"I didn't know about the real Russia"
Russia, which was seen by Canadian resident Courtney Allan, turned out to be completely different from what it is shown in the Western media. The 26-year-old girl has been hitchhiking from China to South Africa for more than a month, Russia is one of the parts of her route. After crossing the border from Mongolia, Courtney has already been to Ongudai, Gorno-Altaysk, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Tyumen, Yekaterinburg and Kazan. In the capital of Tatarstan, she met with Izvestia journalists and shared her impressions of Russia and its inhabitants.
"Russian men are real gentlemen"
At a large gas station on the outskirts of Kazan, Courtney Allan from Canada is looking for a car whose driver will agree to take her to Nizhny Novgorod for free.
"From Kazan, I'll go to Nizhny Novgorod, from there to Moscow, and then I'll have to go to Georgia very quickly because my visa is running out," Courtney tells Izvestia.
Russia is only part of Courtney's long journey from China to South Africa. The girl will hitchhike the entire route.
Courtney began her journey in May in Guangzhou, China, by the end of June, she had already traveled more than 8,000 km without paying a cent for the road, and thus reached the Russian border.
The girl tells Izvestia that her journey through Russia went through Ongudai, Gorno-Altaysk, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Tyumen and Yekaterinburg.
"Passport control on the Mongolian side of the border was very simple. I met two very nice brothers from Russia, they helped me pass the security check, and then asked a friend of a trucker to take me to the city an hour away from the border," Courtney says in her blog with more than 70 thousand subscribers.
Hitchhiking is always free, the girl explains, trips in most cases are like a cultural exchange. For example, truckers in Russia often like to show photos of their children.
— I think that Russian people are very nice, they are very kind. Russian men are real gentlemen, they always treated me to tea or some kind of food," Courtney shares her impressions.
By the way, at one of the stops in Russia, the owner of a small restaurant, Vadim, allowed Courtney to stay in the dorm room, which he shares with his chef Oleg. In her blog, the girl notes that the Russians, contrary to expectations, turned out to be very friendly and always ready to help.
— I didn't know about the real Russia. In North America, our understanding of Russia, China, and Africa is based solely on what is said in the press. When you find yourself in a place that you've heard a lot about in the media and immerse yourself in the real world, learn about real people, you become a better person. I've become more responsive, smarter, and know geography better," Courtney tells Izvestia.
In Kazan, a Canadian resident managed to walk around the Kremlin, learn a little about Ivan the Terrible, and also taste local food, in particular kystyby and chak-chak.
— I liked Kazan. It's a very beautiful city. The food was very good. Kazan residents are very nice people," the girl emphasizes.
"At first, I just left for two months, and then everything turned around."
Courtney Allan studied kinesiology at a university in Canada, which is the science of human muscular movement in all its forms. She went on her first hitchhiking trip after breaking up with her boyfriend. Then the girl decided to leave the rented apartment, put her things in a storage room and completely change her lifestyle.
— I was a little uncomfortable in Canada, that's how it all started. At first, I just left for two months, and then everything started to turn around. I really like this way of life and I am satisfied with the minimum necessary. Now I'm traveling, then I return home to Canada for a while, I work in a restaurant for a while, then I go on another trip again, I return home again, I work as a bartender for a while, then I leave again," the girl shares.
Courtney's first experience with hitchhiking was in her native Canada. Abroad, in Peru. The drive to Machu Picchu was longer than Courtney expected, so she had to stop the car.
Before starting her journey from China to South Africa this year, Courtney had already traveled to Africa. After a three-week vacation in the UK at the end of 2023, the girl decided to hitchhike across Europe to Morocco, and then from there to Cape Town. In total, Courtney spent less than $20 moving around Africa.
It took Courtney almost a year to travel to 16 countries on the African continent, and 400 trips with different drivers turned into a total of 8 thousand km.
— Probably the strangest hitchhiking trip I've ever done was in the Congo. I was driving a truck, but not in the cab. I was at the very top, I was tied with a rope to the roof of the truck. It was very windy, we drove for about six hours," she says.
Speaking about her most vivid travel memories, Courtney recalls the sunset over the Sahara Desert, which she watched from the train, as well as the night at the Great Wall of China, where the girl pitched a tent.
The biggest problem with such trips is the language barrier, explains Courtney. Because of this, there is often silence in transport, but during coffee or lunch stops, the girl tries to communicate with fellow travelers using translation sites. Despite the difficulties with communication, Courtney managed to make a lot of new acquaintances over the years of traveling.
— I chat with every friend I've made while hitchhiking in China on WeChat. I have to translate every message they send me, but yes, I have a lot of people with whom I still keep in touch and am friends," the girl continued.
Many people think that traveling with unknown motorists can be dangerous, says Courtney. However, the world is not so scary.
— I mean, nothing bad has ever happened to me, I've only met wonderful people. My secret is to just trust your intuition, know when not to get in the car, and learn to trust people," Courtney sums up.
Reflecting on her future plans, the girl says that she would like to write a book or become the host of a travel TV show. Meanwhile, Courtney climbs into a large white truck and drives away from a gas station in Kazan. She will probably start her next social media video with "Hello!" in Russian, tell about the meeting with the Izvestia team and share her impressions of Tatar cuisine.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
