We are here in Mongolia until Sept 22nd when we will join train 24 to continue the journey to Beijing. We will be taking a couple of trips, probably to Khentii which is east of UB and to the Gobi, and celebrating two rather significant birthdays.
I will blog with less frequency from now on.......until the next train trip.
Thanks for the comment so far....
Meanwhile the traders were organising their stuff and trying to hide as much away as they could! Boxes went into the store lockers under our seat, by now sausages and sweets had been added to the stock! They Sellotaped three boxes together and tried to hang them from the coat hooks, but they kept falling down, I think the idea was that then they wouldn't be very obvious when jackets were hung over them.....if the customs official just took a quick glance.....eventually a couple of boxes stayed up there.
The stewards continued to look on........although they did make them clear the corridor. On we travelled towards the border.........the countryside became more reminiscent of Mongolia, open rolling land, a few cows, some hay......and at the last minute our friend brought a very heavy ingot shaped brown paper package and slid it under my feet!
We arrived at Naushki , the Russian border post. One passport check, then the border police collected them in and disappeared with them for 2 hours! In the meantime the traders stacked bags onto substantial folding trolleys and disappeared,presumably to a market somewhere. The guidebook advised that it was risky to get off the train here without our passports but the steward told us we had two hours, and the train toilets were locked, so we took it in turns to explore the station facilities. Use of the toilet was 8 roubles, but we didn't have any left so they took pity and let us in anyway; contrary to the info in the guidebook they were very clean....but basic! After two hours the traders returned and it was now the turn of the customs official to check us out. Some bags were removed for checking, they climbed up to check the space above the ceilings, but it was fairly tame in comparison with the checks which were to come! After 3 hours 40 minutes we were on our way. The traders relaxed and began to sing some Mongolian songs, then about half an hour later we arrived at the Mongolian border post.
First came a young female soldier who saluted us and told us to go into the corridor. Up she climbed checking the ceiling space and under the seats. Then the border police, another salute, checked our mugshots on our passports and collected them in. Next the Customs who took our customs declaration forms. Our friend had been in and out of the compartment during the journey, but had to sit in his allotted seat for these border crossings. By now I had knitted the whole of the front of an Aran sweater for Orlo and was into my book and a can of gin and tonic!!! (the last of the 6 I set off with ;) ) and it was well into the evening.
The Customs officials returned and returned our forms with a pleasant comment......not so for our friend and his mates in the rest of the carriage! She made a thorough search of our compartment, noting all the boxes of cheese, sausage and sweets under the seats and on one of the top bunks....our friend had put 'nothing to declare' in every space on his form! He was given the form back and told to fill it in, so he borrowed our biro and sat there looking very glum. The same thorough searches were going on all the way down the carriage, but the customs were not very organised so as they moved along, boxes were being moved too ....into different compartments!....... suddenly our friend came in and emptied a rucksack full of children's slippers into the under seat locker, pushing them in amongst the cheese, sweets etc......then he was running between the compartments to collaborate on how much to declare we think!
We sat there taking it all in, very amused, the Dutch couples were amazed I think, but as there were the four of them in their compartment the Customs had left them alone apart from a cursory glance.
The searching went on and we were getting very tired. Our friend was no where to be seen, one of the stewards seemed to have taken up position outside our door, not sure if that was to protect us, or her share in the eventual proceeds! Anyway we decided it was time for bed, so we made up our beds and tried to settle down. The steward gave a look of approval and closed our door. Mayhem continued outside, but we settled down to rest and wait for the welcome lurch as we got going again. After a total stop of about two and a half hours we heard the engine hoot and we were off!! No sign of our friend! We both made quick dash to the loo, once they were unlocked again and tried to settle to sleep.....in our clothes.....with a light on!!! Meanwhile the train went like the clappers over some rough track in places and I kept my fingers crossed that we would reach our destination without incident! Michael set is clock for 6.0am Irkutsk time as we were due in to Ulaanbaatar at 6.30am.
