- Assassination of Franz Ferdinand occurred here, commonly acknowledged as the prompting for the first world war
- 30th anniversary of their winter Olympic hosting celebrated this year
- City was under siege for three and a half years in the early to mid 90's, with video of the constant shelling broadcast around the world
"Think about, bout, bout, thinka ooo" - Rockapella
Be sure to first read the opening segment of the story of the snowblind pass before continuing here.
..he didn't think he could possibly go on and began to plot his route back out of this frigid notch.
Yet as this played through his head he eventually got back to the start where he would have to explain his failure. No, this was his only opportunity, he resolved and he could not stand to have wasted so much time only to give up and turn back. Thus he pushed on, breaking the remaining distance into small, more manageable chunks as the entire climb looked too daunting as a whole. Ever so slowly he plodded, settling upon a methodical but slow strategy to avoid his body sinking by step as it seemed to do without warning - sometimes one in 5 paces but then other times five paces in a row, only his crotch preventing him from plunging further. This method was to stomp to create a platform, pause then push off of the platform. It wasn't foolproof, as the platform could still give way and he'd end up freeing his leg only by pushing out with his frozen hands, but it seemed to reduce the frequency of this. Surely he made progress to the next junction and the clouds even parted to briefly warm his head and light the path of previous snowslides that had petered out in the valley around him.
Judging to be approximately halfway up the snowy pass, although this could not be verified for the very top was still obscured from view (and he retained blind faith that it would be passable) Indy stopped for lunch. As if destined the sun also showed itself for the first sustained time since base level. As he munched his outlook grew cheerier and though there was still plenty of snow to cover he began to think he might just be able to do it. Then he heard it - a rumble that seemed to be all around him. Searching the cliff tops nearby he vainly attempted to identify the source but all looked still. Just to his side a few snowballs rolled down serenely, no doubt loosened by the warmth of the persistent sun but definitely not creating that gut-tightening noise. With a sick feeling he turned to look at the cliffs directly above where he was sat, wary that a rush of snow could be hurtling toward him from an unidentified source, ready to wash him from his perch and down the rocky edge he'd carefully climbed to get there. It was beyond the top and from behind a cloud that the source finally presented itself as a jet plane cruised overhead. With a sigh of relief he packed his lunch and began moving on again.
The film version of this adventure would show a montage of young Indiana toiling in the white, slipping repeatedly and stopping often to catch his breath and survey his ever-slowing progress. Not until practically to the end of the visible route up did the top present itself and though it looked reasonable what lay beyond was anybody's guess. The final metres took ages with dead tired, frozen legs lifting sopping wet boots methodically one after the other. Finally he reached what looked to be a massive snow drift and when he stood upon it and peered into the unknown he went snow blind. All he could see was grey and all he could think as the minutes passed was how it had taken him nearly seven hours to reach this point and now there was no going forward and no going back.
Still stood at the summit in an instant the foggy cloud that has encompassed him passed to reveal a glorious scene. As far as the eye could see the the snow spread away down a narrowing chute, and to Indiana's supreme pleasure it was at a degree he could manage on foot. Taking it all in only long enough to compose a plan of attack, attack he did! The sun had come out to play and so had he so his quick steps soon became step and leap, and step and leap. This would last until a leg got trapped in the snow behind him leaving him awkwardly splayed in snowy splits with a dumb grin on his face. This was well and good until both legs were momentarily trapped before letting go sending him hurtling forward where he managed to turn his back just before impact to skid on his shoulders and pack. A minute later though he let his guard down and the same happened without the turn resulting in an ice pellet face plant.
