It's hard to believe that in 2 weeks I'll be on my way to Lake Baikal. Going to Baikal has been a dream of mine for a while, and I specifically saved money for a trip there. I leave for Irkutsk (the nearest major city) on April 29. It's a 5-hour flight (Russia is huge). Here's a picture of Lake Baikal--the world's largest and deepest lake.