Bargaining for dummies

-Looki, looki, Sir! Looking for a belt, Sir?
-Yeah, I`ve lost many kilos and these jeans tight at the beginning of the travel now they`re large... How much?
-Good price for you, Sir: 85 yuan.
-What??? 85?!? Ok, bye.
-No, no, no... Please come here, Sir! How much you wanna pay?
-I give you 30.
-Are you serious?!? Don`t you see this is fine leather, a very high quality product! 45 yuan, Sir.
-Yeah, I see it`s high quality, well refined and maybe Mr. Armani handcrafted personally this belt... but I guess the right price is 30.
-40! Where are you from, Sir?
-Italy. 30. Last price.
-Okay, Sir, give me 30.
-Ooops, my mistake! I have only 25 yuan...
-But you have said 30, Sir!
-Just because I didn`t previously checked the money left...
-Okay Sir, 30!
-I don`t have it, 25 is all I have!
-Sir, only 5 yuan more!
-I don`t have this bloody 5 yuan, you don`t wanna understand me... Bye!
-Okay, 25.
-First let me try the belt, it looks a little bit too large for me...
-No problem, Sir, I can make you extra holes on it or cutting away a slice.
-But if you cut away a slice of leather, the belt won`t be new anymore, so it should be cheaper... 20 yuan.
-Are you sure you`re Italian, Sir? You say you`re from Italy but I don`t think you`re really Italian. You`re too tough. All the other Italians I met weren`t tough as you!
-You mean the other Italians you met were stupid?
-Okay, Sir, 20 yuan. Get it.

Shanghai, China

After 21 hours by bus I`m arrived in Shanghai, the most developed city in China and, honestly, the less charming to me. Shanghai is a 15-million monster, a grey urban jungle with no personality, no soul, no flavour. It`s a very new and modern city: looks like one of the many metropolis spreaded all around the world, same as anywhere else in heavy indutrialized countries. And, like all those cities, it`s posh. Simply, Shanghai it`s not China, at least not the China I enjoyed to live. Even the beautiful shacks (those with orange plastic tables and chairs) where I`m used to eat genuine Chinese entries everyday, here are replaced by western brands like KFC, Subway, McDonald`s... Anyway, a short visit was worthy: the central area along the river is fulfilled by huge skyscrapers and was nice to walk there, while the view from the observation deck at World Financial Centre, at 490 metres high (the 3rd tallest tower in the world) was really breathtaking.
Just a sort stay here, enough to see all the main sights Shanghai has to offer. Next stop: Wehihai.

Xi`an, China

Liu Xiaobo, the dissident who fights against Chinese dictatorship, has won the Nobel prize for peace: Beijing obviously says it`s a scandal because he`s criminal. I`m not surprised about that, just read couple of posts below. Everyone who doesn`t agree with the government is labelled as criminal and his mouth be shutted, in a way or the other. I`m writing from Xi`an and I arrived here by train with a night service from Pingyao lasting 11 hours. When I got the ticket all the seats were already booked so I bought a `standing` ticket: my naive mind thought the meaning of the word standing was synonymous of taking the available seats without a reservation... Well, I`ve never been so wrong. Standing meant REALLY standing all time long, packed like animals among thousand people into an overcrowded wagon where moving was impossible. After staying there for a while I decided to move to the restaurant car in search of an available seat allowing me to rest. Honestly, I don`t remember how long it took moving there. At restaurant there were available seats and many other people wanted to sit down there but the waitress, in a very rude and violent way, said everybody to move out that car as it was `closed`. We looked her spending the next 2 hours talking into the empty wagon to her friend just for feeling the taste of power and not allowing people inside there. After 2 hours, those guys waiting like me for a seat, said me to go taking a seat as they proabably wouldn`t have said nothing to me `cause they`re `scared of foreigners`. Still have to understand what they`re scared about. Anyway, they were true, after a while, one by one, everybody took a sit there and we spent the night and slept inside the restaurant wagon. In the morning, when I took a picture of the wagon, the officer came to me forcing to delete it. Obviously I tricked him and I didn`t delete the photo at all, but a question`s still in my mind: why this conspiracy of silence? Why nobody kicks the government ass?

Xi`an was the ancient capitol of China as well as the endpoint of the Silk Road. Nowadays is a huge metropolis with more than 4,5 millions population and some outstanding archeological sites. I`ve come here, at the very heart of China, mainly to see the world-ranking Terracotta Army: I`ve seen it, but I wasn`t particularly impressed. I mean, it`s cool but the entrance fee is ridiculously expensive for European standard, I don`t wanna even imagine for the Chinese one. On the other hand, I really enjoyed strolling around the muslim area in Xi`an, the Big Goose Pagoda and a funny cycling tour all along the 14 kilometres of the ancient city walls. The weather is hot and tomorrow I leave to Shanghai with an overnight bus.

