TRAVEL BERGS
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| John and Doreen Berg Lake Baikal |
RUSSIA
CHAPTER 3
Written by Doreen and John Berg
With great excitement and after a year of anticipation, we embarked on the Trans-Siberian Railway journey from Moscow, Russia to Beijing, China.
We first visited Russia a year before and had heard so much about the Trans-Siberian Railway from Moscow to Beijing that we decided we should attempt it but we had to wait a year before we could fulfil this plan.
It was a glorious experience filled with unexpected challenges and momentous encounters as we faced each new day like the early explorers looking for new land and not knowing what lay ahead. The scenery constantly changed as we crossed the Siberian planes and forests, the Ural Mountains, the deserts of Mongolia and finished in Beijing, the capital of China.
The Trans-Siberian Railway, TSR, is a network of railways connecting Moscow to Vladivostok, a Far Eastern Russian port, with a length of 9,289 kilometres, the longest railway line in the world. This line was completed in 1916 with the expansion of the railway system to Mongolia, China and North Korea and continues to this day. Our journey did not take us to Vladivostok, Russia, on the northern coastal route but the southern route, stopping in Mongolia and then on to Beijing.
First Trip to Russia
On our first trip, we flew from Vancouver, BC, Canada to London, England, staying at the same family-run St. Athans Hotel each time we visited England. Our very first trip to London was in 1990 and many times over the years we have stayed at St. Athans, a boutique hotel, owned and run by the Geyer family. We’ve used London as our departure city to other European countries as well as our trips to Russia. On our first Russian trip, we flew from London to the Baltic countries first then by bus to Russia. We explored the Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia before heading to Saint Petersburg then on to Moscow by train. Our first trip was 38 days and our second trip was 58 days. Once retired, we wanted to explore as much as possible so our trip durations were often two months. (I will write about the Baltic countries in another blog.)
Obtaining Visas and an Invitation Letter
On our first trip to Russia, we learned that there is a certain protocol to visit Russia. You cannot just arrive on a plane or bus without first obtaining a visa for Russia and you must be invited. This is simpler than it sounds. We obtained our visa and were registered in St. Petersburg the first time and the following year we were registered in Moscow, our arrival city. If you book a hotel or hostel, they will send a letter to invite you and you must also have a visa for the chosen length of time. You are to carry your passports with you at all times.
On both trips to Moscow, we had to register, even though we had registered in St. Petersburg. You have to register your visa in every city that you stay in for more than seven days.
St. Petersburg
We arrived in St. Petersburg from Estonia by bus. Passports were checked at both borders, leaving Estonia and arriving in Russia. At the Russian border, we had to remove our luggage from the bus and carry it through the border control where they checked our letter of invitation and visa before we could return to the bus. On our way to St. Petersburg, I noticed poor farms and large boxlike apartments all in a dull grey colour. Nothing looked very inviting. As we approached St. Petersburg the surroundings changed to beautiful tall, decorated buildings and wide
streets with many statues.
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| Bronze Statue St. Petersburg |
In St. Petersburg, Russia, the first thing I noticed as we exited the bus, was the strange Russian letters on the billboards which didn’t translate well into English. A copy of the Russian alphabet would be useful or an online Cyrillic Alphabet Translator. We have 26 letters in the English alphabet whereas there are 31 letters and two signs in the Cyrillic alphabet.
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| McDonald's in St. Petersburg |
While we were in the train station in St. Petersburg we bought first-class train tickets for the following week to Moscow which would be an eight-hour trip, leaving St. Petersburg at midnight and arriving in Moscow at 8:00 a.m. Russian ruble currency was 31 rubles to $1.00 CAD, now it is 59 rubles to $1.00 CAD. When buying items, we kept small notes as shop keepers do not have the change. There are ruble banknotes and coins of varying denominations.
Our stay in St. Petersburg was pleasant and somewhat easy as it is a destination for many Europeans and cruise ships. However, travelling was not as easy as in the Baltic countries, perhaps because of the unusual Cyrillic language and the rules established in a communist country.
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| A Damaged Building in St. Petersburg |
We took a taxi which cost 400 rubles, $12.00 CAD, from the train station to the Pilau Hostel and fortunately John was able to pay with rubles exchanged in Estonia. To enter the hostel, we needed a cell phone which we didn’t have. Fortunately, a person on the street assisted us. It seemed prudent to carry a cell phone for the country, which has now become more apparent in most countries. Our small room was clean and quiet with an ensuite. The surrounding area looked downtrodden with wooden planks over holes on broken sidewalks and one building in the area had fallen into itself and just seemed to be left.
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| Doreen entering Pilau Hostel |
One thing we found out pretty quickly was to get as much money from any ATM that we saw. Some machines didn’t work and if they did work they only gave you small amounts of money. We had to practice this the whole time we were in Russia.
Creperies are popular food restaurants in Russia and we went to one on our first night. We ate two savoury crepes and one sweet one, which were very tasty. It cost about 350 rubles, $11.00 CAD. Would you believe that the second day we had lunch in Boston Pizza! At breakfast, we ate cheese, meat, and tomato on dark bread plus juice and coffee. For supper, we walked for fifteen minutes to Pectopah Restaurant which served Russian and European cuisine. Our meal began with a chicken liver salad, then borsht for me and John had pork in a pastry with cowberry sauce, a red berry also called lingonberry and grows in the tundra. We had ice cream for dessert and our meal cost about $60.00 CAD. We were very happy with the quality of the food and the impressive presentation and would recommend this excellent restaurant.
