I have talked a lot about expectations, with mine typically being too high. I am proud to say that Egypt has exceeded my expectations. I met some people that I had good, quick, and meaningful bonds with. School kids on the street, the manager at the hostel, and a cab driver. Add to those relationships the Great Pyramids and I would say I thoroughly enjoyed the country. I went to the Egyptian museum and saw endless amounts of artifacts. Some of them are about 5,000 years old. Crazy. I am not a museum person and I struggled to stay in as long as I did which was probably not longer than two hours. I also saw the mummies which is real creepy. Dead people preserved so they last for…how long? Forever I think? Anyways our hostel was in walking distance of the museum as well as the Nile River. The specific room we slept in only cost about 10.00 dollars. And it was private. The weather was perfect at night cool but not cold. The only problem was the Islamic call to prayer. Situated only a few yards from our room was a tower that broadcasted a prayer over a loud speaker at 5.00 am. Let’s just say I did not pray along. The government in Egypt is not doing very well. The people I have heard from are not a fan of the system or the president. For example: after the swine flu came on strong they killed every pig in the area. One source told me that although pigs are not a key meat, they are used big time for waste management. All of this means the big eat the trash but with no pigs what happens to the trash???
The pyramids are major in every way. There are three large ones in Giza, six small pyramids, and the Sphinx. The Sahara desert that surrounds them adds to their appeal. Using a camel (mine was named Mickey Mouse) as my transportation to and from the pyramids has pretty much set aside this trip as an all time favorite. Not to mention a dinner of rice and noodles at sunset, I loved the Pyramids! In the city I will never forget dodging traffic every day to cross the street. Even with the cardiac streets of Cairo and the constant fog of pollution that blankets the city I would highly recommend you visit Egypt. Go visit if you have the chance.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
A little town of Bethlehem
Almost two weeks have passed by since I was walking the streets of Bethlehem. I have needed time to reflect on my visit to the “holy land”. Jerusalem, Palestine, The West Bank, Gaza, and Israel are some loaded words with blurred definitions. I have realized that in the Middle East spirituality, in my opinion is wholly connected to politics. Christians, Muslims, and Jews all call Jerusalem home. They all coexist but sometimes not peacefully. There is a run-down and cheap bus system for Arabs and a new modern bus system for Jews. Stone throwing happens from time to time. Israel soldiers whom are just out of high school carry large automatic weapons. All men over the age of 18 are forced to serve 3 years of service in the IDF. For women it’s only two years. Certain groups are exempt, mostly for religious reasons. Being there I had the feeling Israel felt like an attack was coming upon them. There are soldiers everywhere and it appears that they are not doing a whole lot. Just an observation.
Of my time in Israel I spent two nights in the Old City of Jerusalem. The other five were spent with a local Christian family inside the wall of Palestine. The wall is massive, 30 or 40 feet high stretching for miles. In Bethlehem people spray paint hopeful messages on one side. Palestinian people are locked in. They call it the Occupation. These people are forbidden by the Israel government to leave without permission. Sad. I had no idea it was like this before my visit. It’s almost how I would envision slavery today. An entire people group discriminated because of their background. It would be like saying because I grew up an Episcopalian I am not allowed to leave Ohio. That may be a little extreme but waiting in the border line I could see the pain in people’s faces. To me it’s not clear what distinguish one person living on one side of the wall from someone on the other side. The only noticeable difference is there ID card. On several occasions my friend Jeff and I waited in the border line to only turn away because it took a few hours. There are lots of people who live in Palestine but work in Jerusalem who have to cross the border twice a day almost every day. Stressful. Waiting in this line is an experience that forced me to find some inner patience. I cannot imagine constantly doing it. I do feel like it help bond me to the people there. In line: people cut, mostly blue collar middle aged men yell in Arabic, and people push one another jockeying for position.