Pingyao, China

I definitely enjoyed my stay in Pingyao. The ancient city centre is very well preserved and it looks like a country town coming directly from China`s past. Great is that moving just few metres from the main touristic street, people really live like in ancient countryside towns. This means very basic way of living for them, but endless charme for me. To balance on all this beauty, I admit I had maybe the worst hotel room ever in my travel career. All the cheap accomodations were already fully booked so I had to get what found. The air inside that room was almost unbreathable and the toilet had a curious smell similar to dead body mixed to shit. It was really unpleasant staying there... I`ve never been so thankful to have brought with me the camping-emergency blanket!

The great Wall

No, I`m not talking about the wall built to protect the Chinese empire by the assault of nomads, I`m talking about the wall the institutions have built around China to hide at the world the lack of freedom and democracy the population is afflicted. Everybody`s talking about the unbelievable rate of growth China is experiencing in GDP, the low cost of labour, the fact that within few years China will be probably the first world economic power: but which is the cost people has to pay for this leadership?
Freedom of speech is pure utopia. I was in Tien`Anmen square when one man with some writings to his neck sitted down in the mid of crowd for a silent demonstration. After 2 minutes police got him, 2 minutes later he was moved into the police cab. Photos were obviously not allowed and a girl who took the picture has been forced to delete it.
The Chinese economy grows very quickly, but what about the copyrights? Just have a tour to the Silk Market, the biggest bazar in Beijing, to understand all the main brands sold there are fake. And what about human rights not respected, the death penalty (with more than 5000 executions per year, China is leader also in this sad statistic), and the respect to environment (aka Kyoto protocol)?
Nobody talk too much on these topics. In other words, the great wall built by government to keep the world far from Chinese boundaries works. Works well. Time to break it has come, don`t you think?

Datong, China

I arrived in Datong mainly for one reason, to escape from Beijing and his bloody crowd, and I discovered a medium sized city maybe not nice-looking from common standars of beauty, but definitely charming to me. Datong is a coal mining town (`only` one million people!), well far from the economic boom Beijing is experiencing. Here is city of blue collars and you can feel it walking down the streets, it`s exquisite decadent and dirty. The road next to where I live is a trade-fair of cheap restaurants: small awful shacks where the real Chinese life takes place. I haven`t been able to resist from the temptation to get into one of them: has been simply amazing, one of the best bowls of noodle ever.
I went also visiting Yungang caves and Hanging monastery, the first is a mountain with caves and more than 50.000 Buddhas carved inside, while the second is a beautiful monastery settled on the edge of a huge cliff. Both interesting sights, useless saying they were overcrowded as usual.

China

In China freedom of speech and choice is something similar to utopia. Even internet is kept under control. Many sites are blocked, this means it`s not possible to connect them all over the country. Among those sites there is Facebook and my blog... For this reason I cannot reply to messages or update my blog. I have taken some good shots, and for one subject I should be prosecuted by law if got with it. Well, I`ll try to do my best to publish news and pics as soon as possible through the italian `service centre` :)

Beijing, China

After the peaceful quiet of Mongolia, moving to a crowded bustling city like Beijing, with a population of 15 millions, is definitely stressful and shocking to me. People is everywhere, and everywhere is overcrowded. The traffic is the most crazy thing I`ve ever seen, no rules at all, it`s anarchy. I even learnt how is possible not being able to get out the train at the right station because of the wild flow of people squeezing you far from every door... There is more: the 1st of October is National holiday commemorating the born of DPRC in 1949, and Chinese have 7 seven days of holidays. It looks like all the Chinese population has moved to Beijing to celebrate it! I`ve visited all the main sites (Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Great Wall) and they were very interesting, but with all those persons queing everywhere they seem to me like tourist`s playground more than the charming sights as they are. By the way, I must admit Beijing is a very nice city, closer to western standards than I would have ever imagined, with old and new mixing into a modern form of Chinese style. Highly recommended!

