LaVerne and I received our Russian visas today!
They are multi-entry tourist visas good for 3 years. They allow a person to stay in the country for up to six months at a time, and then after leaving can return at any time (until the rules change, of course).
There is a problem in getting to Crimea – – cannot go via Kiev by train or plane to Simferopol as in the past, since there are no planes and it takes special permission from Ukraine to cross their border into the occupied territory. Russia may further complicate it if they open a corridor between Crimea and mainland Russia.
So, we can fly to Simferopol via Moscow via Aeroflot airlines or Istanbul to Simferopol via Chechen airlines (Grozny Avia).
Makes travel to Simferopol more expensive than in the past.
We are seriously trying to find our next home in the Melbourne area before we leave for Crimea. Tiffany would need to close it for us.
I need to see at what date flights get cheaper — how many weeks before the flight can we book a flight for the lowest available fare.
We have a lot to do before leaving and a lot to do in Simferopol. (Some people question if it is safe for me to go, but those few Americans who are there or were there recently had no serious problems, though one was called in to answer some complaints about their being a sect, etc. I have friends, ex-friends, and a few ‘enemies’ there, but would prefer not to postpone our going over to a later date — waiting to see what will happen with the new RF advances. But, much can change in a few days. I would like to be there now to fight for our ownership of the original CIU building. Well, not literally fight…
Thank you for your prayers!
Pray for us to have wisdom in the timing of our trip. We would probably spend a month there, packing, ministering, meeting people, going to offices, etc. A packed month most likely.
Georges and LaVerne