The Trans-Siberian Railway. Or: Really Far Away

The Big Picture

We are awakened by the older cabin matron who jolts our door open, points to her watch, shouts “passport control” and slams the door shut again. It’s seven thirty in the morning. They inspect our passports with excessive seriousness, then instruct us to “leave cabin.” The four of us get up, unsure of where we’re going. A small gymnastic woman enters our cabin and proceeds to do an uneven bars routine while looking in every nook and cranny for who knows what. Drugs? Money? People? The cabin matron then proceeds to vacuum the entire train with a dust buster. She motions to our feet and points up. We lift and she sweeps under our feet. She then motions to our feet and points down, as if we would have stayed in that formation permanently otherwise. We are shaken by an abrupt “push” forward as an engine is attached. We start moving ever so slowly forward. A fellow traveler appears to inform us of the party happening later in the evening. “Apparently there is actually a Russian on the train and he has invited all of us to a vodka party later.” Welcome to the Trans-Siberian Railway.



The Details

The Trans-Siberian railway is the world’s longest train journey. Covering more than 5,000 miles across Siberia, the route - despite its fame - remains distant to most travelers; it just might be the namesake of the phrase “off the beaten path.” While the Russian route runs from Vladivostok to Moscow, two other lines begin in Beijing: The Trans-Manchurian runs through northern China and into Russia while the Trans-Mongolian takes travelers through the breathtaking scenery of Mongolia. This writer recommends the Trans-Mongolian starting in Beijing and traveling northwest to Moscow.



The Journey

Because this adventure offers so many options, below is a recommended route and suggested length of time in different locations as well as hostel, restaurant and connection recommendations where necessary. This writer recommends booking all train tickets in advance. Probably the most well-known and widely trusted agent is Real Russia (www.realrussia.co.uk). Tickets can also be purchased en-route through hostels and travel agents. This is not advised during high season (May to August), as trains fill. Try departing early August to avoid huge crowds but still enjoy warmer weather.

Beijing (See the Beijing city guide for details on hotels, restaurants and sites) This is where it all begins! Trains leave Tuesday and Sunday for Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, which is the next stop on this journey. Ideally, plan to spend 7 days in Beijing.
Ulaanbaatar (See the Mongolia adventure guide for details on hotels, restaurants and excursions) The capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar is mainly a jumping off point for excursions outside the city. Train services to Russia are more regular than the first leg of the trip. Ideally, you’ll want four to six weeks in Mongolia. Shorter stays of three to seven days still offer time to see part of the country.

Irkutsk - Nestled deep in Siberia, Irkutsk was once known as “the Paris of Russia.” While the city does retain a certain grit and charm, its main function now is as a gateway to Lake Baikal. Spend a day or two here arranging travel to the Lake as well as taking in a few sites.

Stay at Baikaler Hostel (www.baikaler.com, +7-3952-336-240) They offer dorms and homestays as well as assistance in arranging trips to Lake Baikal. Charming, English-speaking staff couldn’t be more helpful. $18 per person.

Eat at the Central Market. You can’t miss it. This sprawling labyrinth offers clothes, bric-a-brac, flowers and divine food. Pick up some fresh cheese (divine), deli meat, bread and cake (gorgeous) to eat back at the hostel. The food is beyond fresh and the best way to eat in Irkutsk.

See the magnificent Basilica just over the bridge, the multitude of churches, the Stalin bust, the Lenin statue, Trubetskoy house, the Art Museum and the Central market. Also, ride one of the classic trams. It is an experience.

Lake Baikal - The world’s largest freshwater lake, Baikal has enough drinkable H2O to quench the thirst of the entire planet for nearly forty years! It is remote, spectacular and beyond beautiful. Make sure to take a dip in the frigid waters. Russian folklore says a swim in the waters of Baikal will add 25 years to your life! There are three main ways to see the lake.

Day-trip - Most hostels offer a day-trip to the lake that usually includes a boat trip, a ride on the circum-rail that circles the lake and a stop in Lystvyanka - the closest lake town to Irkutsk.