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| Hermitage |
The next day with cooler air and an overcast sky, we toured the State Hermitage Museum, one of the world’s great art museums. Because we had booked our tour of the Hermitage online, we didn’t have to line up but presented our passports and vouchers and were soon inside the building. The Hermitage Museum is only part of the huge Winter Palace with its 1057 rooms! The Hermitage was founded in 1746 when Empress Catherine the Great acquired an impressive collection of paintings. Some of the art displays were a Jordan staircase made of marble, a mummified body from Ancient Egypt, Italian art, Greek sculptures, Flemish tapestries, a 19-ton statue of Zeus, and a 16-ton vase on an eight-foot pedestal.
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| Inside Heritage |
These were on the first two floors and we had spent most of the day here. We ran out of time and missed European artists like Picasso, Monet, Van Gogh and Cezanne. I think we would need several more days to see everything and take more photos. An interesting note is that we were still using Kodak rolls of film, favouring the 36’s over the 24’s as we didn’t have to pack so many canisters. After the rolls were completed, John had them processed onto a DVD, which made for less to carry.
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| Amber Room |
The next day, after eating our breakfast in our hostel communal kitchen, we used the metro for the first time on our way to Pushkin. It isn’t difficult to take the metro and we’ve done it in many countries, but we couldn’t read the Cyrillic language and had to review the symbols to get off at the right exit. I learned to draw the symbols on a notepad and also record how many stops we had to take.
On exiting the metro, we boarded the #545 bus to Pushkin, 30 kilometres south of St. Petersburg, where we toured Catherine’s Palace. It was once a summer residence of the Russian tsars, including the Romanovs.
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| Inside Catherine's Palace |
The Baroque style palace is very elaborate and famous for its excessively lavish exterior which has a stucco façade with over 100 kilograms of gold. The interior contains the well-known Amber Room which is covered in amber. After this, we enjoyed following the walking paths in the nearby park with its many ponds and trees, a peaceful retreat from the busy city of St. Peterburg.
We continued our tour of St. Peterburg over the next few days and saw The Bronze Horseman monument, Peter and Paul Fortress, the Cruiser Aurora, the Naval Museum, and two churches. With so much to see in St. Petersburg, we decided to stay five nights rather than three, our original plan. It is a beautiful place and you’ll find lots of people enjoying the many displays and important buildings along the streets. It is the second-largest city in Russia and is situated on the Neva River. It is known as the cultural capital of Russia and receives millions of tourists every year. The historical centre of St. Petersburg is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
We left St. Peterburg after five days and took the overnight train to Moscow.
Moscow
After boarding our train in St. Petersburg with a departure at 23:00 we arrived in Moscow the next morning at 8:00. On the train, we were each given a bottle of water and a meal of yoghurt, fruit, meat, cheese, buns and a sweet. We had the lower bunks and two fellows who spoke English had the upper bunks. One fellow told us he always takes wagon one out of 16 train cars as it is the best. We were in compartment two of the number one wagon.
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| Young Painter at Godzillas Hostel |
On arrival at Godzillas Hostel, we paid for four nights as well as paying the manager of the hostel to register us in the city. The hostel was central, clean and well organized. After finding a place to eat breakfast at Café Chokkolatta, an Italian Restaurant, we inquired about getting tickets for the circus, and, would you believe, tickets for a hockey game! John was delighted.
Moscow is the capital of communist Russia. Be aware there are four airports in Moscow when entering or departing Moscow by air. The best known are Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport and Moscow Domodedovo Airport. On our first trip, we arrived from St. Petersburg by train and the second trip by air from London, England, arriving at Domodedovo Airport. Moscow is ‘Mockba’ on signs.
Moscow is built on concentric circles around the fortified political headquarters of the Kremlin with Moscow expanding outwards over the centuries. Within the world-famous red walls nestles a collection of buildings of various architectural styles.
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| Doreen at St. Basil's Cathedral |
One of the buildings, St. Basil’s Cathedral, actually nine churches put together on one foundation, has many different cupolas and is often featured on tourist brochures, similar to the brochures you see with the Statue of Liberty for New York, and the lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove for Nova Scotia. Inside the St. Basil’s Cathedral are old chandeliers, high archways, Medieval wall paintings, thick three-meter walls and deep steps to climb to the upper floor.
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| John in Red Square |
Red Square contains the Kremlin, Lenin’s Mausoleum, St. Basil and the State History Museum. There is also a large department store, Glavny Universalny Magazin, (GUM), a shopping centre to the east of Red Square, for both locals and tourists to shop and enjoy the ambience of this popular GUM store.
GUM - Huge Department Store
For dinner that evening we discovered a buffet-style restaurant called Grabli near our hostel which we elected to visit more than once with its many tasty choices and reasonable prices.
On a second visit to the Kremlin, we watched a ceremony taking place on the promenade with perfectly lined-up soldiers. We observed the procedures for about 30 minutes until it got too cold then we continued with our plan to buy tickets to enter the Kremlin and the armoury. It cost 350 rubles each, $13.00 CAD, to enter the Kremlin and 700 rubles, $25.00 to visit the armoury. It was bitterly cold as we entered the red walls into the Kremlin which brought to mind the snow scenes in the “Dr Zhivago” movie and the Ural Mountains. There didn’t appear to be anyone around but as we walked toward the centre of the spacious grounds we saw several churches and decided to enter one – it was toasty warm. Even though we didn’t understand the signage on the pictures we were happy to enjoy the warmth. Later, when we left the church the sun was shining and the court was busy with people. We realized that other visitors to the Kremlin had also found warm places to wait until the blizzard passed. It seems the weather can change rapidly in this northern area, similar to Iceland.
