Now in Russia

We crossed the Border to Russia  on 15^th June and have not come across WIFI internet so far. This is now the 19^th. We can only assume that it will be few and far between until Vladivistock. Border crossing took about 2 hours of stamping papers but no real hassle. Pulled into a café and got the worst coffee ever. I now drink only tea in Russia. We had some local soup and tried to pay using a 1000 rouble note. They could not change it  even though it was only a £20 note. It took 20 minutes of negotiation to allow payment in US Dollars. We did not give her all she asked as her exchange rate was a bit off. We promised however to drop it in the next time we were passing. What a dive! Some of the toilets here are unbelievable. We are thinking of doing a ‘Pimp my toilet’ competition but we think the photos would put people off looking at the bog….I mean the Blog! We passed along the motorway to Volgograd and have stayed at some roadside guesthouses ( about £16 a night).  They are good value. The roads are okay so far and the police are everywhere. We get stopped once a day but have learned to tell them we are ‘Colleagua from Shatlandia’. They then tell you to go and that is it. Every now and then there is a checkpoint and we now hide behind a truck and try and sneak through. The Russian drivers have created a third lane where only 2 exist and overtake between the 2 lanes. You need to have your wits about you. Stopped on the banks of the Volga and had a few drinks with the locals. We are a great source of amusement to them and there are no English speakers so our Lonely Planet language books are an asset.  Toward the Khazak border tomorrow and probably get there in about 3 days.