the horses!
I have free weekend this week so the fingers will be dancing all over the keyboard to get a bit more written down here!!
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #88 on: February 02, 2013, 01:55:15 AM »
Registering a Russian visa - possibly (one of) the most annoying ball ache(s) of any trip to the motherland.
 
OK - plan today was to take a walk, get plenty of photos and to take Natasha's boyfriend who's name I can't spell over to the police station and register my visa - we arrived into Russia on Thursday and it is now Monday - now I always thought that it was 3 days (not including weekends and hoildays) however, according to the guy we spoke to in the police station you now have 7 days to register and the Russian citizen no longer has to return the registration form when I leave - bonus all round, at least they have made that aspect a little less painful for all concerned!!
 
In true super Russian service style we arrive at the station and the guy informs us that we need photocopies of my visa and passport + the person who is registering's photocopied passport - now the guy is standing next to a photo copying machine but in an amusing twist of fate does not wish to help by actually photocopying our documents - instead it is much easier all round if we take a ten minute walk around the corner and pay to have the documents photocopied somewhere else. Very helpful indeed!!! He seemed reluctant to do anymore than the bare minimum - which proved to be a common theme during our stay there!! We return in approx 30 minutes and he is still doing exactly the same thing as he was doing when we got there the first time – listerning to the radio!!
 
After this its over to the nearest republic cafe (opposite the train station) for a beer and a chill out - after this we still have several hours before it gets dark so we take a walk along the embankment and get some photos taken (Some photos shown from this day already) - I'm using a touch screen phone to take my photos which is a major pain in the arse as you have to take your gloves off each time and since its bloody freezing this variable explains why I only took a handful of photos per day.
 
The evening is a cognac filled mystery - I remember going to bed late, eating too much and drinking even more - we resurface in the morning just before 12.00pm - its Christmas day for me!!!  Interesting when you are in FSU on Western Christmas day as nobody else cares, I have been many times during this period and was well aware that this Christmas like the others before it will be a write-off!!!

Nevermind - tomorrow is the start of the long journey northwards :snivel:
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline bagalia

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #89 on: February 02, 2013, 03:14:51 AM »
Nice photo. Surprising that they took good care of the sub. Makes you want to find a way on top. I wonder if that would carry a fine for doing so. I saw a one seat sub, think it was in Saratov. It was pretty rusty and the cover glass was broken, really primitive. Looked to be a pedal operated death trap.
Misery is the river of the world; everybody row, everybody row.

Offline CC3

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #90 on: February 02, 2013, 08:01:54 AM »
Quote
Interesting when you are in FSU on Western Christmas day as nobody else cares, I have been many times during this period and was well aware that this Christmas like the others before it will be a write-off!!!

So true! Was in Lugansk on Christmas; our celebratory meal was in a sushi restaurant, which, for my fiancee and her daughter, was quite a celebration...but, for me, there was some nostalgic longing for a traditional Christmas meal. On the other hand, my love made New Year's Eve the best that I had ever had in my life.  :)
The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other *snip* die for his.
George S. Patton

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #91 on: February 02, 2013, 09:28:28 AM »
Quote
Interesting when you are in FSU on Western Christmas day as nobody else cares, I have been many times during this period and was well aware that this Christmas like the others before it will be a write-off!!!

So true! Was in Lugansk on Christmas; our celebratory meal was in a sushi restaurant, which, for my fiancee and her daughter, was quite a celebration...but, for me, there was some nostalgic longing for a traditional Christmas meal. On the other hand, my love made New Year's Eve the best that I had ever had in my life.  :)
Agree – the new year thing is a different animal altogether, I have been lucky enough over the last 6 years to have spent new years eve in Kiev, Vladivostok, St Petersburg and Nikolayevsk-on-Amur most recently!! New year in FSU is certainly a highlight!!!
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline CC3

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #92 on: February 02, 2013, 01:49:43 PM »
Once married, I am going to try to get future wife to take vacation for western Christmas so we can celebrate it in the US or in western Europe  :plane:; but we will, for sure, be back in UA for New Year's  :party0031:.
The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other *snip* die for his.
George S. Patton

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #93 on: February 09, 2013, 01:20:48 AM »
Christmas day - probably one of the most low-key Christmas's I have ever had - in fact Tanya forgot and never even mentioned it until I reminded her and that was it - Merry Christmas Bruce.
 
Anyway - we have a chilled out day and have the train booked for just before midnight so we spend the rest of the evening drinking and chatting - about 11.00 we book a taxi and take off for the next part of the journey, the 16 hour train journey to Khabarovsk - this is the first stage of the famous Transsiberian railway and is the first time I have ever traveled in a "sleeper" cabin on train - lots of "firsts" on this trip!!!
 