The curse of the First Day

After 36 hours by train I finally entered China. Getting to China from Mongolia wasn`t difficult at all, probably the easiest border crossing among the countries I`ve visited in this journey. Crossing a border overland can be a surreal experience: after the stamp you are thrown into a new dimension, a new form of humanity, similar as similar it`s all the world, yet at the same time deeply different. Within few kilometres, all you were used to see seems to be changed.
Borders still exist, despite globalization, despite all.
They`re something real, like real is the "the curse of the first day" for me. The posts below clearly shows how must be there a sort of curse on me the first day I travel to a new foreign country. No exceptions, even today. It`s the first day in Beijing and few hours ago I got out to take some cash with Kaye and Alex (the English couple met in Irkutsk with which I travelled Gobi desert). Later, passing in front of some street-food sellers we decided to have a taste of the Chinese "delicatessen" trying some mistery food: I`ve chosen for a strange soup with dark colour, lot of chili and strange pork chops floating on it... While eating, Kaye said me: "Be careful, there`s a guy standing very close just behind you!". I moved away a little, he was standing still there like an idiot simulating non-chalance. Then he moved away. Funny is what Kaye said me later, reporting that guy while standing behind me, has looked her, pointing his finger to his mouth meaning her to say nothing to me... I wonder why all the population of the Earth is so attracted by my take-me bag. Curse is the only reasonable answer.
Anyway, Italy 1 - China 0. Fuck off: once more.

Some facts on Mongolia

Here are some interesting facts on Mongolia:
1) the 75% of the population in Ulan Bator live in gers (about 1 million people), this means not only tents but houses without facilities like running water, toilets or electricity;
2) one third of the Mongolian population live below the poverty ranking (which is less than one dollar per day);
3) the national average income is 110 dollars per month;
4) the most common and traditional dish is Buus which is a dumpling filled by mutton meat.

Tomorrow morning I`m leaving to China, but before leaving Mongolia I wanna share with you all the most famous quote by Damdin Sukhbaatar - the `hero of revolution` - the man that declared the Mongolian indipendence from China in 1921:
`If we, the whole people, unite in our common effort and will, there will be nothing in the world that we cannot achieve, that we will not have learnt or failed to do.`

Gobi Desert, Mongolia

After spending 7 days in the heart of Gobi desert and more than 10 living like a nomad, I feel fine to be back to civilization. Gobi desert lies in the Southern part of Mongolia and it`s the fifth largest desert in the world, an outdoor heaven for me. In one week, we crossed just a small bunch of villages, few gers and nothing else. Wild nature only: exactly what I wanted to see, what I wanted to experience once more. It`s difficult to explain in few words the feelings felt in a such place as the range of emotions can be really wide: you can easily shift from asking yourself what the hell are you doing there, to enjoy the amazing taste of freedom in that epic emptiness; from swearing to the awful morning cold or rains to feeling happy just because of the beauty of the landscape is passing in front of your eyes... Or maybe, you can just sit to enjoy the unbelievable silence which covers almost everything there (except for my tinnitus, of course!)

I definitely had great times there, sometimes was tough, but I must admit it has been a great experience to live.
Here is some of the highlights from Gobi desert, something I won`t ever forget:
1) the white clouds painting the deep blue sky;
2) watching wild horses running free in the steppe: Gobi desert is the only place in the world where you can see the last few hundreds wild horses left;
3) watching how to slaughter a goat before tasting it on a traditional Mongolian barbecue;
4) watching the sunset from the top of the highest sand dune in Gobi, one of the most beautiful things I`ve ever seen ;D
5) sharing sniff tobacco with a real nomad;
6) enjoying vodka party with friends in traditional nomad tents (with no heater, running water, toilet or any similar comfort);
7) big empty spaces in all the directions, something difficult to imagine.

I want also to spend some words about the people that shared with me this adventure: they mainly made this experience so enjoyable. Traveling in desert with boring people can be deadly boring, but for god`s sake this wasn`t the case. It has been one week of fun, will be nice to remember all the jokes and parties we had in that rugged environment.
Last day in Ulan Bator, our way splits.
But the memory remains.

The Big Nothing

I`m back few hours ago in Ulan Bator after a tour in central Mongolia. Beautiful nature and... nothing else! In Europe, when somebody talks about a place where there is nothing, usually means a couple of roads without shops or villages with small population; here, the meaning of the word nothing it`s on a well different scale: here is The Nothing. I mean, in four days drive we crossed just four villages, few cars and some brave motorcyclists. Just steppe, nature and many many horses, cows, lambs, goats. Nothing else. This made me think about the different perception people has about the meaning of the word nothing: as Europeans, we are always used to think that we need more and more, otherwise we have nothing, we are nothing. Here people lives in tents, without hot water, without running water, without toilets... So, what`s the `real` meaning of `nothing`?
Tomorrow I leave for a 7 days tour in Gobi desert. Will be challenging but funny as the people I`m traveling together is very cool. Longer posts next week!

