A few more highlights...

Some more pictures from our trip at the beginning of this summer.

We took the 8 euro ecolines bus from Vilnius to Warsaw a bit earlier than expected, due to a combination of lack of time and the eerie tranquility of Vilnius (no offense). Despite the rain, Warsaw was great!

Joanna Rajkowska's artificial palm tree,
"Greetings from Jerusalem Avenue",  on Aleje Jerozolimskie

Downtown Warsaw

Off to Krakow! We ended up leaving a few hours later than planned because our original train left from a different platform and the announcement was only in Polish. So we watched that train leave right before our eyes, walked around for a few hours, and took the next train to Kraow

Somewhere in between

St. Mary's Basilica - every hour, a trumpet signal,
called the Hejnał mariacki, is played from the top of the taller
of the two towers. The call breaks off in mid-stream to commemorate
the famous trumpeter who was shot in the throat while sounding
the alarm before the Mongol attack on the city in the 13th century

We went from Krakow to Przemysl, a town near the Polish-Ukrainian border, without really knowing how we were going to get to Kiev. We ended up taking a bus from Przemysl to Medyka, a minibus from there to the border,  crossing the border by foot, then taking a taxi from the border to Mostys'ka, another bus from there to Lviv, where we walked around for a few hours until our overnight train to Kiev. Piece of cake.

It's pronounced Pshemыschl. Duh.

Almost across the border!

Lost in Kiev's chaotic downtown

After a few days in Kiev, we took what we thought to be the cheapest and most convenient train down to Odessa. It was the cheapest, but in no way was it the most convenient; it took something like 4 more hours than the regular train and went some roundabout way in order to go through some other cities. Oh well.

Somewhere in Odessa

A few days later, we took a bus to Chisinau a couple hours later than expected. The first just didn't arrive and no one, including the people who worked at the bus station, seemed to know why. When we arrived in Chisinau with a Dutch guy and a German guy we had met on the bus, we asked around how to get to our hostel, telling people the street name. For some reason, the street's name was also the name of a town outside the city, and we ended up going on a chaotic and confusing two-hour-long adventure outside Chisinau near a prison (?). Everyone in our minibus was really helpful and friendly (and luckily spoke Russian), so we figured out we needed to get back to the city and start all over again. Yes, we finally made it to our hostel, albeit a few hours later than we would have liked...

Chisinau's 24-hour flower market... at 3am

Chisinau - Bucharest!

The enormous Casa Poporului in Bucharest, which houses the Romanian Parliament. "According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the Palace is the world's largest civilian administrative building, most expensive administrative building, and heaviest building."

Judging by the price of the tickets from Bucharest to Budapest, we realized we were slowly but surely making our way into Western Europe.

The best cafe in Budapest

The Hungarian Parliament Building

And then another long train ride (with no stops long enough to buy snacks, so we arrived STARVING) to Ljubljana.

Downtown Ljubljana, taken from the castle tower

Somewhere in the tiny streets of downtown Ljubz

Fritz's final stop - South Tirol!

Fritz's driveway...

The beginning of a really nice hike

Planeil in the background

Fritz's town

I was a happy camper

Burgusio's Knödelfest. So much delicious Knödel.
Also lots of lederhosen and shoe slapping. And beer.

And my last stop before Clermont-Ferrand: Geneva with an old friend

As always, all pictures HERE

Stops 2, 3 and 4: The Baltics

Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius

First part of the trip: Moscow to Petersburg, to Tallinn, to Riga, to Vilnius

Oldtown Tallinn

Meet-up in Riga

Downtown Vilnius

A walk with our host

All pictures HERE

The last days...

My days in Moscow have, alas, come to an end. "So where did you like it better? In Irkutsk, or Moscow?" is a question I've been hearing quite often  lately, and probably will keep hearing. The truth is, this question bothers me. It bothers me because I can't answer it. In my eyes, Irkutsk and Moscow are worlds apart, and not in the same country. Yes, my last two semesters were in fact spent in two different parts of Russia, but in my mind, I spent one semester in Irktusk, and one semester in Moscow, and not a year in Russia. That is all I will write for know. Feel free to ask if you would like me to elaborate.

I have been traveling with my friend Fritz since I left Moscow on June 25th.

Here's a map of our itinerary (click to enlarge):

So far we've done all of the cities up to Kiev, from whence I am writing to you all right now. It looks like we'll have to go straight to Budapest after Chisinau, due to lack of time, money, etc... We'll see...

And here are some pictures from my last days in RUSSIA (Moscow and Saint Petersburg)

Moscow:

The all-too-common Irkutsk reunion in Moscow.
This time: Nastia, Fritz, Nelson + Nastia's friend Marine

Moscow being Moscow

Kolomenskoe

Nice summer day in Kolomenskoe

Goodbye Moscow!

Fritz says I don't do "gobnik" very well. But what does he know!

Saint Petersburg:

Consfused and probably drenched on our first
day in Petersburg

Petergof... hof?

Peterhof

With our CS hosts after doobious acts. I spelled it that way on purpose.

The drawing of the bridges on the river Neva. Viewed from our personal
boat while gradually emptying a few bottles of red wine.

Hermitage!

Lying in front of Saint Isaac's Cathedral right next to the Bronze Horseman

Peter and Paul Fortress viewed from the southern bank

Goodnight Petersburg