There is a valuable film coming to the USA soon. It’s called A Little Town of Bethlehem. If you come across this film go see it. Its showcases the lives of three people all living on different sides of the occupation. It also shows what they are doing to bring peace to these issues that they face. It gave me a quality perspective on what was really going on with the occupation.
I am blessed to have walked the streets where Jesus preached, climbed to the top of the Mount of Olives, prayed over the places He died and was resurrected. All big, big experiences. However, today I am discontent with what I thought would result from such epic encounters. I was hoping that God would reach out to me in these places, but I was wrong. My faith was not shaken at least in the way I was anticipating. I think Jesus is trying to teach me more, beyond my expectations. Right now I am not sure what but I know it’s bigger. When the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity he built Churches over all these historically biblical places. This confuses me. It’s good that these places are preserved today but I am disturbed by this. Jesus was most likely born in a cave, where the livestock would be kept at night but it’s hard to know this because the cave is covered with walls, ceilings and doors.
Overall, the area is beautiful. The landscape has an upper mountain desert feel. Not enough rain with rolling hills. White limestone is everywhere. If you change the white color for an orange color I would compare it to northern Arizona. The scenery looks similar to the area surrounding the Grand Canyon. The people are beautiful too. They are warm and very hospitable. They are anxious to befriend you and share their stories. Most have huge amounts of hope. If I switched places with them I would be broken beyond repair with a lot of anger. They are gracious and joyful. I hope that freedom comes to them soon; maybe it comes in the form of Jesus…
Of my time in Israel I spent two nights in the Old City of Jerusalem. The other five were spent with a local Christian family inside the wall of Palestine. The wall is massive, 30 or 40 feet high stretching for miles. In Bethlehem people spray paint hopeful messages on one side. Palestinian people are locked in. They call it the Occupation. These people are forbidden by the Israel government to leave without permission. Sad. I had no idea it was like this before my visit. It’s almost how I would envision slavery today. An entire people group discriminated because of their background. It would be like saying because I grew up an Episcopalian I am not allowed to leave Ohio. That may be a little extreme but waiting in the border line I could see the pain in people’s faces. To me it’s not clear what distinguish one person living on one side of the wall from someone on the other side. The only noticeable difference is there ID card. On several occasions my friend Jeff and I waited in the border line to only turn away because it took a few hours. There are lots of people who live in Palestine but work in Jerusalem who have to cross the border twice a day almost every day. Stressful. Waiting in this line is an experience that forced me to find some inner patience. I cannot imagine constantly doing it. I do feel like it help bond me to the people there. In line: people cut, mostly blue collar middle aged men yell in Arabic, and people push one another jockeying for position.
There is a valuable film coming to the USA soon. It’s called A Little Town of Bethlehem. If you come across this film go see it. Its showcases the lives of three people all living on different sides of the occupation. It also shows what they are doing to bring peace to these issues that they face. It gave me a quality perspective on what was really going on with the occupation.
I am blessed to have walked the streets where Jesus preached, climbed to the top of the Mount of Olives, prayed over the places He died and was resurrected. All big, big experiences. However, today I am discontent with what I thought would result from such epic encounters. I was hoping that God would reach out to me in these places, but I was wrong. My faith was not shaken at least in the way I was anticipating. I think Jesus is trying to teach me more, beyond my expectations. Right now I am not sure what but I know it’s bigger. When the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity he built Churches over all these historically biblical places. This confuses me. It’s good that these places are preserved today but I am disturbed by this. Jesus was most likely born in a cave, where the livestock would be kept at night but it’s hard to know this because the cave is covered with walls, ceilings and doors.
