All of the biggest technological inventions created by man - the airplane, the automobile, the computer - says little about his intelligence, but speaks volumes about his laziness. ~Mark KennedySochi, we've decided, will be our entry point for Russia. After suffering the heatwave over Easter here in England, (I knew things were hotting up when the snow turned to sleet) we thought we deserved more and picked a route through Greece and Turkey, following the coast of the Black Sea to Trabzon. From there a relaxing 12hr ferry crossing to the spectacular location of Sochi on the coast of the Black Sea and at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains in southern Russia. The International Olympic Committee has designated Sochi as the host city of the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Thanks to this decision, Russia will host its first ever Winter Games, so I'm hoping it's not going to look like a building site when we arrive!
Originally, we had planned to ride north crossing Bulgaria and Romania, as I wanted to visit Bran Castle high in the Carpathian mountains. This is a former residence of Prince Vlad Tepes The Impaler, or Dracula to you and me. But as Geoff is, let's say 'chronologically gifted,' he requested a more southerly route across warmer climes. I had to agree. Although this means we will bypass Georgia, a ferry will at least give us a break from riding and a chance to relax before we take the plunge into Russia. Knowing my luck the ferry will take the plunge into the depths of the Black Sea...ah well in for a penny. (I wonder if that's the name of Rod Stewart's house?)
The ferries across the black sea are a cause for some trepidation, after reading that many of them have been hijacked. But then, we were riding across Georgia around the coast to avoid Chechnya anyway, so either way Sochi was a definite destination. If you believe all that you read, you would think we were motorcycling around the world, when really we will be soaking up the sun in Miami for six months....(did I type that out loud?)
Despite Geoff's favoured pretence at being Tarzan of the concrete jungle, he convinced me to purchase a sat-nav, if only as an excuse for him to unleash his pent up torrent of abuse, usually savoured by fellow technologically advanced citizens of London, blissfully unaware of his suffering at the hands of someones obvious topographical errors on his well worn map. So, I'm now the proud owner of a Garmin Zumo 550, the self proclaimed 'Daddy' of motorcycle sat-navs. It has full coverage of every European country, so at least it will know exactly where we are, but I'm still going to use a map as well until it earns it's trust. Never put all your eggs in one motorcycle pannier. The Zumo can still be of use across Russia, as it has an 'off road' setting, a compass, and many other useful toys. If it helps us to get to far eastern Russia, at least I can say it got my Bering Strait.
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