What an experience!

Volgograd
In 1589 on a strategic place on the banks of the river Wolga, a fortress was build. It was named Tsaritsyn. The fortress has now changed into a city with over a million inhabitants. It's name also changed. Volgograd means City on the river Wolga. Better known however is the city under the name Stalingrad.

Like Stalin thought of Stalingrad as a product of prestige, Hitler had the same ideas. Not only did Hitler want to own the rich oil wells of the Kaukasus, he also wanted to conquer 'Stalin's Town', for if Stalin's town was on it's knees, Stalin would be likely to soon follow. Hitler made one big failure: He did not equipe his soldiers to fight thru the winter. It turned into a deadly battle, in which both parties prohibited surrender. The battle lasted 230 days, in which 1,5 million people lost their lives. The slightest respect for life had disappeared, while people were killed by the truck loads; over 6.500 per day, every 13 seconds one.

Hill 102
The most severe fighting took place on and around hill 102, which was turned into a memorial ground after the war. Also on the river Wolga, a floating pontoon carries a memorial.

Crimea
On Crimea, at Yalta, we visit the Livadia Palce, where Stalin, Roosevelt (by then very ill) and Churchill met and decided what Europe was going to be like after the war and in fact decided in which countries we live now.

Odessa
A real nice city, Known because of the movie "Battleship Potemkin" of Sergei Eisenstein. The film, being made in 1925 was prohibited by the authorities, which made it into a cult-movie right away. We visit the famous Potemkin stairway.

Street sellers
We will see al kind of people along the roads in the Ukraine and Russia and will not only stop at police roadblocks. There are little markets and stalls everywhere, selling very good smoked fish.

Russian and Ukrainian
Also these we will see quite a lot! Lada's chug around relaxed, while the modern man shows himself in extravaganza; expensive fast European cars etc. The poorer people mostly drive side cars, although they'd rather had a Lada. No greetings to other MC Riders over here.