My
third trip to Russia. I love this country.
I
got to Rostov after a connection flight I took from Kaliningrad. The flight was
bad, and we arrived in Rostov on Don at 0300 AM, but I wont dwell on it.
We
went to Vadim's apartment to sleep it off and woke up to a beautiful and warm
day.
We
went to eat in my favorite place in Rostov. The Azerbaijanian market. There is a
small workers resturant, all dirty and rough, and I love the simplicity and
taste of their foods. They served us with a lamb stew, fresh cut veggies and
some delicious lamb chops. The meat was to die for. In the end of the meal they
served us with a spicy black tea, I liked it a lot. Tea should be drank bitter,
in its natural form, no sugar or additives.
In
the market here you can buy blueberries in a very cheap price. I couldnt believe
it.
This
box of 6 Kg of blueberries costs here 10$.... In Israel we pay 8$ for 350
Grams... And frozen, not fresh! People here dont value their berries.
Antioxidants for free...
After
the Azarbaijanian market we had to use a couple of hours of the day to register
my passport as required by the Russian Federation. You think Israel has a lot
red tape? Russia is much worse. Many forms to fill out, all for foreigners and
not even one of them in English.... Amazing.
After
completing the registeration process we went ahead to the country side to a
'Dacha' (Spring house or Villa in the countryside/seashore) of Vadim's friend on
the bank of the Don river. It is a beautiful place, very quiet and I started to
wonder how will life be living in a natural place like this. I got to the
conclusion that you either choose to live in the city and vacation in the
village or vice versa, but for a city born person, the combination essential if
he wants to maintain sanity.
We
went into the river for a short dip and went back to the house's garden to pick
up fresh, organic berries of all shapes and colors right there from the bushes.
I was like a kid in a toy store. Those berries were delicious and full of taste
and I enjoyed it very much. We drank some tea made from mint and berry leafs and
it was heaven.
We
went home to rest a bit and we are just now going out to drink some tea. Stay
tuned for more, I only leave for the seashore Monday morning, more to
come...
