I woke up around 6:30 but had trouble getting moving. After breakfast I asked the receptionist for directions to where I could buy car parts and camping stuff. The camping shop was 50m behind the hotel but it was closed so I headed off to the parts shop. This was much more like what I expected. I found a fuel can, a tow rope, gasket stuff but not the two things I needed yet, a flasher unit and wire to power the inverter to charge my tablet.
There directions first led me to an army base 6km away and then to several shops as I narrowed down to A group Khv who sell parts and repair and service cars. After a couple of puzzled looks I met Dimar who took my old flasher out to the workshop where their best mechanic determend that I needed a Toyota 3 pin flasher. Dimar then dropped everything to drive me around the local area searching for a flasher. It probably took more than an hour before he found a shop where a man said he had the same thing as well as the Toyota unit. Then it was back to the workshop where the mechanic tried to figure out the correct wire connections. In the end I've get working indicators but no warning light on the dash. No problem. Thanks very much guys. Russians are very friendly and eager to help.
On the way out of town I stopped in at a flea market where there were plenty of air mattresses but no. Suitable wire. It seems so many shops sell car electrical accessories but no wire to fit them with. By now it was after 2PM.
I was stopped by the police on the outskirts of town. They checked the documents again but I'm not sure they know what they are looking for. After about 10 minutes they seemed to give up rather dissatisfied and I drove on.
I stopped at a workshop after about 30 minutes to ask if they had wire. They didn't but the mechanic cut his extension lead in half and gave me that. All he wanted in exchange was Australian currency as a souvenir. Unfortunately, I don't have any small denomination notes left.
I drove on until the sun got low and was in my eyes around 8PM. I stopped in a village called Londoko And asked if I could put up a tent. Once again the language problem made it difficult but in the end I think he was happy fort me to camp in a empty patch where cows were grazing. I checked nuts and bolts on the car and tried to check the gearbox oil but couldn't get the filler plug to loosen. Dinner of tuna and crackers in the car because of the mosquitoes and then asleep soon after.
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