Russia Part 2. - 2016

’Da’ means yes in Russian if you were wondering.

If you haven’t picked up on it yet, Russians love being punctual, so again, our guide Marina and a driver were early to ensure we made it to the right train station in Moscow and correct carriage.

With a short wait before boarding, Marina explained what its like living in Moscow during winter with temperatures below -20C including the how city wide hot water reticulation system brings warmth into Moscow’s apartments between specific dates. The same system also operates in St Petersburg.

Marina wasn’t impressed with Ukrainians coming into Russia from the Ukraine searching for jobs, according to her, because their own economy is bad.  It was a twofold issue for her… jobs and because the “Ukraine is full of crazy people!” 

I also asked what she thought of Mikhail Gorbachev, her surprising response being, “Russians don’t respect him, he gave East Germany back to the Germans, which meant soldiers in East Germany returning to Russia looking for jobs”

She didn’t understand why Europeans currently have sanctions on Russia, but in typical Russian style whilst not liking it, she simply shrugged and said it has lead to Russia increasing its own food production and manufacturing internally.

It was time to board THE train… The Trans Siberian… no not the fancy one, but the daily regular trains plying their way from Moscow through Siberia to Vladivostok on the far east coast of Russia, our final destination in this massive country.

First engine on the Trans Siberian

Russia has the largest landmass of any country on the planet, including Antarctica.  For example, its roughly 1.7x the size of the USA, 2.2x the size of Australia and 31.2x the size of France.

This trip had been on our bucket list for a very long time, having investigated years ago whether to do the Trans Mongolian from Beijing to Moscow via Mongolia or the Trans Siberian.  

The latter won because we were keen to traverse essentially the entirety of Russia, hence why starting this trip in St Petersburg.

This is a 6 day train trip so we decided to break it into 3 sections by stopping at some interesting places as shown below on the map using different colours for each section:

Yep... it is a VERY long train trip

I^st Section   - 1 full day on train and 2 nights in Yekaterinburg located in the Ural mountains on the edge of Siberia

2^nd Section - 2 full days on train, 1 night in Irkutsk and 2 nights in Listvyanka on the shore of Lake Baikal

3^rd Section   - 3 full non-stop days on train then 2 nights in Vladivostok

We also worked out that this train trip, the longest railway line in the world at 9,288 kms, is roughly equal to travelling approximately 1/3^rd of the way around the circumference of the planet at a latitude of 50 degrees, the average latitude between Moscow and Vladivostok.

Settling in to the compartment

Keep in mind also there are no showers on the train… but there is plenty of hot water.  Being in our slightly more senior years, we also decided to opt for a 2-berth cabin rather than share with 2 other people of unknown behaviour and bodily functions.

To help keep our brains stimulated during this trip, the train’s timetable operates on Moscow time; in fact all trains across Russia do, no matter where they might be.  

There are 11 time zones in Russia and since this was a 9,288km trip, there is a 7 hour time difference between Moscow and Vladivostok. 

So it was very interesting when deciding when to have lunch or dinner in the dining car, do you use Moscow time or local time or “street time” so long as you could work out just what the local time was.

We enjoy train travel and settled into the compartment and rhythm of the trip fairly quickly after pulling out of Moscow station on time and heading east into the darkness, discovering during our first night there are many many railway tracks in Russia with regular jolting each time we crossed between tracks, the first nights’ sleep being a little disrupted.

Passing through villages after leaving Moscow

THE hot water 'urn'

It took from 1891 to 1916 to complete the building of the Trans Siberian and it played a key role during various subsequent wars and also growing industry across Siberia.  Now its a dual railway and electrified for the entire distance.

Each carriage has its own attendant keeping the carriage clean and selling snacks, tea and coffee at prices cheaper than in the dining car, a little odd but convenient, but like most others taking this trip, we brought our own supplies of tea bags, nuts, bananas and noodles. 

At the end of each carriage there is a very Russian looking but highly effective hot water heater/urn run by a small fire in its base which we thought could have been used as a ‘Back To The Future’ movie prop.

