We had a good resting time at the Azimuth hotel in Astrakhan near the Volga river, we were lucky to have a sunny day and good Russian roads to ride on and our moral was high because of it. We left Astrakhan early morning, riding through a very dry step almost desert like. Very few wild animals and even fewer villages along the road. We kept on riding straight roads to horizon to nowhere.
For the very first time we were stopped by the road police because we were a "little" over the local allowed speed limit.
We told them we were not privy of the local road rules and they got along with our explanations so much so that we got away with a small speed ticket.
We rode through Dagestan, hundreds of km in not body land, very poor, depressed area but, thanks God for it, good road,
This is a Muslim country and that is very clear because of the number of Mosques, the way the women are dressing and the "mission impossible" to find a cold beer.
At the Chechnya border we were met by fully armed, hard looking regular soldiers, patrolling the border.
We told them we were Italians and immediately and they rested at ease asking for Italian souvenirs, we got away with it giving them few Euros coins.
As soon as we cross the boarder the landscape changed dramatically, there are more trees, more intensively cultivated fields and generally speaking better built houses.
At last we arrived in Grozny and we were very surprized because there were no signs at all of the recent civil war, a lot of brand new buildings/sky scrapers and again big new mosques busy with people celebrating the Ramadan.
Kebab dinner but without beer unfortunately, hope it will be better tomorrow in Georgia though.
Tomorrow calls for getting to Tbilisi in Georgia riding over the Caucasus mountains over Yvari pass, the weather forecast for tomorrow is not good unfortunately.
Today we rode 666 km in 7 hours and our back sides are still coping good with it.
Lamps
For the very first time we were stopped by the road police because we were a "little" over the local allowed speed limit.
We told them we were not privy of the local road rules and they got along with our explanations so much so that we got away with a small speed ticket.
We rode through Dagestan, hundreds of km in not body land, very poor, depressed area but, thanks God for it, good road,
This is a Muslim country and that is very clear because of the number of Mosques, the way the women are dressing and the "mission impossible" to find a cold beer.
At the Chechnya border we were met by fully armed, hard looking regular soldiers, patrolling the border.
We told them we were Italians and immediately and they rested at ease asking for Italian souvenirs, we got away with it giving them few Euros coins.
As soon as we cross the boarder the landscape changed dramatically, there are more trees, more intensively cultivated fields and generally speaking better built houses.
At last we arrived in Grozny and we were very surprized because there were no signs at all of the recent civil war, a lot of brand new buildings/sky scrapers and again big new mosques busy with people celebrating the Ramadan.
Kebab dinner but without beer unfortunately, hope it will be better tomorrow in Georgia though.
Tomorrow calls for getting to Tbilisi in Georgia riding over the Caucasus mountains over Yvari pass, the weather forecast for tomorrow is not good unfortunately.
Today we rode 666 km in 7 hours and our back sides are still coping good with it.
Lamps
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| Leg # 2 Return : Astrakhan( Russia) - Grozny (Chechenia) |
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| The step near Astrakhan |
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| Break for lunch in Dagesthan : forget about it |
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| Curious |
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| Market on the road: Dagsthan : Fish from Caspian sea |
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| Skyscraper in Grozny |
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| Grozny : the Mosque |
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| Mosque : interior |
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| Prayer inside mosque |
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| Prayer outside the Mosque |
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| The mosque by night |
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| Grozny by night |
New Grozny : the new Opera : work in progress 
The Globlus
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| Situation under control |
6 comments:
Enjoy reading about your adventures!
Nice pictures of Groznyi,as if there was no war.
Rested assured there is still plenty of piva in Uralsk to toast the 4 Bikerteers ! Georgian beer is not bad - try the unfiltered ! Bon Chance !
Luca, did you find at least Montenegro or Amaro Lucano? )))
Commander, don't worry .
We will recover in Georgia
Amazing! Beautiful city!
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