TRAIN TO MOSCOW

Breakfast the next morning at the Angara Hotel was ok. The resturant is on the third floor. I gave the attendant my blue ticket and went in. There was a large table in the middle of the room with all kinds of food on it. There were plates of fresh baked Russian bread, bowls and plates of carrots, beets, boiled eggs, mayonnaise, salami, baloney, cheese, yogart, tomatoes, coffee and tea etc.

After breakfast I met with some of the other travelors in our party in the lobby. We had a little time before we had to get ready to go to the train station where we would continue our journey to Moscow. As we walked outside there was a man sweeping the street with a broom made out of twigs. A couple of us started down the street to see what we could see. We stopped at a kiosk where I bought an icon of St. Nicholas. After that we went down to the Angera River, which is the only river that flows out of Lake Baikal.

On the way back we ran into Sabine, who was Polish wanted to go in the Polish Catholic church which was down the street. It was Sunday morning and there was a service taking place inside. We went in and walked up a long hall. As we got closer to the sanctuary we could hear the worshipers singing hymns and talking. We turned around an left because we didn't want to interupt their service. We walked back down the long hall and went out the front door.

Facade



Then Fran and I continued walking down some side streets looking at the interesting buildings. When we got back to the hotel the small bus had arrived so we went to our rooms and collected our stuff and started heading toward the elevators. When we did this the floor ladies darted to our room. Sabine said they were checking the room to see if we stole any towels or anything else.

We checked out of the hotel and put our stuff in the bus. We still had about an hour to kill so I decided to take a little walk to see the city from ground level. I didn't want to get lost so I was very careful to observe landmarks as I went so I could find my way back. For one thing I walked in a straight line staying on the same street the hotel was on. I walked for about a mile then came to a busy street. I turned left at a store that had a sign on the outside that said, 'English Collection'. I walked down that street for about ten blocks where there was a little display of military hardware, such as; tanks, cannons, and things like that. Then I turned around and walked back. I came to a place where the sidewalk was blocked off. It seems that part of the building fell onto the sidewalk. Many of the buildings in Irkutsk were literally crumbling apart. They were quite old but those were dire times so there wasn't money to repair them.

When I came in sight of the hotel I crossed the street and walked around some more and ended up in a park. There was a lady selling Coke so I went over and bought one. There was a language problem there since I didn't speak Russian and the middle aged lady had no clue of English. When it was time to pay I just pulled out some Rubles and she took what she needed and that was that. I totally trusted that she took the right amount.

Window



When I got back to the van everyone was there. A few minutes later we were off to the train station. When we got there Paul went in to secure some tickets. He came back about fifteen minutes later stating that he had been trying to get second class tickets. That way he would only have to get three cabins to accomodate our group at four people per cabin. There weren't any second class cabins available so we had to go first class which meant each cabin had two beds. Sabine and I would be bunking in the same cabin.

Once that was established a man driving a tractor with two wire trailers came and some porters put our bags in them. Then we made our way up some stairs that led the way to the trains. There was no lighting in some places so it was hard to see. At the top of the stairs there was sunlight again. At this point we were met with a crowd of people pushing their way off the cement platform. A train must have just emptied.

Before this Paul had warned us about pick-pockets. I had already learned not to keep anything in my pants pockets. I kept all my valuables, like passport, money, and picture ID in a leather pouch around my neck and under my shirt. Things like plane tickets, more ID and the majority of my money would be in my money belt which is worn around the waist and under your clothes. In my case it was in my underware resting safely above my family jewels. I did carry money in my shirt pocket, but a theif would have to be facing me to get that money. Most theives are too cowardly to do that. They would rather do their dirty work where you can't see them.

At the train station



After a little bit we found our car. Soon after that the man and his tractor came with our suitcases. The porter that helped me with my suitcase reminded me of a typical Russian. He was about twenty-three years old. He had a quick smile which revealed a mouth full of gold teeth. He was a little shorter then me. Not too stocky but strong, white skinned, ruddy, short blonde hair. He brought my suitcase to the cabin and left with a bright smile. I thought to myself, "that guy loves his job".

After he was gone Sabine and I started to unpack and tidied the place up a little because this little space was going to be our home for the next few days. I had a few damp clothes wrapped up in a towel that I had washed the night before. I strung my rope around the cabin and hung them on it. Then I took my icons out and hung them on the wall. One was of Jesus and the other was St Nicholas. Sabine gave me a funny look. I asurred her that I don't pray to pictures or use them as lucky charms. "I just like them". I told her.

The train lady came around and gave us our sheets..for a price. I think it was a few rubles.

We were told that the first class section was air-conditioned. That meant that the windows couldn't be opened. That created a problem for me. I would much rather have fresh air blowing in my face then air-conditioning.

When we got settled and we were rolling along I got paper and pen out and started jotting down the things I saw out the window. Someday I would like to write this stuff into the story, but for now this is a list of things I saw.

Fields of flowers and plants

Rolling hills and forests in foreground and background.

Families hoeing their gardens in the mid-day sun.

Men, women and children cutting grass with sickle or scythe next to railroad tracks using wooden rakes with wooden teeth.

Russian Orthodox Church with onion dome glistening in the sun.

Three boys sitting in woods infront of small bon-fire.

Two boys riding on a motor scooter through a country town.

A Russian Orthodox cemetery overgrown with weeds and two boys sitting in the shade of a tree on a blanket with food spread on it.

A group of men putting a roof on a building.

Ravens flying in small groups or sitting on a pole.

People standing around at a train station. Some crying at the departure of a loved one.

A boy chasing a cow with a stick in a field.

Boys riding a bike down a dirt road.

Washing clothes at the river



A young man in shabby clothes with a stick in one hand and a large cloth bag under his arm strapped over his shoulder walking across a railroad bridge.

A woman with a bucket half filled with berries.

Two boys squatting infront of a large mud puddle.

Old lady with a flock of geese walking on a well-worn path in a field.

Rickety horse drawn cart with two peasant women wearing mis-matched patterns on their hats and dresses.

Haystacks everywhere you look.

THE DINING CAR

The dining was about six cars away from where we were so everytime we went for a meal we had to go through the cars, open the door at the end of the car and go inbetween the cars which was outside. The wind would blow through that place and you had to be careful where you stepped because it was the place where the two cars were hitched together and the metal plates would be moving around. You would have to be extra careful if you had been drinking vodka, but there were plenty of places to hand onto.

The dining car is a regular car except that it has a kitchen at one end and tables and chairs, diner style in the rest of the car. There were heavy drapes on the windows with some kind of shear cloth on the bottom so you could look out the window.

The first meal we had on the train was some kind of soup with black olives, green olives, meat stock, carrots, cabbage, potatoes and lemon wedge. This was served in a tall rustic, ceramic bowl about five inches high and 4 inches around. The bowl had a lid and handles. Very unique looking. Along with the soup came unsalted bread. For some reason we had been getting unsalted bread and unsalted butter everywhere we had gone in Russia thus far. The main dish was chicken leg and thigh, potatoes with flat leaf parsley and chives. It tasted very good. Desert was vanilla ice cream with chocolate bits.