Konstantine met us after pulling into Yekaterinburg right on time, taking us to the hotel in his right hand drive vehicle, something he told us is very common in eastern Russia because Japan is so close them. In Russia they drive on the right hand side of the road but aren’t fussed whether cars are left or right hand drive but it does make overtaking very interesting.

Memorial in Yekaterinburg to first in habitants

Yekaterinburg is located amongst the Ural Mountains, some of the oldest in the world and just inside Siberia, famous for its severe weather, gulags (prisons) and the deaths of many tens of thousands, especially during Stalin’s era, a person who seems very disrespected in Russia. 

The city was named after the wife of Peter the Great who also directed the city be established in 1723 to produce iron for weapon production.

Yekaterinburg skyline

Memorial to Michael Jackson

Erina was our city tour guide around Russia’s 4^th largest city of about 1.5M consisting of both older buildings from its merchant past and many new skyscrapers attesting to its current prosperity.  

Russians seem to love monuments to famous people and history, but it was odd finding a statue remembering Michael Jackson in Siberia!  

Many of the city’s large cathedrals were blown up by the Bolsheviks post revolution.

Yekaterinburg, which is geographically situated between Europe and Asia, was originally designed as a fortress, and later became a trading hub and was described as Russia’s ‘window on Asia’.  

Small church located on site of cathedral destroyed
during the Stalin era in Russia

It is now a prosperous industrial town due to Siberia’s huge mineral wealth.  Many of the old buildings are painted green, Erina telling us the locals used the mineral malachite in their paint.

Rich merchant's home from the late 1800's

Yekaterinburg was also home to Boris Yelstin, the first President of non-communist Russia and also to an infamous event in Russian history, the murder of the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II and his entire family, Tsaritsa Alexandra, Anastasia, Tatiana, Olga, Maria and Alexei, as well as their servants. 

This event happened on the morning of July 17, 1918 in Ipatiev House where they had been exiled.  In 1977 the Ipatiev House was ordered demolished by Boris Yelstin to stop it becoming a rallying location for monarchists.

Church On Blood - The staircase
symbolises the families ascent to heaven

Now on the site of the house stands a very symbolic cathedral known as the ‘Church On Blood’ and it has 2 parts to it.  In the lower section it is dark with low ceilings and a red granite floor, symbolising the location where the family perished.  

The upper level of the cathedral is very tall, brightly coloured and with plenty of light, symbolising a new beginning with the Tsar and his family’s ascent into heaven.

The upper section of the
Church On Blood

Shopping centre in Yekaterinburg

Before re-joining the Trans Siberian, we visited the central shopping centre, again filled with the latest brand shops and found a supermarket which frankly was better than any we have at home or we have seen in the UK either.  

We found most of what we were looking for apart from some cherry vodka, so with the Google Translate in operation, we tried to find the word ‘cherry’ on bottles… no luck.

There were a few ladies not far from us in their mid 30’s so I typed a question into Google Translate, tapped one on the shoulder, showed our question to her and hoped.  

We found a few times when doing this, unless you frame your question simply and correctly, the translation makes absolutely no sense to them. 

“Are you looking for cherry vodka?” she asked in perfect English and I said “Da!”.  Why on earth did I respond in Russian, anyhow she showed us where it was and then asked, “where are we from?”  

She was shocked when she heard the answer and then asked, “why do you come to Russia, it is full of crazy people, do you like it?”  We said yes and briefly explained why, her face absolutely beaming when she heard the response, as did her friends when she told them. 

Rob trying to buy something in Subway

We wandered around this town and at all times the people were very friendly when we interacted with them with, a surprising number speaking English because its taught in their schools.

Car playing chicken with tram - Yekaterinburg

On the train enjoying some cherry vodka

Siberia from the Trans Siberian

Back on the train for 2 full days travelling through Siberia, it was nothing like we expected. Our image was lots of small shrubs due severe winter temperatures and a boggy tundra like environment, similar to what we had seen in Alaska.  

