As I boarded my flight in Moscow, I could not believe that
the moment had finally come, I’d been planning this trip for so long that it was
difficult to really remember how it all stared! My mother has labeled me a risk
taker and insisted I not go, friends in Russia had warned me against visiting,
my doctor was speechless when I told her my plans……asking in a rather soft and
shocked voice……”why”???? My answer was “why not, I love off the beaten path
places”. In only two hours, what seemed like a far off distant place would soon
become reality. The plane took a right turn and started to descend over the
water. After nearly a year of planning, this dream that once felt soooo distant
and far-fetched would soon come to fruition.
At last our Boeing 737 was on the ground! I had arrived…..arrived
in a place that I had heard so much about on the news, a place that had a very
nasty reputation for ethnic violence and war and a place that is not exactly on
the beaten tourist path. This place? Makhachkala, Dagestan in Russia’s North
Caucasus. Makhachkala was the first stop on an individual tour that would take
me from The Caspian Sea eventually to The Black Sea in Sochi with many stops in
between. One of these stops would include the infamous republic of Chechnya,
which suffered through two horrific wars during the 90s and early 2000s. But,
that’s for later. For the time being I was focused solely on Dagestan.
The stewardesses opened the door to the runway and I
descended the stairs to the tarmac. After being in St. Petersburg and Moscow
for two weeks where it was cold, rainy and rather dreary, it was a bit of a shock
to the system to suddenly be in a climate where it was sunny, dry and mild. On
the tarmac sat three vehicles, a bus (to take passengers to the terminal), and
two vans. I rushed to the bus to get a good seat, knowing soon there would be a
crush of people and it was important to be in a place where I would not be
boxed in like a sardine. But suddenly I was told that since I had flown
business class that I did not have to ride the bus the 100 so meters to the
terminal, that I was entitled to ride in a private van. So, I exited from the
bus to the van.
When I got to the van there were plenty of open places. Just
as I was about to get into the van and take my place, some guys in three piece
suits asked me in Russian if I was in business?? I said yes. They then told me
to go to the next van. What, I thought! Why if I flew business was I told to
get into another van? Whatever, I just need to get to the terminal. However, it
seemed a bit petty of them not to let me ride in their van. I suddenly had
visions of my middle school days when I was not allowed to ride in the back of
the bus since that was where all the “cool, cliquish” kids rode and I was not a
part of that circle. But whatever got me those 100 so meters to the terminal
was fine by me, it was not exactly a three hour or even three-minute ride.
I arrived at the terminal and exited the van to find a metal
detector at the door. I quickly threw my backpack onto the belt and walked through
the metal detector without any trouble. But the terminal I had exited into was
not what I had expected. It was as if I was in some type of airline lounge,
with big couches and easy chairs scattered throughout the lounge with people
sitting around drinking tea and chatting. It struck me as odd that there was no
baggage claim or anything that remotely looked like a regular airline terminal.
But, I figured that we somehow must pick up our bags outside. As I got close to
the exit to the street, I noticed another metal detector and airport officials
checking passports and tickets. I had not left Russia, but knew that this was
the North Caucasus, so of course things were likely a bit different than back
in Moscow or Petersburg. I reached for my passport and just as I was about to
show the officials, they waived me through saying I was a foreigner and could
go right through the metal detector. I left the building onto the sidewalk,
still perplexed to where I had been.
I was a bit surprised when I left and there was absolutely
nothing there! No, baggage claim or truck with bags, just a sidewalk and
parking lot. I searched for my guide who was supposed to meet me at the
airport, but no sign of anyone remotely close to him. I walked toward the
regular terminal building and still no baggage claim or guide. I was still
pretty calm, but started to worry a bit. I wandered around for about five
minutes trying to find something that resembled baggage claim or my guide, but
alas….nothing! Finally, I saw a man from my flight and asked him in Russian
where we picked up the bags. He told me I needed to go back to the building I
had left from.
So, I walked back to the building and luckily found my
boarding pass and baggage claim sticker, which I would need in order to get
back into the building. I showed them my boarding pass and baggage claim and
they told me to take a seat in the lounge and wait for my driver. But what
about my bag I asked in a rather worried voice. They told me to simply wait for
my driver. At this point my concern level was going up quickly to mild panic.
Where was my bag??? And, where was my driver??? I sat down and searched for the
phone number of the tour director, Evgeniya. I sent off an angry message to her
in English (my Russian had shut down at this point) asking just where the hell
my driver was and why I hadn’t been met at the airport.
I waited a few minutes and nothing, radio silence! I figured
at that point I should call her. I hurriedly dialed her number only to get a
message that the user was not available at this time. I was a bit perplexed as
I had a mobile plan that allowed me to make nationwide calls, so this should
not have been an issue. I then figured I would call the tour agency she works
for and who organized my tour. I told them I was a client of Evgeniya’s.
Unfortunately, they had no answer for my situation, leaving me with no other
option but to wait and hope my bag somehow showed up.
After about 15-20 minutes of sitting around worried, I
noticed people’s bags being delivered. It finally dawned on me that this place
was the business arrival hall where you waited until your bag is personally brought
to you. This calmed my nerves a lot knowing that my bag would eventually show
up. Just then I got a text message saying the user was back online and within a
few moments I received a message from Evgeniya apologizing for the confusion. Just
then my driver/guide Gadzhimurad called me apologizing for the confusion asking
me where I was. I tried to explain but it was a bit tough to pinpoint exactly
where I was. He eventually understood and said he’d wait for me outside. And
just as we hung up an airport employee showed up with my bag! I was overjoyed
to see my beloved crimson red and black bag and thanked them!!
I exited the terminal bag in hand and looked around and saw
a guy waiting outside. Within a few moments he found me and asked me if I was
Steve. I said yes. He took my bag and we went to his car. He knew I had come
from Moscow, not only because of the information I provided to the tour
organizer, but the fact I was carrying both my heavy sweatshirt and coat. I
guess since the temperature was near about 18°C or about 67°F it was a dead
giveaway that it was indeed me.
The drive into town would be about a half hour. At first the
scenery reminded me of somewhere out of Arizona or California desert with empty,
desert like scenery and roads. But as we came nearer to the city, the desert
like conditions gave way to a large city with blocks of flats and full of
chaotic traffic!! The streets of Makhachkala were absolutely INSANE!! Cars zig
zagging in and out of traffic, people bolting, across the road in front of cars
narrowly missing being hit, drivers making video calls on their phones and one
guy who was working his way between cars in a rather primitive wheelchair. I had
been to India where mass chaos on the roads is just a fact of daily life with
cars moving in and out of traffic and avoiding giant cows and monkeys that
wander the city streets, so I had seen some pretty chaotic scenes. However,
Dagestan really gave India a run for its money in terms of road chaos. My
driver Gadzhimurad made his way through traffic like a pro, never flinching,
not giving an inch to other drivers, all while giving me an in-depth narration
of Makhachkala and Dagestan.
Finally, after what felt like a crazy war of cars on the
streets of Dagestan we arrived at my hotel. But it did not look like your usual
hotel. There was no sign in front, no parking lot, no nothing. We walked into
the building and there was no lobby, just stairs and an elevator with a sign board
of the businesses in the building. There had to be a mistake, where was the hotel
I thought? But then it dawned on me….in Russia they have such things as
mini-hotels, hotels within a building that only take up several floors and not
the entire building. We eventually got to the 11th floor and off to
the left was an office. This office turned out to be the “lobby”. I walked in
with my guide and gave them my passport for registration. They gave me my key
and told me I was on the 9th floor.
