Travelling on the train was a unique and exciting experience, bounding through the Siberian wilderness for hours on end! It was a romantic trip (an open mind, ability to adapt, and sense of adventure needed) and a big tick on the bucket list!

We boarded our train at midnight, waiting on the platform with hundreds of others heading to other parts of Russia. It was a rush to the train, as people attempted to get the best beds in the 3rd class open carriage. We had tickets to specific berths so we hustled on with our packs, squeezing down the corridor to the very end of carriage to our berth. 5 minutes later were off on a four night epic journey! 🙂

Our cabin was cosy but all one really needs. Sharing with three other people in our group made life easier; avoiding those awkward conversations with Mongolian traders who take up more than their share of storage, and whose sense of personal space is somewhat blunted.
There was a battle of whether the bottom or top bunk is the way to go. We had the luxury of both, (Emily on the bottom bunk, myself up top) meaning I could jump down when ever I wanted, whilst still having somewhere to escape to sleep or have some quiet time. The top bunks fold and lock up against the wall, making the cabin bigger during the day. The only down-side was the constant cold jet of air on my feet when the window were open – the wind chill factor was significant.

A small basket kept the most used items tucked away but easily at hand; toilet paper, soap, ear plugs, eye mask and power adaptor. The morning task of rolling away the bedding makes it feel like a pilgrimage; another task on the morning routine.
Most of our time was spent… drinking vodka..just kidding…talking to our fellow group, and hearing interesting life stories and experiences that always colour the conversation. It’s always interesting who you meet, common friends and favourite places, illustrating how small the world is! We shared a lot; cheese someone bought from their home town in Italy, gin from Turkey ( in our case), single malt scotch, books, noodles, lollies.
Some kept to themselves in their four berth cabin reserved only for the two of them. In some ways it probably ruins the majesty of the trip – less socialising, eat dinner by yourself, then disappear off for hours at a time.

The food chart rolled through about twice a day, typically a myriad of sugar-laden snack foods, various bottled drinks and also an assortment of cooked cakes or buns from the resturant car. It’s good to have our guide who speaks some Russian, otherwise it would be a true lollie scramble. Despite this, we were often surprised that the meat bun was actually a goats cheese and cabbage pie. The attendant was a young Russian lady in desperate need of some vitamin D, some nutritious food and a dentist. It’s sadly a common sight as we head towards Siberia. The attendant got annoyed when we didn’t buy anything, turning her nose up and storming off down thr carriage muttering in Russian.
During the first afternoon, we headed off to the restaurant car when the temperature climbed during the first afternoon. It was air conditioned, a worthwhile venture despite the hyper-inflated cold beer prices. Warm white Russia wine wasn’t an attractive option, instead Emily and others went for peach juice and carbonated water.
The first night our berth celebrated the start of the train journey with a round of gin (a bottle purchased from Turkey duty-free) and tonic’s which was a great night cap before we got use to the rock and roll of train life.

The train stopped at irregular times along the track, obviously letting others pass or allowing time for signals to change. There was an amazing amount of traffic on this double line; huge shipments of coal and tree trunks. Massive 50 car trains carrying crude oil often rolled past.

Rostered stops in various towns were listed in the carriage; surprisingly we ran dead on schedule. We were allowed onto the platform if the train was stopping for a decent amount of time (at least 12 mins) which was a brief change from cabin life and a welcome opportunity to spread tight legs and get fresh air. At small stops, those not controlled by unmanned metal detectors, babushkas hawk home made food, Russian pies and soups – always exciting to anticipate what you’re going to eat next, and a nice change to the pack of biscuits I found myself eating for breakfast! We also found a small kiosk with refrigerated drinking yoghurt – Yum! Some people found showers at the bigger stops; at NZ $10 dollars a shower, it’s hardly worth it as you go back to your room and you feel much the same after an hour.
We also found some random buns with some random filling (we think mashed potatoes) an interesting thing suitable for lunch – but since it was hot from the microwave I thought I might as well eat it for breakfast!
As we headed deeper into Siberia, the temperature dropped from 32 degrees in Moscow to 10degrees. People huddled around the tracks in blankets, and pulled out our feather sleeping backs and ice breakers, glad we didn’t send them home early! Facial features gradually started to change just after the European – Asian border (1777km from Moscow), from white, blue-eyed tall people to the rounder darker Korean/Mongolian features of Central Asia. Russia is amazingly vast not only in its geography, but also its multitude of ethnic groups.