Instead there were lots of trees in this part of Siberia, mainly Siberian pine and birch trees just gaining their autumn colours.

Typical small town/village in Siberia

There were also many small villages the entire way across Siberia, with people living in mainly small old timber homes, smoke wafting out of chimneys with locals working in their vegetable gardens or tending stock.  

We found ourselves continuously wondering how they coped with winter temperatures averaging -20C to -25C and some bursts of up to -50C, enough to freeze eyelashes we were told.

During these 2 days, we either passed or stopped briefly at MANY largish cities with an obvious abundance of industry in them.  There was not the railway tracks we were on, but lots of other branch tracks disappearing off to who knows where. 

Green pointer below Russia showing train
approaching Irkutsk

Finally we reached Irkutsk and we were greeted at our carriage by Alexander and safely delivered to the hotel.  Irkutsk is one of the larger cities in Siberia, inhabited by about 600,000 people.  

Its coat of arms consists of a stylised Siberian tiger with a sable in its jaws, which has been used from 1642 and was a trading hub with China for gold, diamonds, fur, wood, silk and tea.

Promptly next morning we met our guide Arina for our journey to Listvyanka, located on the shores of Lake Baikal.  Arina is married with a 4-year-old son who is one of life’s really nice people and was simply a delight to be with. 

The Savior's Gate built in 1667

On our way to the lake, was visited the Taltsy Museum, a large tract of land where many historical timber buildings have been relocated to for preservation by decree of the Russian President.

This was done to save them when yet another dam based hydro scheme was developed threatening the buildings.

The 2 most valuable buildings in the museum are the Savior’s gate tower of Ostrog (fort) of Ilimsk, built in 1667 and the still active Kazan chapel built in 1679.  

Kazan Chapel built in 1679

Arina explained that these and many other old buildings located here were built without nails. 

Old building - Talsty Museum

There are 2 yurts in the museum precinct, a Mongolian tent style and spacious Russian timber one used by groups associated with Shamans.  We also learnt about the famed Cossacks who lived in Siberia and as a result of their fighting reputation, were used by wealthy Russians traders to secure and protect areas of land.

Inside Russian timber yurt

After reaching Listvyanka we were able to gaze out at Lake Baikal, shrouded mysteriously in fog, something apparently which occurs frequently.  Listvyanka was for a period, the location where the Trans Siberian crossed the lake… literally using the special ships built in the UK, the SS Baikal and SS Angara, which could transport the rail carriages across the lake.

Fog settled on Lake Baikal

Both were icebreakers because the lake freezes over during winter, and Angara still exists but the Baikal, which could carry 24 rail carriages, was burnt out and destroyed during the Russian Civil War.  Eventually the Trans Siberian railway bypassed the lake and these ships were no longer required.

Arina told us she has seen pictures of the locals laying railway tracks directly on the ice during very severe winters when the icebreakers couldn’t operate and the carriages then being pulled across the lake.  Also we were told of other fun the locals have here in winter. 

Rob amongst the very clean waters of Lake Baikal

The lake runs into the Angara River near Listvyanka, but never freezes there due to its current.  Locals cut out large slabs of ice, make ice chairs and tables, sit on them and then float down the river having parties, they even conduct weddings on large floating ice slabs.

Women sun baking on the shore of
Lake Baikal

In the winter of 1920, Lake Baikal was the site of the ‘Great Siberian Ice March’ when a retreating White Army crossed the frozen lake, but the wind on the exposed lake was so cold, many people froze in place until the next spring thaw.

We were shown a rock sitting alone above the surface out in the lake, used by local shamans in bygone times to test the honesty of people suspected of misdeeds.  

The accused person would be placed on the rock and left to endure a night alone on it.  If they were dead next morning they were obviously guilty but if they were alive, albeit by now out of their minds, they must have been innocent.

We visited the beautiful Nikolay’s Church, took a chair lift to get a birds eye view of the lake with some fog still present on its surface and tried fried Omul, a local fish found only in Lake Baikal, that grows very slowly in length due to the lakes low water temperature.

