Getting Started

 World Adventurer (July 4, 2003 Chautauqua)

   It's been said that the "longest journey starts with a single step."

   The first step I took was to get in touch with a travel agent, in order to find out just how easy/difficult traveling across Russia would be.  It turns out that it would be the latter.

   I had three journeys to plan: Korea to Russia, the Trans-Siberian train, and Russia to Poland. The final leg home to Canada would be a plane trip, but the rest would be a little more involved than just booking a flight.

   Most Korean travel agents that I have dealt with are pretty good at arranging flights to the usual destinations, but they are completely buffaloed by someone (especially a foreigner) who wants to depart from the well-trodden path. The language difference can also be  a big impediment. A great deal of patience is called for.

   The first stage involved trying to find a way to book a trip on a ferry that would take me from Korea to Vladivostok in Russia, where the Trans-Siberian express begins its trek across the continent.

   Searching the net, I found a website for the "Far Eastern Shipping Company" that ran between Japan and Russia. The thing to do, it seemed, would be to purchase combination ferry-rail tickets that would cover train trips in Korea and Japan, and the ferry in between. The "Lonely Planet" gave the number for an agency that sold these tickets. Unfortunately, they were no longer in that business, but they were able to point me to one that was. The "Hong-Ki Travel Agency" in Seoul was able to book me a train ride from Daegu (in Korea) to Pusan, the ferry from Pusan to Fukuoka, Japan, and the "bullet train" from there to Kitakyushu. I would have to arrange for transport from there to the port of Fushiki, where the ferry would take me to Vladivostok.

   For the Russian portion of my journey, I dealt with a travel agency in Russia called "Voyage-Torg-Service." We were able to communicate via the e-mail quite nicely. The woman I "spoke" to, Natalia, was able to answer all my questions and make all the arrangements for that leg of my trip.

   In order to travel to Russia, you need an "invitation." This means that you have dealt with a travel agent, and you have your itinerary all sorted out. You have been issued a form outlining your trip, where you are staying, etc. You have to take this form, plus your passport to a Russian consulate in order to get a visa.

   The nearest Russian consulate was in Pusan, and I was able to have a Korean, well versed in the ins and outs of the process, help me deal with the red tape. The issuance of a visa can take up to a week, or less than a day, depending on how much you want to pay.

   The third part of my journey, from Moscow to Krakow (in Poland) involved the same sort of paperwork. Going from Russia, a traveler has to pass through Belarus on the way to Poland. Belarus requires every foreigner to have an "invitation" for the visa to be issued. Canadians need to have a visa before they enter Poland. Americans and Britons do not. What kind of a world is it?

   The Polish and Belarus embassies are in the capital of Korea, Seoul. Finding them proved to be a major undertaking. The tourist information booth at Seoul (train) Station gave me the addresses of where they were, but not where they are now. The cab drivers were nonplussed, and unwilling to take the chance. I eventually found one who was game, and off we went. It was an interesting trip around "Embassy Row," but unfruitful. I eventually had to give up, and try to contact the embassies via telephone/e-mail.

   The Polish embassy was located in a completely different part of the city, and I was able to get the visa issued in less than an hour. Time was pressing, and the hour of my departure was looming ever larger.

   I had hoped to keep my trip as close to the ground as possible. There were two bodies of water to cross before I got home. The ferry would get me across the Sea of Japan, and an airplane would do for the Atlantic.

   Trains were my preferred choice for the rest of the way, hence the need for a visa to pass through Belarus. Unfortunately, I ran out of time, and had to settle for a plane trip from Moscow to Krakow. Oh well.

   I had my train/ferry ticket to get to Japan. I would get my ticket for the Russian ferry when I boarded. The travel agent would help me buy my Trans-Siberian ticket in Vladivostok. I would get my plane tickets there, too. There was no more paperwork to deal with in Korea. It was time to go.

   So there's that part of the trip dealt with. Next time, I'll tell you how I got to Russia.