Few days, no blog

Tomorrow I leave with three persons met here in Ulan Bator to a 4 days tour in central Mongolia. We`ll travel off road by jeep, overnight in traditional gers, eat with nomads families and so on. For this reason I won`t obviously have internet connection to update this blog, but my trusty readers should stay tuned: more news soon to come...

Terelj National Park, Mongolia

I`m just back from a daily trip to Terelj National Park, about 100 km far from Ulan Bator, which was pretty cool. The weather was unbelievably warm and the sky painted deep blue. I visited a buddhist monastery settled on mountains, a giant rock shaped like a turtle and then I had my first one-hour horse riding experience: those horses were extremely lazy and relaxed, even slower than dogs... well, exactly what I needed for my riding skills.

Ulan Bator, Mongolia

No, I don`t like Ulan Bator. Let`s try just for one moment to forget what happened to me yesterday: ok, the city has a couple of beautiful buddhist temples, one big square and many gers which make the landscape really exotic; on the contrary, garbage is everywhere - as much as some areas look like open-air dumping grounds; crossing the streets is a hard job as drivers don`t even think to slow down when pedestrians are on their way and, last but not least, crime rate is so high that everybody recommend the tourists to go back their rooms before midnight. No, this is not the Mongolia I was looking for.

First day in Mongolia

The first day in Russia I was almost robbed, the first day in Mongolia I`ve been almost pickpocketed. They attempted to pickpocket me twice near the main square in Ulan Bator, but these motherfuckers don`t know ain`t easy to trick an Italian. I was getting into a shop near Sukhbatar square - which is the central square and the only nice one in Ulan Bator - when I heard something like a little tug to my strap. I immediately understood that someone tried to open my backpack, so I`ve checked it and it was half open... I closed it as soon as possible and I`ve got out with the eyes wide open. Few seconds later, one guy passed in front of me and, with a very quick shift, opened the small bag I wear at waist height. I just saw the bag open, I checked if everything was right inside, then I looked him into the eyes and I instinctively exclaimed `What the fuck?!?!?!` He came to me very aggressive simulating a fist to shut me up. He did, I moved into the closer shop while he moved away. I don`t wanna mess with those sick loosers. By the way, two failed attempts for them: Italy 2 - Mongolia 0. Fuck off.

Ulan Ude, Buryatia

I`m in Ulan Ude, the main city of Buryatia, an autonomous region in Siberia where West seems definitely disappered to East. Here is where Gengis Khan was born and nowadays people in Ulan Ude looks definitely like Mongolians more than Russians. The city as well, even if Soviet-style, has a truly different taste from those ones I`ve been used to see since last weeks of travel. The city has two main sights to visit: the biggest Lenin`s head in the world and, just few kilometres far from the city, a Buddhist temple which was the main centre of Russian Buddhism and the only one survived to Stalinist repression. I`ve seen both and they`re really interesting, but mainly the temple which was for me the first one I`ve ever visited.
Anyway, tomorrow I leave Russia. During these weeks of travel I`ve learnt how to enjoy this country and its people, and even if sometimes I thought some things were crazy to me, I guess Russia is one of the most democratic place ever seen. I`m sure I will miss it: I will miss the majesty of his nature, his blue electric sky, his people, his immoderate lifestyle, his language. Maybe, I will miss even those tomatoes and cucumbers sold almost everywhere. Good memories, but they`re past. The future now is the bus I`ll catch tomorrow morning: destination Ulaan Bator, Mongolia.

Olkhon Island, Siberia

Olkhon island is a wild island in the middle of Baikal lake, one of the main centre of Buryatian shamans. The main village is Kuzhire, and I enjoyed every single minute of the 2 days spent there. What has really impressed me is the spoil beauty of that nature, always divided between steppe and forest. Everything`s there had a true Siberian taste, from the woodden houses to the grey and cloudy weather, from the nature to the face of the people. I`ve reached the island with a very thrilling ride on a small rusty minivan driven by a crazy driver which was pushing to full speed on a wet, gravel and extremely bumpy road. It takes usually 6 hours drive to get to the island, he covered it in just 4. Anyway I`m still alive, thanks God. The island was perfect for outdoor activities so I had long walks and a full day by bike to reach the other side of the island through the Tashkine valley, in company of some European people met there. Was pretty sad to leave such a beautiful place and such nice people, but new adventures are waiting for me now! Let`s go then!