On entering the Armoury, we first deposited our coats and bag and then we picked up audio phones to explain the displays in English. There were about ten rooms showing armour, ladies and men’s clothing fashions, jewellery, silver place settings, samovars and silver trays, gold dishes, carriages given to Catherine II from several countries, and Peter the Great’s boots, cane and outfit.
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| Peter the Great's Boot |
He designed his boots with three extra inches of suede on the top to cover his knees. I think you can buy similar boots today that have copied this design to some degree.
By the time we had finished, it was 16:30 and time to head back to our hostel. As we left we saw dark clouds in the sky and knew it could storm so we hurried along to get back to our hostel. However, it started to sleet then snow and we still had some distance to go before we’d get into the warm hostel. Fortunately, we had our umbrellas and the snow started to stick to the umbrellas. It was a pretty picture but we couldn’t use our camera as it would get wet and it was also blowing. We were very happy to get to our abode and take off our wet coats, shoes and pants. We hung our wet jeans and coats at the end of our bunks and put the shoes on the radiator and then we both had warm showers. We still had to have supper and get ready for a 19:30 hockey game.
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| Grabli Restaurant near Godzillas Hostel |
Off we went to the buffet-style Grabli Restaurant where we could select a meal in a hurry. We then walked to the metro getting on quickly and getting off after one stop to change from the metro grey line to the metro green line. We were going the wrong way! Fortunately, a fellow saw us looking at a map and got us straightened around. We only lost a short time and were soon going in the right direction for the hockey game departing the metro at Dinamo Station. It was 19:20 so we knew we were running late. We crossed the wide street underground and walked until we saw security fellows and asked them where the arena was, but they didn’t understand so we just kept going. Surprisingly we walked for another 30 minutes and finally saw the shape of the building according to our map. We saw a father and son running toward the building and I said to John, “They’re going to the hockey game, follow them.” We met them at the stoplight and asked them if they were going to the hockey game but they didn’t understand but a lady beside them translated for us and he said ‘Hockey’ and nodded his head. We watched where they went and followed them which was easy even though it was very dark outside and hard to see.
As we approached the arena there was a long-inclined entrance to get to the gate and finally, we were there. Our small backpack had to go through radar similar to airport checks along with visual checks. Then we had to find the right gate entrance, C4, which didn’t take long. All this time we thought the game would be well along but not so. It didn’t start until 20:20 after the players were introduced and the national anthem was sung. It was a great game with Red and Blue (home) against White and Red (visitors). The game started with the home team getting two goals and then by the end of the game it was 4 to 5 in favour of the visitors. There were so much cheering and noise it interfered with the game, but fun. They were fast skaters with quick shots. John said the Canucks could do with some of these players.
At the end of the game, the spectators of the losing team and team players left the arena immediately while the winning team did a victory skate at one end of the ice and bowed and waved their sticks to their cheering spectators. Generally, spectators for each team were at each end of the rink to cheer their team. We were in the middle so tried to be careful not to cheer too much. It was an experience I will always remember. Russians love their hockey and their hockey players!
Leaving the arena, we decided to follow a large group of people because we figured they were heading for the metro and we had no idea which way it was and that was exactly where they headed so once on the metro we knew what to do. As we walked the 30 minutes to the metro there were police guards about every 100 metres all along the way. There were also about 10 police in the arena during the game in different quadrant sections. We arrived home safely after walking through a little footpath which, later we were told, wasn’t a good idea. We were into our beds by midnight.
John and Doreen with Cheetah at Circus
We purchased tickets to see a circus performance the following day. We were supposed to go the day before but got our dates mixed up so we bought more tickets for the circus performance. We marvelled at the immense gymnastic strength and agility of the performers as they worked the bars and swung through the air twirling on strong ribbons as they raised and lowered themselves with graceful artistic movements. About fifty per cent of the audience were children and they greatly enjoyed the clowns. Three tigers, a cheetah, two pumas and two other cats performed tricks. John decided we needed our photo taken with a cheetah, so we did for 300 rubles.
For supper that night we went to a Ukraine/Russian restaurant, a delightful little eatery. The maître de took our coats and seated us in a smoking area of the restaurant but we were very uncomfortable so John asked for another area and we were taken to another room with several tables with only one other couple seated, a German couple who happened to be staying in our hostel. We had a nice visit and as they were leaving we agreed we should return to this good restaurant. We think the restaurant was called Korchma Taras Bulba, near the Pushkinskaya Metro Station.
Russian Newlyweds
Metal Tree Filled with Newlywed Padlocks
While in Russia we observed that a bride and groom like to have outdoor wedding photos taken in beautiful settings along with a tradition they practice after the photoshoot. They are expected to kiss on a bridge and then secure a padlock with their names and vows written on it to a bridge metal rail. They then throw the key into the river to symbolize faithfulness and enduring love. Another interesting fact is that married people wear their wedding rings on the right ring finger.
Vladimir and Suzdal – Golden Cities in Russia
After five days in Moscow, we left for Vladimir and Suzdal, part of the Golden Ring of old medieval Russian cities. On arrival in Vladimir, 180 kilometres north-east of Moscow, we followed the internet information to arrive at our pre-booked hotel ten minutes later. After depositing our bags in the room, we returned to the lobby to pay for our room. We tried the ATM which didn’t work so we had to pay cash for our room, 5400 rubles, which meant we didn’t have any money. What to do? John suggested we go and find another ATM at a bank and fortunately, we found one and it worked using our client bank cards. We both got money to be sure we had enough for our tour of the golden cities. We then went for lunch at a pizza restaurant. When we returned to Moscow we were able to use someone’s phone to contact Visa and sure enough, our cards had been compromised and used for bus tickets to New Orleans and other purchased items. We were fortunate to have another credit card as they couldn’t renew John’s card but they did reactivate mine so that is what we used until we got home.
