And now, the main agenda, fishing.
Russia is well known for its salmon rivers in the arctic - both on the
Atlantic and on the Pacific ends. However little is known about the other
possibilities in between. The great expanse of wilderness that occupies
fair chunk of the planet earth should, with due diligence on my side, unveil
us a worthy arena of fishy discovery.
Thus began my life in Russia in December 2015. With 3 years' time given,
I will do my best to do this mysterious country a justice it deserves.
Significant portion of the country is situated in and near the arctic circle.
Its winter is indeed severe - and pristine. While you would stop paying
attention to ''diamond dusts' before the first winter is over, the certain
beauty in the way of Russian people's life makes a strong, lasting impressions
as time goes by.
While some 80% of the Russian population are Slavic, there are as many
as 180 ethnic groups who speak 28 ''official languages'', apart from some
100 distinct tongues. How they can maintain a national identity is beyond
imagination, that of a Japanese for sure!
In the northern slope of Taiga, hunter gatherers similar to Eskimo still
live. In the central Asian steppe, there are great populations of nomads
who worship Islam. Traveling Russian off the beaten track gives us new
insights and - surprisingly often - familiarities.
Once a global superpower that vied for the global reign, Russia still commands
strong economical and political influences over its satellite countries
around.
To live in its capital city Moscow provides us with opportunities to visit
those less known countries that were once separated from us by the ''iron
curtain''.
A mysterious neighbor - was what Russia was to me at best, before my job assignment sudenly moved me there.
Unlike many western countries where I had visited, worked and or fished,
Russia had something to make me think twice, especially to live in!
Another thing that had been clear to me was its immense size - from Europe
to Asian far east, Russia covers 11 timezone in its gigantic territory
of 17million square kilometers.
To see it in a positive light, there is a certain sense of romance to it.
Those myriads of rivers, mountains and wilderness that I only could admire
from the window of airplanes, now become our playgrounds - it was a tempting
thought I must admit!