Lake Baikal, Siberia

The people you meet traveling make your travel more than the places themselves. It`s the case of what I experienced in Listyvianka, a small village on the shores of Baikal lake. After one day spent there I took a ferry to Bolshy Koti, onboard I`ve met a Russian family with friends and they started offering me almost everything they were eating. In Bolshy Koti they also brought me to see the best spots of the village, including a beautiful view from the top of the hill, a `real` Russian bath and then a great dinner with delicious dishes and loads of vodka, of course. they have been all unbelievably kind: I was more than surprised, I was astonished. Maybe even more when, as I had to get the ferry at 6pm, they all came together with me at the pier to say me goodbye while leaving. Exactly like long time friends do.
Well, I had to reach Siberia, but finally I`ve found a different, better, way to manage social relations than what I`m used to see in my beloved Italy.

Irkutsk, Siberia

I arrived yesterday evening in Irkutsk, the city which was considered the Paris of Siberia. Honestly I think Paris it`s a bit better, but even Irkutsk ain`t bad! It`s full of traditional Siberian wooden houses and is a very lively city. Today, as it`s the first of September, was the first day of school and to toast it, all the city was in party, with shows, music and... huge loads of vodka! The photo above shows how this city impressed me, maybe is the city where I should spend the rest of my life... eheheh

The Transiberian railway

What am I doing on Transiberian railway? That`s a good question! Well, the original plan was going to Ekaterinburg, but checking the tickets availability I realized the cheapest ones were all fully booked. In other words, this meant that going to Ekaterinburg by train was much more expensive than flying. But I didn`t want to fly, so I had to take different decisions, and that`s what I did. I got a very cheap ticket in 3rd class, so called platskartny, which allowed me to go from Moscow to Vladivostok along the Transiberian railway. The Transiberian railway is the longest railway in the world and it takes 7 days to reach the Pacific coast. By the way, I decided to get off earlier, in Irkutsk, to explore the Baikal lake, so I spent on train `only` 4 days and 4 nights.


Travelling 4 days into a small, overcrowded, smelly train with other 60 people that don`t speak your language it`s not easy, can be uncomfortable and sometimes boring. It has been a pretty tough but definitely an amzing experience, `cause it gave me the chance to know more about Russian culture and lifestyle. All the people there were really friendly to me, it seemed like they had competitions in feeding and giving me drinks as much as they can! So the language barrier hasn`t been such a huge problem: the biggest problem was trying to tell them to stop filling the glass!

Suzdal, Russia

I finally found the Russia I was looking for, I mean the one with colorful wooden houses spreaded along a gentle countryside. That`s the reason why I like Suzdal so much. It`s just 4 hours by train from Moscow but it looks like a different country, well far from the crowded frenzy of the capital. I spent one night in Suzdal, in a great place near the shores of the local river, while strolling around all those quiet churches and monasteries has been a real pleasure. Suzdal is also on Unesco`s list of world heritages. On the way back, I spent few hours in Vladimir, the former Russian capital. It was wedding day, this means the city was fulfilled by couples just got married, they were drinking, dancing and having fun on the streets. A great party atmosphere!

Sergev Posad, Russia

It was obvious, I already know it. This summer has been the warmest and driest ever in Russia, for this reason burnings and fires had almost destroyed the countryside close to Moscow. So things had to change quickly. It was obvious. It`s 4 days I see nothing but grey clouds and rain. Today I`ve been in Sergev Posad, home of a very old and famous Orthodox monastery, about a hundred kilometers far from Moscow. The sky has been electric blue for a while, just a glance of sun into these rainy days, just enough to make this day remarkable.

The Russian capital

Traveling alone in Russia is definitely challenging, not impossible. And in Moscow it`s even easier.The capital of Russia is a huge bustling international city, with a population of 9 millions people and a different taste compared to the previous cities I`ve visited. Moscow is the city that will lead Russia to the future, it`a city of deep contrasts, but it`s a nice city. Some officers even know how to smile. The Red Square is the very heart of Russia and a huge melting pot of people and sights. On it, lies the Saint Basil`s Church, the luxurious Gum mall, the museum of Russian history and the most important cemetery of the whole country, the one where Lenin and Stalin were buried. In particular, Lenin`s tomb is a dark mausoleum in the middle of the square where Lenin`s mummified body is shown to the public. It made me smile thinking how the father of communism has been turned into a tourist attraction treated like those mummified animals that usually adorn hunters` houses. Well, I`m not sure if he would have agreed...