Golden Gate of Vladimir
While in these two cities we visited museums, cathedrals, and monasteries displaying many old items like flat irons, cloth-covered handcuffs, fancy hats, including fur-trimmed, hand-turned sewing machines, straight pens with removable nibs plus photos of cobblestone streets with horse-drawn carriages.
The history of Vladimir goes back to 1108, further than Moscow and other cities when a mighty fortress was built to protect the area. It became the new capital from Kyiv to Vladimir in the 12th century. The famous Golden Gate of Vladimir was built between 1158 and 1164 and is the only preserved ancient Russian city gate. The new capital of Vladimir had new ramparts which encircled the city and several cathedrals were built, but the Mongol invasion in the 13th century caused the decline of Vladimir when the capital was ruined, looted and burned. The capital was then moved to Moscow.
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| Cathedral of the Nativity |
When we visited Suzdal we stayed in a convent for two nights paying 3800 rubles for two nights, about $130.00 CAD which included two suppers and two breakfasts. We also had a television but only Russian was spoken. For breakfast, we had grits, fried ham, two rolled pancakes layered with honey and coffee.
Suzdal, about 25 km north of Vladimir, on the Kamenka River, was founded in 1024 with the Kremlin surrounded by earthen ramparts. Many cathedrals dominated the skyline in Suzdal, but the one that overshadowed the whole town was the Cathedral of the Nativity with its five-domed roof and 13th-century Golden Doors.
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| Window in Suzdal |
Suzdal and Vladimir are linked together as a UNESCO site and the White Monuments are testimonials of the time when Christianity was introduced to Russia. We enjoyed going to both Vladimir and Suzdal but without knowing the Russian language and with few people speaking English, it was hard to communicate.
Older Russian House
We left Suzdal to return to Vladimir and then on to Moscow. We had an interesting experience while waiting for our bus to Moscow. We saw a lovely bus at the Vladimir bus station bound for Moscow so we tried to buy tickets but NO. A young fellow helped us who spoke a little English as we didn’t understand why the agent would not sell us tickets for the Moscow bus. Our names had to be on the bus list to board it and they would not accept any other passengers past a certain time. That bus left and we waited. Another bus arrived and about ten minutes before departure the agent pulled the window blind up and waved us over and she sold us two tickets- standing room as no assigned seats even though the bus had lots of seats. However, we didn’t have to stand as we took two vacant seats. It’s something to do with a reserved list of seats for people and we couldn’t get our names on the bus list as we were too late. I think they have to account for every passenger and their names. The government must know where you are at all times!
The traffic got heavier as we approached Moscow after a two-hour bus ride and we noticed the traffic on the opposite side of the highway was stopped because of the heavy volume. Seems Russia has similar traffic jam problems to our North American cities. After arriving at the station, we walked over to the metro and took the blue line for nine metro stops and then onto the grey line for two metro stops and we were back in familiar territory. We went into a store to buy water, beer, bread, meat and cheese for our breakfast and then headed for our familiar Godzillas Hostel.
Russian Hat Shop
Before we left Moscow I saw in a market a fur Russian hat that cost over $100.00 CAD. I really wanted one but felt it was too expensive. After we left that area John said I should have bought it but it was too late. This was our first trip, but on the second trip, with much searching, we were able to purchase the fox fur hat which I still wear and enjoy. I feel very Russian when I wear the hat!
On the last night in Moscow, we had dinner in the lovely Café Haus Restaurant and enjoyed special dishes of bread and pâté, (lard +) delicious salads, cabbage rolls and a Kyiv dish of pork steak smothered in a creamy sauce and then an unusual dessert of egg white, cream and walnuts. When we went to pay we found they didn’t take credit cards and we didn’t have enough money to pay our dinner bill! John went out to a bank nearby to get money while I waited in the restaurant, like a hostage. After 20 minutes John returned with no money as the machines didn’t work. John gave them two options: 1) 1,000 rubles and some American money or 2) he would go to the metro, about 20 minutes away to get some money and return. Fortunately, they took the first option. Another new experience.
The following day we flew to London and onward home ending our first trip to Russia. The following year as planned we returned to Russia for another adventurous trip.
Russia – Part 2
Trans-Siberian Train
Bus Mechanical Problems – A Close Call
On the second trip, we flew directly to Moscow from London, having arrived the day before from Vancouver, B.C., Canada. Leaving London became a real problem on the day we were to fly to Moscow. The Express Bus to Heathrow Airport had a mechanical problem.
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| Jammed Wheel-Chair Lift |
The wheel-chair lift below the floor could not be brought back into the bus so the driver could not drive the bus. To compound this problem our luggage was stored in the undercarriage and could not be accessed because of the electrical problem. What a fiasco! It took 1½ hour to fix the problem which caused some passengers to miss their flight or, as one woman did, went without her luggage taking a taxi to the airport and getting her husband to pick up her luggage. As luck would have it, we arrived at the airport on time to catch our flight to Moscow. This was a good reminder to allow plenty of time before your flight. Our 3 ½ hours flight to Moscow with British Air put us in Moscow in good time, before 20:00, but our troubles weren’t over. It took over an hour to exit the airport because of the number of people arriving from other flights, then as we exited the airport and met Alexsey, our driver from Godzillas Hostel, we couldn’t access money from the ATM so we grabbed our bags and followed Alexsey, to the parking machine and that didn’t work either. Alexsey contacted a technician who arrived and gave Alexsey the change due back and then we drove to the exit. Another problem, the bars would not lift because it indicated we needed to pay more rubles because of our delay. Again, Alexsey used the intercom and explained the problem, and the technician arrived after 30 minutes and activated the bar to let us out! The traffic on the highway to our hostel was heavy so we were another hour before we finally arrived at Godzillas Hostel, around 23:00. By the time we found a restaurant for supper and back to the hostel it was 1:00 in the morning!
