13.-15.12.2008: Ulan Ude ? departure to Jakutsk
With the Amazons to the lama-school
A really hard decision had to be made today. Due to a contact of the German Embassy in Moscow ? who we would like to thank again for his dedication ? we met Slava Bulatow in Ulan Ude. He had different things prepared for us. Unfortunately these things did not work out because of the previous border-crossing which caused our timing to shift. It was absolutely necessary, though, to visit one of Russia?s most important Buddhist temples. Our reasoning: This sanctuary needs to be seen if you are visiting Buritania. The miracle of this Buddhist temple ? which, in Buritania, is called ?Datsan? ? is a sitting lama which has not aged for the last 70 years. Furthermore we were welcomed so heartily when we reached Ulan Ude that we just could not refuse this request.
The concerns which made it so difficult for us to accept this proposal spontaneously were complex: The next section to Jakutsk ? with a distance of 2,560 kilometers ? was ahead of us. We wanted to accomplish this part without stopovers ? this alone was already a big challenge for the entire team. The weather forecast for the route to Jakutsk said there would be fog, a lot of snow and temperatures down to -50 degrees Celsius ? not very good conditions for a fast accomplishment of the route. The team wanted to start early and have the whole day for driving. We were afraid that by agreeing to the suggested trip, we would loose half of the time that we are ahead of the schedule right now. All in all, the conditions to reach Magadan by December 26 are difficult enough as it is.
In the end the trip to the Buddhist monastery ?Gandan Dashi Choinkhoryg? proved to be one of the best decisions that we have made so far! We did not just get an insight into the most important Buritanian Buddhist center, but also found new friends in the Baikal-Amazons as well as Slava and his son Roman who were also on board. While some Amazons were happy to drive the 30 kilometers to the monastery in the Jeeps with Matthias and Evgeny, we enjoyed the walk in the rising sun through the area around the monastery. Each and everyone of the expedition team probably used some of the numerous praying drums on this trip to ask for the success of the expedition, an accident-free drive or similar helpful aspects. Furthermore we were informed about the history of the monastery and the lama-school. This early Sunday morning trip was definitely worth it!
Back at the hotel, Swetlana, head of the Baikal-Amazons, had arranged a TV-team. Because of the interviews of Matthias and Evgeny, we almost made up for the cancelled press conference the day before. Afterwards we all had lunch together. We told our friends from Ulan Ude what we experienced the day before at the border ? which we have spent without a warm meal. Therefore they wanted to send us on the way to Jakutsk well-prepared. Of course all this hospitality, the interesting program, the presents (the day before we were given Buritanian balm which is some kind of herbal liqueur) and the happy tri-lingual conversations over the last 20 hours were more than enough. But additionally, when we were ready to leave, they provided us with a contact for an accommodation in Jakutsk.
This encounter especially delighted us. We hope that one day we will be able to pay them back for their hospitality. We will definitely keep in contact with the dedicated and interesting off-road drivers of the Baikal-Amazons and follow their activities. We would like to especially thank Karl Bauer from Moscow and Slava from Ulan Ude for the preparation of our stay and their perfect support in Ulan Ude.
After this great encounter and the successful visit of the temple, we were well-prepared for the long way to Jakutsk. Our first landmark on the route was the city Chinta which was about 800 kilometers away. We reached Chita about 24 hours after leaving Ulan Ude ? unfortunately we also used these 800 kilometers to get completely lost. After getting stuck in a courtyard, the local police was a big help for a change: By the help of some very friendly policemen, we were freed from the dead end and escorted to the outskirts of the city. There, we continued on our journey but due to difficult and very rugged tracks, the driving was tough. We are curious to see how long the drive to Jakutsk will finally take. One thing is for sure: The news about the -68? Celsius temperatures in Jakutsk seems to be true. The outside temperatures are getting colder and colder. Long ago we reached the minimum value of -39? of our digital thermometer ? for now, our makeshift outside sensing devices show a temperature of -46?. Brrr?
