footloose ferrett

The itinerary:

18 day trip across Russia from St. Petersburg to Moscow and via several smaller Siberian cities to Irkutsk (near the Mongolian border)

Highlights:
Lake Baikal; Red Square and the Kremlin (Moscow); wandering around St. Petersburg; Siberian village experience

Lowlights:
Stodgy food and small portions; very expensive in cities; rude babushkas

Enjoyable for: 
Train-spotters; people who really wish to get off the beaten track

Challenging for:
People who can't sleep on noisy trains; backpackers on a very tight budget or without much time

 "Why are you only staying one day in St. Petersburg?" the large man with my name on the sign asked. "It's not enough. There is too much to see. You need one week maybe more." and with this Russian greeting we started our trip across Russia. Our Russian guide took us on a detour to our appartment passing the Neva River, a wide expanse of water that cuts through the heart of the city to show us the crowds and fireworks celebrating the Russian Navy. He also showed us the WWII trenches where the Germans advanced to and lay siege to the city for 872 days and the impressive buildings of the Hermitage. So that night we took in the splendors of one of the world's greatest cities (our guide assured us of this) with some dry Russian bread and processed cheese triangles preparing for our new role as frugal backpackers.

If you only have one day in a city it's probably not advisable to sleep until midday but... boy was I tired! The previous evening our guide had told us that both the Hermitage and the Summer Gardens were closed so at least half our sightseeing was knocked on the head anyway. We started the day strolling along the canals and along Nevsky Prospekt, the main street, with its grand buildings and shops. Our guide was right, St. Petersburg has all the grandeur and majesty of a city built for a Tsar with it's elegant buildings, wide roads, gardens and elaborate churches. For good views of the city, try going up on the roof of St Isaac's cathedral for panoramics of the cityscape. If you like your churches multi-coloured both inside and outside, visit the Church of the Spilled Blood with its colourful domes and turrets outside and its vast, colourful moasics inside. A visit to the Peter and Paul fortress is also worthwhile, especially if you get to see the amusing sight of local men taking a dip in the icy waters.

Our first of many overnight train brought us into Moscow early in the morning amidst the bustle of the morning commute. After getting rid of our heavy bags - our companions for the year - we headed straight to Red Square, which is one of those iconic places that you've seen pictures of since childhood. The 'square' is more a kind of rectangle but it truly does blow you away with St. Basil's cathedral standing at the far end and surrounded by tall, imposing buildings. For me, it was the Kremlin that symbolised the pure power and majesty of the area. Located on a small hill overlooking the river and cushioned by Red Square on the left and surrounded by pretty gardens it looked in every way like a suitable home for a powerful government. Inside the Kremlin there are several attractive golden-domed cathedrals and some nice gardens. Don't stray towards the government buildings though, we had some angry whistle-blowing directed at us!

Next we visited Arbat street which used to be a famed haunt of poets and artists but unfortunately capitalist cosmopolitan cafes have destroyed it. To us, it was a parade of soul-less franchises and global chains where the average pint of beer costs 6 pounds! Lenin would be turning in his grave! However, as it happens he's not buried at all, and one of the best (free) attractions in Moscow is a visit to Lenin's masoleum, right on Red Square. It's only open in the mornings and you must go through lots of security checks. At these checkpoints, it helps to be female - Rhino was shouted at no less than three times in the masoluem (once for the heinous act of looking at Lenin's body with his hands in his pockets). Conversely, I set off the metal detector and was stopped by a guard - "no guns? no knives?". I innocently shook my head, smiled at him and was swiftly ushered through. The mausoleum is a must-see experience for both the significane of Lenin's waxy body and the atmosphere the guards create.

The Trans-Siberian train departing Moscow was decidedly less modern than our previous one but did have lace curtains which seemed a nice touch especially as this train was to be our home for the next day and two nights. As we settled down in our top second-class bunks, a small girl with blonde pig-tails came into the cabin threw her head down on the bed and started to weep. Rhino and I exchanged looks - we didn't speak any Russian and cuddling unknown children is not the done thing. It turned out that the girl and her mother were leaving her father in Moscow and this was why she was so upset. Kindly, her departing father gave her a big ice-cream that seemed to settle her. As we relaxed and tried to drift into sleep, we were stirred by the smell of vomit in our small cabin as the (formerly) cute girl threw up her ice-cream all over her bed. Nice!

