Though not as harrowing as the bus ride from Helsinki to Moscow back in July, this road trip had its share of strange adventures on long, almost painful stretches of sleepness and mild nausea. Again, there were snacks and drinks on the bus, but a favorite memory is standing on the side of the road, eating a big mac (and feeling thankful), fries, and chasing them with a tall boy russian beer, while armed Russian guards and truck drivers looked on. About midnight--after we had watched the movie, Gladiator, on the bus, the Russians' car broke down. They attempted to repair it by replacing a broken belt, but they had no luck. We stopped at a truck stop I had visited on my trip traveling the other direction, so it was interesting to see again a place I thought I would never see again.
The darkness of autumn also helped, as dusk fell around 8pm. It remained dark until 6am or so (instead of a summer night lasting from 11pm-4am). That helped with getting a little more sleep, but the bumps and the uncomfortable bus seats made for a difficult night. Oh well. We made it. And though it rained the whole trip, we were greeted by sunny skies and brilliant sunshine when we arrived in Finland. Some of the longest stretches of the trip were the passage through the border and customs, and the last few hours' drive into Helsinki.
Had a nice Finnish dinner with the other couriers--sweet potato soup, and a char-grilled whitefish in "cajun" sauce. Pretty tasty. A couple of us finished the evening in fine style: with a shot of ice cold Aquavit. Very nice. Here are a few pictures of the weary travelers. I'll include a few pics from the road in a subsequent post.
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