From Siberia to India, non-stop travel
People have different travel experiences. Someone likes to get new emotions all the time, changing countries, like in a kaleidoscope. Someone is looking for meaning, someone likes to get adrenaline in extreme situations, and someone settles in one place. By immersing yourself in culture and discovering yourself new. Today we will listen to the story of our compatriot from Siberia.
Tell us about yourself, what is your name, where are you from.
Hello! My name is Max, I am 31 years old. At the moment I am in Vietnam with my girlfriend Julia.
Born and raised in the small Siberian town of Sayansk. At the age of 19, I left my native Irkutsk region for the first time, and went to Volgograd for military service. I crossed the Motherland by train, and understood that different people live in different parts of it, with different traditions, sometimes even languages, with a different climate, and all this within the same country, even the largest one. After the army, of course, I was sucked in by the everyday life, but fortunately I escaped.
How did you first find yourself abroad?
In 2014, I spent a whole summer for the first time on Lake Baikal. He worked at a tourist center, lived in a tent, met people from different parts of our vast country, enjoyed nature … It was here that the idea of going on a trip abroad was born. A friend advised me to consider India for these purposes, and in the end I chose it.
How did you start traveling? Were there any difficulties?
Difficulties began immediately after landing at New Delhi International Airport. My “hope” that I knew English at least for a C, instantly vanished. The fact that I did not understand absolutely anyone was scary. Everywhere and everywhere it seemed to me that they wanted to fool me, cheat me. It was very disturbing, I was in constant tension.
As a result, in the third week of traveling across India, on the next train, I safely slept through the moment of theft of my property. I found myself without change of clothes, money, phone and documents, somewhere in southern India, in a city whose name none of my relatives knows. And imagine, let go! Thoughts in my head were replaced by themselves: Thought, as if nothing was stolen from me, was replaced by something to eat; the thought – they are deceiving me, it cannot cost so much, turned into – where to sleep. This is where the real journey began))
How did you decide to stay for permanent residence?
Back in Russia, getting ready for my first trip to India, I told everyone that I was flying at least for the winter, there was no return ticket. Nobody really took it seriously. Especially the parents. They thought I would ride for a couple of weeks, the money would run out, and I would go home. And I just started when the money ran out.
Returning to Russia after 5 months in India, I clearly realized that I would not be late. For myself, I have not found any reasons why it is worth exchanging sunny Asia for cold Russia.
Did you have any problems with visas, work?
Each state has its own subtleties in obtaining visas. Somewhere nothing is required of you, and you get a stamp for free right at the border. In some countries, a visa is required to be issued in advance. I am primarily interested in these issues, so there were no problems with visas.
As for work, it is wherever there is a person. The only question is how much you need it, what you can do, whether you are ready to learn. I also starred in Indian films, was a guest worker on Korean fields and construction sites, in Hong Kong I made money buying theater tickets (the money I received was enough to buy a bike in Vietnam) …
Did you feel the difference in mentality, culture, food, security, religion? Were there any difficulties with adaptation?
Of course, the difference is enormous, in everything. There are other products, climate, etc. But this is the first impression. Having lived in some country for enough time, on the contrary, you begin to notice the similarities. For example, an Indian wedding resembles a Russian one. Yes, different outfits, food, music, but there are similar customs, albeit presented in a different way. It’s the same with everyday life. In everyday life, with each other, people also discuss the successes and failures of their neighbors, they also say that in another state the government is better …
With regard to adaptation. A person easily and quickly gets used to everything good, so there were more likely not difficulties, but some kind of euphoria or something. For me, the difficulties of adaptation are when, after a year and a half of sunny Asia, I return to Siberia. Usually I leave without completing the adaptation to the end.
If you yourself believe that you need it and you deserve it, then you can cope with any even the most difficult adaptation, the main thing is to see the goal in front of you, for what it is.
How has the pandemic affected your lifestyle?
In the fall of 2019, when going to Vietnam, we counted on wintering, after which we were going to South Korea. But in April 2021, we are still here. And to be honest, we are very glad that the pandemic found us in Vietnam. Here, in this regard, it is safe enough.
What did you like the most? Were there any funny incidents?
Most of all I like the nature and the people I met on my way. And funny things happen all the time, in every place. I write about some of them on my Instagram.
What didn’t you like? Have there been any unpleasant incidents?
I didn’t like the fact that you need to remember the time while traveling. Now you are already somewhere in a Nepalese village, you live for yourself, go with everyone to fetch water from the stream, collect rice with a sickle, prepare firewood and, suddenly, someone says: “July starts tomorrow!” At this moment, you understand that everything is an illusion, I am not a local, and in general my visa runs out in a week!
