Trans-Siberian Travels
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Stay tuned for photos from this week!
After a free walking tour of St. Petersburg.
Bonus: I also tell the story of my attempt to visit Vladimir Lenin's mausoleum in Moscow.
Note: Since recording this podcast, I've been paying more attention to the way strangers in Russia interact with me. In fact, many of them do smile, but not in a bright “Hi, how are you!” way like you would see in the United States. This subdued, slightly cautious attitude is growing on me. It seems much more authentic than the over-the-top greetings I'm used to getting from people I've never met.
Maybe I'll talk more about this subject more as I travel through the world's largest country. But for now, please enjoy this week's podcast:
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The world's largest matryoshka doll.
Manzhouli, China is home to the world's largest matryoshka doll. You can read more about my time visiting this unique part of the world here.
Fei, Tapani, Katie and I leaving Finland by boat.
We had a great time on this introduction to our yearlong journey. Finland is a lovely country in northern Europe, with landscapes full of rolling hills, tall pines, and long summer days. And of course, there was also plenty of great company.
Here are some photos from our trip to Finland and Tallinn:
Riding the ferry to Suomenlinna, a small island off of the coast of Helsinki.
This was once the largest dry dock in the world.
The fort on Suomenlinna.
A wheat field near Turku.
We ate farm fresh strawberries during our bike ride.
Red barns and rolling hills – are we in Wisconsin?
We slept in Hanka's shelter while waiting for the ferry.
It looks like a lake, but this is actually the Baltic Sea.
Here's the big ferry we had to wait overnight for.
We also got to take a few of these smaller ferries.
This dragonfly landed on Katie's backpack strap. It must be good luck, right?
Lenin hid somewhere in this village.
The view from the top deck of St. Olaf's church.
People sure were shorter back then.
Where to next?
The town square in Tallinn.
There were a lot of cool suits of armor in Tallinn.
Here's the ferry we rode to Tallinn and back.
For more of my photos from Finland and Estonia, click:
Jari and Nadezhda talk about the Trans-Siberian Railway.
Katie and I are at the beginning of our own Trans-Siberian experience. Currently we are in St. Petersburg and plan to head east to Lake Baikal, then south to Mongolia. On this podcast, Jari and Nadezhda gave me some great tips on riding this famous train across Russia. Let's take a listen:
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Iceland is a beautiful country.
Skógafoss.
The area around Eyjafjallajökull, which famously erupted in 2010.
Sunset at Þórsmörk.
The rumors that Iceland is expensive and touristy proved true, but for good reason. This place is rugged and beautiful. Next time Katie and I have to fly from Europe to the US (or vice-versa), we'll definitely look into doing another stopover deal.
On our last day, I recorded a podcast, talking about our trip and giving some advice for first-time travelers to Iceland. Katie also joined me on the show and talked about how to save a ton of money by dehydrating food.
Click the Play button to listen to the podcast:
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Here's a breakdown of our spending for four days and three nights in Iceland:
Luggage storage: 3,000 króna
Gasoline for our stove: 167 kr
Water and coffee at Selfoss: 790 kr
Postcard and chocolate: 1060 kr
2 bus tickets from KEF to Mjodd: 3500 kr
2 bus tickets from Mjodd to Selfoss: 2640 kr
2 bus tickets from Selfoss to Skógar: 7920 kr
2 bus tickets from Þórsmörk to Reykjavik: 17,400 kr
2 bus tickets from Reykjavik to KEF: 5000 kr
Camping night 1 (2 people): 3000 kr
Camping night 2 (2 people): 4000 kr
Camping night 3 (2 people): 2400 kr
Dehydrated food: $60 USD
Totals:
Food: $60 USD
Transportation: 36460 kr ($339.53)
Lodging: 9400 kr ($87.54)
Misc: 5017 kr ($46.72)
Grand total: $533.79 ($66.72 per person, per day)
And here's the game Katie played during the podcast:
Iceland vs Katie and Dan
Food: Iceland 0, K&D 1
Transportation: Iceland 1, K&D 0
Lodging: Iceland 0, K&D 0
Coffee: Iceland 0, K&D 1
So Katie and Dan win, 2-1!
Here are some photos I took of our short trip to Iceland:
A rainbow at Skógafoss.
Another waterfall on this very green river.
The Skógá river has carved a canyon, full of waterfalls, from the mountains to the ocean.
Day 2: hiking across the glacier.
Hiking across the volcano.
Looking north, toward the valley.
After we headed down for a bit, the landscape turned green again.
Wildflowers in the riverbed of Þórsmörk.
On our last day, we hiked to the top of Valahnúkur for a panoramic view of the region.
Katie and Dan.
Here are some more of my photos from Iceland.
Here's a short video I shot of one of the buses fording the river at Þórsmörk:
And this is why you shouldn't attempt to take a regular 4WD vehicle across the river. The car toward the back of the video is stuck.
Show Notes:
Children of the corn.
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Before heading to the Iron Wall Silver Mountain, Paddy is enjoying the sunset.
Officially, the Silver Pagodas have been closed since 2014, but, as you'll hear during the show, Paddy and I found it easy to get into the park anyway. With that in mind, let's listen to the podcast:
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Here are some photos from our trip to the Silver Pagodas:
The Yinshan Pagoda Forest scenic spot should be temporarily closed and rehabilitated for some reason.
This is what the scenery just outside of Beijing looks like.
Trains to and from Beijing. Coal goes in, empty cars come out.
More Beijing mountain scenery.
An old man in Gateway to the Lake Village tends to his garden.
Sunset over Gateway to the Lake Village.
Me and Paddy at the hilltop pagoda.
Wispy clouds at sunset.
The main pavilion at the Iron Wall Silver Mountain.
Another view of the main pavilion.
One of the bells at the pavilion halfway up the mountain.
Looking back toward Beijing, with the smog coming in.
A woman walked in with her pet dog in Datong and Frankie just had to get a picture with it.
Beijing has been good to us.
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Here's a short video I made at the Chengdu panda park:
And here's a short video I made at the Jingpo festival we stumbled upon:
Jingpo Nao Song Festival 景颇族瑙纵歌节
This website has more information about the festival. It's written in Chinese, but it has many beautiful photos, and a professional video.
This is the three-person bike we rented in Panjin's Red Beach.
Sunset over Panjin's Red Beach.
On one of The Hutong's trips, Nitai hangs out on the Great Wall.
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And here are a few pictures of some of the places we talked about on the show:
These folks are playing majong (a traditional Chinese tile game) outside of our building in Dongzhimen, Beijing.
Here's the theater in Shaxi, China.
The famous bridge in Shaxi, China.
At the weekly market in Shaxi.
Here's Katie at Tiger Leaping Gorge in Yunnan, China.
Panda Lake, an example of the scenery you'll encounter at Jiuzhaigou National Park.
This is Soldiers' Gathering, in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.
Acupuncture and Home Brewing: Dan and Debbie.
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If you are in Beijing and want to set up an acupuncture appointment with Debbie, you can find her on Wechat under the ID “beeforce”.
Show Notes:
