Impressions from Jekaterinburg

 

The hostel in Jekaterinburg... It looked like as someone took the grandmas flat and put some bunk bed in and defined it afterwards as a hostel. It was very amazing... Especially when you come there at 2 o'clock in the night.

Here the hostel or better grandma's kitchen

Jekaterinburg is quite a boring Russian city. There were not many interesting things besides some colorful stone cows. ;-) 

 But we are very far away from home. By the way it is an absolute different feeling to travel with the train than flying to some place as you have a complete other feeling about the distances. 

 

Russians are crazy about German beer and also Oktoberfest...

 

In a supermarket in Jekaterinburg... Bloodyunbelieveable!

 

On our second day in Jekaterinburg we made an 80km trip together with our couchsufing host Alexander and his friend Diana to a village called Byn'gi to visit Stefan a German guy. On the way we had a short stop at Nev'yansk where they build up a crooked church similar to the Pisa tower.

 

Joram, our couch surfing host Alex and Diana at Byn'gi

A typical lane in an typical Russian village. It's like if you are in another time! The lanes are not tarred and have a lot of gigantic potholes. A lot of animals like chicken, goose and geese are running on the street and nearly all houses are wood houses.

 Just another impression of the rural Russian life.

 Here the house of the German guy Stefan... Very cozy from outside and also from inside

 The houses in this street had no flowing water. You have to get your water at a well!!! This is not a choke!!!

 This was inside of Stefan´s house... It was somehow very different. We are sitting there somewhere in the nowhere, meeting a German guy, his Russian wife Olga served a very good coffee, we ate some very tasty sweets from the village bakery, another German guy with his wife came, a Russian translator also came, we were talking about satellite drives and xenon gas... Yes Xenon gas! Stefan has a company that sells Xenon gas that is produced near to Jekaterinburg to German satellite companys like Astrium or OHB! Furthermore Stefan hosts tourists in gers (nomadic tent) in his garden, helps children with leukemia, breeds goose together with his neighbor, was ten times in the Russian TV, etc., etc. etc. All in all an absolute amazing guy.  

 On the right side is Stefan. 

 Eva and Diana posing in funny skirts. All women had to wear those skirts as we visited a monastery on the way back to Jekaterinburg. 

 The two Himmelhunde... And what is also important: Always make some Gampertbräu advertisment! ;-)