As the pitch and the composition of snow changed so did his approach. A cross country ski style resulted in something like stunted skiing, while a tuck such that he was nearly seated on his heels almost worked as a slide. What did work on the properly packed spots was succumbing to the inevitability that he would be fully soaked and sitting with his legs rigid straight out in front of him. If he caught it right these served remarkably well as a toboggan where he would gather speed until he slammed into an accumulated snow boulder from a previous snowslide, or his sore leg muscles cramped and he could no longer retain rigidity. Actually there was one other instance where he bailed from a slide, this was after a very long distance indeed when he noticed the snow around him accumulating and could not see what was to come over the next hump. It was reminiscent of the boulder landslide in the Zoodochos Pigi adventure as he dug his heels in to pull up just in time to watch as the snow around him plummeted over the edge.
Progress, he noted with delight, was significantly better than climbing up the other side, naturally. As the sun continued to shine he continued plodding downwards, sliding wherever possible. Eventually the snow thinned and rocks began to show through again until finally it was no more. On a rock in the mostly dry mountain stream bed he seated himself to soak in the rays to his soaking garments and eat what remained of his snacks. It was during this break that he made two significant discoveries. The first was that he was way off course, nowhere near actually. The second was that everything in his pack was drenched. With his only clean undergarments dangling off him to dry, he carried on a mostly unmentionable route carefully lowering himself down the crumbly and slick when wet (most everywhere) limestone riverbed. When he deemed it appropriate Indy cut into the mossy forest which eventually let out into a glorious meadow on the other side. The only activity of interest between the sun disappearing beyond the next mountain ridge (but before actual sunset) and when he arrived at his prize was nearly stepping upon a coiled venomous snake. Indiana hates snakes.
The first worldwide law should ban unsigned, 100+ stair alleys that end at a locked private gate
I know some of you must be asking yourselves "Is Stefan always this funny?" Of course not! Spends all day composing and still can't get a laugh or keep it under 140 chars
Katherine (@sisterkate),
I've got a confession. Remember those Christmas mornings when I told you I was just going to the washroom? I was totally going to sneak a look at the freshly gift-laden tree. Well I've gone ahead and snuck a glimpse of Dubrovnik too. I could hardly help it! It was on the way! It was just one night! Anyhow not to worry, I didn't actually open anything but I have gotten a lay of the land and scoped some nice restaurants. Besides the place is utterly gorgeous and I'll happily return to properly explore it with you. See you in, what?, only two weeks? Can Not Wait!
-Stefan
PS Nobody won the WITWISA prize of a trip to anywhere in the world with Stefan Andrushenko. Dubrovnik was the answer.
First I'll stand sexily beside this ugly statue I haven't even read the inscription of. Your turn! Pass me the camera phone.
Tell Me!
Your old favourite is back with a brand new version! Now you too can play along at home with this simple online travel log. StefanSpies.blogspot.com
If you can differentiate Istanbul from Constantinople on a map then this blog is for you.
"Sing it a cappella!"
Meet Macedonia
- Small, landlocked Balkan country
- Divided and conquered a mind boggling number of times
- Has had three flags in recent history most recently the flashy red and yellow sun
Cuisine: Cheap. I actually only had one real meal which was nice enough grilled vegetables and the rest was salad - like Greek but the cheese grated. Local beer was also basic lagers but dark lagers could be found (still on the cheap $2-3/0.5l)
Stray Dog rating out of 5: A couple were making a huge racket in a fight one evening on the street near the restaurants but otherwise barely noticed - 1.5 chiens.
Sidewalk Safety: Where sidewalks existed relatively safe, otherwise watch out for cars.
Rambling Impressions: Hard to get a true impression from 3 nights in 2 cities but here's what I saw. The country has gorgeous mountains and chasms requiring tunnels for highways often. The capital city, Skopje, has a ridiculous amount of stuff. Sure, most of it is just statues and bridges and things but there are also an inordinate amount of modern museums as well as a couple ruins. I, of course, visited on a Monday when everything was closed and only got to enter Mother Teresa memorial (born here) and the Museum of the Struggle by the People of Macedonia (and struggle they have - amazing the country even exists now). Lake Ohrid is supposed to be wonderful but in the wet snow it looked pretty but that's all. People seemed indifferent for the most part with only some English spoken although a few that I had some further interaction with were kind.