Nikolay's Church - Listvyanka

At a museum, Arina was able to finally tell us more about this world famous lake, also known as ‘The Pearl of Siberia’, so get ready for some incredible facts! 

Enjoying caviar on Russian pancakes
on shore of Lake Baikal

Formed 25 million years ago in a great rift valley, it is considered the world’s oldest lake and is still widening at ~2cm per year and subject to regular earthquakes in the area.  Being so old, scientists have also determined there is about 7kms of sediment at the bottom of the lake making it the deepest rift valley in the world.

It holds 20% of the worlds ENTIRE unfrozen fresh water and more than all in the North American Great Lakes combined, is 636kms long and 27-80kms wide and is the deepest lake in the world at 1,637m in comparison with Lake Tanganyika at 1,470m and say Lake Superior at 308m. 

Freshwater seal found in Lake Baikal

Its water is oxygenated right to the bottom rather than the first 200m due to the current in the lake caused by some 300 rivers feeding into it.  Small fish live at the bottom and the freshwater Baikal seal also make it their home.

Smoked fish out of Lake Baikal

Our final sunset over Lake Baikal

One of many cathedrals in Irkutsk

After 2 nights exploring Listvyanka, the lake and enjoying some great sunsets, we returned to Irkutsk, again being met by Arina for a city tour.  

It was to Irkutsk in the early 19^th century many Russian artists, nobles and soldiers were exiled by Tsar Nicholas 1 for their anti Tsar ‘Decembrists’ activities. 

Many wives joined them and eventually they were allowed to live in town, adding greatly to its culture and style.  

In 1879 almost 80% of the town was destroyed by fire and then rebuilt, theatres added and when the famous Russian writer called Chekov visited Irkutsk in 1900, he labeled it the ‘Paris of Siberia’. 

Rob appropriately dressed to enter
a church - Irkutsk

Very beautiful inside a church in Irkutsk

We visited a few very beautiful churches, one with a shrine containing the body of a famous saint and another containing the gravesite of the Russian who found and claimed Alaska.  This closed a loop for us having visited Alaska in 2014 and witnessing much of the Russian heritage still visible there.

To finish our understanding of the delightful Irkutsk, we visited a very modern area made using traditional timber designs, full of restaurants, shops and young fashionable ladies in jeans with holes in them and then went wandering the streets alone in search of old homes built of timber after the big fire.

Old timber buildings - Irkutsk

New shopping area - Irkutsk

Yet another visit to a very modern supermarket to stock up with train food and this time cranberry vodka, before boarding the Trans Siberian again, this time for 3 full days to our final destination, Vladivostok.

Trans Siberian arriving into Irkutsk station

Again our next train arrived into Irkutsk on time and would depart 20 minutes later.  

We found our cabin which needed to be re-made, stowed our bags out of the way but were then shushed into the corridor by a fast Russian talking carriage attendant.  

5 minutes later, all was done and we settled back in.

Minutes later a lady with a notepad and a wicked smile arrived, also talking very quickly in Russian.  She pointed to herself and said “Olga” so we figured that was her name.  As she spoke we looked at her blankly so she left, went to a few other carriages then later returned to us.  Olga plonked herself down on a bed and then we all tested our non-verbal communication skills.

When booking a 2 berth cabin, you get one free meal during the trip, and this is what Olga was trying to organize with us, including what type of food… fish or beef.   The meal could be a lunch or a dinner but now for the big decision to sort out… WHEN during the next 3 days of travel did we want this meal? 

Trying to understand the menu on Trans Siberian

We were really struggling to understand each other so I got out the phone and turned on the translator.  Olga immediately took the phone and tried talking into it, but that didn’t work because we didn’t have a Russian sim! 

I tried typing some words into it but still no understanding!  Hmmm… so opened the calendar and pointed to a day then opened the alarm clock and typed in 18:00.  “Da” she said with a strange look which suggested to us she thought the time was odd, in other words, might be Moscow time, could be Irkutsk time or could be some other time closer to Vladivostok… who knows! 