Railway Station In Center of Moscow
Even though we were tired the next day, we were very excited about our planned trip in a couple of days to ride the Trans-Siberian Railway from Russia to China. Can you imagine the joy coupled with anxiety as we thought about moving across the Russian plain, over the Ural Mountains and transversing the Siberian Plateau, touching on Lake Baikal and into Mongolia then finishing in China! Just the thought of it excites me to this day. It was as thrilling as we’d hoped.
John Waiting to Board Train
We travelled for 58 days in the fall from Vancouver to England, Russia, Mongolia, China, Japan and back to Vancouver, spending most of the time in Russia and Mongolia. On arrival in Moscow, it was similar to the prior year where few of the ATMs worked and the parking machines were jammed. We left the problem to Alexsey, the driver from Godzillas Hostel. On this second visit to Godzillas Hostel, we had a double room, not a dorm room that we’d had the year be for before!
After breakfast, we walked to the Kremlin and enjoyed the archaeological/historical museum where two actors dressed in medieval costumes enhanced the overall presentation of earlier times. The displays included magnificent ceiling paintings and floor mosaics.
After a couple of days in Moscow enjoying familiar ground and eating at the same well-known restaurants from the previous year, we decided to take a trial run to the train station for the Trans-Siberian Trip to prevent delays and correct any problems we may encounter before taking our epic train ride.
A note about purchasing train tickets. Buy locally not from foreign agents as you save at least one-third the cost. We bought our first tickets from Moscow to Ekaterinburg online through “Real Russia”. (realrussia.co.uk). We realized how expensive they were and from then on we purchased our tickets at the train station on arrival for the next leg of our train ride. This worked well and each time we followed this pattern as we journeyed from one city to another city across Siberia.
Doreen Reading Book On Train
On the day we left Moscow we boarded the train for a 16:50 departure, Train # 016E, seats # 019 and 017, both bottom bunks. There were nine compartments in each second-class car with four bunks in each compartment. First-class is similar but only two people in each compartment.
On the train, we used our insulated, spill-proof, 16 oz Contigo mugs for hot and cold beverages. The train had a samovar in every carriage which is a metal container to boil water, usually electrical and operated continually so you could make a hot drink anytime. We frequently used this device to make soup and coffee.
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| Retrieving Hot Water for Soup |
We arrived in Ekaterinburg the following day at 18:14 local time, after having a fitful sleep because it was so warm in the compartment even though they had put the air conditioning on, but only for a short time. This was mid-September.
We awakened to the sun and some cloud cover with low-lying fog. The countryside was a scene of black and white bark of beech, birch and aspen trees. The taiga was dominated by conifers, particularly Siberian pine as well as silver firs and spruce. We dressed and used the toilet, which was situated at one end of each car, the same in every wagon. The toilet was fairly clean as the journey began but got worse, in fact, gross, as we travelled further into the interior. John had put his shaving kit in the small sink while he used the toilet and water automatically splashed onto his kit from the water faucet. A lesson learned in a small toilet area.
For breakfast, we had peanut butter and banana sandwiches with hot tea and coffee, which became our staple morning diet for the duration of the train trip.
A Russian fellow from our compartment departed the train at Argyz and told us he had to travel north to Izhevsk. We were 1,100 km from Moscow. A few months previously, more than 28,000 people had to be evacuated from Izhevsk as a massive blaze destroyed a major arms depot. Another one happened in August 2019 in Achinsk, when eight people were injured and thousands were forced to evacuate their homes. A news report said explosions at military weapons depots are relatively common in Russia and are often linked to ageing equipment and lax enforcement of safety rules.
As we departed Argyz, I looked out the window and saw groves of trees in full fall colours and stretches of farmland similar to our Canadian prairies. There were some dilapidated buildings with fallen roofs but others looked newer with bright blue roofs and orderly buildings. People were wearing winter coats but no toques or gloves. The air was cool when we got off the train for a short break.
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| Train Stop |
For lunch, I made hot noodle soup, bread with spinach dip and tomatoes and we shared a caramel coffee. Our meals on the train were simple but easy and fun.
We arrived in Ekaterinburg (Yekaterinburg) at 18:14, exactly the time they said we would arrive. It was still daylight as we departed the train. John flagged down a taxi and showed him on a piece of paper with the address of our Meeting Point Hostel and within 15 minutes we were there. Katia, a pretty curly blonde-haired, brown-eyed young lady graciously met us at the door with a ready smile. We took off our shoes then she showed us the rooms. It was very crowded with people and beds but she kept smiling and we wondered what we had let ourselves in for!
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| Katia with her Meeting Point Hostel Guests |
She directed us to bunk beds in the next room which she said she would make up. It seemed Katia’s parents owned the hostel which she managed. It was very crowded but friendly and homey. There was one bathroom for nine guests! Curtains were used to divide some areas! All very quaint! The old wooden floors had been painted at one time but the paint had peeled back to the wood and walls were covered in wallpaper. Printed cotton curtains covered the windows and throws were on every conceivable sitting area. Duvets and blankets were used on the bunks.
