I lit out from Ulaan Baatar with a fresh transit visa for Russia; the numerous small delays of the past month had left me with a scant few days to explore Mongolia, re-enter Russia and enter Kazakhstan. A quick taxi ride to the Russian embassy, and two days later (and US$250 lighter) I had two more weeks to head south to the Gobi, then northwest to the Olgii region...
From Ulan Ude I followed the main highway south, noticing that the rest areas and passes contain ovoos, or sacred stone cairns. A few kilometers from the Russian border town I encountered a road sign in Russian, and also another strange language. My brain churned on it for a few seconds before I realized the second language was English! It was the first non-Russian...
Monday morning I arrived at the office of Dong Chun Ferry, Ltd and right away we got to work getting the bike released from customs. I handed over several documents for copying, and was kindly given access to a computer with a fast internet connection. After about an hour, I was handed over to the tender mercies of the Top Gun Kelly McGillis lookalike Katia, who...
With the bike tied up in customs, I had the weekend to dawdle in Vladivostok, taking in the pedestrian shopping areas, seafront, and sampling my first Russian cuisine. The hotel recommended to me by the helpful Roman at Dong Chun Ferry Ltd was the Moryak, providing basic accommodations at around US$45 per night. It was a short but uphill slog from the sea terminal...
I queued up at the Sokcho International Passenger Terminal for my ferry ticket to Zarubino, Russia, sweating in my riding gear among Korean, Japanese, Russian and Chinese travelers. I planned to enter Russia at Zarubino instead of the larger port of Vladivostok after hearing horror stories about the entrenched corruption at Vladik (that’s how Russians shorten...
Heading east from Yeoju, the surroundings became more mountainous and rural. I took a butt-break at Chiak-san National Park. (Link to Korean National Parks.) The road followed a wide river, which eventually joined another near this roadside stop. The road approaching Seoraksan climbed through steep 180-degree switchbacks with granite boulders on one side and dizzying...
The beach was only a few steps from the hotel, so while the bike was in transit I passed some time walking on the beach. This was a quiet family vacation spot, with long tidal flats instead of bodacious breakers. Along the shore were small shops, ATV-rentals and restaurants where whole fish were cooked on in-table grills. On Sunday, I went to Korean Air Cargo where I...
The first few days of being without a motorcycle were OK, mostly because my backside could use a rest after the long saddle days of the previous week. But having been at the mercy of public transport, expensive taxis, and my own feet for over a week, I’m more than ready to be back on two wheels. Since the last update, I caught my long flight from Vancouver to...
After an afternoon of culling photos, updating the journal, and sink-laundry I decided to venture deeper into nearby China Town in search of dinner. I walked past the street market where the tourists were just filtering in, and within a few dozen paces noticed a marked increase in the seediness of the neighborhood. Nearly every other person on the street was an...
With the bike crated and carted away, I was free to pursue more budget-friendly lodging options, and made my way toward the hostels of Main street. Shane at Richmond Motorsports gave me a lift to the Sky Train station, and soon I was riding the elevated rails north from the industrial area of Richmond, crossing the Fraser river to the downtown area. After checking in...