There are unpleasant cases too. Once my friend Alexander from Tver and I drove about 4 thousand km across India on a bike. A lot of impressions, new places, emotions. We spent the night mostly on the street, in the open air. And so, our joint journey ended. In the morning I had to cross the border to Nepal, and my friend had to go to our starting point. In short, that night we chose an unfortunate place to sleep. We were already in shorts when 4 thieving Indians came out of the darkness to us. We tried to avoid a fight, because there was a village nearby, and she could all come running to us and show her anger (in India, in such situations, they first beat strangers or everyone, and only then they figure out who was wrong). In general, with grief in half, we packed up our things, pulling them out of Indian hands and hurriedly got out. When they fell behind, we found.
Do you keep in touch with Russia? How often do you fly home?
Yes of course. I regularly call my parents, and often correspond with my friends. Since I started traveling, I have been in Russia only in the summer, at this time my mother has a birthday, which I try not to miss (but it does not always work out, for example, as in 2020 due to the pandemic).
Is there something that you would like to take from this country and implement in Russia? Or implement something from Russia there?
In China and Southeast Asia, restaurants are very popular where you have a gas stove at your table, they bring you freshly chopped, washed ingredients, and you sit in a company, chat and cook soup or fry meat, for example. I really like it, there is no doubt that everything is fresh because you have seen all the ingredients. In Russia, they say, there is already such a thing, but so far it is not very popular.
In general, I believe that the 21st century has not yet arrived in Russia, while people in Malaysia, China, South Korea and many other countries already live in it. And, perhaps, it should be clarified: I am talking specifically about technologies, not spirituality, mentality, moral values.
How strong was the language barrier?
Was, and many times and in almost every new country. This is, in fact, one of the most frequently asked questions, and one of the biggest fears for people who have never been abroad.
In the beginning, I couldn’t tell Hindi from English at all. When I was in Southeast Asia for the first time, I again felt the barrier. Because I learned English by communicating with Indians, here my pronunciation was not understood. The barriers disappeared after I hitchhiked China from south to north. There, I properly improved my skill in communicating with gestures.
Do you usually plan your travels in advance or do you improvise?
Usually I know in advance which country I am going to, and I am interested in the visa regime, how to get there. And there is usually no clear plan of what I will do, how I will get there, improvisation.
But it also happens that I spontaneously go to some country. For example, I was going to Vietnam from Korea, and in a week I suddenly learned that a ticket to Taiwan costs only 3 thousand rubles. Of course I flew to Taiwan))
Why did you choose Vietnam?
And we actually did not decide, this is how the situation developed. We were here when the virus hit the world. Vietnam has shown its best side in the fight against the epidemic. We just decided that staying here was safer than flying anywhere.
What are your plans for the future?
If we talk specifically about the immediate plans, then this is a trip to the sea. The last half of the year we have lived in the mountains, in the city of Dalat. In the near future we will go to the coast in Da Nang. No plan for how long we will be there, all according to the circumstances, feelings.
There is also a plan to organize your own camping for tourists in a beautiful cozy place, with a field kitchen, and burn bonfires under the starry sky in an international company. So far, it is more likely even an idea, a thought, but not yet a plan.
And there is also a plan to visit places in India where I have not yet been, to live on the islands, to take part in an expedition through the Amazon jungle. But given the current world situation, now it sounds like dreams, not plans))
What advice would you give to those wishing to change their place of residence to another country?
Don’t put it off. There will always be reasons to stay at home! Only the first time is scary. The first time it was scary to ride a bicycle with two wheels, the first time to go headlong into the water, go to the store for bread without a mother. When you have already made the first journey and returned home, a new fear arises. Fear of staying home.
Ps: A lot of my friends want to travel. When asked why you don’t fly anywhere / go, many answered: “Yes, you can fly whenever and wherever you want, but now I have business / career / mom / mortgage. In general, life is big, I will have time.”
Meanwhile, the world is changing and not always for the better. Now the list of countries where you can go has decreased significantly, prices have skyrocketed, costs and problems have increased. In general, there are fewer opportunities, but cases / mortgages and everything else are still there.
I mean, if you want something, and today it is allowed in the world, then go and take it. Tomorrow this may no longer be, or it may be banned. And deeds and reasons were and always will be.
After these motivating words, it remains only to wish Maxim to fulfill all his dreams and plans. We always think that we still have a lot of time, and time is just running out. It is better to live here and now, enjoy every moment of such a fragile and fleeting state called LIFE.
You can follow Maxim’s life here