Shower time. In reality it involved squeezing into a small toilet with a sink and our clothes in a plastic bag so they didn’t fall on the wet floor. A small flannel (we bought a towel earlier and cut it in half with the trusty Leatherman) and soap gave the perfect body scrub for want of anything better. If you didn’t bring another towel, you could always stand nude for a while, as the cold air from the open window could do the drying! At this point I usually finished off with some baby wet wipes; for that extra lemony zesty feel. Changed again into the same clothes, I felt a little bit ‘fresh’ for a while, although quite a bit colder!

Life was controlled by ‘Provodnitsa’ or train attendant, a rather large babushka lady called Natalia, who ran our carriage like a military operation. Toilets are locked religiously 30 min before the next major stop; an attempt to make the ‘straight on to the tracks toilets’ a more hygienic for the locals. It forced us to plan ahead, but sometimes the 20 rubles for a clean toilet at the station was worth paying especially if we were suddenly desperate! She filled up the hot water dispenser , the centre of nourishment as people delve into two minute noodles or rehydrated potato flakes into mash potato. She controlled the lights on the train and the Russian Pop music (that blared throughout the carriage the whole afternoon until we finally figured out how to decrease the volume in our berths), and could really dampen your experience if you upset her ie. we had to be careful not to pour small leftover solids down the plug when cleaning our cups – that would automatically put you in the black book for the day!
She eventually warmed up to the foreigners on her carriage. Originally yelling at us in Russian, by the end she was posing for a photo with some of the group, her big golden teeth glinting in the Siberian sun. She told me off a few times for whistling on the train; apparently you can’t do it in Russia! By the end of the trip she was kind enough to open the main door at the 1 minute stops so I could take photos!

The landscape only changed a little over the last two days. Mostly it was birch forests, which sometimes opened into large green landscapes, and small villages with wooden houses, incredibly derelict looking which must be freezing in the winter. The ground around was mostly peet bog, with huge pine and birch forests in the swap. This is all covered in a blanket of snow most of the year – therefore water is everywhere now. Occasionally large towns crop up, built around large industrial areas with smoke billowing skyward.

Afternoon sleeps were common. The first day from Moscow was really hot, immediately sending everyone off to sleep after lunch. As it got colder (now 11 degrees as we get into Siberia), people huddled under blankets reading books. We wondered why we had brought sleeping bags as everyone said it would be warm; but the jet of cold air from the open window hit the top bunk constantly. The wind chill factor means my sleeping bag is well used at night. It’s nice to do what you want – a nap when you want.

The restaurant car is a daily excursion from our carriage, somewhere to escape the cold or hot as it’s air conditioned. The car is maned (‘womaned’) by two Russian ladies who have clearly worn the same outfits for 4 days; that adds up to some intense body odour!!The menu is an amazing array of cuisine, from ‘meat fantasy’ to ‘ meat by amateur’, and including ‘Goldfish with addition garnish’, ‘Snack with vodka’ and ‘Closed sandwiches with cooking products’. Often your first three choices are unavailable. I managed to get some meat soup, which involved two types of luncheon, pickle, and lemon with a large amount of dill. Mmmmmm!

After four nights we finally got to Irkutsk, a large industrial town on the outlet of Lake Baikal. Having been in each others pocket, we were keen to get off the train, find a hot meal and a warm shower (wet wipes by day 5 just don’t cut it). Our bodies weren’t sure what time it was as the train runs off Moscow time (to keep anything standard), and we are on Moscow + 5 hrs in Irkutsk. The sun sets at 10pm so its impossible to readjust quickly. The hot shower that night was AMAZING!!!

5185km completed from Moscow – a few thousand to go.