A Walk on The Wild Side

I crave off the beaten path destinations! Several years ago, I spent a week in Turkmenistan, a nation that has been compared to North Korea due to its isolation from the world, last winter I traveled by train to Murmansk, Russia, the world’s biggest city north of The Arctic Circle, I’ve visited what’s been named the most “dangerous place on earth”, the DMZ, a buffer zone between North and South Korea and nine years ago I ventured up to the disputed region of Kashmir on the Indian-Pakistani border. To say the least I am not one to like leisurely cruises to Alaska or Mexico where you sit around by the pool all day and stuff your stomach full of gourmet food and liquor at night. This hardcore traveler likes to live on the wild side! That’s why a trip to the once war-torn region of Chechnya and the Northern Caucasus was a natural fit for me.

When people think of Chechnya images of mass destruction and extreme danger pop into minds. I admit I also have these images in my mind, but the beauty of the Caucasus Mountains and the totally rebuilt, modern capital of Chechnya, Grozny, really attracted me. My interest in The Caucasus began in 12^th grade when in fourth year Russian my teacher had us read an abridged of the famous Russian novel, “Hero of Our Time” by Mikhail Lermentov. The author’s depiction of the region’s beauty and its people mesmerized me and got me thinking about someday visiting this region. But I kind of forgot about visiting here until I was at my Russian Meetup group and a member, after my telling him of all the weird and different places I’d visited, recommended I visit Chechnya. He told me the capital city, Grozny, had been rebuilt entirely from scratch and had the largest mosque in Europe. I gave it some real thought but really never seriously followed up on it until last winter. I’d just completed a visit to Murmansk in Russia’s far north, north of The Arctic Circle and felt I needed a new off the beaten path destination to visit. Suddenly as my train was lurching through the northern tundra in the middle of the night, I thought……..what about Chechnya!!! I always am looking for new and exciting places and Chechnya and the Northern Caucasus fit that niche. The dream was born!

When I got home from Russia last December I found a good tour agency that specialized in travel to The Northern Caucasus and I put the wheels in motion for a trip to this once war-torn region for spring. My mother was none too happy about my wanting to go to Chechnya and worries for my safety as any mother would if their son were announcing their intentions to visit a place associated with Islamic extremism and war. After a lot of reassurances and showing her documentaries about the beauty of the Caucasus republics, she is a bit calmer about my visiting, but still has her hesitations.

But after a lot of thought, I decided spring was just too soon to return to Russia and opted instead to go to Asia. However, the thought of visiting Chechnya was never far from my mind, so when I returned from Asia I started to plan a return trip to Russia for this fall. I thought about going back across Russia on the train to The Far East, but this time taking the train eastbound instead of westbound like I’d done in the past few years. But, I had done this already twice, so I was a bit hesitant to do it a third time plus I’d lost a couple of friends out in Vladivostok due to their support of tRump and one’s rabid anti-LGBTQ attitude. Due to this, Trans-Siberia was looking like a less than desirable option, so I decided I’d go to Chechnya and The Northern Caucasus.

My trip to The Caucasus will take me through the republics of Chechnya, Dagestan, North Ossetia and Ingushetia. At the end of the trip I will visit the nation’s tallest mountain, Mt. Elbrus, which also is the highest peak in Europe. After a tour through The Northern Caucasus I hope to visit the breakaway Georgian republic of Abkhazia, where my good friend and Pushkin Hotel front desk girl, Vanda, is from. It should be a hell of a journey, so stay tuned to this blog as I start my trip to Russia, The Northern Caucasus and Abkhazia on September 30^th!