All through the night we could hear the noise of sellotape being wrapped round boxes as the traders repacked their wares. The woman next to us must have worked all night fortified by some vodka judging by her breath in the morning! We got up at 6.0am only to discover about an hour later that Mongolia is one hour different to Irkutsk and we could have had another hour in bed and time for a cup of tea!!! The female trader came to collect her goods from our compartment and reseal them, our friend was no longer on the train and we think she tried to tell us that he had gone to hospital, but maybe he had got off at Darhan even though he had told us he was going to UB.......maybe he thought it best to change to another train ?!
It was just light and we were travelling through Mongolia steppe with gers (yurts) in the distance form time to time, eventually the lights of UB could be seen in the distance, we passed the airport and swung round to the city...... One of the stewards came to retrieve the 'ingot'.....and the train pulled into the platform. Andrew, Amanda and Orlo were there on the station, along with a lot of men with big trolleys! I pulled and pushed my bags along the corridor to be confronted by Mongolian men rushing at me! ...... I was very firm ;o), one or two shoved past climbing over the big bag but fortunately the others stood back and one actually helped to lift the bag down. Michael and the Dutch couples were a little bit behind but also made it through the crush.
We had made it!!!! Lots of smiles and hugs and photos!! All around us the train was being unloaded!!!! we trundled off to the Land Cruiser and set off through the early morning quiet .......
This is a brief account of the goings-on on this train, but I hope it has given you an idea of the journey.........
It was full of Mongolian traders on their way back from Moscow, and the stewards were Mongolian too. One female steward came demanding our tickets when she already had them in her hand, she was definitely the worse for wear !!! We had booked the two lower bunks in the compartment, a very good strategy as it turned out I think. There was a man asleep on one of the upper bunks and bags on the other one, so that was a bonus we thought. We were travelling hard class and the bench seats were hard even with the thin cushion/mattress which I eventually found to go on top. We were provided with a pack with two sheets and pillowcase and a small towel. I made my bed using a blanket found in a store locker under the seat and
settled down to catch up on the very disturbed night. The train was going as a nice pace so the clickety clack along the rails soon sent me off. I eventually woke about 10.0 am but Michael had been out in the corridor looking at the view passing Lake Baikal for some time I gather.
We made tea and had some breakfast. I had my granola but Michael used some of the meal the hotel had packed up for us, as we left too early for breakfast there. So there we were rattling along crossing more of Siberia when our companion woke too. We introduced ourselves and showed him some pics of Andrew & Amanda & Orlo to explain the reason for our journey.
There were two young couples from Holland in the next compartment, we had met them in the restaurant on the Rossiya, so we were soon chatting with them again. Initially they were concerned because they had found packs of shoes and other stuff in their cabin......and they had read about illegal trading.......!! As we walked down the corridor we could see that other compartments were stacked with boxes and soon the traders woke to start their work for the day. I got a real shock when I walked down to the loo as I went through the end door there was the lower half of a shop dummy in jeans wedged in the corner, I thought there was a man hanging there for an instant!! I had made the mistake of going to the men's loo, didn't make that mistake again, the ladies at the other end was adjacent to the stewards cubbyhole holes and was kept much cleaner.
The first main stop was at Ulan Ude, this is where the line splits to go south to Beijing through Mongolia. The traders were off the train in a flash, setting up their 'stalls' on the platform. One lady was even trading straight from the carriage. Clothes, shoes, handbags, slippers etc! We were there for about 45 mins, our friend was selling handbags and had to come back in to get more, so when we left he was well please and counted up a wad of roubles! After we left the real fun began. Our firms and his female mate from the next compartment went to the Dutch couples' compartment, climbed up and proceeded to remove the plates in the ceiling and above the over corridor storage space. Out came dozens of boxes of cheese! This is no exaggeration, they stacked them in the corridor, but as we went round a bend they all collapsed. The woman had notes on a piece of paper and was counting, she knew exactly how many they had stashed away up there. They then came into our compartment and did the same but they only had a few up there. In the meantime the stewards and we looked on......I was knitting away!!
