Ending Point: N50°23 E80°13
Distance Traveled: 384.4 miles
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We woke up on the early side and began our drive as soon as we could. Our goal for the day was to reach the Russian border, and we had some miles to put away! Over the course of the Rally Charla spent a large portion of her time studying the map, and today we learned that Kazakh people also enjoy maps. In the morning we were pulled over by the police (for the eighth time in Kazakhstan), and Chase walked up to the officer to see what the problem was this time. (Unlike in the US where you sit perfectly still when pulled over, in Kazakhstan the driver gets out and approaches the police officer to shake hands and exchange pleasantries.) Suddenly the officer surprised both of us by jumping in the drivers’ seat! Maintaining her cool, Charla gave him a tour of the Panda from the passenger seat, pointing out the maps, the snacks, and of course our giant stuffed panda. The officer took his time to study our map of Central Asia before hopping out and sending us on our way. A couple hours later we were doing our grocery shopping in a military town when two met approached us; they didn’t ask about us, they didn’t ask about the car, but they did ask about a map! For the second time in two hours Charla had the giant map out and then men were fascinated by where our journey had taken us so far. Our goal of getting to Russia was starting to seem a little too ambitious for today. We got into Semey around dinnertime, and after exploring the city decided it would be a fine place to dine. We devoured our meal in a local café, and as it as dark and raining we decided to stay in Semey for the evening. We decided to leave at sun-up the next morning, so it was coincidentally appropriate when the only hotel we could find was an hourly hotel. We kept it classy and purchased the 12-hour package, and called it a night. Starting Point: N46°04 E80°46
Ending Point: N50°23 E80°13 Distance Traveled: 384.4 miles
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We woke up to another incredible breakfast at An Artisan’s Guesthouse and then squeezed in a yoga session before heading out of town. On our way to Karakol Coffee, we passed a parking lot full of Mongol Rally cars and invited the ones that were ready to go to join us. Our last stop at Karakol Coffee was just as perfect as the first—good times with good people. We are so thankful to Aikerim. She said that she didn’t do anything, but she really did everything to make our time in Karakol wonderful just by being there and being her (and in doing so attracting a great group of people). Team Turnagain headed out of Karakol in convoy with the Elephants and the Lumberyaks. Together, we passed some of the most beautiful landscape of our trip. Yes, some of that journey was the most technically demanding driving of the Rally—we took the Panda across a gravel mountain pass that was over 6,000 feet in elevation where cows, sheep, and goats roam about and are herded by the folks living in the surrounding yurts—but those few hours were unforgettable. From the pass, we re-joined the main road leading us to the eastern border crossing of Lake Issyk Kul. As far as border crossings go, it was a good one: all three teams made it across in a fairly timely order, the Kyrgyz guards called us “G-Unit” and “Pamela Anderson,” and the Kazakh guard went through Chase’s passport and pointed to the landscape photos to indicate whether or not Kazakhstan had the featured animal or type of monument. From the border, we traveled across more breathtaking mountains until the sun set. It was our first time driving west, and we were driving into the sunset (either we’re doing something very right or very wrong). Not long after sunset, the Elephants blew a tire, and we had a bit of roadside repair by flashlight to prepare for the last stretch into Almaty. As we entered the city, the Elephants, our lead car, separated from us and the Lumberyaks, leaving us a little lost. As luck would have it, the five star Rixos Hotel was nearby, and they allowed us to use their wifi and complimentary city maps to find our way to the Almaty Backpackers’ Hostel. Now, the décor of the hostel in no way compared to that of the Rixos, but the people there absolutely made our evening—other Mongol Ralliers! We grabbed supplies from a nearby shop and made dinner with the Lumberyaks, which led to a late-night session with the Rally crew. Starting Point: N42°29E78°22
Ending Point: N43°13E76°56 Distance Traveled: 248.9 miles We finally took a day off to relax and to catch up on all of our things that needed catching up, including our blog! Karakol was the perfect place for such a day. We went downstairs in our guesthouse to find a full delicious breakfast awaiting us; the table (which seated 10) was covered with fruit, jams, honey, sweets, bread, and beverages, and so we were even more delighted when eggs and cheese arrived as well. After breakfast, we took it easy in our beautiful surroundings. Charla had a yoga session with Lisa Goodwin’s DVD, and then we set to work on our blog and correspondence. A while later, we thought a change in scenery was in order and headed to Karakol Coffee, where we continued working on our blog. While there, we met too many interesting new friends to be bothered with a computer any longer. Starting Point: N42°29 E78°22
Ending Point: N42°29 E78°22 Distance Traveled: 0 miles Today marked exactly two weeks from our target finish line party! Let’s hope we make it! Our morning by the lakeside started with a bit of shopping in the local market for supplies for a delicious breakfast in the apartment kitchen. As we were finishing our meal, the woman who helped us with renting the apartment made the first of her appearances for the day, which was a bit odd considering it was 9AM and we were checking out at 3PM. We made it clear that we did not want to reserve another night and for her sake agreed to check out an hour earlier. Thinking things were clear, we went down to the beach on the lake nearby for a bit of swimming and to take photos. The lake looked much better in the sunlight than it had the night before under grey skies. Charla even found a nice captain’s hat to go with our pirate-maritime theme on the trip (yes, we know we’re not on the sea)! Back at the apartment, the renting assistant lady made a second appearance, this time a much less pleasant one, as she barged in while we were trying to get dressed, packed, and have lunch before leaving in a couple hours. After all of her fuss, we tossed our bags outside and ate lunch from our camping plates on the street. Needless to say, we were not impressed. Hoping for a better atmosphere, we headed to Sambuca Café in nearby Cholpon-Ata (the main beach town on the north side of the lake) for some afternoon refreshments, Internet, and planning for the day. As we left the busy beach town overrun with folks from the capitol on holiday, the day dramatically improved. Traffic thinned down and the road narrowed. The scenery, however, remained just as beautiful, as we could see snow-capped mountains across the lake on one side and the rugged mountains closer by on our side of the lake. Soon, we found ourselves in Karakol. We came to this small town because a couple weeks ago in Volgograd, Russia, we met Daniel at the Local Hostel, who had opened a coffee shop called Karakol Coffee. He gave us his business card, so we looked around town for a logo that matched. Before arriving at the coffee shop, we met two Israeli tourists here for trekking and looking for a place to stay; we were excited to meet other backpackers, as we knew there had to be good stuff in this town! A few blocks after meeting them, we were at Karakol Coffee for a chat with Aikerim. Then, we were on our way to An Artisan’s Guesthouse with Katie, who is from Washington and studying the traditional Kyrgyz lute here. Once settled in, we returned to Karakol Coffee to hang out for the evening—the first time we have really relaxed in ages.
