Blog

Yesterday I arrived in Baltasi at 8 PM, and by that time it was already a little late. When I reached the border between Arsk and Baltasi, I saw police patrol cars. I thought, “That’s it, they’ll stop me too,” but fortunately they let me pass, so I was able to continue. I thought about it because I don’t have car insurance—I didn’t buy it. Why? Because I plan to stay here only 3 months, and for that time I’d have to pay $30, while a whole year costs $50. It doesn’t seem reasonable to me to pay that much if I’m not using the car long-term. Also, if the police stop me for the first time, I can just pay an $8 fine, and after that the fine is between $30–$50. So for me, it still feels unreasonable, and that’s why I decided to take my chances.

Today my morning started as usual. I woke up at 8 AM and immediately got up to do my morning routine. At that time, I still wasn’t thinking about going to Kazan. However, after a few hours I started to think about a trip to Kazan. When I looked out of my window, the weather was ridiculously awesome—there wasn’t a single cloud in the sky, it was deep blue, and the sun was shining so brightly that it warmed my windowsill. Also it was my last vacation days. All of this helped me decide to go to Kazan.

Today my day started at 8:30 AM. I woke up at that time but only got up at 10 AM. Until 10, I kept lying in bed and reading Reddit. There I found some interesting posts and news. The news was about how the Russian government attacked the Polish border using drones. Some people also discussed how World War II started and compared it with the current situation. I think I agree, because if you don’t fight back, that guy will always beat you.

Hey, today the first half of the day was cloudy and rainy, so I could only go for a walk after 2 PM. I walked until 4 PM. The first part of my walk was in Sabantuy Park. There, I saw people rollerblading on the road near the forest, some were jogging, and others were just walking, enjoying the warm, beautiful autumn day.

Yesterday, the Spanish visa center published appointment dates available until September 30. But I couldn’t make an appointment because their site kept blocking my IP address and was working very badly. I can understand that the site worked poorly, but I have no idea why they blocked my IP. I even tried changing my IP, but it didn’t help. I used 4 different networks: my home network, my first SIM mobile network, my second SIM mobile network, and my mom’s mobile network. And every time, they blocked me.

Today the weather was not very good. The sky was cloudy all day, but fortunately, I didn’t see any rain. The temperature was quite low, about 15–17 degrees, and it felt especially cold. Even other people started wearing their warm clothes, which showed me that the cold winter is coming soon. But that didn’t stop me, so I decided to go ride my bike. When I started, I felt a very cold wind because I was only wearing shorts and a summer sweatshirt. However, after riding for about 10 minutes, I started to feel warmer and more comfortable.

After all these busy days, today I was able to go to the forest and ride my bike. Usually I walk, but today I decided to take my bicycle, because this year I haven’t ridden it much. I wanted to enjoy the last few warm and sunny days with my bike.

Hey, yesterday I promised to tell you why we invited so many guests. I’ll try to explain it shortly. One year ago, my grandmother passed away, and today was the anniversary of that day. In Muslim tradition, after someone passes away, the family gathers on the 3rd, 7th, and 40th days, and again after one year. That’s why we invited our close relatives, neighbors, and friends.

Today the weather was very sunny and warm, and I didn’t want to spend the whole day at home. So we went to the village again. There I helped build and prepare tables for our guests. If you ask what guests, I can answer: tomorrow we invited approximately thirty guests to the village. I think I can tell you more about it tomorrow.

When I arrived in Kazan, the weather was not good enough. It was raining and the temperature was low. But I arrived in only shorts. Fortunately, I had my coat with me and I could wear it. However, it was not enough, and now I have a cold. In the last few days, my throat has hurt, my voice has changed, and it has made me feel a little uncomfortable.

Good evening everyone. Yesterday I arrived in my hometown and I was very tired. I even skipped my English practice and couldn’t use Duolingo. Duolingo gave me one "freezing day". I lay down around 7–8 PM for 1–2 hours but fell asleep. I woke up at 2 AM, but by then it was already very late, so I decided to continue sleeping and finally woke up at 9 AM.

“Today early in the morning, at 5:30 AM, my plane landed at Kazan International Airport. The landing was very smooth and comfortable. After landing, I spent about an hour, or a little less, at passport control because everything was very slow and the line was long. At passport control, a police officer asked me about my trip and what countries I had visited for such a long time. I answered everything honestly.