Trip of a Lifetime: Russia & Czech Republic

Trip of a Lifetime

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I am heading to Russia on Friday for a trip that I have been planning for four years: a trip of a lifetime. Actually, it is much longer. I have wanted to visit Russia ever since I was a teenager. I was fascinated by Russia and her history; I even ended up studying Russian history in university. I have planned a trip to Russia three other times; it either fell through, plans changed or I did not want to go on a solo trip. It is finally happening!

I am visiting Moscow first for a few days then heading to Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics. I attended the last two Olympics in London and Vancouver; I’ve always been an Olympic junkie so I had to combine a trip to Russia with the Sochi Olympics. While I would prefer to visit Russia at a different time of the year, cold weather does not faze me. I am from Canada after all. 🙂

St. Basil’s Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow via wikipedia

My hotel is a quick walk from Red Square; I splurged a bit to stay close to the Kremlin and Red Square. I have tickets to the Bolshoi Theatre  and can’t wait to view Lenin’s body.

After five days in Moscow, I head to Sochi for the Olympics. I am staying on one of the cruise ships that will be moored in the Adler port near the Olympic park. I have tickets to 15 events at this point and am looking forward to each and every one of the events. This really is a trip of a lifetime! Below is a list of the events I am attending – I hope to see many Canadians win GOLD!!!

My Olympic schedule – Sochi 2014

This is an ambitious trip: I spent months and years planning this trip of a lifetime. From applying for a Russian visa to booking my hotel and finding a cheap flight, it has taken some time. After watching Canada win the hockey gold (hopefully), I will head to Prague, Czech Republic the next day for five more days. I have always wanted to visit Prague and decided to add-on another city to my already trip of a lifetime. I actually had it narrowed down to Istanbul and Prague. I want to visit both desperately but chose Prague; no idea why but it stood out to me.

Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic via wikipedia

I hope to continue posting while I’m over in Russia and Czech Republic. I will at least be posting on social media: twitter, facebook and instagram. So follow me and my adventures of my trip of a lifetime on social media. I’ll be more active there than on my blog – of course this all depends on the wifi or when I pick up a new SIM card in Russia for my recently unlocked iphone!

I can’t talk about the Sochi Olympics without mentioning the security threat. I am a tad nervous about it and I know I am taking a risk visiting Russia at all, let alone during the Olympics when the threat alert is higher. I just have to believe and hope Russia knows what they are doing and every thing is locked down. Be harsh and kick some ass, Russia. I know their record on human rights and I do not care about anything else at this point other than safety. I can care about the other stuff when I’m home safe.

Russia roubles and Czech koruna

I have all my Canadian gear, picked up some Russian roubles and Czech korunas, and started packing last night. I am heading down to Calgary tomorrow (I live in Edmonton) and fly out on Friday. I booked a first class ticket to Russia using part visa points and part cash. I upgraded to first class two years ago when I went to the London Olympics; there really is no other way to fly overseas! 🙂

GO CANADA!!!

Vancouver 2010 Olympics – Men’s Hockey Gold