We searched out the town around 21:00 hours after getting oriented in our hostel and found a neat pub for supper. A musician was singing English songs like “Johnny Be Good”. We got up and danced as others did too. When we returned to the hostel our bunk beds were ready for us. We were glad to notice that many people had left to catch a late-night train. We stayed for three nights in this pleasant hostel and Katia, who spoke English, was most helpful. For our next train departure, Katia accompanied us to the train station to help us purchase tickets to travel to Irkutsk. She even offered to buy tickets for some of her guests who didn’t have enough currency with them. As it turned out Katia’s assistance helped to make this one of our favourite hostels. We have since learned that Meeting Point Hostel in Yekaterinburg is closed.
The Romanov Memorial
While in Ekaterinburg, we wanted to go to Ganina Yama, a forest area about 15 km north where a monastery is built in memory of the Romanovs, Russia’s last royal family. Katia, from Meeting Point Hostel, kindly arranged a taxi for us to visit Ganina Yama and for the driver to wait to bring us back. We saw the seven chapels and the carefully groomed area for the memorial to the Romanovs. Their names were Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra, and their five children: Olga, Tatyana, Anastasia, Maria, and Alexey. The Romanov Memorial Site is well worth visiting, even though it’s a tragic part of Russian history.
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| The Romanov Family |
Ganina Yama was a nine-foot mining pit and early on 17 July 1918, the murdered bodies of Nicholas II of Russia and his family were secretly transported to the pit and thrown in. Although this area had been declared Holy Ground by the Russian Orthodox Church, it was discovered in the 1970s and kept secret, until a political change in 1989, that the bodies had been moved four miles away into a ravine and in 1995 the Romanovs remains were identified through DNA testing. In 2001 the Russian Orthodox Church along with the Ural Mining Company built the seven chapels at the mine site, one for each member of the royal family.
Historically, Canada had a connection with the Romanov family, with Olga Romanov, Nicholas II’s sister. Olga was unhappily married to Duke Peter Alexandrovich, a homosexual. After some time, Olga fell in love with a commoner, Nickolai Kulikovsky. Since the Duke would not grant Olga a divorce, Olga waited for thirteen years and finally asked her brother, Nicholas II, to intervene and he had the marriage annulled, so Olga was free to marry Nickolai Kulikovsky.
Olga and Nikolai Kulikovsky
During the revolution, Olga and her husband had to hide out in the Crimea as anyone connected to the Romanov family would be murdered. From Crimea, as political refugees, they were able to join her mother who lived in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1920, and they never saw Russia again. They lived in Denmark until 1945 when they left for Canada on the “Empress of Canada” as Russia had controlled a Danish island and Olga was terrified that Denmark would have Olga returned to Russia. Olga and Nikolai Kulikovsky with their two boys lived in Canada for many years. As the parents aged they moved into a bungalow in Cooksville, Ontario. Nikolai died in 1958, and Olga died in 1960. This Canadian history would make a good book or movie.
The day after visiting the Romanov memorial, we packed up early in the morning to continue our Trans-Siberian trip from Yekaterinburg to Irkutsk. We dressed warmly and put our grocery bag into our smaller backpack with 1 Litre of bottled water. We both carried our large backpacks on our backs and I put the smaller backpack across my front and John carried the camera and computer bag, leaving the hotel at 5:40. We couldn’t hail a taxi that early in the morning so we decided to phone Katia and she intervened and got us a taxi so we could catch the 6:30 train. We then had to find the correct train and had to ask direction for #10 Train and a fellow helped us, directing us up to another platform. We finally got on the train to coach #6 and compartment #6 and found a Russian man asleep in the top bunk. We settled into the bottom assigned bunks and prepared a little breakfast using the Samovar to get steaming hot water in our Contigo mugs for coffee. Breakfast was salami, cheese and bread with a small tomato. Our guest above us wakened and he gave us a piece of Swiss chocolate and we gave him cheese for his bread. We noticed this gentleman’s uniform hanging on the wall and he told us he was a prison officer and had been to Switzerland to see how the prisons were run there. We met such interesting people as we travelled the Trans-Siberian Train.
The train rolled along past small villages, forests of deciduous and conifer trees with some fall colours, and fields of round bales of hay. The train was not a fast train like the Japanese Shinkansen yet pleasurable to view the scenery from the train window, read a good book, write in my journal or simply sleep. On the train, we met a couple of girls from Australia. In visiting with the girls, we realized they had been to China. This was an opportunity to gather information so John followed them to their compartment to see what he could glean from their recent trip. One of the girls was a photographer and we still view her beautiful nature photos on the internet.
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| Selling Fish at a Train Stop |
Our train meals continued to be very basic with hot soup, peanut butter and banana sandwiches and hot drinks with the occasional bag of potato chips and fibre bars.
The next morning, we slept in, as did our Russian roommate, as we continued the journey from Yekaterinburg to Irkutsk. The train’s click clacks of the wheels just seemed to lull one to sleep. For breakfast that day we bought a potato doughnut from the food trolley, which was delicious, accompanied by a hot cup of coffee. We saw similar countryside forested areas as well as small farms as we stared through our train window. The train made several stops along the way, some stops taking longer than others. At 19:00 hours we said our goodbyes to our prison guard roommate when he left the train at Kansk, one of the largest coal areas of the Soviet Union east of Krasnoyarsk, located on both banks of the Kan River.
After he left we ate our last package of noodles with bread and peanut butter, tea and coffee. We played a couple of games of crib then we were ready for bed.
In the morning the clock on the train read 3:00 which was 7:00 since the train’s clocks always read Moscow time. The sun was shining so we knew it was time to get up and prepare for the day with a peanut butter and banana sandwich and coffee. Since we had the compartment to ourselves I decided to put some makeup on and sort some of our luggage to prepare for our noon departure at Irkutsk.