The sleeper cabins on these trains sleep 4 and there is always a chance you will be spending all or a portion of the journey with complete strangers - as the train departs Vladivostok station nobody else has entered our cabin - Tanya tells me not to get excited as they will probably get on at the next stop in approx 50 minutes - in one of those moments where women are always right she was bang on the money and 2 other people arrive - they say nothing as they enter and do not even make eye contact for the entire journey! If it was in England you would at the very least feel awkward enough to at least attempt some form of basic communication - in Russia no chance!!!
 
By the time it reaches about 1.00am it is time to crash-out, I thought I would not be able to sleep but surprisingly I'm seemingly asleep with a few minutes!!
 
Prior to taking this trip there are several romantic notions about the Transsiberian railway experience and as another member quite rightly stated it is in fact rather "boring" and a generally uncomfortable experience. Quite possibly if I was on this train for the full 7 days all the way to Moscow I would probably go mad!! The only thing I actually regret is not investigating the rest of the train and taking more photos - problem was - your hero was just to plain lazy and stayed in bed until 12.00 - so I missed the opportunity to have a good look around!! From my first impressions the cabin was really basic (we improved on this significantly on the return trip) and certainly not comfortable in the slightest - possibly a prison cell would be marginally more comfortable!!

i do have a few photos I took during the journey - nothing exciting but will try and get them posted here!
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #94 on: February 09, 2013, 11:03:00 PM »
For the final few hours of the journey I had the following fantastic view (below) this was the same for mile after mile – nothing different (that I actually saw) – maybe there were lots of fantastically diverse sights that I slept through, but somehow I doubt it!! We did stop at a station for a while and several passengers got off to pick up a bargain from some of the traders on the platform – now I wish I had taken a photo but I was laying down at the time and couldn’t be bothered to get up – don’t judge me!! When the guys who were sharing the cabin came back they had brought some red caviar in large tubs at a bargain price and proceeded to eat some as soon as they sat down in – I can’t stand the stuff so can’t say I was that jealous!!

Anyway I post a few photos of the fabulous scenery and one from inside the train – the main corridor, you will notice the large communal kettle/boiler (having a mental block here and can’t think of the proper name for it) at the end of the corridor! Also a bit of a shame I didn’t take any photos of the cabin itself – another missed opportunity I’m afraid!

We pull into khabarovsk station at approx 4.00pm – now Vladivostok was cold but this place was (at that point) the coldest place I have ever experienced – geez it was f’ing freezing!!!
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #95 on: February 09, 2013, 11:04:18 PM »
View from main corridor of the train
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #96 on: February 09, 2013, 11:06:15 PM »
Miles and miles of varied scenery ;D
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #97 on: September 12, 2014, 09:58:20 AM »
I reckon 800+ miles just from Vlad to the place in the middle of no where
Chris - Its in the arse end of no where mate - I originally thought it was a 24 hour train journey from Vlad, Tanya seems to think its approx 36 hours (I will let you guys know exactly next year) - then you must cross the river (which should be frozen solid by then) to get over to the town!!
Just a quick update on this - last year we did the winter trip this year we traveled during the summer - Late July through to Aug, 19 days in total.

We flew down to Khabarovsk then rest over for a couple of days then 6 hours by bus up to Komsomolsk-on-Amur then approx 12 hours on high speed boat up the Amur - this was just a pure endurance test - at one point I had no words. Incidentally on the journey back which was approx 1 hour longer then the journey there, at the first village stop about 40 contract fishermen boarded and progressed to get completely hammered!!! Fantastic :( Longest 13 hours ever!!!

Next time we are flying :)
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!

Online andrewfi

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #98 on: September 12, 2014, 01:24:15 PM »
Bruce, I didn't see this before, quite a trip!

I have done the train thing and also done the some of the same trips by bus. One thing of which I am sure, doing such journeys at ground level is something that should be done - once!

There's a lot to be seen of the minutiae of life, particularly when the train or bus stops for a while but life is too short to make it a regular habit.

I bet you start to understand just how big the place is though.
...everything ends always well; if it’s still bad, then it’s not the end!

Offline Bruce Lee

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Re: Bruce Lee - Enter the Mother Land
« Reply #99 on: September 13, 2014, 12:21:13 AM »
Bruce, I didn't see this before, quite a trip!

I have done the train thing and also done the some of the same trips by bus. One thing of which I am sure, doing such journeys at ground level is something that should be done - once!
I've experienced enough now to decide that I'd rather risk the chicken carrier from Khabarovsk to there - the bus to Komsomolsk was absolutely fine apart from the choices of stops, however the boat trip was something else altogether, having to share 1 squat toilet with a capacity load of passengers is a real eye opener in its self :o
If you get a minute check out Bruce's TR - Its not quite finished, however its still a pretty good read IMHO.

If I win the lottery I'll finish it this week if not I'll probably complete it when I retire!!! Until then I hope you enjoy the story so far!


 

 

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