If these full day hikes are to continue I'm going to need to punch another hole in my belt cuz there's no way I can consume any more pastry or beer.
As arranged, his driver met him before there was even time to break fast. The transfer went without a hitch, even with the driver consumed in conversation while manoeuvring around gravelly hairpin corners with doomed drops a mere sneeze away. A puttering motor boat was waiting at the prescribed location and Indy jumped aboard without hesitation. For three hours they navigated the narrows with mammoth mountains, vibrant green in colour due to their spring budding trees, shooting straight up on either side of the highlighter blue waters. At the end of the lake both Indy and driver loaded into a clumsy orange vehicle to the nearest town centre. Further still was the departure point for his latest treasure hunt and following a confrontation with a spy wishing to cut himself a large slice of the spoils in exchange for a lift to the map's beginning, he struck a much fairer deal with a friendly native.
When he finally arrived and began asking about his destination all of the locals became grim which Indy found perplexing. When pressed they would say "the path is closed due to snow" but to his Canadian brain those two phrases cancelled each other out as if they had said nothing and he continued to stare at them expectantly. Finally he found a quiet but well-informed man from the area who, with furtive glances around, retrieved a tattered old map and pointed out the way all the while emphasising the potential follies and warning that even he was not comfortable traversing it in these snowy conditions. Indiana thanked the man who continued to express doubt as they parted. With all of this information to digest he supped and studied the vague map with great intrigue, willing more details to appear, before retiring early.
Cracking at dawn he ate heartily to store energy for the trek to come. Over breakfast an elder related that only a local with a dying grandmother on the other side would attempt what he was about to attempt which somehow buoyed his spirits, interpreting that it was possible! With this in mind he set off with a mixture of excitement and dread. Early into his journey he discovered he was without his ever-important hat and sprinted across field and yard to retrieve it and be back on his way. Fortunately a rival treasure hunter passed and happened to be headed in the same direction on a different journey so they struck a truce and Indy received a short lift to the wooden bridge. This evened out the lost time for the hat - time that, although it was early now he worried may prove to be of utmost importance on the other end of his journey.
An hour more passed hiking down the marked path until it ended abruptly. This had been anticipated but none of the reconnaissance had instructed him which of the endless options to follow next. He traipsed the hillsides next to the barren river bed but could not ascertain a marker and peering up at the gigantic peaks looming over him did not offer any further indication as to how he was supposed to traverse them to the other side. Doubt crept into his mind; if he couldn't even find the start of the trail how was he supposed to complete such an arduous and demanding trek? Each time he tripped, slipped or met another dead end his confidence diminished.
Verging on despair he sat atop a rock to study his map and then recalled a shoddy map he had received prior. There was one key difference, for this one showed a minor trail running alongside the river. Cutting down toward it he did indeed find a track which he followed for some time with a touch of hope. When he did finally spot a marking he had been expecting he nearly leapt with joy and relief. This track carried on for some time until it reached the beginning of the climb, presumably all the way over the kilometre vertical rise and down the other side.
While donning his invisible shielding he peered up in the direction of a noise like a jet engine and watched as snow gathered itself and launched unabashedly over cliff's edge and down the mountainside. Into the forest he began, at first along upward paths like he'd taken nearly every day in preparation for this journey. This was sweat inducing work, so much so that his wristwatch fogged with the effort. In short time patches of snow presented themselves on the route and he cutely sidestepped them in an effort to keep his feet dry. This quickly proved fruitless as the snow overwhelmed and there was no way but through it, yet he was careful to brush the snow out of the tongue of his boot each time his foot slipped deeper than his ankle. Gathering a hiking stick for balance he eventually found himself in a deep snow covered field with coniferous trees on the edges but any of the paths or markings that might guide him were all blanketed. Trudging up to his lower shins now after a short time he spied a landmark from his gathered information however it was well off and up toward a seemingly impenetrable mountain peak. Seeing no other option he moved towards it until along the way another landmark pushed him in an opposing direction which seemed more feasible and he followed that with the snow getting noticeably deeper. Utilising his stick he would dig it in and then step carefully but even still his foot would sink knee deep from time to time.