As we tried to sleep with the train rattling and shaking noisily the mother and child left early in the morning and were replaced by a grumpy looking Russian bubushka (nothing unusual - most Russian women over 40 looked like they had just swallowed a wasp) who greeted us by shouting at us for ten minutes in loud, angry Russian for no apparent reason. Staring at her blankly didn't seem to placate her so we let her burn herself out before sharing the remaining 20 hours of the journey with this pleasant woman...

Tyumen is not a typical tourist destination and therefore has minimal options for accommodation. Unwilling to pay 120 euros per night, we decided to try couchsurfing for the first time (it's a website based organisation that helps travellers find couchs/spare beds to sleep on). We were apprehensive putting ourselves in the hands of strangers when we stepped off the train but were quickly put at ease by our host, Alexander, and his brother who very kindly picked us up from the station. Alexander went back to work and we explored Tyumen - the highlights being the statute of Lenin and the amusement park where we read our books for two hours whilst watching children being entertained by ponies and electronic minature cars.

The great thing about couchsurfing is that it is the perfect opportunity to meet locals. Alexander and his friends were amazingly accomodating and showed us things in Tyumen that we wouldn't have discovered alone. Fortunately, for us they enjoyed a good drink too and took us to some bars including good live bands. For those of you who are wondering - yes, going out in Russia is very expensive, especially for those on a backpacker's budget. I almost fainted when I saw the bill but it had been a good night and was worth it!

It turned out that Alexander and his friends had never visited Tobolsk, the town that. we had come to the region to visit. On the Saturday morning we all piled into two cars and drove (very fast...) the three hours to Tobolsk. If you're nearby it is worth the petrol - the Kremlin is absolutely gorgeous and has just been renovated. It's a very picturesque fortress town although I'm not sure if you need more than a few hours to look around.

Having said a fond farewell to our generous hosts in Tyumen, we set off on our next adventure on the Trans-Siberian train. Again, we shared a cabin with a mother, her very cute daughter - and a drunk man... We thought it would be the smelly drunk that would put us off our cheese and bread (a staple of our train diets) but it turned out to be the girl who was being potty trained in the cabin who stopped us being so hungry. We also attracted a few Russian groupies - some children who would run to our door say "Hello...Goodbye" and run off in hysterics. This kept them occupied for hours but not us as we tried to read our books and sleep.

We also met our first backpackers who we shared a few celebratory drinks with in the restaurant cart (you'd want to celebrate too if it was your first English conversation with others in over a week) and we were also joined by a group of jovial middle-age Germans who were journeying between Moscow and Omsk on a diet of beer, vodka and the restaurant cart food.

Rhino's horn

Riding the Trans-Siberian with the Russians

Vomit, alcoholism, baby pee...... These smells weren't in my romanticised view of travelling on the Trans-Siberian railway. My cabin-mates (4 to a cabin in 2nd class) were generally unpleasant (except for the scantily clad Swedish girls who insisted on stripping off to keep cool) but always gave a good excuse for disappearing to the restaurant cart for a few beverages. Forget playing cards or a good book, sufficient beer money is the essential accessory for a long train journey and I thank the Russians for recognising this and keeping their train bars so well stocked.

The next part of our journey was quite ill-prepared as our tickets had not allowed us to take a direct train to Tomsk and instead we arrrived at Novosibirsk at 5.30am and had to trek across the city half asleep to the bus terminal and hop on a five hour bus. After a night on the train, it was not pleasant. Tomsk was described by a leading travel guide (you know the one...) as the "hidden gem of Siberia" and we ventured there in hope of finding a traditional Siberian town. If you like your gems very dull and dirty then that's probably an accurate enough descripion. It has some interesting wooden lace architecture and a few nice parks but wouldn't travel 6 hours out of my way to visit it again. A definite black mark against the guidebook for that recommendation...