Irkutsk, Siberia February 26th 2017
Arrived from Moscow around 8.20 am..no bags or sled..However all showed up on the next Aeroflot flight from Moscow.
Met Eugene at the airport and while waiting for the delayed baggage did a tour of Irkutsk.
It was a special celebration of Masleniza today in Irkutsk celebrating the transition from winter into spring.
Some early pagan rituals are carried out.
It reminded me of Wren’s day in Dingle.
It was a very emotional time passing through the village of Anascaul, Co Kerry last Friday night on my way to Baikal.
Lots of thoughts of Tom Crean and the many Irish who left its shores on their way to explore many parts of the world.
I thought also of Dervla Murphy getting on her bike in Lismore in the 1960s and cycling to Delhi with such a great spirit, little money and an enduring desire for travel and adventure.
This upcoming trip has lots of uncertainties as the adventure begins.
It’s not about breaking records, being the fastest or the slowest , it’s more about creating records of life experience and passing the knowledge onto others and learning from others.
It is more about building bridges, not walls.
The adventure begins on the ice tomorrow.