We established we would eat in the dining car with one English word from her ”restaurant” and a cocked head sideways.  “Da” we said, she smiled and left, whilst we at least knew we were eating something sometime the next day.  As it turned out, she came and got us at 17:00 anyway… oh well.

Dinner on the Trans Siberian

The dining car is a good place to go because you meet other travellers, in this case an interesting young French man who was taking trains from St Petersburg to Vladivostok and then immediately flying home.  Whilst eating our meal we enjoyed looking out to what we think was the Eurasian Steppe, a unique tract land spreading from Europe through parts of Russia to Mongolia and China. 

Sunset on one side of the train and...

The scenery was very different to the rest of Siberia; more barren than anything we had seen previously.  

We were also rewarded with a fiery sun setting behind a river and small mountains on one side of the carriage and a near full moon rising over the Steppe on the other side… very surreal.

moonrise on the other side

One morning we stirred and something smelt very good and lazily wafting through the carriage.  A few minutes later, with our cabin door now slightly open and Rob still in bed, Olga’s smiling face appeared at the gap carrying a tray.  

She was going door to door with freshly baked something or others… but the oh, the aroma!

She came in, sat on my bed and in typical fashion, blurted out a string of Russian, held up 2 fingers and then said “100 rubles!”  They were a Russian yeast bun mixture with some sort of cabbage based concoction in it and very nice.  The following morning we again had newly baked ones she was selling, one with potato inside and another with smoked sausage.

One of our dinners was also an interesting experience having bought little sealed bowls in the supermarket, Russian writing all over them and with something inside we hoped could be revived with hot water from the ‘work of art’ boiler at the end of the carriage. 

Well one was definitely a noodles mix with a few peas, bits of corn and some odd tasting spice mix.  The other 2 were an odd form of spicy mashed potatoes and with boiling hot water added, did take on the form of food that quelled the hunger for a while.

At the end of a very long train trip

Our 3 days came to an end in the port city of Vladivostok having seen all sorts of countryside, old houses and seeing or meeting a range of people on the train as they came and went during the relatively frequent stops the Trans Siberian makes along the way, all in all a great experience.

Having successfully been picked up and enjoying a good nights sleep in a bed that didn’t rock and jerk, our final guide Marina took us on the last city tour in Russia.

Vladivostok has a population of around 800,000 and is the point where much of Russia’s export and import freight traffic occurs, especially cars from Japan at the rate of 250,000 per year.  

Its’ harbour never freezes and is the reason it’s the Russian Pacific Fleet’s port and also why this city was not open for tourists until relatively recently.  

Part of the Russian fleet in port - Vladivostok

Russia gained this location from the Chinese after multiple skirmishes during the 19^th century, then paying for it because the Chinese didn’t like living in there... it was too hilly for them.

Chinese tourists now 'invade' Vladivostok

Yup Brunner's house

Marina provided a great insight to this city’s history with it being founded in 1860 with the railway station into which we arrived arrived being the oldest building.  

Yul Brunner was born here and there was a nice mix of elegant older and modern new buildings, plus apartments built across all of Russia during Stalin’s era, now much sort after because of their excellent construction and large rooms, but extremely expensive.

We had arrived into Russia with expectations based on its communist past, shabby infrastructure and solemn people.  It was nothing like it at, with the very beautiful cities of St Petersburg and Moscow combined with really interesting cities throughout Siberia.  

The people were very friendly when afforded time to interact with them personally, and everything in our itinerary happened exactly as planned and punctually.

Our sincere thanks to Eastern European Travel for organising this for us because it all worked flawlessly!

Russian navy returning to port as we prepare to depart Vladivostok

It would be an interesting place to visit during winter but our time had come to board the S7 (Siberian Airways) flight… a very well known operator in Siberia at least, and head slightly further east to Japan.

Just click on the link below if you want to see a few more photos covering Part 2. of our sojourn through Russia.

CLICK HERE for more photos crossing Russian on Trans Siberian

Till next post in Japan… go well!