In Russia, you will find what you have brought with you

I grew up in a small town in the Russian Far East (Eastern Siberia) called Magdagachi. This town sat on a narrow, patched, dirt road that connecting Europe and Asia. It was the only on-land link connecting Russia to the Pacific shore. This meant that whenever someone wanted to travel around the globe, he had to go through Magdagachi. I have seen many travelers.

My parents owned the only hotel in this small town. It was the only hotel 400 miles in each way, which meant that every world traveler stopped for a night and I, as the only person in the town who spoke decent English was to translate for the overseas visitors.

When people travel around the world they try to come up with some new way to do it, something that no one has done before. Some people walk, some ride a bicycle, some drive their custom made yellow Mercedes, some walk without a penny, and some drive their trucks while others ride Harleys. Sky is the limit when it comes to crossing Russia.

One I met some shark of Wall Street who was driving in his Mercedes that was specifically built for this trip, with his just-married wife and accompanied with a crew and 4 other trucks that carried his and her essentials. They looked at me and those around as if we were aborigines. They were some of the unhappy people that I have ever seen. I don't even know why they went on this trip - perhaps, to show off in front of their crowd.

This other time there was a mid-aged British gentleman who was crossing Russia on his bicycle. The different between him and the Wall Street shark was that Tony (this was his name as I recall) was genuinely interested in his journey and us. As a result, he was a welcomed guest in many homes, while 'the shark' had to stay in his lonely hotel room with his just-married wife and his crew.

Russian old men say that 'it is what you have come with that you will find.' This is especially true for Russia, where 'what you get' is often determined not by how much you have, but how open-minded and open-hearted you are.

S. Shirokov