Cont......
After we left Lystvyanka this morning we stopped off at the Taltsy 'wooden houses' museum on the way to Irkutsk. We had arranged for the driver to wait one hour, so it turned out to be a whistle stop tour.
They have collected buildings from all over the place. The first set were reconstructions of the dwellings the Evensk nomads would have had, tepees made from bark, bark boats, wood store house, burial platforms, etc. Then we moved onto a set of estate buildings including three mills arranged down a hill so that they used the same water source, which was from a reservoir with a wooden leet. The peasants house was furnished with original artefacts and looked very cosy. We moved onto some houses which Cossacks would have lived in, apparently they were given a plot of land after so many years service; and then the governors house which even had wallpaper! That compound also had a prison! There was a small chapel with an amazing shingle roof, a stockade with guard tower was in the process of being reconstructed......and much more besides. It is all set near the river Ankara and would be a great full day out....
We then continued to Irkutsk where were able to check in early to the Victory Hotel. After a drink and a light lunch and yesterday's blog writing we set out to explore the city. We walked north to look at the old wooden buildings which are left from the days when Irkutsk was known as the Paris of the North. There was a gold rush here and many peasants made the equivalent of many millions of £s, so even though they were illiterate they built very fancy houses and lived it up! We reached a high point overlooking the city, passing through a Market on the way, all sorts of goods for sale, clothes, shoes, toys, light fittings etc. Some of the stalls were set up from freight containers.
Irkutsk is rather down at heel in comparison to western Russia, there does not seem to be the development going on here, however the main street, Karl Marx Street, has the full range of very expensive clothes shops and perfumeries. It was Saturday so everyone was out shopping, families, teenagers having good time, the young in high end fashion....and the babushkas with their shopping trolleys.
We were really pleased to find a nice Italian restaurant where we indulged in tea, coffee and a cake, I am still a bit tired after the hike yesterday.....we have booked a table there for this evening too.....and hope we have enough roubles left to pay for it ;)! Most places want cash here, so we have not exercised the plastic at all so far.
We leave here at 4.0am tomorrow, Sunday, and are due to arrive in Ullaanbaatar at 6.30 on Monday morning. So the next blog will be from Mongolia......
Today we walked down to the village centre, about 1 mile, to get the hydrofoil up the lake to a village called Boshoie Koty. The village is only accessible by boat and our plan was to walk back to Lystvyanka .
The hydrofoil (raketa) eventually arrived 1 hour late, good job we stuck around, the girls at the info centre tried to phone for us, but the line was constantly busy. It was a rough 20 min ride to Koty, on the way we tried to survey the path, but it was difficult to see in some places due to the trees and the steep hills descending to the lake.
We had a quick walk around the village, horses roaming free, wooden houses, open spaces and rough muddy tracks, not unlike a Mongolian village.....then we set off. We had been told that the walk was 20km/6hrs.....and that is all we knew! Contrary to our usual ha it we did not have a map......
We walked for two hours along the lakeside, up and down ravines, through lovely woodland and more open areas. There were lots of flowers on the way, asters, dianthus,delphinium, a type of sedum I think, and ? gentians......I will post a photo so that maybe Bill B will identify it for me.....if he is looking at this blog .... We stopped for lunch on a pebbly beach which which happened to have a tree trunk just right for sitting on. After our picnic of oatcakes, sprats, Christmas cake and some trail mix ......and the dip and paddle.....we set off again.
