Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
I handed Gregory a bowlful of first-class muesli complete with sugar, sultanas
and a fresh chopped banana. A full-blooded Russian used to savoury foods for
breakfast probably would have tipped the mixture out in disgust, but Gregory was
something of a philosopher and took the bowl with an open mind. Tim and I sat
nearby, munching heartily and watching as Gregory looked into his bowl dubi-
ously. He tried a tentative spoonful and considered it for a moment before breaking
into a beaming smile. 'This really is good soup!' he said, earnestly.
All of a sudden he was dodging a spluttered mouthful of flying oats and shaking
his head uncomprehendingly. He'd caught us unprepared. I'd been in mid-mouth-
ful and Tim was halfway through swallowing. Gregory could only watch with be-
musement as we rolled around on the ground, choking and spluttering, struggling
to laugh and breathe at the same time.
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When the time came, Gregory rode off to the west, leaving us with a newfound
sense of just how comfortably we were living. We continued east, and after a few
days of cycling along dirt roads, we reached the next big city along our route. We
climbed to the top of a gradual hill, and suddenly found ourselves looking down
at the long, narrow city of Krasnojarsk, snaking along the Yenisey River valley far
below.
We left our bikes at a guarded car lot then headed to a comfortable hotel near the
city centre. Our room didn't have a shower so we washed away a fortnight's road
dust in the little basin, turning the nice white hotel towels a festering dark brown.
The next morning the cleaning lady came screaming down to the foyer and blocked
us from leaving. She flicked at us with the filthy, wet towels and yelled abuse until
the manager and a security man came to drag her away.
We spent several days in the city, going through our usual routine of getting in
touch with home, relaxing and eating lots of good fresh food. The weld in Tim's
bike frame had started to crack again, and he spent an adventurous day getting it
fixed. I spent a day unsuccessfully scouring a city of a million people searching for
much needed tyre patches.
'No one's got them,' I was told. 'The city's been out for months.'
We went to the cinema, restocked our supplies at a bustling market and then,
after three enjoyable days, wheeled our bikes onto the road and cycled happily out
of town.
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