Summer 2012
I had been working in chemistry company when I passed my last university exam at the end of June. All Russian men are bound to compulsory military service. I must go to the army in October for one year. So I decided to spend the next three months (before serving in the army) in adventures. I left my boring work immediately because I had a small salary. I thought my free time needed to be valued more.
I fell in love at this period. It was my first love. She’s name was Olga. We were interested in tourism and sport. We used to go often to the river and lived in a camping house. Sometimes we spent time with our friends. Usually, we were transported by bicycle. It is a cheap and healthy kind of transport. We played the guitar, swam in the river and talked. Who knows, one of those conversations may be the most romantic conversation of my life. Olga visited the church to sing in a choir. And I visited a church to listen a beautiful chanting.
Almost all our friends were involved in sports tourism. We had been preparing for a long adventure. We had plans to go to the Caucasian mountains in August. We exercised few times a week this summer. Well, you know, a lot of push-ups, pull-ups and daily running. So we did become stronger. There were 7 participants in our team: 4 guys and 3 girls. We were alone in nature and overcoming the obstacles in the path of our trip. There were rocks, сold, heat, snow, discharged air. It took us only 10 days to do more than 100 kilometres. By the end of our trip, we ascended in the Elbrus, the Europe highest mountain. For me, it was a great point of my life.
Immediately after the mountain’s adventure, I travelled to the Black Sea with my father and his friends. There were maybe 10 of us and 4 inflatable sailboats. We moved from Feodosia (also called Theodosia) town to Alushta town on the Southern coast of the Crimea. We sailed pass desert landscapes, high castles and fishing vessels. We met with dolphins. You know, we were hoping to catch our dinner and cook it on fire and sleep under the stars. And this dream came true in this expedition.
Then I left the boat and went to my friends by bicycle. They lived near Maykop. It is the capital city of the Republic of Adygea in Russia. We travelled there for few days by bicycle and kayak.
At the end of summer, I came home. Soon I went to serve in the army, lost my first love. And this is where the story ends, at least for me. I still miss those days.