10 latest experiences in Smarhon' http://www.hereorthere.com/places/smarhon%27/rss en-us We bounced our way out of Minsk in an old red bus; two Americans, two Brits, a Filipino and a Chinese girl attracting more attention than seemed reasonable, in a place where everyone is blonde, blue-eyed, tall and slim. They don’t call it ‘White Russia’ for nothing, and the apparent purity of Belarusian genetics points to its long and difficult history of isolationism. But for all the curiosity, everyone we met was inordinately pleased to see us, and much hand-shaking and back-slapping followed us from day one. We were on our way to the wetlands near the Lithuanian border, to study the lingering effects of the Chernobyl disaster. We arrived in the little town of Smarhon to stock up (mainly on potato vodka) before we headed to our dacha, or hunting cabin, to pitch camp. Smarhon has several shops, none of which feature signs or windows, which all sell an apparently random selection of goods (one chair, a tea set with odd saucers, three felt-tip pens…). It was how you might p... Smarhon', Belarus Alexandra Sat, 23 Jun 2007 01:11:32 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/alexandra/experience/243 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/243