The first hour was similar to the previous two, although we did negotiate an fairly exposed cliff, then the path turned inland away from the lake. Initially we thought that we were just detouring up a ravine, but the path went on, following up a valley through birch forest and then climbing .....and climbing ....and more climbing! Even Michael commented that we had climbed a few feet!!! We actually climbed for an hour and half, the path zigged and zagged, we kept thinking we were going to come out at a col, and then it would turn again! It was so difficult to judge as we were in trees the whole time. Eventually we came to the top which was marked by two empty yoghurt pots hanging on a tree branch! The only way marking was slashed marks on tree trunks. Going downhill was a great relief, I had found the climb very taxing, at one point wishing there would be a Sherpa round the corner ready to hand me a mug of hot lemon! ....I think that is the first time I have felt like that since were were in the Himalaya in 1999. So we continued downhill, still in the forest with occasional glimpses of the lake in the distance and eventually we came across cow pats then a track, both indicating that we were coming to some sort of settlement, but we had no idea where we were! As we descended further we heard dogs barking and we emerged into one of the Lystvyanka valleys, although we were not sure of that until we reached the lake.....we were right in the centre of the village! We had walked for 5 and 3/4 hours and I was kn......d!!!
It was time for a well earned beer! I then logged on to the wi-fi at the Mayak hotel to download emails and we walked the remaining mile back to our hotel. M reckons we walked 15 miles altogether. Another beer, a shower, a meal and bed was all I could manage after that!
In due course I will try to find out if there was another path which would have taken us nearer to the lake on the second half of the walk, but the path we took was well constructed and appeared to be the main route.
This walk goes down as 'epic' in my book!
Last night was the first night that I didn't sleep very well, maybe I had had too much coffee and there were some more uneven parts of the track, so when the alarm went off at 6.30 it was not welcome! We finished packing, quite tricky for two of us in the restricted space, had a quick cuppa, stripped the bunks, wiped the table as instructed....oops!.....requested, by the steward and we were ready to disembark.
In general we were very impressed with this train, but we should be , it was the Rossiya, one of a very few firmeny trains. Our female senior steward was extremely obliging from the first day, after I introduced ourselves to her in Russian. Since then we have had a few pidgin conversations with some laughs! She was very pleased when I went to their cabin and gave them a Lancashire red rose pin and a Clitheroe fridge magnet and postcard. In return she gave me her Rossiya jacket pin.
Our taxi driver was waiting for us on the platform, a very nice young man called Ivan, he spoke excellent English land was a mine of information on the 60km drive to Lystvyanka. We are staying at the Baikalskaia terema hotel, a wood chalet style building set slightly up a valley from the lake. The room has a partial lake view and is quite basic, especially compared with the spacious comfort we had in Moscow for a very similar price. By the time we got here I was decidedly weary, but an excellent breakfast soon sorted that out, and after a shower and some clothes washing we set off to explore the village......iPad in bag!
It is hard to believe that we are actually here...walking along the shores of the worlds largest and deepest freshwater lake. The village has the feel of a rustic seaside place, yet it also feels like an alpine village too! The pine clad hills descend steeply to the lake. The village is linear and has an amazing mix of properties, pretty traditional wooden Siberian cottages, many with fretwork shutters and gables, some painted, some in very good condition and some very dilapidated. Alongside them are the most amazingly ugly structures!......I will post another photo on the blog later! The building standards would horrify our surveyor & architect friends ;). As we explored up one of the side streets we came across a well which appears to be in daily use!
We found the village's largest hotel with it's free wi-fi, ordered two coffees and I sat down to check emails, send the blog etc. Amanda popped up on Skype having seen that I was online so we had a lovely chat with her and heard about Orlo's experiences at his introduction to Kindergarten this week.
Later we wandered amongst the souvenir stalls, there is a large amount of jewellery for sale all made from local stones, wooden items, Russian dolls, hats, etc etc. In the market we came across stalls selling various types of smoked fish which is the local speciality. There are lots of cafes too mostly selling kebabs, we decided to take the safe option and went back to the large hotel for lunch. They have a grill bar on the 7th floor with great views over the lake and up and down the village street. Michael had the local fish...omul.....and I a Caesar salad. Both were good and beautifully presented.
After walking the full length of the village, looking for the museum up a side street we retreated back to our hotel. The weather has been great today, blue sky, it with a cool breeze coming off the lake, it was very warm out of the wind, but a fleece was required when we encountered the full blast!
Tomorrow we hope to take the hydrofoil up the lake to a small village called Bolshie Koty and walk back, about 20km we are told....