Overall, the area is beautiful. The landscape has an upper mountain desert feel. Not enough rain with rolling hills. White limestone is everywhere. If you change the white color for an orange color I would compare it to northern Arizona. The scenery looks similar to the area surrounding the Grand Canyon. The people are beautiful too. They are warm and very hospitable. They are anxious to befriend you and share their stories. Most have huge amounts of hope. If I switched places with them I would be broken beyond repair with a lot of anger. They are gracious and joyful. I hope that freedom comes to them soon; maybe it comes in the form of Jesus…
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Russian update
Really what more could happen? Deportation? No, not that extreme. As JJ and I are about to leave the Czech Republic the nice fellow at the airline desk informs me that I am no longer on the list and that my reservation has been cancelled. WHAT? I thought in my head. After leaving the area for a few moments he informs me that all is well! I still have no clue what he did but I am grateful.
We board the plane with success and are finally off to a country that I have a jaded view of. Only a small detour to Minsk Belarus to change planes. Oh yea I almost forgot...you need a visa to enter a country you will immediately exist. That's right more visas I unknowingly neglected. Custom rejects me and sends me to the visa office with no money (I did have 100 Czech koruna ($5) and two British pounds ($5) I found lying on my bed at the hostel). Which is not the 180 US dollars required to get on the plane. Credit cards are not widely accepted. Sure I was frustrated but this time only for a brief minute. The whole challenge of trying to not miss my flight turn out to be a good time.
When the authorities realized we were broke Americans they took our passports and escorted us into a real shady airport in search of an ATM. I take out 20,000 rubles thinking that should be plenty. Not knowing that rubles from Belarus are worth a tenth of Russian rubles. Who knew? Two types of rubles? I feel like i am pretty good at navigating other nations but this is humbling. 20,000 rubles = $7.00. Haha. I think the country as a whole is pretty poor. What makes it really funny is that a week later I am stuck with this fake money because no currency company will exchange it. Now it's become a souvenir. At this point we are running on foot from each destination. Finally we find someone to help withdraw the money from our cards and the we run back with the money. While waiting in line a serious KGB looking dude says "are you Baumann, Andrew" shyly I say yes. He was actually the one holding the plane which made me feel pretty special. But because he was without a uniform he was a little scary. Did I mention he was big and carried and imaginary AK 47? We ran up three flights of stairs and down the entire terminal, rushed through security and actually made our flight. I was elated. I also avoided eye contact as I walked swiftly to the back of the plane.
I'm still confused about how Belarus is it's own country but seemingly run by the Russian federation. Also the whole rational of buying a visa just to connect flights is ludicrous to me. With that said the people who were helping us were really great and totally went out of there way to help us catch our plane. It felt a bit how I imagine being on the Amazing Race would be like, expect replacing the prize money for pride and dignity.
One realization that has come to me is about the people we have come into contact with. Most of the time it seems like people don't like us or it feels like we burden them. I have learned that people are generally good. The language barrier is what breeds frustration. It's my fault I don't speak there language not the other way around. There are friendly locals there in Belarus but I still don't recommend you go visit them anytime soon.
We board the plane with success and are finally off to a country that I have a jaded view of. Only a small detour to Minsk Belarus to change planes. Oh yea I almost forgot...you need a visa to enter a country you will immediately exist. That's right more visas I unknowingly neglected. Custom rejects me and sends me to the visa office with no money (I did have 100 Czech koruna ($5) and two British pounds ($5) I found lying on my bed at the hostel). Which is not the 180 US dollars required to get on the plane. Credit cards are not widely accepted. Sure I was frustrated but this time only for a brief minute. The whole challenge of trying to not miss my flight turn out to be a good time.
When the authorities realized we were broke Americans they took our passports and escorted us into a real shady airport in search of an ATM. I take out 20,000 rubles thinking that should be plenty. Not knowing that rubles from Belarus are worth a tenth of Russian rubles. Who knew? Two types of rubles? I feel like i am pretty good at navigating other nations but this is humbling. 20,000 rubles = $7.00. Haha. I think the country as a whole is pretty poor. What makes it really funny is that a week later I am stuck with this fake money because no currency company will exchange it. Now it's become a souvenir. At this point we are running on foot from each destination. Finally we find someone to help withdraw the money from our cards and the we run back with the money. While waiting in line a serious KGB looking dude says "are you Baumann, Andrew" shyly I say yes. He was actually the one holding the plane which made me feel pretty special. But because he was without a uniform he was a little scary. Did I mention he was big and carried and imaginary AK 47? We ran up three flights of stairs and down the entire terminal, rushed through security and actually made our flight. I was elated. I also avoided eye contact as I walked swiftly to the back of the plane.
