A British Vlogger - Traveling Across Russia Solo

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I just did the Trans Siberian mostly solo and it was one of the best experiences I've ever had. Of course the best section for me was Novosibirsk-Irkutsk where I had three great friends of mine join me. They brought life to the experience. One thing is certain the further you get from Moscow the more you enter the Real Russia. I highly recommend the trip. Eventually I'll finish writing my trip report I promise. I have a lot to share.
 
I used to watch Bald and Bankrupt when he did many India travel vlogs. He speaks a bit of Hindi and fluent Russian. No longer bankrupt, his youtube videos have made him a rich man!

I watched a recent video of his, where he suffered through a night on a train traveling on the Russian BAM.
His roommate on the train was a snorer. You'd think for what he makes, he could have afforded to pay for a single room, instead of sharing it with a stranger... who snores all night !!
 
I watched a recent video of his, where he suffered through a night on a train traveling on the Russian BAM.
His roommate on the train was a snorer. You'd think for what he makes, he could have afforded to pay for a single room, instead of sharing it with a stranger... who snores all night !!
The thing is, these youtube "content creators" need to pretend to have street cred to make their channels more interesting. Either that, or travel first class in luxury so the rest of us gawp in wonder. As long as folk watch, they make $$$. (Not sure my niche, 70 year old bloke staggering around on a pension, is a winner) ;)
 
I used to watch Bald and Bankrupt when he did many India travel vlogs. He speaks a bit of Hindi and fluent Russian. No longer bankrupt, his youtube videos have made him a rich man!
If he speaks fluent Russian it doesn't seem amazing that he traveled solo. What amazed me in 2010 was meeting two young British women who were traveling by rail from London to Hanoi and neither knew any Russian.
 
Must say I'm enjoying this Russian journey against my own normal instincts as he's a little too... impolite at times. Perhaps I'm just jealous he has the language to interact with everyday Russians as easily as he does, and to do what he's doing you need a lot of 'front' too (London East End word?) so credit to him.
 
Must say I'm enjoying this Russian journey against my own normal instincts as he's a little too... impolite at times. Perhaps I'm just jealous he has the language to interact with everyday Russians as easily as he does, and to do what he's doing you need a lot of 'front' too (London East End word?) so credit to him.

See I have no trouble communicating with the normal Russians but I literally have used the language every single day since March of 2020. So I've had a lot of practice with it. And no I'm not fluent. I never will be truly fluent as a native. But I can interact with them just fine.

Best prank I've performed now was in Russia. I was in a residential neighborhood of mid century apartments and an American came up to me with flowers asking if I spoke English as he needed directions to his Russian girlfriend's house. I totally played it off as a native Russian till he asked how I knew all of the American slang. The look on his face was priceless.
 
See I have no trouble communicating with the normal Russians but I literally have used the language every single day since March of 2020. So I've had a lot of practice with it. And no I'm not fluent. I never will be truly fluent as a native. But I can interact with them just fine.

Best prank I've performed now was in Russia. I was in a residential neighborhood of mid century apartments and an American came up to me with flowers asking if I spoke English as he needed directions to his Russian girlfriend's house. I totally played it off as a native Russian till he asked how I knew all of the American slang. The look on his face was priceless.

You're trouble aren't you.

What made you learn Russian?
 
You're trouble aren't you.

What made you learn Russian?

I am trouble lots of trouble. I also have sent my dad who doesn't speak German into the Women's restroom once because he saw Herren and thought it was for women. My grandmother did it, but I didn't stop him either I just agreed with her.

To answer that question is a bit difficult but I can tell you you will see the answer in my trip report. But the short answer is my new girlfriend lives in St. Petersburg. And the reason I'm making a fairly regular weekend trip there.
 
In Hamburg Hbf 1971 I was asked for directions in German and it was simple enough that I replied in German. We got through several sentences before we both recognized from hitting quirks that we were Americans.

One good reason to learn foreign languages is so that you can get photos like the one below. A Hamburg eisenbahnfreund guided me into the shops.

Hbg1971-024.jpg
 
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