We've had two major stops of around 20 mins each, Krasnoyarsk and Ilanskaya. Just after Krasnoyarsk we crossed the river Yenisey, we were on the new bridge built in 1999 to our left was the old bridge which apparently took 94,000 workers 3 years to build and was considered such a feat of engineering that it won a gold medal at the World Fair in Paris in 1900, along with the Eiffel Tower! This river is the border between west and east Siberia. Certainly the views have improved the further east we travel.
At Ilanskaya there were a lot of 'babushkas' on the platform selling home made food, plus fruit, pine nuts, ice cream ( not refrigerated !!) etc. and a man with gladioli for sale too! There was a large steam engine on display so I took a photo of it for our steam train fan friends.
We have now settled in for the evening and our next daytime stop will be Irkutsk at 7.30 tomorrow morning, where we leave this train for three days exploring Lake Baikal and Irkutsk.
Michael has gradually improved during the day and I might let him try some soup later ( yes, got some of that in my food bag too ;)! )
I hope to send these blogs when we get to the hotel at Lystvyanka . Not sure in what order they will appear. It may be that the last is first.......
We are now 4 hours ahead of Moscow time and soon we will go through another time zone which will mean we are on the same time as Mongolia, we are getting nearer all the time!
We are travelling through some hills for the first time, the track has some big bends and I can almost see the end of the train when I look back. Unfortunately I can't open a window to take a photo. The tips of the silver birch leaves are just beginning to turn gold and there is an occasional glimpse of the red fireweed under the trees. The outside temperature is 16C.
Yesterday we met a young couple from Wales in the restaurant, they are the first Brits we have met since we set off from London a week ago. They are travelling around the world and aiming to get to Thailand by train initially. We will probably bump into them again as they are stopping off at Irkutsk and travelling on to Ulaanbaatar on Train No 6 on Sunday.
In the evening we stopped at Barabinsk, the traders were selling fur hats and smoked fish, carrying them on racks. I bought a loaf of bread as we had run out. The platform was under reconstruction so we clambered over lumps of broken up Tarmac and I had to cross the track to buy the bread......a health and safety nightmare..... ;) we also experienced Siberian mozzies for the first time, when they realised we were there, they came in swarms, fortunately we were able to beat a fast retreat to our cabin.
Last night I discovered that we also have a power socket under the table in our cabin, so no more worries about the iPad battery running out on me. We might even be able to compete with the neighbours tonight and have some music.......they usually put on a video just as we want to settle down!
I have finished the slipover I was knitting for Orlo, it looks very big, but he can grow into it. Now I have started on another knitting project......not saying what to keep Amanda in suspense!
Time to get on with my Russsian course now....
It is now 12.45 local time on Train Day 2; in the last two days we have moved from summer to autumn, and we are now in Siberia. The view is of silver birch with the leaves just beginning to turn, with pink willow herb on the woodland floor.....then open clearings......a siding with abandoned rusty coaches, trucks in the distance on the road, golden fields......and eventually......a small settlement.
Time to leave my blog and catch up with all my activities.......!!!
The taxi driver was over 5 minutes late much to the consternation of the hotel reception staff, however he was a most obliging man. The route to the Yaroslavky station took us right round the centre of the city so we saw the sights by night which was a bonus. Eduard, our taxi driver, was very chatty once he had found out about our trip. He said he thought we were " tough travellers", locked up his taxi and escorted us to the train and to the coach which was at the front of the train which we think had about 30 coaches ( didn't have time to count them all!). Our tickets were checked against our passports by two very official looking stewards. (provodnistas) and we were allowed to board. The coach is very modern, we had booked a four berth compartment for the two of us and arrived to find the two top bunks prepared for sleeping. I expected this, as it leaves the seats free and it was here that we initially dumped our bags. Coach 2, Cabin 3, berths 9,10,11&12 were to be our home for the next 3 days/4 nights. We quickly unpacked the essentials, investigated the facilities, stowed our main bags under the seats and climbed into bed. The bunks are accessed by a very neat pull out vertical ladder, easy for him, a touch tricky for me on the first night!!