I'm still confused about how Belarus is it's own country but seemingly run by the Russian federation. Also the whole rational of buying a visa just to connect flights is ludicrous to me. With that said the people who were helping us were really great and totally went out of there way to help us catch our plane. It felt a bit how I imagine being on the Amazing Race would be like, expect replacing the prize money for pride and dignity.
One realization that has come to me is about the people we have come into contact with. Most of the time it seems like people don't like us or it feels like we burden them. I have learned that people are generally good. The language barrier is what breeds frustration. It's my fault I don't speak there language not the other way around. There are friendly locals there in Belarus but I still don't recommend you go visit them anytime soon.
Less is more...
Less is more...
My iPod:
Kenny Chesney: Summertime
Kanye West: Hey Mama and Good Life
John Mayer: Battle Studies album
Shane and Shane: The Answer
Nickel Creek: Doubting Thomas
Coldplay: Viva la Vida album
"I have found the answer is to love you and be loved by you"
&
"My happiness is found in less...of me...and more of you"
These lyrics have been speaking to me lately. They fire me up to live for more than myself, check out the song.
My iPod:
Kenny Chesney: Summertime
Kanye West: Hey Mama and Good Life
John Mayer: Battle Studies album
Shane and Shane: The Answer
Nickel Creek: Doubting Thomas
Coldplay: Viva la Vida album
"I have found the answer is to love you and be loved by you"
&
"My happiness is found in less...of me...and more of you"
These lyrics have been speaking to me lately. They fire me up to live for more than myself, check out the song.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Thy will be done (Moscow, Russia)
"Thy will be done", a few simple words that have caught my attention. My time with God lately has centered on this idea asking him daily to help me live this way. I have been thinking about the Lords Prayer a lot.
Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive our transgressions.
Even as we have forgiven our enemies.
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and
It's a saying I grew up knowing. I always had it memorize as a child but it never took root in my heart. I would recite it mindlessly with no conviction or thought. Now, I have committed to mediating on it daily. It holds a lot of weight and meaning here abroad or at home. There is an incredible amount to unpack. This one short phrase has become quite powerful to me. I am hopeful in the coming months that I will continue to live this way aligning what God has for me with my own plans and desires.
Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive our transgressions.
Even as we have forgiven our enemies.
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and
It's a saying I grew up knowing. I always had it memorize as a child but it never took root in my heart. I would recite it mindlessly with no conviction or thought. Now, I have committed to mediating on it daily. It holds a lot of weight and meaning here abroad or at home. There is an incredible amount to unpack. This one short phrase has become quite powerful to me. I am hopeful in the coming months that I will continue to live this way aligning what God has for me with my own plans and desires.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Bits and Pieces (Moscow, Russia)
Planes = 5
Buses = 7
Metros = 12
Trains = 3
Countries = 7
Days = 14
Staying in a hostel is an adventure in itself. I highly recommended it and most in the U.S. are great. However, my first few hostel nights were not spectacular. Since then we have been really blessed. Economical prices. Good showers, OK breakfasts that are free. And on three occasions a large room meant for eight without any neighbors. This is not always the case. At my hostel in Ireland I booked an "8 bed male dorm." I was there on a weekend which means lots of partying. I was rather jet-lagged and opted against the parties. But at all hours of the night people came in both men and women. One paying guest opens the back door allowing his lady friend to enter without paying. They then cram two into a twin bed made for one. In hindsight it's pretty funny a room designed for 8 becomes inhabited with 10 or 12.