As he emerged from the woods the real mountain pass presented itself in all its terror before him. Truthfully it wasn't all of its terror for although the steep, snowy way up was foreboding the true summit could not yet be seen around a cliff.
He set forth to cross the first field and found it outrageously demanding work. Often his foot would sink too deep into the snow to step off from, even sliding right down to his hip without ever touching bottom on increasingly frequent occasion. By the time he reached the other side of field one his walking stick had sunk right to his red hand a number of times and he was out of breath which was especially troubling when considering how little progress he had made. Being at the edge of the pass and the foot of a rocky cliff he decided on an attempt to climb rather than hike in the deep snow. Hucking his stick aside he preferred to use the familiar branches of the noble pine trees which he knew due to their flexibility would only bend but not break, even under the full weight of his body. Despite pine assistance the going was slow as the rocks beneath the mounded snow were both slick and steep. After far too long he reached the end of this particular ridge and stopped both to slow his clamouring heart and survey the onward journey. A cold wind swept down behind him, for the sweat of the forest had long since frozen, and made the already bleak outlook only that much worse. He had traversed a seemingly negligible portion to the top, a less steep portion, he noted dourly. With so much of him already spent he couldn't possibly go on and began to plot his route back out of this frigid notch.
Meet the man I've entrusted my life to
- Refuses to drive into town from the "main road" to pick me up in the rain (after a ten minute standoff and much yelling in Albanian by my hosts he cracks)
- Negotiates hair pin turns on loose boulders at 1000m up in the mountains with no curb and centimetres to spare with apparent ease, and speed
- Answers and dials mobile calls at any time, regardless of where he's driving, noticeably taking his eyes off the road for extended periods
- Stalled once
- Stops for "coffee", drinks beer plus one for the road sending the empty bottle out the window
[Official drink driving law in Albania none, 0% blood alcohol]
- Verbally abuses and sneers at oncoming man who can't seem to get himself out of our way (funny that, on an extremely narrow one way mountain path)
- Honks incessantly at construction vehicle drivers and continually bears down on them until they give us room to pass, practically touching
- Pretends to put on seatbelt only upon reaching city limits
Today I heard an incredibly loud sneeze from a block and a half away, "Ah-Hooh!" and again, "Ah-Hooh!" I turned towards the sound, "Dad?"
That juvenile 'happy' song is used to sell juice in Albania, where few speak English. 'Happy?/Know it?/Clap Hands!' #ImissNERD #WhatHappenedToTheNeptunes? @jonkit
Fun fact - in many countries even if you withdraw a solid round number the bank machine will break the last big bill and give you an assortment of smaller notes. Everyone appreciates that.
Requested 37,500 lek. ATM whirred for a full minute, spit out 37 X 1000 + 1 X 500 bills. (Shh, don't tell the Albanian muggers) That's the equivalent of $400 in tens. My billfold is refusing to live up to its name.
Since deciding to sleep in this morning and skip the sure-thing bus I have:
- Choked down a Turkish coffee I couldn't refuse with a Macedonian woman. The taste was quashed by the sugar-covered pink jelly sweet, two granola bars offered and the handful of sucking candies dropped into my bag despite my protest
- Drank a nice tea with honey and lemon alone with her travel agent son in the next town who first mocked my plan and then ended up suggesting basically the exact same one
- Plan immediately fell apart when the bus had left an hour before the time posted
- Declined a lady of the night (at noon) offered by her girlfriend(/pimp?) communicated by a sideways nod at her and then rubbing both index fingers together horizontally
- Bought a pizza bun for my cab driver (actually two once I broke mine open to find unidentified meat). This must have prompted him to try and bribe the Albanian border guard with a hundo ($2.5 CAD) so he could drop me at the first town 3km in, instead of right at the border. Then he asked for nearly triple the original price but I dumped all the denar I had in his hand (10% tip), claiming I had no Euro and he smiled and didn't hold it against me
- Had a man buy me what I thought was a tea that turned out to be a sweet cider (made especially sweet by the whole sugar packed I'd already added) and then he rhymed off his English words; door, window, table, car, bus!
