http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Europe , Russia , South , Sochi en-us Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:26:17 UTC Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:26:17 UTC In keeping with what has become an annual tradition I decided to go skiing over MLK weekend which is also my birthday weekend. I got the idea when Freddie was looking for cross country ski pants and I threw out the idea to Leo andor Freddie about downhill skiing. Neither had downhill skiied but both were interested. The other barrier we ran into they have not served in the army yet so th http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-233950.html Yes I know I'm a day early but I don't know if I'm going to update tomorrow. So remember Guy Fawkes tomorrow. And since I'm writing from the world of political repression celebrate dissidents though let's not kill anyone ok friends Ok happy subjects. I'm in Sochi and it's warm and pretty and I'm wearing flip flops. Basically it's fantastic compared to life in Peter or Moscow. It wasn' http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-216790.html The beaches along greater Sochi hellipare the rocky kind hellipnot sand ..not pebbles ..but rocks ..3 times bigger than the ballast found on the roof of a city apartment building...Somehow the natives can tough it out hellipbut the foreigner ..suffers hellipin fact you can tell who is who by what happens the second they step onto the beachhead ..The natives ..stay focused on the chosen spo http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-171537.html Here are some of the things I learned on my first trip to Sochi ..last year in September of 2006 hellipSochi is actually ldquoGreater Sochirdquo hellipfor in the early 1960srsquo ..3 towns ..were added to Sochi to make ldquoGreater Sochi helliprdquoKhosta Adler Lazarevskoye were added hellipI mention this hellipso that when you are booking a hotel in the center of Sochi hel http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-170745.html Minus 13 and counting ..Well hellipI donrsquot know how much of a secret it is hellipas according to the Russian bid documents hellipmost Russians are solidly behind the Sochi efforts ..It is the kind of numbers that usually a country only goes to war withAlthough some of the Russian I speak with ..say ..rdquoOK hellipbut only the privileged few will benefit hellipthere will be noth http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-168148.html Getting a Visa for Russia in Washington DC seems to be getting easier ...and not because this is the diplomatic center of much of the world ..or for any other reason than there are now dozens of pocket agencies ...minute ...one person operations ...easily providinghellip any and all services necessary ..including passport photographs and letters of invitations.. one stop ...one price ...one http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-166820.html Dag to hos Leonid sto vi opp tidlig av to grunner for det frste har temperaturen litt utp dagen dratt seg opp p et niv der nordmenn har mer lyst til finne et sted i skyggen og fortrenge en hver tanke p fysisk aktivitet. For det andre hadde vi et lnnlig hp om rekke ferja fra Sotsji helt sr p den russiske Svartehavskysten til Trabzon i Tyrkia. Det er her at reiseruta v http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Russia/South/Sochi/blog-158452.html