Once you cross the Atlantic ocean cigarette smoking increases abundantly. You see it everywhere. Dublin and Moscow have been the worst. Although I remember Paris being pretty bad. Anyways I have ingested more second hand smoke in two weeks than that last six years of my life. I am longing for some pure mountain air and the smoke free establishments that I have taken for granted.
I have met a lot quality people so far. My last night in Prague we met up four french girls our age in the dentistry profession.
While in Moscow I had some good conversation with two guys (one Irish the other Swedish) about to embark on a trans-Siberian journey. We talked about our upcoming adventures and they educated me on there 76 hour trek east, ridiculous to me.
I have recently had my first over night train experience. To describe it as an experience is accurate. After buying a third class or platzcart ticket my expectation started low and never rose. What can you really asked for with $25.00 invested? I heard it described as "all of Russia right in your face!" 8 hours. I slept for about three. Hot, loud, smokey and uncomfortable are a few fitting adjectives.
Food. Eating is one of my favorite things to do. I love exploring new places and genres. I crave Asian and Mexican dishes but BBQ and pizza are my number ones. Supporting your local dive is what I am all about. Throughout my travels my food addiction has taken a hit. I do feel healthy and satisfied but my eating habits the last two week have shrunk. Lots of bread and not enough water. A beer here and there most not any good. Pizza has been a staple because it's delicious, found everywhere and it fits my budget. Throw in some nutella, more bread and the fifty CLIFF bars (I thank God daily for that genius idea) I brought and you have a picture of my diet.
Even though most of my remarks here are critical my time abroad has been really good and I remain extremely thankful!
Buses = 7
Metros = 12
Trains = 3
Countries = 7
Days = 14
Staying in a hostel is an adventure in itself. I highly recommended it and most in the U.S. are great. However, my first few hostel nights were not spectacular. Since then we have been really blessed. Economical prices. Good showers, OK breakfasts that are free. And on three occasions a large room meant for eight without any neighbors. This is not always the case. At my hostel in Ireland I booked an "8 bed male dorm." I was there on a weekend which means lots of partying. I was rather jet-lagged and opted against the parties. But at all hours of the night people came in both men and women. One paying guest opens the back door allowing his lady friend to enter without paying. They then cram two into a twin bed made for one. In hindsight it's pretty funny a room designed for 8 becomes inhabited with 10 or 12.
Once you cross the Atlantic ocean cigarette smoking increases abundantly. You see it everywhere. Dublin and Moscow have been the worst. Although I remember Paris being pretty bad. Anyways I have ingested more second hand smoke in two weeks than that last six years of my life. I am longing for some pure mountain air and the smoke free establishments that I have taken for granted.
I have met a lot quality people so far. My last night in Prague we met up four french girls our age in the dentistry profession.
While in Moscow I had some good conversation with two guys (one Irish the other Swedish) about to embark on a trans-Siberian journey. We talked about our upcoming adventures and they educated me on there 76 hour trek east, ridiculous to me.
I have recently had my first over night train experience. To describe it as an experience is accurate. After buying a third class or platzcart ticket my expectation started low and never rose. What can you really asked for with $25.00 invested? I heard it described as "all of Russia right in your face!" 8 hours. I slept for about three. Hot, loud, smokey and uncomfortable are a few fitting adjectives.
Food. Eating is one of my favorite things to do. I love exploring new places and genres. I crave Asian and Mexican dishes but BBQ and pizza are my number ones. Supporting your local dive is what I am all about. Throughout my travels my food addiction has taken a hit. I do feel healthy and satisfied but my eating habits the last two week have shrunk. Lots of bread and not enough water. A beer here and there most not any good. Pizza has been a staple because it's delicious, found everywhere and it fits my budget. Throw in some nutella, more bread and the fifty CLIFF bars (I thank God daily for that genius idea) I brought and you have a picture of my diet.
