A double shot of Minsk, thanks to poor planning and an inconvertible currency
Aug 6, 2013, 9:10 pm
#106
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
Programs: AF Platinum, EK Gold, AA EXP, UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
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FlyIgglesFly, what a great finish to a classic TR. ^
We're seriously talking eightblack-like here.
Love it. Perfectly logical. Of course, now that I have GE, CBP doesn't give a sh*t.
We're seriously talking eightblack-like here.
... zero problems at customs and immigration listing only "Germany, Poland" on my declaration form. Little tip to CBP: When you demand that I "list countries visited," you're not requiring that I list ALL countries. Germany and Poland are, in fact, countries which I visited. So is Belarus, but I seem to have already fulfilled my obligations under the phrasing of your demand. Semantics are a b**ch.
Aug 6, 2013, 9:17 pm
#107
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Trenton, NJ (PHL, EWR)
Programs: A3 Gold, BA Bronze
Posts: 1,633
Fair enough.
I guess you really didnt want the US Government to see you have been in Belarus. What if they are reading this??? It seems the US Government have paid the British Government £100m to spy on British citizens such as myself (courtesy of Mr Snowden) so how do we know they are not watching this?
However with your Irish Passport you are welcome in the UK whenever, remember that.
Loving these trip reports by the way. Thanks a lot.
I guess you really didnt want the US Government to see you have been in Belarus. What if they are reading this??? It seems the US Government have paid the British Government £100m to spy on British citizens such as myself (courtesy of Mr Snowden) so how do we know they are not watching this?
However with your Irish Passport you are welcome in the UK whenever, remember that.
Loving these trip reports by the way. Thanks a lot.
And I've used the Irish passport more than a few times in the UK. But I don't want to consider myself always welcome in he UK, lest the Brits think they're always welcome in Ireland.
Aug 6, 2013, 9:25 pm
#108
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Trenton, NJ (PHL, EWR)
Programs: A3 Gold, BA Bronze
Posts: 1,633
And the mods would probably frown upon my desired substitutions of profanity in lieu of big boy words.
I've got a few other completed trips I might write about, and a few big ones coming up, hopefully, in the fall. We'll see how high my motivation level stays.
Aug 7, 2013, 2:02 am
#109
Suspended
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: ABZ/NCL
Posts: 2,943
If they're reading this...so be it. It'll make for an even better story when I get the knock on my door.
And I've used the Irish passport more than a few times in the UK. But I don't want to consider myself always welcome in he UK, lest the Brits think they're always welcome in Ireland.
And I've used the Irish passport more than a few times in the UK. But I don't want to consider myself always welcome in he UK, lest the Brits think they're always welcome in Ireland.
Well I am on a UK passport and always feel welcome whenever I am in Ireland. Remember LHR-DUB is one of the busiest air routes in the world!
Aug 7, 2013, 8:03 am
#110
Join Date: Mar 2009
Programs: IC.Spire Amb. Turkish Elite
Posts: 222
[QUOTE=SFO777;21227817]FlyIgglesFly, what a great finish to a classic TR. ^
We're seriously talking eightblack-like here.
+1
Only thing missing is the arm waving.
My anticipation was greatly rewarded. Excellent report .Great and relevant pictures.
We're seriously talking eightblack-like here.
+1
Only thing missing is the arm waving.
My anticipation was greatly rewarded. Excellent report .Great and relevant pictures.
Aug 7, 2013, 8:23 am
#111
Join Date: May 2012
Location: YYZ
Programs: DL PM, TK Black, AA dirt
Posts: 194
Great TR - you are a gifted writer, so keep 'em coming 
Loved all of it, except the Dmitri part, however that is due to the fact, that I spend a lot of time in the Former Soviet Union, and have to deal with these types...
At the end of the day, your TR makes my experiences of almost getting shot in a Port-au-Prince ghetto (yes, there is such a thing), and driving through the Tanzanian bush, quite insignificant
For me, Belarus is just another place - I speak fluent Russian, so all the excellent and funny things you've pointed out and experienced, would just pass by, as insignificant daily events - very refreshing to see all of the otherwise unseen...
Loved all of it, except the Dmitri part, however that is due to the fact, that I spend a lot of time in the Former Soviet Union, and have to deal with these types...
At the end of the day, your TR makes my experiences of almost getting shot in a Port-au-Prince ghetto (yes, there is such a thing), and driving through the Tanzanian bush, quite insignificant
For me, Belarus is just another place - I speak fluent Russian, so all the excellent and funny things you've pointed out and experienced, would just pass by, as insignificant daily events - very refreshing to see all of the otherwise unseen...
Aug 7, 2013, 12:16 pm
#112
Join Date: Jan 2007
Programs: AA EXP 2.003008 MM
Posts: 170
I try to stop by the TR forum once a week or so. I confess that several times I passed on reading "Double Shot of Minsk" because this part of Europe doesn't interest me.
That was a mistake.
What an AWESOME trip report! I still have no interest in visiting Belarus but man what an excellent write up this was.
That was a mistake.
What an AWESOME trip report! I still have no interest in visiting Belarus but man what an excellent write up this was.
Aug 7, 2013, 2:46 pm
#113
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: BWI
Posts: 1,782
Great TR. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I'm sure it took a lot of effort both writing and posting the pictures. It was very refreshing to read a TR that wasn't all about what champagne was served or if the lobster wasn't exactly the best one they've had...on a free ticket.
Remind me, in the end did your gambling losses and the expenses eat up all your currency? Or did you change it?
Remind me, in the end did your gambling losses and the expenses eat up all your currency? Or did you change it?
Aug 8, 2013, 11:55 am
#116
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 99
Aug 9, 2013, 4:56 pm
#118
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Moscow
Programs: BAEC (Silver)
Posts: 248
I apologize at this point for my lack of descriptions on some of the pictures. I'd kept a faily detailed travel journal from about 2010 through early this year, but for the life of me I can't find it since moving to a new apartment in March. I'm relying as best as I can on a fragmented memory assisted by captions I'd attached to some of these pictures when I uploaded them to my computer. Any of you Minsk experts who can clarify what exactly a building or location is, especially if I'm way off, by all means pitch in. I promise to thank you via private message, but only after I edit my post and transfer 1,000 Ultimate Rewards points to a moderator to delete your correction in an effort to hide all evidence of my mistake.
http://i1293.photobucket.com/albums/b592/Iaspurlock/Facebook/Belarus%20Round%202%20plus%20Warsaw/536869_622433231798_1768855701_n.jpg
http://i1293.photobucket.com/albums/b592/Iaspurlock/Facebook/Belarus%20Round%202%20plus%20Warsaw/536869_622433231798_1768855701_n.jpg
Built in 1600, housed the city magistrate until 1795 when Catherine II deprived the city of the Magdeburg Law. Later functioned as offices and music school. Destroyed in 1857 on order of Nicolas I. Rebuilt in 2004.
http://be-x-old.wikipedia.org/wiki/%...83%D1%88%D0%B0