I am currently at the dentist in Novokuznetsk in Siberia. Tanya gets her treatment while I am writing these lines.
Parents on both sides are at the dacha outside of Novokuznetsk while we are in the city today for some errands.
Yesterday we came back to Novokuznetsk after a three-day trip to the “tooth mountains”. The nature was very nice and not too different from north of Sweden. We went by car to Mezhdurechensk and from there it was a 2 hour long train-journey along river Tom. After a short boat to cross Tom and a one hour long jeep transport we walked 30 minutes to our camp. We stayed in a house with beds for 15 people. There was some basic equipment for cooking etcetera but one is of course encouraged to stay outside in such an area.
The next day we went hiking to a waterfall 2 hours from the camp. It was a nice path and we could go there all together. In the evening some of us went for another excursion and visited some trimolites, approx. 30 strange looking stones, 1-5 meters high stones “growing” in the forest. The third day we went back the same way.
Tomorrow we are going to another mountain area called Altay. this time we will go by car only. The plan is to rent a house for one night and make some short trips by foot from there. I have heard a lot about this area and look forward to it.
Tanya will go to Moscow in approx. 10 days and my parents and I will go back to Zurich and Västerås on Monday. Tanya will work at the university in Moscow for about two months and then join Jonas in Zurich. Most papers are in order, and others are in progress. Last week Tanya got her new national passport and the foreign passport will be switched in Switzerland later. The process of getting a residence permit for Tanya in Switzerland is also in process and it will hopefully be ready in a week or two.
On Monday Tanya turned 26 and we celebrated this honourable event accordingly. The fireworks had to wait until we were back from the mountains but were very impressive.
At the dacha there is a sauna which we have been using heavily. Also in the mountains we could enjoy sauna every evening.
Today, while we are visiting the city of Novokuznetsk, we have been visiting Tanya’s grandma Maria Kirilovna. She is 81 and lives in her own apartment. Her eyesight is not perfect but her mind is fresh and her hearing abilities are fine. We showed her the film from our wedding and she enjoyed watching it. It was good that Oxana were translating during the ceremony.
Now sleeping time.