Even though most of my remarks here are critical my time abroad has been really good and I remain extremely thankful!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
The Russian Federation (Prague, Czech Republic)
Passport Photos..........150 Czech Koruna ($8.75)
Metro Passes..............180 Czech Koruna ($10.50)
Tourist Invitation.........1600 Czech Koruna ($92.75)
Visa to Russia.............3360Czech Koruna ($194.75)
Entrance into Russia....NOT PRICELESS 5,290 Czech Koruna ($306.75)
This entire week or at least that's how it feels I have been hiking all the way to the Russian Embassy. Let me go back and just say a week prior to leaving the country I unfortunately found out that Russians are not to fond of visitors. This makes it incredibly difficult to enter the country. You must obtain a Russian visa before hand. All of this I was told a little late. With three available days a U.S. citizen can mail off there passport to a for-profit organization who will take care of all the details for the outrageous price of 300 dollars. Wow, I thought to myself. How about when I am in Prague I just pick one up at the Russian Embassy that would be easy. Wrong. And then you think about the whole situation in more detail, laying out the facts. The first of which is that Russia is brutally cold all the time. How about a high of 25, sounds about like Michigan. The second is that they have pretty much isolated themselves from the rest of the world, its appears to be in the middle of nowhere. The last is its cold and living in the south has dropped my cold tolerance making me weaker. Most of you are probably thinking like me why not just skip that country and check out Spain? Well that is really where the issue starts. I already have an airline ticket to Russia and one out of Russia. I decided during one of my many trips back and forth that forfeiting the money already invested simply was not an option.
Alright then, I am in Prague trying to get a Russian Visa, which was certainly a frustrating endeavor filled with inappropriate words. Let me lay out every step I took. The first in my mind was to visit the United States Embassy hoping that the kind Americans there could tell me if my idea was a realistic one. We actually did not meet a single American, funny right and a little scary. They did inform me that I should visit the Russian embassy which was our next step. This was on Tuesday. Everything was locked up. Over an intercom all one Russian could tell me was "tomorrow 9am", "tomorrow 9am". The following day Wednesday we realize we need a passport size photo which of course I did not have. After we spend an hour or two trying to find a place to have my picture taken we finally arrive back at the embassy at about 11:30. I enter the embassy and asked the friendly security officer about visas and he points me into line. After waiting in that line for about 15 minutes he finally hands me an application seeing that I am about to apply for a visa without the necessary forms. This is where it becomes frustrating. As I am siting at a desk the apparent "visa specialist" whom I would like to refer as an A****** tells me that the embassy is now closed. All I needed to do was sign the piece of paper. I pleaded to no avail. He sent me out of the building crying (not really but that sounded more dramatic) to come back tomorrow. You would think once you were in the building you would be good. This ended up not having much of an overall effect. On Thursday, we headed back arriving with plenty of time. The office is sadly only open from 9am to noon. On this day we walked up to the door with confidence only to find out that you need four items to even be considered. The application, a copy of your passport, a copy of your insurance which thankfully I have, and invitation from a for-profit company that says basically that they are inviting you to come visit. Which is ridiculous and I still don't fully understand. For my 90 dollars all I received was a piece of paper that I could not even read. Again the same person told me not so kindly that I needed this invitation. He was a real jerk. Not only that he rejected me but more because he did it with no compassion. I hope his lack of friendliness was because of our language barrier. I hope Russia is not filled with similar men. We walked up the street to find an agency conveniently located, who provided the invitation. Then for the fourth time my application was accepted after dropping more money. He asked "when would you like to pick the visa up" and I said "today" and he said "NO" and I said "why not today" and he said "against federation policy" and I said "tomorrow?" and he said "9 to 12" and I said "OK".
Four days, five trips, and a few extra miles walked. I do think now that the whole ordeal is pretty funny and has a pretty good parallel to the rest of my life. Anyways if you plan on visiting the frozen tundra far east please let me know so we can talk about the process. And I firmly believe the verdict is still out on Russia...maybe the experience will end up a priceless one?
