Urban Angels

You’ve spied a tourist while walking the streets of your hometown, right? The bulging backpack tipped you off, as well as the funny-looking shoes, and the foreign language confirmed your suspicions. What did you do? Did you smile? Maybe even stop to ask where the people were from and engage in conversation?

Have you ever been so kind as to offer up a day in your busy life to show those strange tourists around? Not I.

Yet, we keep experiencing that kindness here in Russia. Nadia and Natasha reached out to us in Khabarovsk, and this week we were fortunate to be visited by yet another two urban angels.

First, meet Juliana. She is a lawyer and economist, now a full-time mom to two adorable girls aged 2 and 4. Obviously, she has tons of free time, right? We met her while sitting at the arts and crafts table of the annual Ulan-Ude city festival. We were already feeling amazed at our good fortune for having walked into a festival, feasting on the cultural fare displayed, when… Juliana walked right up to us, introduced herself as someone eager to meet us, and insisted that we let her drive us anywhere we want to go. What!? Does this kind of thing actually happen to people?

So, the following day, Juliana picked us up at our door and off we went. Our first stop was my favorite, a famous “Dat-San,” or Buddhist temple high on a hill.

An excerpt from my journal:

The view of the city, with its river wandering through and reflecting the sunlight like a tandem source of energy and life—I wish to remember that forever! I was also transported by the beauty of a tunnel of prayer cloths meandering by blue mountain views and murmuring in the wind, as well as the other-worldliness of the monks chanting together in deep, interwoven tones.

Juliana even went so far as to help us purchase train tickets for the next leg of our trip. On top of that, she fulfilled our wish to find a second-hand store to replace a pair of holes-in-the-knees pants and a much-needed new pair of socks. (Wearing the same set of clothes for months is indeed wearing them if you know what I mean.) She asked for nothing in return for all this kindness. Amazing.

Now, skip ahead a couple of days, and we can introduce you to Aleksandr Dragunkin. What a cool name, eh? That’s exactly what I said as he checked our passports to board the train from Ulan-Ude to Lake Baikal. Aleks is a professional soldier who recently switched to his childhood dream career of working on trains. During the 5-hour ride, he shared with Chris a video of his epic hiking trip to Lake Baikal this summer (link to the video). I’d been thinking of taking that very same hike and felt fate smiling on us again—here was an opportunity to ask for advice.

Not long into our conversation, Aleks surprised me by offering to be our guide in Irkutsk, his home city, and our last stop in Russia. How is this happening? He only had two and a half days off work, and he was gifting them to these silly tourists! Upon reflection, we decided that kind of gift should not be refused, so we traded in our forest hike for a hike through the historic streets of Irkutsk.

My favorite parts of this city (known as Russia’s tea capital, by the way) were the surging river, the carefully manicured gardens heady with alyssum perfume, and the markets, where we sampled perfect slices of watermelon, morsels of salted Lake Baikal fish sliced straight from the bone, and honey blended with pistachios and deer antler. Of course, we also found another Lenin square for our collection. In addition to helping us buy tickets to Mongolia, Aleks is planning to make a video of our time together in the city, so stay tuned!

My favorite part of living these past few weeks has been connecting with amazingly generous people. Juliana, Aleks, Ina, Dmitri, Natasha, Nadia, Sergei, Lana, Anton, Svetlana, Sasha, Dima, Hannah, you are extraordinary ambassadors to your country. A laugh, a knowing smile, a flash of understanding despite language barriers—these are the soulful food upon which we are surviving the unknown. Thank you for answering my search for love and light.

And to all the urban dwellers out there, if you are feeling inspired as I am, offer a helping hand to the next tourist you see. I commit to you that I will do the same.