When we departed the train, we walked underground to the bus station and took a bus to the Baikaler Hostel rather than choose an expensive taxi. We followed instructions for our arrival at the hostel without difficulty, arriving at the backside of a coral and mauve building and entered the fourth brown door on the right! Our room overlooked Lenin Street and noticing a cafeteria across the street, we decided to try it. We ate heartily, devouring our soup, pancakes and sour cream, a meat dish with mashed potatoes and cabbage plus tea and coffee, our first full meal for a couple of days. A pleasant change from our peanut butter banana train meals!
Doreen Wearing her Hat 2021
After we ate we walked to the market on Karl Marx Street, a huge building with several storeys and little shops everywhere. It seemed each shop specialized in selling only one item. I was looking for a Russian fur toque and I came across one I liked for 5000 rubles, ($150.00 CAD). We checked out other shops without any price differences and I really liked the first one, so we bought it, a real fox fur hat! We got it for about $142 after much bargaining. I had wanted one of these hats since the first trip and I was thrilled that we came across one and I love it and wear it as often as I can in the cold Canadian weather.
When we returned to the hostel I washed our clothes in a machine for $6.00 and then hung all the wet clothes on a rack in our room to dry. I didn’t wash clothes much during this trip since we found that wearing jeans, using the same tops and having regular showers helped reduce the need to wash clothes. This was our first laundry in two weeks! Once the laundry was done we left the hostel in search of dinner.
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| Ferry to Olkhon Island |
Down the street, we came across Kochevnik Restaurant where they served delicious Mongolian meals. For starters we had a variety of Mongolian dumplings and other deep-fried foods, then for the main dishes, I had a creamy beef soup served in a bread bowl and John had a leg of lamb, one of his favourite meals. Tired, but content, we walked back to our hostel for a well-earned night’s sleep.
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| Baikaler Hostel |
The next day we travelled in a van with other tourists to Olkhon Island in the middle of Lake Baikal to stay two nights at Nikita’s Guesthouse in Khuzhir, a small town with a population of 1200 inhabitants located on the west side of Olkhon Island.
When we arrived at the guesthouse, which was located in a lovely setting, we were directed to a spacious well-decorated room located on the top floor of the log house. Our meals were included in the price and were provided by a bistro nearby. We ate a late lunch before retiring to our room for a rest and then I had a nice warm shower before supper. Since lunch was late we waited until 20:00 before we went for supper. We had Omul soup, a favourite meal of whitefish, caught in Lake Baikal. It was delicate with few bones. Included with the fish were rice, plain pasta, potatoes, carrot salad, tomatoes and small pancakes which we also enjoyed. We returned to our hostel after eating and because we were both tired we were soon in bed fast asleep.
Lake Baikal is the largest freshwater lake by volume in the world. It contains more water than all the Great Lakes in North America. It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996. The lake was a beautiful royal blue colour with a pale blue sky above and wispy clouds. A magnificent sight! Some roofs on the helter-skelter homes of Khuzhir were a brilliant cobalt blue. We had never seen roofs that colour!
Our Delicious Picnic Lunch
On the second day on Lake Baikal, we took lots of photos of the beauty of this area. Although some roads were poor with deep ruts made from recent rainfall and the wind was cold, we had a splendid day. We eventually got to the very end of the island and stood on outcrops of land taking many pictures before we had a delicious fish soup and cheese sandwiches prepared by our driver. We ate this yummy meal outside on a wooden picnic table.
Later we drove across Olkhon Island to the other side called “Big Sea” whereas Khuzhir was on the “Small Sea”. We viewed more stunning sites and appreciated visiting with the people in our van who came from different countries - France, Russia, The Netherlands, and Australia.
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| Driver Repairing Brake Problem |
Driving back to our hostel, we saw smoke coming from under the van and we stopped while our driver crawled underneath to work on the brakes before we could proceed. Fortunately, it didn’t take him long to fix it.
John Wading in Lake Baikal
We arrived back at Baikalar Hostel for one more night before boarding the train for Ulan-Ude. We stocked up with food for the train buying yoghurt, buns, cheese, noodles and juice. For supper that night I’d ordered turnovers filled with cabbage and carrot and there were two left over so we took them for the train trip too.
In the morning we ordered a taxi to transport us to the train station and waited to board the train as the sun began to come up at 8:15. Two Russian train workers heading for Vladivostok were in our compartment and by 9:00 they were enjoying drinks of vodka. They showed us photos of removing snow and repairing tracks on the railway. One younger fellow knew a little English and he wanted to talk which continued until we departed the train at 14:25. As it turned out we enjoyed their company and before we knew it four more fellows joined our compartment because they couldn’t stay in their compartment as the other passengers wouldn’t have them. During our conversations, the young Russian wanted to know if we believed in “Christa” and we both said “Yes”. He said he didn’t believe and most don’t believe because during WW2 they shot people, even children, who believed in Christ.
We talked about having peace in our souls when we believe in Christ. As we departed the train at Ulan Ude he wanted to help carry our bags off the train. As we departed, he kissed my hand before getting back on the train. I whispered into his ear, “Someday I hope you’ll have faith too!” He was 36 years of age, married and had a teenage son. This was an encounter I will never forget and glad we had it.
At the train station, as had been our mode of operation, we purchased our train tickets for Mongolia to be used after our Ulan Ude visit. On the train, a fellow from Nepal had given us good instructions to get to our hostel, but upon arrival, we could not find our directional notes so we then requested a taxi to Ulan Ude Traveller’s Hostel.