- A mini bus driver with no English shared his favourite hip hop with me, French, English and even Albanian. Then when he finally understood my end destination flagged down another mini bus (while on the road!) and transferred me without payment for I had no Lek yet
- Stopped at a random roadside police check but didn't have to exit the van
- Dumped at intersection, still no lek, excused from fare. Told by next driver there is no direct bus to my destination. As he puts my bag in his storage a bus clearly emblazoned with my destination pulls up. Me and the kid stuff my bag into its trunk and dive into the door of the moving vehicle as it pulls away. Euro exchanged for Lek, $3 CAD/35km
- Caffeine crash on final packed mini bus (my normal consumption is a cola once every couple months)
- Arrived!
Meet the Bay of Bones
- On Lake Ohrid, Macedonia, supremely deep
- Dated XII - VII C. BC
- 2.5 - 5 m above the water
- Trap door in each family's dwelling to allow dropping of basket into water to fill itself with fish, they were that abundant
- Children tied around ankle to prevent drowning
Quote myself from this morning, "I've stopped checking the weather, it's always fine."
Macedonia, what is with this frisky business? Nude Greek beaches I can understand despite the cool water but.. Yesterday in the grass behind a knoll before the fortress was a display that was not quite a striptease but very intimate indeed. (I was on top of the fortress wall, obviously.) Then today I round the corner about an hour deep on a cliff side single track hiking trail only to see a big ol' naked butt. Rapping on the rail I yell out a warning and proceed to take a couple pictures of the canyon (no, not his canyon) while he zips. I gave him a simple nod as I passed - an ordinary middle aged couple (or man and mistress?) getting in some outdoor nookie. Not sure whether to complain or applaud.
Indy had surmised that it had been to penetrate Zoodochos Pigi, the ancient Grecian mountaintop life-giving spring temple, so he was not surprised when the alarm was raised. Surveying his surroundings there was no chance he could retrace his steps down the beaten path so he looked over the other side of the peak. Thinking fast he broke hastily for the foreboding cliff's edge in order to circumvrent the known military stronghold. With rose-coloured glasses he imagined a way along down to the coast, and carried forth into the field of stones, shrubs and greenery. These proved difficult obstacles and the progress was further impeded by the thorns of the bushes and the obscene amount of spiders in them. "At least it's not snakes," he grimaced after wiping the umpteenth web from his face. Prospects did not improve around the corner as the underbrush thickened and the angle of the cliff grew more acute. He found himself wobbling at the edge of the precipice time and again just managing to reel in his momentum and plot the next few metres. The going was so tough that the route needed altering nearly constantly. Impossibly far below him was the sea and his awaiting onward voyage under strict instruction to leave in less than an hour, with or without him. Bushes morphed into trees with brittle yet strong pointed branches stubbornly growing tangled, close to the ground. Worse yet the drops were becoming ever more steep and required both hands and feet to stay upright until finally Indiana was faced with a vertical climb. He originally dismissed it as impassible but having peered all around deemed it the only choice. So difficult was it that he dared not attempt the traverse with his precious cargo pack to disrupt his balance. After careful consideration he hucked it straight down the ledge where it thwacked into a tree with a sickening series of cracks. Moments later he set about doing his best not to follow suit. With his literal back against the wall he carefully considered each hold, each step. Painstakingly slowly with surviving outweighing catching the boat he lowered himself from rock to rock. Arriving to his bag he couldn't help but utter "nice catch" as he disentangled the straps. One cliff face down but he was still dangerously close to the edge and the undergrowth unrelenting, now with vicious, gnarly, thorned vines ripping at his clothes. A glance at his watch coincided the first drops of rain and he allowed the water to lubricate his passage as he increased the pace. That is until a new near-vertical drop presented itself as the only means out. He glanced back but knew going up was out of the question and struggled to push the thought of being stuck on this exposure out of his head. He had to focus on the task at hand and negotiate the crumbling cliff face. Only having lowered himself partway down this new climb, in a precarious position, did he appreciate just how damning the rain was on these slick rocks. Having just utilised a foothold he noticed a crack in the large boulder and with terrifying ease broke it free from the cliff into free fall. The length of time that it could be heard crashing through everything in its path as it fell further and further was alarming. Somehow he avoided that fate and allowed himself just a moment's glance back at what he'd traversed. But forward he must go! Thrashing through the bushes now he no longer noticed the tearing at his clothes, the water in his eyes or the blood trickling from his hands - for those sharp bushes that had disgruntled him at the start of the descent now provided handfuls of thorny leaves to brace himself from falling. Yet fall he did, countless times, as boulders rolled, branches broke or feet slipped but never was it a fall he couldn't recover from with his mind firmly locked on its goal now.
