A beautiful city on the Volga river
Mileage
| Date | – | 8/25/2019 |
| Travel From | – | Vladimir, Russia |
| Intermediate Location | – | |
| Ending Location | – | Nizhniy Novgorod |
| Starting Odometer | – | 29,920 |
| Ending Odometer | – | 30,116 |
| Miles Driven Today | – | 196 Miles |
| Total Trip Mileage | – | 5573 Miles |
| Countries visited Today | – | |
| Countries visited on trip | US, Canada, UK, The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Finland, Estonia, Russia |
Today’s ride of nearly 200 miles was run over mostly windy roads, in Rural Russia, but we passed through a few larger cities, before finally arriving in Nizhniy Novgorod. I’ve now completed 46 of the 110 riding days of my tour, and likely have about 10,000 miles to go.
The Hotel
The hotel is part of a complex, which is called the Russian Village. it contains about 6 or so buildings, most of which accommodate guests, but some which are for other purposes, such as night clubs, etc. In the middle of all of this is a small pond, which has a swan, ducks, and some fish. It was certainly a nice way to start the morning by visiting the pond.
Departure
We left the hotel in Vladimir at 9:00 AM, and began a journey that took us on roads that were mostly perfect motorcycling roads. The pavement was perfect, and with the exception of the last 30 miles, there was not really any significant traffic. That said, these last 30 miles included a traffic jam that had to be about 10 miles long.
As motorcyclists, we did what we always do in this situation, and we drove on the wrong side of the road, or split lanes when possible. It seemed that all the drivers were willing to let us in, as needed, and only a small handful put up a fight.
Infrastructure in Russia
I had recently seen a documentary where they showed the infrastructure used to distribute gas, and steam throughout many of the cities in Russia. Aw we were riding along, I spotted these above-ground pipes, which I assumed to be part of the distribution system for Natural Gas.
Today’s report from the road
Along the way
With about 50 miles to go, we stopped at a small park, where we parked the bikes, and had a chance to take some photos. This shot is a record of all of the bikes, and all of the riders mulling about. But it is Charles that continues to take great photos. He shot a few of me on the bike, and he shot a few of us as a group. I’ll post them tomorrow, once I get them from Charles.
The Kremlin in Kazan
Arriving in Nizhniy Novgorod
The Alexandrovsky Sad Hotel is represented as the AC hotel. We arrived at about 5:00 PM, and parked the bikes in yet another super-secret parking garage, secured and away from prying eyes.
The hotel is certainly not new, but it’s in good shape, and the staff are really quite nice, once you get to know them. For example, when we arrived at this hotel, we had to surrender our passports, yet again. This time, I asked for the WiFi code, and was told that I could not have the WiFi code, until my passport had been validated.
The ladies at the front desk were helpful, and provided me not only with the WiFi codes, but the spelling of all of the Russian words that I would need to look for, in order to log in successfully. We even had a laugh or two, and one of the two of them spent a month in NYC. Her experience in the Bronx was mixed, but she enjoyed visiting our country.
WiFi Filtering
I eventually got the WiFi codes, and made my way to the room, which has a great view of the Volga river. I fired up the computer, and attempted to render a video to YouTube, only to find that all “Social Media” services are suspended. So, I uploaded the videos using another method, but it’s fascinating to see the level of care that the Russians take, with respect to Social Media. I don’t really have any interest in posting social media information, and I’m only posting content for the Blog, but as an IT guy, it’s certainly interesting to see what’s going ton.
What will tomorrow bring
Tomorrow, we’ve got to ride about 250 miles to Kazan, a city with a strong multi-cultural history. Martin is working on getting us a private tour of the region, and we’re all hoping that he’s able to pull a few strings, and make it happen.
We are scheduled to leave the hotel at 8:30, and by that time, we’ll need to have breakfast, and have all of our gear in the lobby, ready to load on the bikes. In addition, we’ll need to receive the daily briefing, which is scheduled for 8:10 tomorrow morning. So, it’s time to get some rest, and get ready for tomorrow.
Cliff, looks like your having a great time! I see you’ve been having issues with internet in some places. Ever seen the product Skyroam? Maybe it would work for you. I’ll stay on top of your notes… have fun buddy.
Hey Brandon,
Yes, we’re having the occasional issue with the Internet, and with limited time, I try to solve them with the knowledge and tools that I have. I try to avoid having to add new tools and apps while on the road, because the entire connection is suspect, as is the source of the tools. But, there are occasions when I’ll need it, and I think that time has come. Maybe you’re little guy will be sitting on a motorcycle, taking videos with an American madman someday.
Cliff, the Russian portion of the trip seems very interesting. One thing I was wondering, when you spend multiple days in one city, do you have access to your bike or are they all parked in tight quarters so it is impossible to get them out on your own? Also , I was wondering how you had let some mad guy go nuts on your bike on the previous post so had a chuckle when you let in on the little white lie.
Hey Mike, generally, we always have access to the bikes, but given how they are secured in basements, and special parking, it is usually a process to get the bikes out. In addition, riding the bikes in a city like Moscow or St. Petersburg is possible, but quite a chore. So, I’ll generally take taxis, and such rather that getting the bike out.
Regarding your thoughts about the Mad Russian biker, I’m surprised that no one else has commented on it yet. But, I had intended to stir some thoughts, and then to show the kids to let all of you have a good laugh.