Again - the border crossing we had chosen was a fairly rural and quiet one, but unlike Ukraine, here in Russia the roads were soooooooo smooooooth.
In fact first impressions were of a first world country with neat road borders, signs and junctions amongst intensively cultivated countryside.
(Not representative of the whole of Russia we hasten to add).
In fact first impressions were of a first world country with neat road borders, signs and junctions amongst intensively cultivated countryside.
(Not representative of the whole of Russia we hasten to add).
We very nearly cheated by asking for a place at a roadside campsite - but at $50 a night to pitch a tent - no chance!
The owner had also smeared not just her lips but the lower half of her face in sticky, red lipstick and for some reason I found this particularly repellant.
This campsite also had a stage, huge speaker stacks and what looked like searchlights and lasers pointed skywards, so probably not "my kinda place".
Emboldened by the previous nights Ukranian bush camp we took successively smaller roads and then tracks away from the urban conurbations ending up in a small copse.
"HOME!" as the awesome Clogs - the driver on our trans-african trip - used to say when we arrived at a bush camp. And what a home....!
The owner had also smeared not just her lips but the lower half of her face in sticky, red lipstick and for some reason I found this particularly repellant.
This campsite also had a stage, huge speaker stacks and what looked like searchlights and lasers pointed skywards, so probably not "my kinda place".
Emboldened by the previous nights Ukranian bush camp we took successively smaller roads and then tracks away from the urban conurbations ending up in a small copse.
"HOME!" as the awesome Clogs - the driver on our trans-african trip - used to say when we arrived at a bush camp. And what a home....!
The next morning saw us intent on reaching our next destination of Volgograd, perhaps more famously known as Stalingrad. This part of the world, through Ukraine and Southern Russia, is obsessed with WWII history and memorials, but luckily so am I!
About 100kms out of Volgograd we stopped for a photo opportunity, and when I opened the door dozens of small flies burst into the cab. I found myself checking the verge for a dead animal or pile of rotting fruit...
Climbing down to take my pic the little buggers followed me and were dive bombing my head. A most unsettling experience....
About 100kms out of Volgograd we stopped for a photo opportunity, and when I opened the door dozens of small flies burst into the cab. I found myself checking the verge for a dead animal or pile of rotting fruit...
Climbing down to take my pic the little buggers followed me and were dive bombing my head. A most unsettling experience....
50 kms down the road at a Kafe stop - the same story - and by now we were noticing hundreds of them splattered on the screen and the front of the vehicle. The swarm was to eventually continue for over 250kms - and smack in the middle of this was Volgograd - our destination.
It's hard to understate how distressing and horrible those little buggers were. You spoke - you swallowed them, you breathed - you inhaled them. They flew right into your ears and up your nose.
Fortunately they do not follow you into buildings. The excellent subway system is free of this pestilence. They don't seem as bad under trees. DEET and Avon Skin So Soft (a midge repellant) did not deter them - but DEET may have prevented the biting?
We asked around and people were resigned to them from May to July each year. Only a few people wore those hats with netting around the face - which we have always thought looked more than a little ridiculous, but we would have given ANYTHING for a couple of those hats!
They were also not out in the later evenings which at least made evening walks to the cafes, restaurants and bars of Volgograd a most pleasant experience.
It's fair to say that they were so bad they drove us out of Volgograd early.
If they were as regular as some people made out, and we DID hear some conflicting points of view, then I have to say that I am somewhat aggrieved at NONE of the guidebooks we carry offering any sort of warning.
A plague on you Lonely Planet - may your offices be cursed with a thousand flies...
If you plan to come to this part of Russia at this time of year, and Volgograd is really well worth an extended visit, then be prepared with silly hats and an arsenal of noxious chemicals to ward them off (although Volgogradians - have I just made that word up? - told us that nothing works).
Fortunately they do not follow you into buildings. The excellent subway system is free of this pestilence. They don't seem as bad under trees. DEET and Avon Skin So Soft (a midge repellant) did not deter them - but DEET may have prevented the biting?
We asked around and people were resigned to them from May to July each year. Only a few people wore those hats with netting around the face - which we have always thought looked more than a little ridiculous, but we would have given ANYTHING for a couple of those hats!
They were also not out in the later evenings which at least made evening walks to the cafes, restaurants and bars of Volgograd a most pleasant experience.
It's fair to say that they were so bad they drove us out of Volgograd early.
If they were as regular as some people made out, and we DID hear some conflicting points of view, then I have to say that I am somewhat aggrieved at NONE of the guidebooks we carry offering any sort of warning.
A plague on you Lonely Planet - may your offices be cursed with a thousand flies...
If you plan to come to this part of Russia at this time of year, and Volgograd is really well worth an extended visit, then be prepared with silly hats and an arsenal of noxious chemicals to ward them off (although Volgogradians - have I just made that word up? - told us that nothing works).