On arrival at Ulan-Ude Travelers House, they were very apologetic but there was no room for us even though our deposit had gone through. They said they had overbooked! The manager from Travelers House had booked us into another hostel so we gathered our bags and hiked again to find our new hostel, Hostel House. This hostel was mainly used by Russians but fortunately, we were given a nice new room on the third floor which had large bunk beds in a generously sized room. Unfortunately, they didn’t have internet but we were able to use the internet at Baikal Plaza Hotel, a lovely hotel with rooms for $138.00 CAD a night whereas we were paying $64.00 a night advertised at “$33.00 a night” but that’s for one person. As luck would have it, an oversight turned into an advantage as our dorm was very well appointed in addition to having washing facilities and a fully equipped kitchen.
After we’d done the necessary emails on the computer we went out for a fine dinner at Modern Nomads, a chain restaurant that serves Mongolian food. It was very similar to the Irkutsk restaurant as the waitresses were wearing the same uniform with pretty four-way split red skirts and the menu looked the same.
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| Ulan Ude Colourful Fountain |
Later we walked to Lenin Square and took photos of the many coloured fountain which changed shapes and colours to music, a pretty sight in the middle of town. After that, we headed back to our hostel for a good night’s sleep.
Before we left for the day’s activities the next morning, we put Moroccan oil on our skin and hair as the dry Siberian climate causes our skin to look like dried prunes.
John made breakfast of yoghurt, juice, coffee, bread, peanut butter, banana and cheese while I gathered the laundry and folded the clothes into our backpacks. After breakfast, we walked to Lenin Square where the roads were blocked off for relay races. We watched them for a while and then took a taxi to the Ethnographical Museum in the forest, six km out of town. The museum, which opened in 1973, consisted of many buildings spread all over the property depicting Transbaikalia Peoples.
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| Old Sleighs in Ethnographical Museum |
Displays were made up of teepees, nomad camps with felt round yurts, farm machinery, small chapels built in 1907, bathhouses, metalsmiths, an Orthodox Church and cemetery, and a wildlife section featuring a variety of animals including bear, camel, yak, owl, wolf, eagle, caribou, wapiti and others. There were many visitors to this area which included a little amusement park and small horses for children to ride. We stayed until late afternoon then found a large restaurant outside the gates and enjoyed borscht, bread, dumplings and tea. We revelled in the knowledge of having had another full day of exploration in this outdoor museum with over a collection of 11,000 exhibits.
The following day we took the train to Mongolia and stayed for three weeks. Since Mongolia is such a unique country on its own, I will write a separate article on Mongolia.
We left Mongolia for our last leg of the Trans-Siberian trip from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia to Beijing, China. Many backpackers were travelling as we assembled in the waiting room for the arrival of the train. We boarded car # 2 and compartment #6 with lower bunks 21 and 23. There were already two people in the upper bunks, one woman and one man from Ulaanbaatar. The woman was the wife of a real estate salesman and the man was an office worker for a copper mine in UB. The man spoke several languages so we were able to communicate with him. After settling into our compartment and introducing ourselves to them we prepared something for breakfast since we hadn’t yet eaten with our early departure from our hostel. I made peanut butter and banana sandwiches along with salami and cheese. We had to wait for the samovar to heat before we could have our coffee. As we waited we looked out the window and we could see that the countryside continued to be desert-like, similar to what we’d been experiencing.
We rode the train all day to arrive at the Mongolian border town of Zamin around 19:00 and waited for 1 ½ hours while they collected our passports and exit forms. The Customs Declaration Form included any currency we had, the number of luggage pieces and the usual warnings about narcotic drugs. By 21:00 we were in another border town of Erlian (Erenhot), where our passports and entry cards were once again checked but by Chinese officials this time. The area is called Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region of China. We were delayed there for four hours as they had to change the train wheels on the cars to a narrower gauge for China. Each car was jacked up and then set down on another set of wheels and axles which was done in a huge garage. This is called a bogie exchange where the chassis containing the wheels and axles of the car is removed and a new bogie is installed with different spaced wheels. We stayed in the train car as we were not allowed out while they worked! The train clanked and bumped as they connected everything. By the time we departed at 1:00, I had got into my pyjamas and was ready to sleep. I didn’t awaken until 8:30 and John was already up enjoying his coffee.
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| Changing Wheels and Axles of Train Cars |
As the train moved along I noticed many cornfields as the fog lifted from the land. There were horse carts and workers on the land, probably gathering stacks of hay. Some hay was piled in a teepee form. There were many greenhouses over and over again as we journeyed across the countryside. Patterns were repeated and if there was one, you could expect hundreds. Occasionally we saw planted evergreens.
We arrived in Beijing at 14:04, completing our Trans-Siberian Railway journey from Moscow to Beijing in just over a month. You can take the train the whole distance without stopping or you can break up the journey along the way to enjoy Siberia. We felt that one month was a perfect time frame for the Trans-Siberian Train Trip.
According to the internet, the train leaves Moscow for Beijing via Mongolia, every Tuesday night covering a distance of 7,621 km and takes six nights, leaving Moscow at 23:45 whereas, in the other direction, from Beijing to Moscow, the train leaves on Wednesdays and takes five nights leaving Beijing at 11:22.
On our trip, we travelled through six time zones with everchanging landscapes and different cultures. Looking back, we felt it was one of the most memorable journeys we had accomplished during our twenty plus years of travel. As intrepid travellers, we felt it was an easy trip to plan and organize our Trans-Siberian Train journey as we were only going in one direction and employing only one mode of transportation – the Trans-Siberian Railway.
End of Train Journey - Tian'anem Square in Beijing China