The cabin is comfortable, carpet runner in the floor, which is vacuumed once a day, individual lights and sound system by the seats, hangers and hooks, full length mirror when the door is closed, table with cloth, a bottle opener under the table......and a video screen!! The latter is not much good to us but seems to entertain our neighbours and their children. The coach seems to be occupied by Russian families, on their way home from holidays we think, but I might try to communicate more with them today ;). The toilet facilities are good and are kept very clean, hot and cold water, shaver point, mirrors etc. They are at one end of the coach whilst the stewards cabins and the samovar are at the other. It would appear that long distance train travel is a way of life here, the Russians come prepared with food etc......as we have. Having free access to hot water for drinks is great. At each end of the coach is an electronic screen giving information about the temperature inside and outside. The aircon seems to be set at around 20C, getting a bit cooler at night.
The view the train: long stretches of forest of birch & pine, industrial towns, freight yards, villages, wheat fields, marshes, dachas with gardens, river crossings, glimpses of people going about their daily lives while we travel on in our time warp!!
Time: the train runs in Moscow time but we will travel through 5 time zones, so we are adjusting our watches accordingly.
Our first day time stop was at Kirov, where the traders were mainly selling soft toys; next came Balyezino where the locomotive (which are massive)was changed. The traders here were selling all sorts of food, beer etc. We saw two ladies come underneath the train with their wares to get to our platform! I bought what I think were potato cakes topped with cheese, we had them for supper with some smoked sprats. In the evening we stopped at Perm, I tried to walk the full length of the train but did not have time to do that and take photos ( a friend has asked for photos of the stations...) . We have been getting off to walk at each stop, in fact I had to run at Perm as the stewards were beckoning us back onto the train, and I still had about 4 coaches to go! At each stop I ask how many minutes we have.
The restaurant: is an experience and is just as I have seen in photos. It must be be the oldest coach on the rain and therefore is not very smooth! We arrived at 1.0pm Moscow time, just as they were expecting a group of Germans to dine, so we were told we would have to wait. We bought a couple of drinks and tried to study the menu. After one and half hours the waitress came for our order. The wait was not really problem, after all what else had we to do, and by then, we were really hungry!. We had one fish soup, and two sizzling plates of egg, ham, tomatoes and onion and some bread. All very tasty, but the soup came just after the main dish. The meal with two beers and a Pepsi and 10% service was 1500 rubles, about £32. The waitress was very pleasant with us, I think she appreciated that we had waited without making a fuss.......we have had some practice at this......visiting Mongolia over the last 10 years!
Our food supplies: I packed a wheely cabin size bag with cereal that does not require milk ( granola for me, oats for him), tea bags, coffee, sugar, salt, pepper, milk sachets, oat cakes, Spam, sardines ( from UK), sprats as mentioned earlier, some sliced cheese ( from Moscow), biscuits, Christmas cake ( saved especially), plastic dishes, plates, cutlery, insulated mugs, wipes, tea towel, kitchen roll, J cloths, jam, bread rolls ( bought en route) and some flapjack etc which we had left over at home. So......we are just buying one main meal in the restaurant and providing breakfast and supper for ourselves.
We set off on the metro once again, even managing to change lines to reach the Kiev station and thence to the river boat pier. They are situated by the 'crystal bridge' one of several glazed pedestrian bridges over the Moscow River. We were just in time to catch the 1.15pm boat which would take us through the two large meanders to Novosspasky bridge. Unfortunately the bar with snacks and drinks was not open on our boat, despite signs to say that refreshments were available on all trips......this is Russia!
The views from the boat were amazing despite dark grey clouds and some rain. The trip took one and half hours, passing the cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the old Olympic arena, Gorky Park, the old Red October chocolate factory and the Kremlin arriving at the Novosspasky Monastery. The views of the Kremlin were fantastic .
