As many of you know, I decided early on that I wanted to travel to the Solovetskii Islands in the far north of Russia. Now, many people, Russian and non-Russian, were puzzled by my choice. Let me explain my reasoning: the Solovetskii Islands are in the White Sea, which is part of the Arctic Ocean. They are less than 100 miles from the Arctic Circle. The Solovetskii Monastery was a major fortress in the 1800s and served as the very first GULAG in the 1900s. Basically, Solovki (the shortened form) is one of the most historical, and most remote regions of the planet.
So my train left at 1 am, and I spent most of the ride reading Cryptonomicon, which I actually finished on the train ride home. The train was the Moscow-Murmansk train, and I freaked out a little about how I was on the train to Murmansk (Murmansk is the main Russian naval base and sea port). I arrived in Kem at 1 am (24 hour train ride) and the sun was still up. I took a cab to the hotel, sun was still up. I shocked the people at the hotel by speaking Russian, cuz they knew I was an American and assumed I'd be completely lost. Score 1 for me and my Russian skills. I got to bed around 2, and the sun was up.
The next morning I got up bright and early (7 and the sun was definitely up high in the sky), ate breakfast, wandered around a bit, and then got on the boat. The boat had about 70 people in it. The ride to Solovki was smooth, and lasted a little over 2 hours. The ride into the islands was unbelievable, once the onion domes of the monastery began to stick up over the island, I was unable to tear my eyes away until we docked.
Once on land, I went to my hotel and checked in, and then went on a tour of the monastery. It was built in 1481, was a very holy site, and then was used as a fortress and prison camp.
That night I ate dinner and went to bed early, I was very tired from the lack of sleep I got the night before.
I woke up early the next morning to see what tours were offerred, but it was another monastery tour so I went to see the labyrinths on the island. They are thought to be from the bronze age, so they were pretty cool. Then that afternoon I went on a tour of the canals on the island. In the 16th and 17th centuries, monks built a long and elaborate system of canals that connected the nearly 700 lakes on Big Solovetskii Island, so I got to go rowing through them.
After that, I went and ate dinner, and then hung out till midnight. Then I went to take pictures of the monastery at midnight.
The next day was my last day on the island, and I went out to this small island that was about a 30 minute boat ride away. It was called Bolshoi Zayatskii Island, and it had some labyrinths and an old church on it.
It was on the last day that I began conversing with people. There was this very nice young couple that ended up doing just about everything I did, so we talked a little bit. They were surprised that I was an American, and also that I was traveling alone. After the boat ride back to the mainland, I had a good conversation with the girl who was working registration at the hotel, she's from Irkutsk and doesn't think that her hotel is as good as a Marriott. And then on the taxi ride to the train station, my cab driver was from the Ukraine, didn't want to live in one place for too long, and wondered why I wasn't traveling with a girl. On the train, I was in a car with 2 guys, but at separate times. One guy got on at Petrozavodsk and got off at Petersburg, but he didn't talk at all. Then another guy got on at Petersburg and off at Moscow, and I talked with him a bit about how I like Moscow and why I'm in Russia. He was a sushi chef.
The last week I had planned to travel the Golden Ring, but hadn't planned on being so lonely in Solovki (no cell phone and not knowing anyone, and being a foreigner is tough). So I stayed in Moscow with a friend for a week, and it ended up being one of the best weeks of my life. Tango concert, good food, seeing friends one last time (till next time)...
So, I already miss Russia. A lot. I want to be back very badly. I miss speaking Russian, I miss going to Red Square, I miss my friends, I miss the Metro, I miss cool cab drivers, I miss Georgian food, I miss crazy drunks on the street, I miss my host mom, I miss buying lavash near the Uni, I miss the Modest Charm of the Bourgeouisse, I miss drinking legally, I miss drinking good beer, I miss the constant sense of history, and I miss having an adventure EVERY DAY.
So, was the trip a success? A resounding yes. My time in Russia has allowed me to make several judgments about the life that I want to live. I want to live in Moscow, maybe not forever, but I want to be there often. Russia isn't just a weird interest anymore, it's become a huge part of my life and it will always be there.
Hopefully I get a chance to call all of you within the next few weeks, I'd like to hear all of your voices soon! I missed you all very very much and I am anxious for the time I get to see you all next!
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