Starting Point: N42°39 E77°12 Ending Point: N42°29 E78°22 Distance Traveled: 97.3 miles We woke up at the Local Hostel, which was soon becoming a Mongol Rally Hostel, as the other three members of the Thunderyaks arrived in the night. We swapped stories of the road over a market breakfast in the park just below the hostel and attempted to come up with a plan for the day. Well, planning too much isn’t Rally style, so we decided to go to the Mother Russia statue and take it from there. Many of the buses from our corner go to the statue, but we didn’t get on one of those. Once the bus turned in the wrong direction, we jumped off and then found a taxi nearby. Our German-speaking driver saw no problem with the six of us piling into his Soviet-era Lada, so off we went. We didn’t exactly communicate which historical location we wanted to go to, and so we made a stop at the museum on the Volga River and took in the panorama. From there, we found an underground tram station near the large Lenin statue and finally headed in the right direction. The Mother Russia statue is on the top of a small hill so she can be seen throughout the area. So, to get to her feet (you have to touch the statue or you haven’t really been there), we walked past a couple of reflecting pools and smaller statues and carvings. Then, we passed through a room with an eternal flame to commemorate the Russian soldiers who lost their lives in World War II. From Mother Russia’s feet, we could appreciate the scale of the statue and have a nice view of the city and river below. The journey back from the statue was much easier than the one there; we just had to take the underground tram five stops. We celebrated another good day in Volgograd with a big dinner at a café on the block that the Thunderyaks had found the night before. Dinner turned into drinks with the owner and his friends, who were also trying to help our Italian friends come up with a solution for their car problems. By the end of the night, Vlad (the owner and overall guy in charge) was calling us all brothers; he also thought that since we were coming from Alaska, we were practically Russian-Americans. Just before we left, we shared a bag of coffee from The Grind in Girdwood, Alaska, to cement our friendship. Starting Point: N48°42 E44°30
Ending Point: N48°42 E44°31 Distance Traveled: 0.7 miles
Our new friends approve of the Panda!
The sunflower field was a perfect place for the night judging by just how late we slept in the following morning. Once we got back on the road, it was a smooth drive until we hit the bumpy, pothole-dotted roads into Volgograd. Based on our arrival, Volgograd appeared the friendliest city to the Mongol Rally that we have passed so far. Driving along the main road into downtown, a man pulled up next to us honking and showing off a shirt that we couldn’t read. We’re assuming it was an old Rally shirt or one from a team because when he got close enough he gave us a thumbs-up and shouted “Mongol Rally!! Yeah!!” A few moments later, another car pulled up alongside and asked “Mongolia? We’re from Uzbekistan! Awesome!” Then, they threw us some beads with a spider carving for good luck on the journey. We knew we were in for a good time in Volgograd. Traffic wasn’t our friend at first though as we cruised around looking for a spot with Internet. Eventually, we made our way slightly out of town to juice bar in a mall. Once online, we saw that two other teams were still in Volgograd, so we turned around and headed towards the hostel where they were staying. Finding the hostel (through an archway, along a garden, ringing up from a steel door, taking the elevator to the fifth floor, and finding a door with an owl on it) was difficult but worth the effort once we met Lorenzo and Emanuele of Team Rougher Dan Khan and James from the Thunderyaks as well as Ting traveling from China. We went out to dinner nearby at a pub the first two found the day before. Though it took us a while to navigate the Russian-only menu, we did so to great success and enjoyed our first hot meal since leaving Moscow.While Lorenzo and Emmanuele worked through some of their issues with their car and its massive engine problems, James joined us out in the park for a beer. That night, however, was no ordinary night in the park. It was an evening of celebrating the Russian Navy! We had seen blue and white flags all over town as we were driving in, and suddenly it all made sense (we had wondered if the flags were for a football match, graduation, or if we’d accidentally found ourselves in Chechnya with an uprising starting). Soon, we were surrounded by a big group of friendly Russian soldiers who explained the holiday and really liked to shout “Russian tradition!!” Once we had all finished our beers, we went for a walk in the park to a café for another round. Conversation was all over the place in a mixture of languages, but the excitement and comradery was unforgettable. Starting Point: N51°47 E41°47
Ending Point: N48°42 E44°30 Distance Traveled: 294.8 miles |