Vladivostok Circus

Above:  Bear catching bouquet, walking on hands, riding a horse. Unbelievable.

Internet in Russia

I woke at 0800 Vladivostok time, which was only 0600 Beijing time.  With wifi problems I decided to head out into the main square briefly to try do a few things online.

This is when I confirmed that as a visitor, accessing the internet in Russia is different from China:

• In China, the local networks block Google and social media. However, as a roaming user, everything works.  A VPN isn’t necessary.
• However, in Russia, the local networks block social media but not Google. As a roaming user, social media is still blocked unless I use a VPN.  But the VPN seems to work better on the local wifi than on my 4G connection.

Having said that, I’ve been warned that the situation is very changeable in Russia.

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First things first

Back in my room, I had some cereal for breakfast before heading out with D.  First stop was the station to check out luggage storage for our last day when we have an evening departure on the train.

Vladivostok Railway Station is the Asian terminus of the Trans Siberian Railway.  So, in two days time, I’ll be doing a portion of the rail journey that was too difficult to access 21 years ago.

At the station, I found that old-fashioned luggage rooms have given way to self-service boxes controlled by a touchscreen kiosk.  We spent time to work out how they functioned and fortunately instructions were available in English.

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Exploring Vladivostok

After a brief rest in the hotel to recharge my phone, we continued our exploration to the east of the waterfront.

We found the Triumphal Arch which was built in 1891 to celebrate the arrival of the future Tsar Nicholas II.  What we saw is actually a 2003 rebuild as it was destroyed during the Soviet era.

It marked the official commencement of the Trans-Siberian Railway construction as well.  It is considered the eastern gateway to Russia and Russia’s gateway to the Pacific.

I was surprised to learn late that his arrival was by ship via the Mediterranean, Suez Canal, South East Asia and Japan!  However, he left by land to continue his journey back by river and land to Moscow, using portions of the railway that had already been built.

We also stumbled on a diner marked Stolavaya (which I later realised meant “canteen”) around 1300.  With all the food laid out for us to point at, it was the ideal way to eat and it cost only about RUB500 (NZD10) per head.

After lunch we found the retired submarine on the waterfront before it was time to head to the Vladivostok Circus.

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Vladivostok Circus

The performance was timed for 1500 and we arrived at 1430 to look for the correct entrance into the large site.  Staff were helpful and we took our seats about one-third up the arena.

This season’s show is entitled Five Continents.  It was the most spectacular performance I’ve ever seen in my life! The acrobats, costumes and music were truly awesome … oh, did I mention the animals?

Acts like this can’t be put on in the western world anymore due awareness of animal welfare:

• 5 bears performing acts like skipping, handstand walking, catching bouquets and riding a horse.
• 2 panthers, 2 leopards, 3 tigers, 2 lionesses and 5 bisons!

So, the 3h10 (less 20 mins intermission) performance wasn’t exactly a guilt-free experience.

The female horse riders showed off their amazing skills riding around on horseback, riding upside down and also riding hanging on the side of their horse while picking things off the floor.

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Apart from the cast, the changeover crew that transition the sets from one performance to another handled it like clockwork.  They also rolled out large flooring mats and put them away faster than I can put a blanket on a bed.

It was a show that kept giving and giving even when we thought it was the end.  When it eventually finished at 1810, we thought the NZD140 we had paid each was really worth it.  I’m hoping the money went also to caring for the animals well.

Viewpoint

From the circus, we walked up the hill behind towards the funicular rail cable car for a brief ride to higher ground to catch a better view of the city.  We found our way back down to grab dinner at 1900, at the canteen where we had lunch.

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With a stop at the supermarket, we were back at the hotel around 2100.  The day went quickly with very little done apart from the long circus performance.  We had, after all, had a late start due to the change from Beijing time.

Being Sunday, we didn’t see any banks open but we managed to survive with the cash exchanged at the airport and my Yoomoney card balance.  Banks do open on Saturday but we arrive in the city centre far too late yesterday.