Metro Passes..............180 Czech Koruna ($10.50)
Tourist Invitation.........1600 Czech Koruna ($92.75)
Visa to Russia.............3360Czech Koruna ($194.75)
Entrance into Russia....NOT PRICELESS 5,290 Czech Koruna ($306.75)
This entire week or at least that's how it feels I have been hiking all the way to the Russian Embassy. Let me go back and just say a week prior to leaving the country I unfortunately found out that Russians are not to fond of visitors. This makes it incredibly difficult to enter the country. You must obtain a Russian visa before hand. All of this I was told a little late. With three available days a U.S. citizen can mail off there passport to a for-profit organization who will take care of all the details for the outrageous price of 300 dollars. Wow, I thought to myself. How about when I am in Prague I just pick one up at the Russian Embassy that would be easy. Wrong. And then you think about the whole situation in more detail, laying out the facts. The first of which is that Russia is brutally cold all the time. How about a high of 25, sounds about like Michigan. The second is that they have pretty much isolated themselves from the rest of the world, its appears to be in the middle of nowhere. The last is its cold and living in the south has dropped my cold tolerance making me weaker. Most of you are probably thinking like me why not just skip that country and check out Spain? Well that is really where the issue starts. I already have an airline ticket to Russia and one out of Russia. I decided during one of my many trips back and forth that forfeiting the money already invested simply was not an option.
Alright then, I am in Prague trying to get a Russian Visa, which was certainly a frustrating endeavor filled with inappropriate words. Let me lay out every step I took. The first in my mind was to visit the United States Embassy hoping that the kind Americans there could tell me if my idea was a realistic one. We actually did not meet a single American, funny right and a little scary. They did inform me that I should visit the Russian embassy which was our next step. This was on Tuesday. Everything was locked up. Over an intercom all one Russian could tell me was "tomorrow 9am", "tomorrow 9am". The following day Wednesday we realize we need a passport size photo which of course I did not have. After we spend an hour or two trying to find a place to have my picture taken we finally arrive back at the embassy at about 11:30. I enter the embassy and asked the friendly security officer about visas and he points me into line. After waiting in that line for about 15 minutes he finally hands me an application seeing that I am about to apply for a visa without the necessary forms. This is where it becomes frustrating. As I am siting at a desk the apparent "visa specialist" whom I would like to refer as an A****** tells me that the embassy is now closed. All I needed to do was sign the piece of paper. I pleaded to no avail. He sent me out of the building crying (not really but that sounded more dramatic) to come back tomorrow. You would think once you were in the building you would be good. This ended up not having much of an overall effect. On Thursday, we headed back arriving with plenty of time. The office is sadly only open from 9am to noon. On this day we walked up to the door with confidence only to find out that you need four items to even be considered. The application, a copy of your passport, a copy of your insurance which thankfully I have, and invitation from a for-profit company that says basically that they are inviting you to come visit. Which is ridiculous and I still don't fully understand. For my 90 dollars all I received was a piece of paper that I could not even read. Again the same person told me not so kindly that I needed this invitation. He was a real jerk. Not only that he rejected me but more because he did it with no compassion. I hope his lack of friendliness was because of our language barrier. I hope Russia is not filled with similar men. We walked up the street to find an agency conveniently located, who provided the invitation. Then for the fourth time my application was accepted after dropping more money. He asked "when would you like to pick the visa up" and I said "today" and he said "NO" and I said "why not today" and he said "against federation policy" and I said "tomorrow?" and he said "9 to 12" and I said "OK".
Four days, five trips, and a few extra miles walked. I do think now that the whole ordeal is pretty funny and has a pretty good parallel to the rest of my life. Anyways if you plan on visiting the frozen tundra far east please let me know so we can talk about the process. And I firmly believe the verdict is still out on Russia...maybe the experience will end up a priceless one?
