Day 6 - Yekaterinburg - Tyumen
22716 -
What a night! I haven't slept that well even once during this trip. I woke up at three just to get of the woolen socks and then slept until 7. Slowly I packed my gear and visited a real Russian toilet i.e. a hole on the floor with places to your feet on the side. Very hygienic I'd say... You don't need to touch anything. That's why in some toilets in Finland there is a sign forbidding standing on the toilet seat.
Here is the view of the morning
And best of all. It was not raining. I oiled the chain and packed my gear on the bike while waiting for Andrei. We did some final adjustments and then went for a sightseeing in Yekaterinburg. First meteorological station where one can see over the town.
Then a cathedral. Even though the main church was not open (we only visited downstairs) I cannot stop wondering how much work there has been in order to make all the details. Gold, carvings, paintings etc. There was also an exhibition about the Romanov family (not Agent Romanov from "Avengers"). I recognized Tsar Nikolai. The last Tsar of the old Russia before the revolution and Soviet Union. Lots of photos and texts but as the phones did not work in the church Andrei couldn't translate anything.
Then we went to the first skyscraper of the Urals. Yekaterinburg is the capital of Urals. Seems it doesn't have any official status but it still is the third biggest city in Russia after Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The view was nice. You can walk around the platform and see to every direction from the 52nd floor. The lift was so fast it hurt my ears - but they are quite sensitive. Having earplugs on for several hours a day doesn't help...
After the visit to the skyscraper Andrei took me to the city exit and our paths separated. Andrei was driving his Honda VFR800 with an enormous speed. He also showed me that the easiest way to get past a construction zone is to keep going on the side.
No matter what people say about Russians I have to admit that I have never met people more friendly and helpful. The language barrier is of course difficult but they really do whatever they can to make you feel welcome. Andrei didn't take any money even though I insisted that I would pay at least for the parts. "Travelers help each other" he just said. Well, he is planning a trip to Nordcap within couple of years. I invited him over. And maybe some day I'll be back in Yekaterinburg and we'll ride to the Baikal together.
After our separation on a gas station I headed towards Tyumen. On the way I realized I have now passed the Ural mountains and I'm officially in Asia for the third time in my life. Turkey 1998, Hong Kong-China 2000 and now. As Andrei had told me the road was mostly very good. Only a couple of villages needed to be run through but the rest was good highway. Even motorway for tens of kilometers. The road was surrounded by fields, fields and some more fields. The fields in Pohjanmaa are just stamps compared to these. If you drive a couple of kilometers beside the same field it is quite big. The harvester had driven the same direction as the road and there was no fences or roads. Just same field all the time.
The distance of Yekaterinburg and Tyumen was only about 370 km so I got to a hotel at around 6. I had looked beforehand a hotel called Spa Hotel Laguna. It seems they don't have many foreign visitors as they had to look from a book how to register me in. The manager told me he has traveled in Germany, France and Italy with a motorcycle. Maybe because of that I got the whole pool area for me, myself and I. A private pool area! Where else can you get that?
Tomorrow I have get up early and head to Omsk. I have about 620 km to go.
Does this look like a travelers motorcycle?
And about the bike... The new rear shock absorber is great! I hadn't even realized how crappy the old one was. I felt every bump, crack and pothole in my ass until now. The bike goes over everything so smoothly. Once I get to Barnaul I'll have the front fork oils changed. Maybe it will make the suspension still even better.
And here's a photo from yesterday. Andrei, Ivan and me having a blast...
What a night! I haven't slept that well even once during this trip. I woke up at three just to get of the woolen socks and then slept until 7. Slowly I packed my gear and visited a real Russian toilet i.e. a hole on the floor with places to your feet on the side. Very hygienic I'd say... You don't need to touch anything. That's why in some toilets in Finland there is a sign forbidding standing on the toilet seat.
Here is the view of the morning
And best of all. It was not raining. I oiled the chain and packed my gear on the bike while waiting for Andrei. We did some final adjustments and then went for a sightseeing in Yekaterinburg. First meteorological station where one can see over the town.
Then a cathedral. Even though the main church was not open (we only visited downstairs) I cannot stop wondering how much work there has been in order to make all the details. Gold, carvings, paintings etc. There was also an exhibition about the Romanov family (not Agent Romanov from "Avengers"). I recognized Tsar Nikolai. The last Tsar of the old Russia before the revolution and Soviet Union. Lots of photos and texts but as the phones did not work in the church Andrei couldn't translate anything.
Then we went to the first skyscraper of the Urals. Yekaterinburg is the capital of Urals. Seems it doesn't have any official status but it still is the third biggest city in Russia after Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The view was nice. You can walk around the platform and see to every direction from the 52nd floor. The lift was so fast it hurt my ears - but they are quite sensitive. Having earplugs on for several hours a day doesn't help...
After the visit to the skyscraper Andrei took me to the city exit and our paths separated. Andrei was driving his Honda VFR800 with an enormous speed. He also showed me that the easiest way to get past a construction zone is to keep going on the side.
No matter what people say about Russians I have to admit that I have never met people more friendly and helpful. The language barrier is of course difficult but they really do whatever they can to make you feel welcome. Andrei didn't take any money even though I insisted that I would pay at least for the parts. "Travelers help each other" he just said. Well, he is planning a trip to Nordcap within couple of years. I invited him over. And maybe some day I'll be back in Yekaterinburg and we'll ride to the Baikal together.
After our separation on a gas station I headed towards Tyumen. On the way I realized I have now passed the Ural mountains and I'm officially in Asia for the third time in my life. Turkey 1998, Hong Kong-China 2000 and now. As Andrei had told me the road was mostly very good. Only a couple of villages needed to be run through but the rest was good highway. Even motorway for tens of kilometers. The road was surrounded by fields, fields and some more fields. The fields in Pohjanmaa are just stamps compared to these. If you drive a couple of kilometers beside the same field it is quite big. The harvester had driven the same direction as the road and there was no fences or roads. Just same field all the time.
The distance of Yekaterinburg and Tyumen was only about 370 km so I got to a hotel at around 6. I had looked beforehand a hotel called Spa Hotel Laguna. It seems they don't have many foreign visitors as they had to look from a book how to register me in. The manager told me he has traveled in Germany, France and Italy with a motorcycle. Maybe because of that I got the whole pool area for me, myself and I. A private pool area! Where else can you get that?
Tomorrow I have get up early and head to Omsk. I have about 620 km to go.
Does this look like a travelers motorcycle?
And about the bike... The new rear shock absorber is great! I hadn't even realized how crappy the old one was. I felt every bump, crack and pothole in my ass until now. The bike goes over everything so smoothly. Once I get to Barnaul I'll have the front fork oils changed. Maybe it will make the suspension still even better.
And here's a photo from yesterday. Andrei, Ivan and me having a blast...
Ilmeisesti tämä tähän asti ajamasi reitti oli jo kelvollinen katupyörälle?
VastaaPoistaJuu. Ei mitään ongelmaa. Itse asiassa tietojeni mukaan katupyörällä pääsee ihan helposti Vladivostokiin asti (jos ei eksy välillä niinkuin minä tein). Joistain tietöitä on välillä, mutta niistä selviää kyllä, kun ajelee maltilla. Novosibirskista käännyin kohti etelää, niin en toki voi olla varma, mutta Andrei oli käynyt Baikal-järvellä katupyörällä, joten en usko sen olevan ongelma. Ja Ulan-Udesta Vladivostokiin on ihan tuore tie. Itse menin sen välin junalla, kun keli muuttui jo niin kovin kylmäksi.
Poista