Once off the boat we found our way to another metro station and made our way back to the city centre......and we only had to ask for help once! I think I now understand the system....just as we are about to leave! At home an interchange just has one name despite the number of lines, here each line has a different station name as well as a different colour on the map.....
It was now about 4.0pm and we had not had a drink or anything to eat since breakfast, so we made our way to the underground food court for some sustenance . One guidebook says that you've really got into the Moscow way if you find this place!! By now I was fading, so we walked back up towards the hotel stopping at Tchaikovsky Cafe for a cuppa. This is a really nice eating place with beautiful cakes and pastries, unfortunately I dare not have one as my tummy is still not right. ( this is quite normal for me during a holiday ;) )
We are now back at the hotel sitting in the reception area killing time. Michael wants to eat so we will have to go to look for some food......
A taxi is coming for us at 10.30pm and the Train No 2, the Rossiya leaves at 11.45pm. This is probably my last blog until Thursday when we should be at Lake Baikal in Siberia .
Until then........
After a quick lunch in a pizza place we joined the Q to buy tickets for the armoury. There are timed sessions with tickets only available 45 mins in advance. I was at the the ticket window on the dot and all the tickets had gone!!!!!! Anyway undeterred I went back to another window to be told that the tickets were finished for the day, I persisted ;) and asked about the 4.30 session and was told to come back at 3.45.......so we had a couple of hours to fill.
We walked to Arbat street (ulitsa), this is a pedestrianised street with great architecture, interesting shops, buskers, artists, and street performers. At the far end the skyline is dominated by an ornate 27 storey building which is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, one of 7 major government buildings in the city. We walked as far as Pushkin's house, then turned back to return to the ticket office. I was delighted to find a shop selling handmade embroidered items and lace. I was hoping to see some Russian lace and the ladies kindly allowed me to take some photos.
Back to the ticket office.......hope the suspense is killing you ......;) ....... We got tickets!!!!
After killing another half an hour in a cafe, we joined another Q and went through the security to enter the Kremlin, then another Q to enter the Armoury. It was well worth it! The guidebook said that it is gobsmacking and it is, the most amazing collection of priceless treasures, many of them ambassadorial gifts from Europe. We saw the Faberge collection, beautiful and richly decorated church icons, gospels and other artefacts. Then there was the armour, guns, carriages and clothes. Beautiful coronation robes, vestments, shoes, and accoutrements.........well worth the waiting!
We then ventured back onto the metro, ended up going the wrong way on the wrong line to start with, but someone put us right, sent us back two stops and by then I had worked out where we were! Suffice it to say we made it back to the hotel with a good look at some amazing stations on the way.
I am writing this blog over dinner at the Tchaikovsky cafe which is just across from the hotel, good food and service unlike last night in the hotel where we joined the in-crowd in the Radio City bar !
Tomorrow we plan to go on a river trip after shopping for supplies for the Trans Siberian and packing. Until then......
PS a couple more photos will follow.
Red Square is huge, however we were not able to enjoy the full impact of it as stands are being erected for an international tattoo which will take place at the end of the month. We made our way to St Basil's cathedral, which is one of the iconic landmarks. It is an amazing structure with lots of small chapels inside linked by vaulted passages decorated with paintings or ornate plaster and brickwork.
We had lunch at the Bosco cafe at the entrance to the GUM store, here we made an expensive mistake!........putting the decimal point in the wrong place. The lunch was good but well over our usual budget!!;) after lunch we popped into the small Kazan Cathedral and then walked along the Alexander Gardens. It was a beautiful afternoon, sunny, but breezy, everyone out in their summer clothes, some somewhat amused by the Englishman Abroad striding along with his stick!! We also found the underground mall which had a food court with much more reasonable prices!!!
On the walk back to the hotel, we called in at the Yeliseevsky food hall, a nineteenth century gourmet merchandiser ( says the guidebook!) which is now home to a food store, wines and souvenirs. It was wonderful and we may return there to buy a few supplies for our next train trip.
Our hotel room is very spacious and well equipped, however we are glad we brought the kettle!
