We’ve arrived safely in Crimea after a two day journey which included an overnight stay in Turkey. The hotel in Antalya was very nice for a budget price but I was slightly annoyed that they didn’t sell alcohol. Although that may have been for the best considering we had a 2 hour flight the next morning followed by a 20 hour train journey.
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
Although the train journey from Sochi,Russia, to Sevastopol, Crimea is over 500 miles, the only part of the entire journey that I was really worried about was the 12 mile stretch over sea on the Kerch Bridge between Russia and Crimea https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimean_Bridge .
The Ukrainians have already bombed it twice and have made it no secret that they plan to do so again and again. https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... one-attack
So it didn’t help that I woke up just as we had started to cross it in pitch black after Midnight.
![Sad :(](./images/smilies/icon_e_sad.gif)
What I can say is that it’s like going back 50 years to the 1970s in the UK in many ways. Kids do what they are told in the main (unless they’re toddlers). There will always be those who buck the trend but even teenagers seem to be respectful here. Perhaps that’s because parents and teachers still rule with an iron rod (exaggerated). Maybe.
People here have a meagre existence. Monthly salaries are in the hundreds, and banks are not trusted so people tend to keep a lot of money in cash. Aren’t they worried about being burgled and lose everything you say? They don’t seem to be. Most people here are in the same boat in that they have very little but the thought of stealing from someone else who has very little is completely alien to them. Or perhaps it’s because they still have a decent police force/law system here where if you were to consider something so low, you’d go away for a long long time.
Finally, although there is mosque up the road that broadcasts a short call to prayer twice a day, I haven’t seen any brown or black faces since being here. Not one. Very strange.
More to come.
HYD