The border of Europe and Asia lies along the Ural mountains, dividing Russia into two continents. I have always considered Russia to be Europe as all Russians I know are Caucasians and so are the Russians I have seen on the news. Russia has played a key role in shaping European history and politics in the last century. Russia has participated in all major cultural European events. Blame it on Lonely Planet and all guide books which classify Russia as Eastern Europe. However, when I talked to many Russians, I often heard the phrase “going to Europe.” “But you’re in Europe,” I said. “No, we are not,” they replied. Perhaps Russians see Europe not only on geographical term but also on political and economical level. For them, I think, Europe means the European Union.
The further east I crossed Russia, passing multiple timezones, heading to Asia, the more I started seeing how Russia couldn’t be classified as simply ‘Europe’. Most of Russia’s vast territory lies east of the Ural in Asia. As I crossed Lake Baikal to the Buryat Republic, the home of descendants of the Mongols, I saw Asian-looking faces everywhere. Maybe Russia is Russia and neither Europe or Asia.
When I made Yekaterinburg a stop in my journey, I determined to find the border boundary as it was close to the city. The idea to stand at the border of Europe and Asia at zero location seemed appealing. It wasn’t special, however, in the end. There were two of them; the bigger, most visited one, was closer to Yekaterinburg and hard to miss. The large red column definitely stood out along the boring highway landscape. I visited the second landmark which was further away because my driver missed the first one and drove me to the second.
Wikitravel says that you can take bus 150 and 180 and ask the driver to drop you off. Alternatively, you can take the tour from the same company which organized the excursion to Ganina Yama monasteries. They will do it only if you’re in a group of at least 5 persons. The cost is 2000 ruble, not worth it if you’re budget backpacker. If you don’t have time, skip it. I went there because I met someone with a car at the last minutes.
Misha, son of my host family and his friend drove me to the monument. You can see behind us is just the highway.
I'm a motivation explorer, personality type hacker, behavioral investigator and storyteller. I help startup founders, entrepreneurs, and corporate managers to understand themselves, the people they manage and how to get the best of their people. Specialty is in psychological personality types and brain-based methods. When I don't do the above, I hop around planet Earth with TravelJo.com to learn the Art and Science of people from everywhere and to give you all the free travel and tips and advice in many cool destinations.
My name is Cindy, also rhymes with travel junkie. A friend said I was probably a gipsy in my previous life. One of my many secret missions in life is to convert you to run off every once in awhile.
