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It was kind of a memorial trip. My friends and I used to visit Ladoga lake many times a long time ago and we loved the lake and nearby forest. The Ladoga lake was favorite place of my friend LG, who recently died from cancer. It was on Ladoga where he broke his toe during soccer game, and broke my nose with his head during another rough soccer game. We were pretty reckless. It was not just our group habit, it was generally accepted approach to life in Russia and still is. If you put a safety belt in car for example, the driver will feel insulted. Once our recklessness resulted in tragic death, on Ladoga lake also. We took abandoned boat and tried to sail on it to the city of Priozersk. Boat sunk and one guy, VM, drowned.

Trip to Russia 2004

Alex Mumzhiu
2006-03-22 19:00:59

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Ladoga lake

I visited most of our favorite places on Ladoga. I camped 3 nights. My new camping equipment (tent and sleeping bag) are OK. I was sitting near the fire in one of our favorite places Gysinoe (Goose) lake and thought about LG and about life. I did not feel happy for being able to visit these, our sacred places, while he lost his chance forether, but I was not sad ever. I felt rather emotionless and meditative. I spent too much time in Buddhist countries and get contaminated with Buddhist approach to life. Christianity is full of emotions for the suffering death of Christ. Jewish religion is also full of emotions. But Buddhism is not. You don't have to know Buddhism theological dogmas to understand Buddhist mentality. It is just enough to take a look on Buddha's face. His face is always quiet, emotionless and full of wisdom. Buddhism is rather approach to life then religion. Buddhism is not apathetic like some people think. Buddhist approach to life however helps to overcome difficult moments of life such as death. And as a result it helps to live.

My trip took 4 days. I rode bike from Rail Road station Sosnovo to Ladoga, I rode North along Ladoga lake to Priladojskoe. Than I rode West to Gromovo and returned to Sosnovo. Karelia is beautiful as it always was. One terrible change happened. There is intensive logging. If not stopped, they will destroy this gem of North Western Russia in a few years. If something like this would have happened in America, the people would fight to defend their forest... not in Russia. Somebody told me that the loggers are connected with the mafia and if somebody will try to protest, he quickly will disappear.

Alex Mumzhiu
mumzhiu@yahoo.com
St. Petersburg, Russia
July 9 2004 6pm

PS: I would like to remind you that you can find links to all my Internet publications in Englih and in Russian at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/alextravel/links
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