Moscow, Russia

It took almost 15 hours the minibus I`ve got from Volgograd to reach Moscow, the capital of Mother Russia! To anyone is asking why I didn`t use trains I reply that I always prefer travelling by bus when possible, passing inside the cities allow you to have a better view of the place crossed and seeing the landscapes that otherwise you miss by train`s route. But this time it has been a really adventurous trip. I mean, the road was a kind of rollercoaster as I never seen before, the bad asphalt shaked my ass off as I had no way to fall asleep for a minute, while the driver was pushing to an insane speed that freaky old rusty van all night long... Crossing Russian steppe has been amazing: I`m back into big empty spaces, hundreds kilometers without a village at the horizon, just dry burned grass. Well, after 3 hours we had a break in a wooden gas station, overwhelmed by trucks and honey sellers. When the seller saw me taking a picture, she asked me if I wanted to marry her daughter: maybe next time, I said, now a photo of your honey jar is enough... ahaha

Volgograd, Russia

After a good 13-hours sleep I see things with different eyes. As I slept on ferry and buses for the last 3 days, I really needed a reasonable rest. I got a room in the suburbs of the city, into a soviet-style block, close to Volga river: that was the only one I found at affordable price, all the others hotels I checked were ridiculously expensive. I`m in Volgograd now, known as former Stalingrad: this is an historical city and the battle fought here has been the turning point of the second world war. Nowadays, on the battlefield there is a huge statue lies at the top of the hill to remember the sacrifice of those soldiers died fighting against Nazis. It was extremely interesting from the historical point of view, very sad from the human one. Anyway, as the weather has been extremely hot `til now, I`m enjoying huge loads of `kvas`, a traditional drink made by bread and sold at almost every corner. But weather is changing quickly, today is windy and is getting colder: this means it`s time to shift to Russian `pivo` (beer)!

First day in Russia

Yesterday was the first day in Russia. And it`s gone. Thanks God. I mean, when I was waiting for the bus to Volgograd I had a very first contact with those Russians you never wanna meet. Two guys came to me asking for money, saying that I HAD to give them money. First, I played the `I don`t understand you` card, then, as they were insisting, I moved away closer to other people saying `Niet` to their requests. Funny was that those guys were pressing me while asking to the other people if someone was able to speak English for translating them how to rob me in an international way! By the way, I moved away without giving nothing and they disappeared. Ok, these were just two guys trying to trick me, but the bad side of these stories is that you never know what`s inside the minds of those people, you never know if they`re gonna get out a knife or, even, a gun. Same gun that few minutes later the police searched on me... As I was looking sooooo suspicious (me, not the guys above!) they decided to have a full search on me and my bags. Nothing happened, but if this is the beginning of my Russian stay, I`m getting scared about how it could end.

Rostov-na-Donu, Russia

Finally I`ve found an internet cafe` here so I can update my travel locations. At the moment I`m writing from Rostov-Na-Donu, Russia. I arrived yesterday in Russia sailing from Trabzon in Turkey: due to ferry delays I arrived in Sochi at 2pm after an exhausting 4 hours wait at the port. Not too bad, Russian burocracy is world ranking but I hadn`t any problem at the border (same as for the later military checkpoint out of the city). Sochi is settled on the shores of the Black Sea, isn`t far from Caucasus and it`s the city will host the winter Olympic games in 2014. Moreover is the main seaside town for Russians, so it looks extremely richful but impersonal. I`ve been helped to move the first steps in Russian culture by Mathias and Franziska, but later our ways splitted as they continued to Beslan while I was searching a way to reach Volgograd. Well, I have a tested formula: using night buses allow you to travel while saving the expenses of the hotel. Even here in Russia the formula works. I`ve gotten into a bus to Rostov where I arrived few minutes ago. Today I`ll take a look to the city centre then another night bus will lead me to Volgograd, the former Stalingrad.

Random thoughts on Turkey

Before leaving, here is some things I learnt about Turkey:
1) Turkish are natural born sellers. They would be able to sell heaters in the desert or fridges at North Pole. Or even more.
2) They're very kind and cheerful, especially those people from villages or those far from tourist attractions. Otherwise, when you're targeted as tourist they will try all the ways to trick you some extra money, even few cents only. As I'm Italian, I always thought we were the 'kings of cheaters', but I have to admit Turkish are the number one.
3) After a stroll in the alleys of Trabzon's suburbs I've understood the meaning of the word chaos.
4) I love Kebab.
Now I have to go. I gonna get a ferry across the Black Sea which will bring me tomorrow to Sochi, Russia. Moreover, I'm in a hurry because there's a guy in front of me at the internet cafe' which is sending me, via internet, messages about how he thinks I'm cool. What a shit.