Breaking free from the bushes a new challenge presented itself - a valley of loose rocks and boulders running quickly down and away. With trepidation he took the first few steps slowly but as the rocks slid and rolled out from beneath his feet he had no choice but to carry himself along as best he could in the mini landslides he was creating. If not for the fear of having a foot crushed or ankle snapped he may have found this to be a fun experience. It was, he noted grimly, the best progress he had made all trek. After a few hundred metres of this he pulled up as the rocks in front of him rolled over yet another cliff. "Not out of the woods yet," he thought - and not for the first time that day. This drop was no easier than the previous ones and with no less dire consequences for a mistake so he summoned his strength, not wanting to lose focus now having come so far with a glimmer of hope just below. At the foot of this he exalted and ripped through the last long wall of bush that no longer phased him and in minutes he was free. Reviewing his path down the mountain looming over him he couldn't believe it but somehow he was on a relatively flat dirt path running shortly to the sea. With no time to lose he covered this distance and in the rain he stripped his outer gear and dove into the cold Aegean sea just in time to catch his connection out of there.
Alright Greece, Turkey, it has been a blast but I think I'm ruined for awhile. Love the history but reached the saturation point. What do you have to offer Macedonia?
Dear Athens, with all the graffiti can at least some of it be goods?
[New Indy adventure coming soon!]
Meet Albert
- Proud Australian, lives on 100 hectares just outside of Melbourne
- Arms dealer, sells antique guns but primarily restores WWII era duck amphibious vehicles
- Not in the phone book
- Married, no kids, both him and his wife love to travel albeit separately
- Excellent knowledge of history, especially battles and wars
- Embarking on a 120 day Drago tour from Turkey via Georgia and Azerbaijan through to Mongolia in an oversized 4X4 with plenty of engaging activities on the way
- See you in Melbourne, Albert!
First they incapacitate your arms and make it such that with any movement you will choke yourself. Next they intimidate by waving blades dangerously close to your head. Perhaps the most terrifying is the flaming coil, lit and touched to your ears and face. Speaking of face, it is stuffed into a sink and burning liquid rubbed aggressively into it. The blades return targeting the eyes while the ears are stuffed with cotton. It is so traumatizing I came out looking like this.
It's not the nicest beer I've drank but it is a beer I've drank. €0.85 #PreparedForHateMail
Yesterday I used a fold up map of the wrong seaside town for an embarrassing length of time
Having realised he'd killed his father and cursed his kingdom by marrying his mother, he gouged out his eyes and wandered this land of Thebes. Today I hiked it - just 'cuz
Meet Sammy
- From Guatemala
- Can (some of) speak 5 languages, none of which are Turkish
- Only 23 years old
- Began playing cello 6 years ago on a whim thanks to a free lesson on the way home from the football pitch
- Plays 0 other instruments
- Has traveled either with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas or to teach cello to Germany, 5 places in Switzerland and now Turkey
- Bashful when asked to duet pop music with a 60 year old pianist
- No hesitation to perform his preferred classical pieces for a crowd of 7, plus passersby, at a street side cafe
- Confident enough to play on request in a gorgeous water cistern cum automobile garage cum fancy restaurant lit by 200 candles and providing impeccable acoustics with its arched dome ceilings busy with diners
@sisterkate start collecting thumb drives and memory cards for Croatia/Italy cuz if you're anything like me you'll be filling them faster than you realise! PS #TwitterNoLongerBannedInTurkey #YoutubeNext?
