In Yakutsk. every building is literally built on frozen ground, permafrost so unforgiving that even in summer, the soil stays solid. Everything, from pipeworks to shopping malls, is raised above ground like they’re wearing architectural stilts just to avoid heating the earth below.
Jeremy’s stay takes an unexpected twist when he and his crew check into a truck-stop hotel and quickly discover foreigners aren’t exactly allowed there. The scene that follows feels like the universe’s way of saying, “Welcome to real Russia!” They’re refunded, relocated, and ready for the next absurdity.
Cue the long, pothole-riddled road trip through the hauntingly quiet Saka countryside. Jeremy’s poetic eye captures both its solitude and beauty: icy rivers, distant silhouettes, ghostly buildings, and the promise of the Lena Pillars, a magnificent UNESCO site carved by time and wind. As always, there’s a hitch. No proper signs, confusing dirt trails, and locals who direct them to “somewhere around there”, a classic adventure feel.
Eventually, a kind-hearted Yakut woman saves the day, guiding them to the real ferry crossing point. Of course, the crossing itself turns into its own mini-drama! Price haggling, miscommunication, and the occasional sense that maybe, just maybe, they’re being charged extra for being “foreign”. Still, persistence wins. The ferry finally drags their muddy car across the river, and they’re met by a sunset so spectacular that it almost makes the whole ordeal feel poetic.
From there, the trip flows into laughter, steaming bowls of borscht, and a proud moment where Jeremy becomes the “first Singaporean” to leave his dollar bill on the wall of a roadside café. It’s rugged, funny, and bizarrely touching! All the classic moments that make his travel stories magnetic. Click on the play now!
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