A few weeks to go

We are in the last stretch of our planning for the big trip. In the next few weeks we have to pack up our apartment, finalize some of our stops, coordinate a few more travel visas, finish (and start) our packing, and say some of our last goodbyes. This includes saying goodbye to our greyhound, Cheyenne. She's pretty aloof, so it will probably be much harder on us than on her. We finally took care of our visas for Vietnam and Russia, which required way more hassle than we anticipated. The Russians took particular delight in denying us and asking for more money and paperwork. The consulate office was decorated with such warm signs as "Being quiet will make the line move faster."