Trabzon, Turkey

I arrived in Trabzon two days ago, after a 12-hours night bus from Kapadokia. The city is settled on the shore of Black Sea in the Asian side of Turkey, close to Georgia. The weather is unbelievably hot and the humidity rate makes the air almost unbreathable. Trabzon has been a very powerful city in the past as its location on the seaside made it suitable for commercial exchanges between East and West. Here it's a dıfferent Turkey than the one saw in Istanbul: it's extremely hilly, nobody speaks English at all and I feel I'm one of the few tourists here. I visited the most important sights of the area which includes the beautiful Sumela Monastery, about 50km far from the city, settled in a mountain valley similar to Alpes; the museum of Aya Sofia and the church of Sancta Maria. This one is the only operative Catholic church in Turkey today and the same one where the Italian priest Don Andrea Santoro has been killed in 2006. Honestly, the city of Trabzon didn't ımpress me so much. The highlight is definitely the hotel where I stay: I pay 10 euros per night for a single room, bugs included. The toilet is the most disgusting thing I've ever seen, just a hole in the ground without water... I mean, some plastic bottles full of water outside the door is the only 'manual' flushıng system.

The mistery of the Holy Burp: a shitty tale

Once upon a time a mysterious lonely traveller decided to visit the underground city of Derinkuyu in Turkey. He got into a shitty bus which was so hot that people inside there were melting like shit. Shit! - he said - 'I don't give a shit to that shitty place, it's too warm here, I quit!'
'No, you can't. No more bullshit, man.' replied Yahoo.com, the highest master of internet knowledge. 'Now that the gatherıng is on you can't turn back.'
The former members of that exploration were joined by Anna & Monika - two Polish girls coming from the sunny town of Guwno - and Antonio from Portugal. So, together, the members of that shitty tour began to explore the underground city. It was dark, narrow and smelly. Everyone was scared. Fear was in the air.
Then, a mysterious burp roared from the black breaking the silence.
'Holy shit!' exclaimed lonely traveller. 'Who are you???'
'Don't you have already understood it?' the burping voice replied from deep inside the cave: 'I'm the spirit of the Holy Burp.'
'What do you want from us, Mr. Burp?'
'To show you the way'
'Which way?'
'The way to purity' said the voice. Then a dramatic burp made the underground city vibrating once more. Then the silence.
While s(h)itting there in the dark, the members of that shitty tour were thinking which kind of message Holy Burp wanted them to know, which was the deeper meaning of those burps. One beer later, they understood it: he wanted to make them know that he was inside all of them, he was part of them, like soul itself.
Burping was the answer: the way to purity, to long life and happiness.

Göreme, Kapadokia

Kapadokia is definitely a beautiful region and my Turkey's favourite for what I've seen 'tıll now. I arrived ın Göreme yesterday early in the morning when the sun had just setted and the bus station was already fulfilled by annoying people in search of business deals. As I planned to stay 2 days only, I thought was a good idea to take part of a tour showıng all the natural beauties of the surroundings. In reality, the tour wasn't well planned and the guıdes were much closer to unemployed desperates than real tour leaders... it reminded me about Rome and all the freaky thıngs I saw doing there against tourists. By the way, natureis so gorgeous in Kappadokia that the rest doesn't care too much. And if just one picture is able to descrıbe better than my words how cool it is, here I wanna mention all the nice people I met there, whıch made my stay unforgettable: Asumi & Chichiro from Japan, Chiara from Turin, Marina from Argentina, Manuel from Mexico, Marco from Modena and all the shitty tour members, to whom is dedicated next post. Maybe we'll see again soon, who knows?

Istanbul, Turkey

I left Bulgaria yesterday on a night bus to Istanbul, people knows that I hate saying 'goodbye', but I always prefer a more confident 'see you soon'. That's what I say even to Bulgarıa: see you soon. I'm sure sooner or later my feet walk again the Bulgarian ground without too many seasons will have gone by. Anyway, I'm in Istanbul right now, writing from the international bus station where tonite I get a 10 hours bus to Göreme, Kappadokia. Today I've had a very intensive day: arrived at 7 am in Istanbul, then I visited all the main central sights under an unbreathable hot sun. I've been into the Blue Mosquee (as the hardest part was avoiding all the carpet-sellers attacking you like mosquitos!), then I've been into the spice and grand bazar where - last but not least! - I enjoyed the different types of Kebab produced here... mmmh, even if it's Ramadan here, I guess it's time for the last one of the day!

The first hurdle to overcome

The first hurdle to overcome is the lack of time for doing all I want and the route to follow: what city will be next?

Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Time goes quickly, we all know it but it's even more true when times are good. Time doesn't care for me now, but the Russian visa got on my passport seems there just to remind me I must move soon to the next step. I feel it a shame 'cause here in Plovdiv I'm having great times. The old town is simply amazing with its thick net of cobblestone streets heading to the top of the hill for a suggestive view of the city. Even the hostel I'm in ain't a real hostel but a private stay with a family charme: my room has plenty of Bulgarian books, an hi-fi and family portraits which remind me I'm just a stupid tourist here. By the way, I'm enjoying every day more and more the easy-going Bulgarian culture as they're extremely helpful and kind. At the hostel I've met a couple of Italians travelling by bicycle from Trieste to Istanbul, Plovdiv is one of their last stages, and we got out to eat at the centre: words aren't enough to describe how delicious that food was! Food here is extremely genuine and natural as the main ingredients are vegetables and meat, but mainly tomatoes, cucumbers and cheese: all the colours of Bulgarian flag!
I've also visited the town of Bachkovo with its pretty orthodox monastery, unfortunately no photos allowed there!

Sofia, Bulgaria

I left two days ago an empty, grey and sad Milan, to find a sunny, lively, vibrant Bulgaria today. I arrived yesterday morning to Sofia, after a comfortable bus ride across Slovenja, Croatia and Serbia. Bulgarians are the award winners for their hospitality and kindness: my first contact with Bulgarians has been on the bus where I've met very nice people. Ivelina, from Varna, has told me almost everything about their culture and traditions, so I now have a compass to get into the "real" Bulgaria with no chance to miss anything! Sofia, the capital city, is a vibrant cosmopolitan metropolis with open-air restaurants spreaded almost everywhere, great food and beer starting from 0,7 cents per pint... well, sorry for the few words of this post, but the last sentence above is the reason why I have no time for writing!

Venice, Italy

Venice is unique, in its contrasts too. Even if the incredible number of visitors from all over the world make Venice more similar to a tourist playground than a real city, walking through the Venetian remains is always a symphony for the eyes and spirit. I am convinced now that Venice is the emblem of city for dreamers built by dreamers, the land of the sophisticated undecided, the place for those than between land and sea, between reality and illusion, have chosen the limbo of the lagoon. A lagoon nowadays theater of dreams for all the visitors who reaches Venice with the hope of being actors in its tale, even just for a few hours.
By the way, I've just find out that the brand new 55-200mm lens I've bought for this journey - which was perfectly working either at the shop as for the following tests - now has lost its inner calibration, in other words, it's completely unusable...
First day of travel and one lens already gone: good start.

Bags packed and ready to go

Some months ago, when moved back from Rome, I had an unexpected source of profit by reviewing, for a traveller's guide, the service areas of the whole Italian motorway network. The most logical destination for those money earned travelling is financing a brand new travel, I thought. No sooner said than done, here I am! Everything's ready to go now: I've got the visas, the tickets, and a huge backpack filled with the essential stuff. Tomorrow morning I catch a train from Milano to Venice, then, in the afternoon, I'll get a bus which slowly lead me, in 20 hours, to Sofia, Bulgaria.

"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost."
...and that is precisely what I plan to do: wander.

Li(f)e

Seems pretty strange to me, quite surprising, definitely anachronistic to be here once more blogging about a newcoming travel. Five years later after the glorious trip I did from Alaska to Mexico, I'm on the road again. Seems anachronistic because years have passed, things have changed, friends came and gone, but the road's still there to play its irresistible charme on me. Cannot ignore its call. Seems strange because just few months ago I had well different plans than those travel ones. Life is strange, the only thing which never changes is the changing itself. Anyway, it's well known the more you give to life the less you receive, you need to know it deeply for loving it and, sometimes, to avoid it.
Life's a journey, not a goal. Enjoy the ride!

My Odyssey

"...Non vogliate negar l'esperienza
di retro al sol, del mondo sanza gente.
Considerate la vostra semenza
fatti non foste a viver come bruti
ma per seguir virtute e conoscenza"

In Dante's Divine Comedy, that's what Ulysses - the hero of Homer's Odyssey - says to his friends before leaving. Those verses mean something like "we were not made to live like brutes but to follow virtues and knowledge". Useless saying I agree. The figure of Ulysses is the symbol of the pursuit of knowledge, one who tirelessly search for new ways and move constantly the targets of that unstoppable and metaphorical journey to what which is still unknown. Despite that, Dante placed Ulysses in hell: he thought that virtues and knowledge can only be put into practice by the divine law and the recognition of human limits.
Like Ulysses, I'm gonna leave for an epic travel, the biggest adventure of my life.
Like Ulysses, maybe I'll be designated to hell as well.
No previews, stay tuned.