9th August, 2016
And then one of the most miserable biking days we can remember as it rained from Tallinn to St. Petersburg and it took us two and a half hours at the border getting into Russia. First issue was Estonia side. We had booked the crossing and turned up at the border thinking we had done everything. Nobody had told us we had to activate it and that this activisation took place somewhere else. Ah well.. Mr Garmin to the rescue and we followed his instructions to the place of activation which was a holding area. We were told we would be held here until the motorcycle registration number was shown on the big screen at the end of the holding area - which was like those queues you have to get on a cross channel ferry. It was actually already there as by now we were running a bit late. Nonetheless it was a strange feeling to see our GB registration number up there on a big screen in Narva on the Estonian border with Russia. Almost there...
We were then told that the 'activisation' only lasts 20 minutes and we had better get back to the border before it ran out. No issue - we knew the route now! The vehicles were called forward at the border at a set of traffic lights which only let one vehicle through at a time. You went through the traffic lights and then a gate opened up and you were allowed into the border control area. Except that with us the traffic light never went green. Eventually a man stuck his arm through the fence and waved us forward on red. The vehicles were being called forward on a number plate recognition system - there were even notices telling you to clean your number plates - presumably so the cameras could read them more easily. But motorbikes don't have front number plates.......
The Estonia side did not take too long despite all the pfaffing. And it had dried up a bit. But then we had to queue up on a bridge that had opposing medieval castles on either side of a river - each flying its own countries flag. a man, below, was fishing - we weren't sure which side he was on. And then it started raining again. Heavily. Bouncing off the helmets sort of heavily and we were waiting in the queue and then we had to show our documents - all carefully prepared in plastic wallets to stop them getting wet. And then they started getting wet - difficult to take them out of plastic wallets with wet gloves. Difficult to put wet gloves back on.Not happy about wet passports. Francoise said that it wasn't raining as much as when we crossed into Singapore - but we were under shelter then. She also said that the documents were not getting as wet from the rain as they did from my sweat dripping onto them when we crossed into Thailand but nonetheless. And when it got to the new documents that we had to fill in, in duplicate, well yes I had put my name on the wrong line so I had to start again and the rather irate Russian lady came out of her cabin and pointed iritatedly at an example in German on the wall. And ... what was the model of the bike and why did it not have it on the registration document - well it just doesn't, so what? And the registration number. NX09 EOB? is the 0 a zero or an 'Oh'? and the 'Oh' - a number or a letter? We were blocking the tarffic so eventually we got through.
Oh, and by the way, thanks to those four Russian Harley riders who sailed through and didn't even come over to say 'Hello' or even assist. Or even wave. And the same guys and reaction when we drew into the petrol station for a post-border toilet stop whilst they were having a coffee. Hi guys!
It rained all the way to St. Petersburg. As far as Mr Garmin was concerned the world know as Europe ends abruptly at the Russian border and there is just blackness on the screen at that point. In anticipation we had bough a Russian memory card but had been told that it was in Cyrillic. But using co-ordinates everything should be fine - and it was. In fact we don't know where the issue about Cyrillic came from because everything was in the Latin alphabet and just fine.
'We' have some pet hates on the bike. Cobble stones, especially big uneven ones as per Plovdiv and Milan. Tram tracks. Wheel ruts. St Petersburg had them all AND it was wet but we got there and as soon as we got there it brightened up. And for two and a half days we walked the soles off our shoes doing the sights - except when we took the boat to to Peterhof to see Disney's inspiration for all fairy tale castles and chateaux. In the end we even cruised up the Nevskiy Prospekt and along the embankments on the Harley, flaunting both the bike and the GB plate! Forget Brugge as the Venice of the North, St Pete every time.
So why did we come here - well to see Swan lake at the Marinsky, why else? Thanks to Marina for organising the tickets and everything else!
Peterhof had been rebuilt post second world war. We were unsure as to how much of St. Petersburg had been rebuilt as there are so many wonderful buildings. It had been under siege during the war with two million inhabitants dying. On this front things just seemed to be getting worse the further North East we went.
More hotel survey info - St Petersburg was the first night on this trip where we had a double duvet - all had been single ones on double beds up until now.
The Harley had developed a rattle above the normal level of rattling just outside Riga and it had become more than a tad annoying. Nothing serious, a jubilee clip holding the front exhaust heat shield had broken and shield was now rattling away. Visit to a dealer for more than a T-shirt and they hosed the bike down too. Thanks due indeed! There was a mega Harley Days rally in St Petersburg starting the day we were due to leave with over 10,000 bikes expected. Not really our scene - in some, most, ways we were glad we missed it even though we might well have won the long distance travel award. And after all that eh dealer had no pin badges for sale - with ten thousand riders due - lost business opportunity there!
