Day 26, May 23 - Orlovskoe - Balakovo

95km - 1757km, Sunny and warm, 20C, 15km/h headwind, 0 shots, 0 sauna, 1 Lenin, Hotel

Woke up early to get an early start on the way to Balakovo. Had a quick breakfast of fried eggs and mashed potatoes before packing up and heading off. The first 25km were pretty easy with a nice open road somewhat shielded by the rows of trees on either side of the road. Stopped for a Snickers and coffee break (sugar/caffeine injection) and then rode on. At 50km, I grabbed my first Russian hotdog, which was a microwaved concoction involving a rubbery weiner, ketchup, cheese, onion, dill and corriander served in a moist bunlet (All that for 60 cents!). Rode the last 24km into Balakovo and rode around for 30 minutes trying to find my hotel. Eventually, I came across a couple who offered to drive in front of me to the hotel! Got my hotel room and then had a much needed shower. (The accomodation was a nice two roomer, and had the side benefit that it looked like someone casually drop kicked it from the 1930s to the present.)

Met up with Anastasi, Yevegeny, and Ivan (my new Hospitality Club friends) and we drove around the old and new parts of Balakovo. Highlights for me were the panorama on the far side of the river (huge hydroelectric and nuclear plants!), the ski hill (consisting of one run where the beginners section is uphill of the expert section!?! Better not screw up newbee!) and the digital time/date/temperature/raditation display on the theatre. We took a short break and then headed out to play some billards. We started with American-style pool with a two-shot penalty for scratches, and then moved on to Russian Billards.

Russian billiards is somehow emblematic of the simplistic complexity of Russia itself. The game is played with 16 balls. Any ball can be pocketed by (or caromed of) any other ball. The person who pockets the most balls wins the game. Simple right? Sadly, no. The corner pockets are quite tiny - just wide enought to fit the ball - while the center ones are a tad bit wider. Thus, one has to find ball combinations that give the best angle! It's a super hard game to play well, that involves lots of strategy on the pocketing order and where to leave the balls. So simple, but yet so complex. After playing five games, I headed back to the hotel to get a good night's sleep.