A Crucial Difference.

At some point you get emotionally overloaded with the crap in real life. But there are places where one goes both physically and in the imagination to get a peace of mind. Forestalling a possible challenge: but there are places like this in Russia. Yes, there are, such as stunning Altai: 

But there is a crucial difference between Altai and Montana Glacier Park or Banff in breathtaking Alberta--places, among very few in the world, which have almost a spiritual influence on me with their indescribable beauty. For me, to get from Altai to another life necessity of a big water--the ocean--I will have to get to Gorno-Altaisk, then to Novosibirsk to take a plane to Vladivostok, or Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to feel the mighty breath of the Pacific--a 3,000 miles flight. A 5 or so hours affair. 

But when you are in the magical Montana, in Glacier National Park:

Or driving through Alberta:

You are never more than 6-7 hours drive from the Pacific Ocean shores.  And that matters. You just have to be near, within reach of those places. Middle Russia is flat, even mountainous Ural is very low, Caucasus can rival Rockies but it is Caucasus, and no ocean, just the seas. It is a bizarre feeling of finding in the beauty of Rockies and near pacific something which simply warms your soul. Western North America (US and Canada) are simply indescribable in their beauty and they are near ocean. Because you need to be near this too:

It has a healing quality of sorts to be here (Russia's Far East Coast near Vladivostok is similar) and they are always within reach. I think we need to take breaks from the chaos of life in those true safe spaces.