L110CDL wrote:

Great to see your still doing the upgrades to the 90 and what an update, many thanks Bingo

Happy new year to you

Caterham wrote:

hi bingo - no offence or anything here.
just wondering how you're 'getting away with it'?

watching the news here I'd have thought you'd have been 'banged up' by now and classed as a foreign agent - should all your posts be tagged with a warning stating you're a foreign agent?

after all you've got a foreign motor and join in on a foreign website/forum. take care.



like I say. no offence meant but from what we see this side it all looks a little......delicate shall I say.?

Dear sir, (Unfortunately I do not know your name! ))

No hard feelings! I like your question and I will answer it with pleasure!

Unfortunately, the mass media in all countries primarily work for the government and provide information exactly in the form in which it is necessary for the government. In our country, the media constantly say that there are only enemies around Russia and everyone is just plotting evil against us. For example, I don't read newspapers or watch TV, but I get information from Internet sources that I more or less trust, as well as directly from people.

A banal example is the situation with Ukraine. Negative information is being pumped up again by certain forces both in our country and in Ukraine itself. Ordinary people living in Russia, Ukraine and those who live there are treated well as brothers, the same can be said about ordinary Ukrainians. Last summer we drove from Russia to Bulgaria via western Ukraine and never met with an unfriendly attitude towards ourselves, although our media have been telling us for 8 years that Russians are treated badly there.

As for the status of a Foreign agent, according to the legislation, it can be assigned to non-profit organizations, mass media, individuals and unregistered public associations that receive foreign funding and engage in political activities within Russia.

I do not receive funding from abroad and do not engage in politics, so I cannot be recognized as a foreign agent))

Otherwise, we have no restrictions in communicating with people from other countries, including on foreign forums, unless of course I try to sell state secrets) As for a foreign car, in Moscow, for example, there are several times more foreign-made cars than Russian-made cars.
I like to travel a lot (I have been to almost all European countries, in some several times as well as in other parts of the world. I was in the UK in 1995 and in 1999)) and I am always glad to communicate with people from other countries.

So if anyone has any more questions about life in Russia, I am happy to answer them)

Best wishes!

PS: My English is not good enough, and I write using an automatic translator, so there may be errors in the text)

P.P.S.: We are in Ukraine in the summer of 2021:


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Click image to enlarge “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends. At some table a document is signed by some persons whom none of us knows, and then for years together that very crime on which formerly the world’s condemnation and severest penalty fall, becomes our highest aim.”
— Erich Maria Remarque

Caterham wrote:

bingo,

thank you for taking the time to post not just the wonderful pictures but also your take on 'life in Russia' and the media.

you mention you've visited most european countries - do you have any favourites and if so why?

thank you and kind regards Caterham (Wayne).

Dear Wayne, thank you for your interest in my posts)

At school I enjoyed learning English and I dreamed of visiting the UK and London in particular! But, nevertheless, the first country I managed to visit was Slovakia, where my mother and I went on a bus trip. Then, in addition to Slovakia, we visited Hungary and Austria.

In the 90s, it was difficult to live in Russia - the country was poor and lay in ruins in the economic sense, so foreign countries made a strong impression, it was so beautiful and clean there, even though Slovakia and Hungary previously belonged to the socialist camp.

Our next trip was a trip to London and Paris, with a transfer between these two cities by Eurostar train under the English Channel! I really liked London and it was with great pleasure that I returned here in 1999 during a working trip organized by the All-Russian Hemophilia Society to exchange experiences with the Hemophilia Society of Great Britain!

Until 2015, I rarely traveled, but since that year, my wife and dogs and I have been regularly traveling to Europe by car, including to visit my wife's parents, who have been living in Bulgaria since 2009 (or rather, only my mother-in-law has remained...).

My first trip with my wife took place in 2015 and we visited Germany, and in particular the city of Hann. Munden, in which the spouse and parents lived for 3 years in the early 90s. In Germany we saw beautiful medieval castles, which since then have been the object of our interest when traveling in different countries!

Here are some photos from our travels:

Nesvizh Castle, Belarus.

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The Town Hall in Hann. Munden, Germany.

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Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany.

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High Tatras, Slovakia.

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Mountains in Austria.

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Rented Smart on the island of Kos, Greece.

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Ogrodzieniec Castle, Poland.

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Jaunpils Castle, Latvia.

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The Berlin Wall.

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American Beauty Car Show, Estonia.

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Hrad Šomoška, Slovakia.

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Moritzburg Castle, Germany.

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This is only a small part of the places we visited! I can't say that I liked some country more, some less - you can find something beautiful and interesting everywhere! Slovakia has beautiful castles, Germany has unique half-timbered architecture, Austria has beautiful mountains, Italy has ancient ruins, the Canary Islands have unique nature and cleavage)

However, since London has left an indelible impression for me forever, I dream of coming there by Defender to the Land Rover car lovers festival and going to the Harry Potter Museum - the character of my favorite book! And there are countless ancient castles in Great Britain and Northern Ireland!

Best wishes!

PS: Me (on the right) and my friend near Buckingham Palace, 1999)))

Click image to enlarge “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends. At some table a document is signed by some persons whom none of us knows, and then for years together that very crime on which formerly the world’s condemnation and severest penalty fall, becomes our highest aim.”
— Erich Maria Remarque

Caterham wrote:

thank you for sharing that.
when were you in Berlin (the wall)? I worked there for a couple of years '94 / '95, a lovely city.

I guess London is ok but I'd much rather venture to some of the locations you've shared your photos of, unfortunately the rest of the family don't enjoy driving / adventure as much as I do.

loving the photos. thank you.

Dear Wayne!

My wife and I were in Berlin in 2018, but not for very long - literally half a day. We saw Treptow Park, the Brandenburg Gate and the Berlin Wall.
My grandfather during the Second World War (in Russia this war is called the Great Patriotic War) reached Berlin as part of the Red Army troops and took part in the liberation of this city from the Nazis.
Berlin is a very beautiful city, but unfortunately it was badly damaged during the war, so not many old buildings have been preserved in it!


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Car travel has its own specifics, and of course, not everyone likes it! They attract me with the opportunity not to depend on anyone and to see the sights that are located at a distance from popular tourist places) “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends. At some table a document is signed by some persons whom none of us knows, and then for years together that very crime on which formerly the world’s condemnation and severest penalty fall, becomes our highest aim.”
— Erich Maria Remarque

L110CDL wrote:

Thank you Bingo for all the information on your country and the ones that you have visited, really interesting your views of them all. Your English is very good, no need to worry about that part, i do hope that you make it to England again to fulfil your wishes

Thanks a lot!  “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends. At some table a document is signed by some persons whom none of us knows, and then for years together that very crime on which formerly the world’s condemnation and severest penalty fall, becomes our highest aim.”
— Erich Maria Remarque

Outlaw1 wrote:

Hi Bingo I am enjoying your pictures of your travels also about life in general with a defender in russia .
Nice dogs , are they Russian Blacks ?

Good evening!

No, the dog in the photo above is a Giant Schnauzer. Until the summer of 2021, we had 2 of them, but in the summer one of them died... They went with us on all trips:

To Germany

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To Poland

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To the Czech Republic

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And to many other cities and countries!

We also have two dogs of the Small Spitz breed. We went on a summer trip with them.

Ukraine:

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Bulgaria:

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And in February we received a Rottweiler puppy from a kennel in Belarus:

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(The photo is only like this so far)

That's such a big dog family we have) “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends. At some table a document is signed by some persons whom none of us knows, and then for years together that very crime on which formerly the world’s condemnation and severest penalty fall, becomes our highest aim.”
— Erich Maria Remarque