And then one of the most miserable biking days we can remember as it rained from Tallinn to St. Petersburg and it took us two and a half hours at the border getting into Russia. First issue was Estonia side. We had booked the crossing and turned up at the border thinking we had done everything. Nobody had told us we had to activate it and that this activisation took place somewhere else. Ah well.. Mr Garmin to the rescue and we followed his instructions to the place of activation which was a holding area. We were told we would be held here until the motorcycle registration number was shown on the big screen at the end of the holding area - which was like those queues you have to get on a cross channel ferry. It was actually already there as by now we were running a bit late. Nonetheless it was a strange feeling to see our GB registration number up there on a big screen in Narva on the Estonian border with Russia. Almost there...
We were then told that the 'activisation' only lasts 20 minutes and we had better get back to the border before it ran out. No issue - we knew the route now! The vehicles were called forward at the border at a set of traffic lights which only let one vehicle through at a time. You went through the traffic lights and then a gate opened up and you were allowed into the border control area. Except that with us the traffic light never went green. Eventually a man stuck his arm through the fence and waved us forward on red. The vehicles were being called forward on a number plate recognition system - there were even notices telling you to clean your number plates - presumably so the cameras could read them more easily. But motorbikes don't have front number plates.......
The Estonia side did not take too long despite all the pfaffing. And it had dried up a bit. But then we had to queue up on a bridge that had opposing medieval castles on either side of a river - each flying its own countries flag. a man, below, was fishing - we weren't sure which side he was on. And then it started raining again. Heavily. Bouncing off the helmets sort of heavily and we were waiting in the queue and then we had to show our documents - all carefully prepared in plastic wallets to stop them getting wet. And then they started getting wet - difficult to take them out of plastic wallets with wet gloves. Difficult to put wet gloves back on.Not happy about wet passports. Francoise said that it wasn't raining as much as when we crossed into Singapore - but we were under shelter then. She also said that the documents were not getting as wet from the rain as they did from my sweat dripping onto them when we crossed into Thailand but nonetheless. And when it got to the new documents that we had to fill in, in duplicate, well yes I had put my name on the wrong line so I had to start again and the rather irate Russian lady came out of her cabin and pointed iritatedly at an example in German on the wall. And ... what was the model of the bike and why did it not have it on the registration document - well it just doesn't, so what? And the registration number. NX09 EOB? is the 0 a zero or an 'Oh'? and the 'Oh' - a number or a letter? We were blocking the tarffic so eventually we got through.
Oh, and by the way, thanks to those four Russian Harley riders who sailed through and didn't even come over to say 'Hello' or even assist. Or even wave. And the same guys and reaction when we drew into the petrol station for a post-border toilet stop whilst they were having a coffee. Hi guys!
It rained all the way to St. Petersburg. As far as Mr Garmin was concerned the world know as Europe ends abruptly at the Russian border and there is just blackness on the screen at that point. In anticipation we had bough a Russian memory card but had been told that it was in Cyrillic. But using co-ordinates everything should be fine - and it was. In fact we don't know where the issue about Cyrillic came from because everything was in the Latin alphabet and just fine.
'We' have some pet hates on the bike. Cobble stones, especially big uneven ones as per Plovdiv and Milan. Tram tracks. Wheel ruts. St Petersburg had them all AND it was wet but we got there and as soon as we got there it brightened up. And for two and a half days we walked the soles off our shoes doing the sights - except when we took the boat to to Peterhof to see Disney's inspiration for all fairy tale castles and chateaux. In the end we even cruised up the Nevskiy Prospekt and along the embankments on the Harley, flaunting both the bike and the GB plate! Forget Brugge as the Venice of the North, St Pete every time.
So why did we come here - well to see Swan lake at the Marinsky, why else? Thanks to Marina for organising the tickets and everything else!
Peterhof had been rebuilt post second world war. We were unsure as to how much of St. Petersburg had been rebuilt as there are so many wonderful buildings. It had been under siege during the war with two million inhabitants dying. On this front things just seemed to be getting worse the further North East we went.
More hotel survey info - St Petersburg was the first night on this trip where we had a double duvet - all had been single ones on double beds up until now.
The Harley had developed a rattle above the normal level of rattling just outside Riga and it had become more than a tad annoying. Nothing serious, a jubilee clip holding the front exhaust heat shield had broken and shield was now rattling away. Visit to a dealer for more than a T-shirt and they hosed the bike down too. Thanks due indeed! There was a mega Harley Days rally in St Petersburg starting the day we were due to leave with over 10,000 bikes expected. Not really our scene - in some, most, ways we were glad we missed it even though we might well have won the long distance travel award. And after all that eh dealer had no pin badges for sale - with ten thousand riders due - lost business opportunity there!
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