Hi Colin,
Just a short note to thank you for the arrangements for my trip to Russia.
It was fabulous - really interesting and I enjoyed every moment of it. I can't
wait to go again!!
All arrangements worked out just fine. The homestays were all good. Matt
is at the language school as I write. I think getting to the University was
difficult with his backpack using the metro, but he survived.
If I was doing it again, I think I would cut back to one night at lake Baikal,
and spend longer at either Irkutsk or Novosibirsk (all those Siberian cities are
so different!)or maybe another city. I was entranced by the beautiful scenery
throughout Siberia.
We also found Moscow hard to get a grip on: the allergies there were almost
debilitating: it was hot, humid and the pollution combined with pollen almost
killed Matt who suffers from hay fever badly. But is also affected me who does
not suffer at all from hay fever.
My trip has caused a lot of interest at school here, and I would unreservedly
recommend you to any of them if they decide to visit.
With best wishes and many thanks
Andrew Frost.-----Original Message-----
From: Stuart Berry
To: Colin Hood
Subject: Re: Trans Mongolian - itinerary
Hi Colin,
Yes, we are both back in the UK now, and getting used to life out here
- so far I've only really noticed how cold and expensive it is - so you're not
missing much!
We had a great time on our trip with you: a real adventure! Our experiences in
Mongolia and at Lake Baikal were unforgettable, we were very impressed with the
chalets at the lake and at the ger camp, and these were two things which we were
a little nervous about (some travel agencies can use the term chalet quite
inappropriately...). But it was all great (might I suggest some photos and more
details of the ger camp/chalets on your website, so people know exactly how
great the facilities there are?)
It was a bit wierd doing the homestay thing, living in a strangers house, but
our homestays in Ulaan Bataar and Moscow were fantastic!
At St Petersburg, our host went away for the time we were there, so although the
house was great, and it was nice to have the place to ourselves, it was a bit
strange being in someone else's house while they weren't there. At Irkutsk, it
seemed a bit like our host family were too busy being a family to be hosts,
although they were nice enough.
I have absolutely no complaints about our experience, and would definitely
recommend your company to any of our overseas friends who now all want to do the
same thing as we did!
Thanks for a great time - and it was very comforting to see you out in Mongolia,
testing the facilities etc.
Stuart and Sally
Hi Colin, Just thought I would let you
know Ken and I have returned from our trip and really enjoyed Russia and had a
great time in Estonia.
The Russia part of our trip went really well. The tour we had in the afternoon
with the guide was great. She did say they had had a few complaints because
people got too tired walking so we thought we would let you know that it is
quite a long walk and maybe older people would be more suited to a bus tour but
we thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt a lot from the guide. It was great to have
that one on one conversation and to get a feel for St. Petersberg.
The accommodation was very satisfactory. Anton our host was a delight and went
to a great deal of trouble to help us learn as much as we could about Russia.
We did enjoy the homestay - again thought it would not be to everyones liking
but we became very fond of Anton very quickly. It was great that he also spoke
very good English and enjoyed practising on us. We managed to teach him a bit
of Aussie Slang.
Estonia was fabulous, could have done without the long bus trip but realise it
was the only option. It was a great hotel, quite centrally located and
certainly easy to get around there. No doubt you have been there so you know it
is a truly beautiful little place. We had a spare afternoon so went to the
Tallin zoo which was a bit mistake - don't send anyone there.
Anyway, thanks so much for organising things for us, it was great.
Ken and Karen Waterson
From Australia
Helen,
Just writing to you to let you know how our Russia
trip went.
One word: brilliant!!!
I assume you have been there so I won't go on about the places too much. 3 days just
wasn't enough in St P. So much to see. It is very run down, but that in part adds to its
charm.
Everything to do with the trip went as planned. No problems meeting our contacts at the
train stations. Our hostesses were very different. Nadia in St P was very polite and nice
and spoke English well. Very refined and a lovely lady. Larisa in Moscow was a hoot!!
Spoke no English, but it didn't stop her from having great long conversations with us. We
loved her. Both homes were in great central locations, a short walk (20 minutes at most),
or a shorter metro ride into the centre of town. They were both also kept in good order
with fine bathroom and kitchen facilities (a concern we had going into it) even if the
cuisine was different to our western diet (might not be such a bad thing).
I'd recommend to my friends to do Russia through you guys. It was the best of both worlds,
the security of arranged transport and accomodation, with the flexibility to do our own
thing at each place.
I just can't wait to see my photos now!!!
Gavin
PS One of us left behind his wallet (not me) in St
P. On arrival in Moscow, we told our contact and it arrived in Moscow the next morning.
Our special thanks to those involved for that.
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