After the border we drew into the station at Brest. We were warned that we would be here for 2 hours, in fact it was over 3 hrs. We were shunted into a shed where the coaches were hoisted up ( with us inside them), the European bogies were removed and the Russian narrower ones put in their place. Whilst we were there a load of women came to the carriage door to sell fruit, bread etc. I got ripped off buying wild strawberries and some more rolls! I shall have to get my head round the currency! We could have got off the train here to go into town, but it was interesting to see the bogie change process.
We are now travelling through Belarus, the town looked poor, and the rail track is definitely not as smooth! The sun is setting behind distant trees.
No sign of any wi-fi anywhere ;)
Sent from my iPad
Back in the station we collected our bags and found out the ICE train to Koln was running 10 mins late......I thought all continental trains always ran on time ;) this train was also comfortable and had a trolley service which saved having to hike up the train to buy a drink. We arrived in Koln. 10 mins late at 16.25. This station is also huge, but we found the left luggage again and checked the bags in at a cost of € 5 each this time. The luggage lockers were not large enough for us to use, this all seemed expensive but it was necessary if we wanted to be able to explore a little of Koln.
The Dom (cathedral) dominated the view as we walked out of the station. It is huge, and very dirty! Amazing spire and roof lines, with scaffolding ingeniously set up way up the building. Michael wondered how they had fixed it! Inside it is vast with wonderful stained glass. Well worth seeing.
I had planned to do some food shopping here so we sought advice from the tourist information office and were directed to Rewe To Go, which just happened to be some way up the main shopping street ;). It was a bit like an M&S Simply Food, and we bought some bread rolls, fruit, etc. Form the next part of our trip. Back down the street we found a good selection of cafes with a view towards the Dom, so we sat down again. The cafe specialised in ice cream, but I was very good and just had a zero coke! Eventually we walked back towards the station and later found the Gaffel Kolsch restaurant/beer hall where we had dinner. We started sitting at a table on the pavement, but just as the food arrived, so did the rain......so we quickly moved inside! I am so glad we did, it was a traditional beer cellar with the large copper brewing vessels, and lovely art nouveau glass ceiling light panels. The staff were constantly on the run serving beer in small glasses, carrying them to the tables in a purpose made wooden carrier.
At around 8.0pm we decided to return to the station, we found another excellent small supermarket there called Farm Haus, where we were able to stock up on some beer, milk and water. All this food buying was in preparation for the Moscow train as I had read that there is a very restricted restaurant car service ( I have since found out that we lose it at Warsaw). It was then that I heard the first announcement about the 21.26 Moscow train......it was delayed by 20 mins. We retrieved our luggage and packed up the food and went to sit in the DB lounge, by now the train is 35 mins delayed. Being cautious and optimistic we made our way to the platform for the scheduled time, to find that the train is indeed delayed and there were lots of young people sitting on the platform with their bags....we joined them! There was quite a bit of confusion when another train was put up on the board, and at the last minute our train arrived on the adjacent platform. It arrived just over 35 mins late. We found our coach, presented the tickets to the steward and were directed to our berths. We are in a cabin which can take three, sooo glad we booked it for just the two of us! It was quite a challenge to organise ourselves.
The steward came along to set up the bunks and we made them up using the packs of linen which was ready for us. The cabin has an ingenious arrangement of a table which lifts up to reveal a washbasin with hot and cold water, so in quite a short time we were washed and ready for bed.
Michael went on the top bunk ;) and we set off rattling and rolling across Germany. The train seemed to make a lot of stops as far as Hanover, thereafter we had a much smoother journey and I was able to get to sleep. I slept on and off, waking at about 7.30 at Wprezin (?). Decided that as there was nothing else to do I would sleep again and at 8.30 I woke to see the Polish countryside going by in lovely sunshine. Michael was up and dressed, had found the source of hot water and made tea! We made our breakfast of cereal, bread and jam, coffee and tea, washed up and settled down for the rest of the day. Currently we are sitting in in a small station just after Warsaw, and a man with a hammer us walking up and down the station.........
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