They must have spotted me first because they were staring up at me when I first caught sight. I acknowledged them jovially but, being a hundred metres above them on the precipice of the cliff, that was as far as it went. However the three must have followed along from below since as I gradually meandered down into the valley there they were at the base of the trail. Without any English we greeted each other as best we could and I carried on with my hike while the funny part was that they followed. Actually I'm not sure who was guiding who. I would head off in a direction and they'd end up not far behind. Then I'd pause for a photo and they'd be up ahead on the path. Since we couldn't communicate vocally I just observed and found it funny that they were the quintessential cartoon crew. First you had the young, strong hero with his muscular build and quiet confidence. The wise elder had long whiskers and moved slowly, just watching most frequently. Finally there was the goof, always playing a joke or bounding ahead. I never did figure out whether it was just out of curiosity or companionship that they stuck with me but for well over an hour, even as I'd clamber up into a cliffside cave and disappear for 15 minutes, they would appear nearby upon my return. Finally I reached my destination, the open air museum, but was separated from it by a deep valley. Eventually I found a barely passable route down but it proved even too steep for these obviously well-trodden veterans. As I began my descent I whistled a goodbye and they wagged their tails and padded off.
These guardians may also seem familiar to the ravenous readers who recall the Indiana Andrushenko Escapade. First there was the man who spoke not a word of English yet pulled over to pick me up soon after I'd stubbornly refused a taxi and set off walking. Insisting there would be no charge he drove me over two kilometres of hot, dry, boring road that would have wasted energy needed later in the day. Leaving me all smiles in the village I just so happened to meet the excellent English speaking woman from St. Petersburg who began describing the complicated route just to the start of the hiking path before giving up and asking very apologetically if I could hold on while she completed her errands. My alternatives were to look for another friendly English speaker with intimate knowledge of the trail to the cave in this village of 85 people, head into the wilderness without a map never to be seen again, give up and double back, sit in the dust and pout. Of course I could wait! Mere minutes later she rejoined me and again began describing the route as we walked and once we cornered she pointed and noting my seemingly permanent perplexion smiled and said "come on" and carried on well past her destination to baby me onto the trail. Hours later down this very same trail I would meet a young couple who often went romping in this area. Again the explanations without a map were not going well, especially now with 6 hours of first hand knowledge as to how easy it was to just hike and hike so they asked me to join them even sharing their lemonade in exchange for my crumby biscuits. Then they not only walked me back to the road and drove me miles back to civilisation but went out of their way to pass by the cave so I could recognise it but also went off-roading to indicate the shortcut to me. "To think a Canadian boy in the mountains of Ukraine in the winter!" they each exclaimed in their own way, bless them all.
I like to think it's my approachable appearance, winning smile and charming demeanour, though others might argue it's the clueless look, shit-eating grin or pitiable situations I put myself in, but either way I have been the recipient of a great deal of good-will during my travels. Whether put there of my own volition or by unforseen circumstances I have seen my fair share of unenviable positions and have many times been assisted out of these holes by strangers. Simply from the goodness of their hearts they have seen a fellow human in need and done what they can to set me on the right path. In recognition of these wonderful godsends I am launching the guardian series. This will give you a chance to marvel at my stupidity and then feel some of the warmth that I felt due to their actions. It also is my simple way of saying thanks to them, and while I'm at it, the universe.