Lystvyanka - situated 45 miles from Irkutsk, Lystvyanka is easily reachable by bus. While travel books claim Lystvyanka is now overrun by tourists, this writer found that claim ridiculous. Think tiny mountain lake town, only everything is in Russian. Plan to spend two days here.

Stay at Baikal Chalet Lystvyanka (From where the bus drops you, face the lake and walk left. Follow the lake to the seal show. Turn left into the valley down Gudina street and walk to number 75, travel@angara.ru, bookable on hostelworld.com) With private balconies that look out to the lake through the valley, Baikal Chalet is one of the few places in town offering affordable, lovely accommodation. Breakfast included, $30 per person.

Eat at one of the four cafes on the main road that runs along the lake. The yellow one has delicious pastries and the green one has enough options for at least three meals. Try the omel - a local fish.

See the lake from every angle. Ride the chairlift to the top of the highest peak for breathtaking views of dense forest, brilliant lake and snow-capped mountains. Take a cruise on the lake. Go scuba diving. Don’t forget to take a dip! 25 years!

Olkhon Island - a 6-hour drive from Irkutsk, Olkhon is the largest island within Baikal. Take a jeep tour to sandy beaches and enjoy the truly untouched naturally beauty before this place gets crowded. Plan to spend 5 days here, including two days for return transportation.

Stay, Eat and Do through the island’s best guesthouse – Nikita’s (Irkutsk Region, Olkhon area, Khuzhir, Kirpichnaya St., 8, http://www.olkhon.info/en/). Nikita’s is bookable online or through guesthouses in Irkutsk.

Yekaterinburg - It is a 51-hour train journey from Irkutsk to Yekaterinburg. As the train chugs effortlessly through the thick Russian taiga forest, the cabins come to life in an all-out onslaught of tradition Russian vodka drinking. Come prepared and know that you have a comfortable break waiting for you in Yekaterinburg - home to former President Boris Yeltsin and sight of the gruesome murder of Russia’s last Tsar and his family - the Romanovs. Now a booming steel town, real Armani and fake McDonald’s (called McPeak, and a serious status symbol) line the streets of this bustling University town. Plan to spend one full day here.

Stay at Meeting Point Hostel (87 Malysheva, Apt. 73, Bookable on hostelworld.com) Just a short tram ride from the train
station, Meeting Point feels like going home to Mom and Dad for a few days. Hot water, family photos and a fully stocked kitchen make this place the perfect break from train life. The owner speaks perfect English and is wildly excited to help you make the most of Yekaterinburg. $18 per person.

Eat at Studio Cafe, where you can also make the most of the free wi-fi. McPeak - a lawsuit waiting to happen - also has a certain level of kitsch-factor. Hit the grocery store and cook in as well. The apartment hostel is just so warm and cozy!

See the Basilica and now memorial to the Romanov family, who were brutally murdered by the Bolsheviks at the start of the communist revolution. Wander the river and pedestrian avenue as well. If you have time, check out the rotating photo exhibit at the Photography museum. For those who are so inclined, make sure to snap your own photo of the Lenin statue to add to your personal collection.

Moscow (See the Moscow city guide for details on hotels, restaurants and sites) You’ve made it! Wear your badge with pride as you explore Russia’s mighty capital - where money talks. Ideally, spend 5 days here.

St. Petersburg (See the St. Petersburg city guide for details on hotels, restaurants and sites) While not officially on the Trans-Siberian route, if you’ve come this far make sure you see Russia’s most beautiful city. Plan to spend a week here.



The Life Of A Train-Goer

While life may maintain some sense of normalcy on the first leg of this journey, no doubt this will not continue. With time zones jumping by at lightning speed while the train stays on “Moscow Time,” you will most certainly lose all sense of time and space. Just go with it.

Food - Bring your own! While the food is decent on both the China and Mongolia legs, Russian food cars are nothing to write home about. Prices seem to change on every visit, portions are small and the darn stuff is expensive! While it is possible to buy food on train platforms at stops, quality isn’t much better and prices are still high, Essentials on your packing lists should include: Bottled water, vodka, mixers, nutella, bread, instant noodles, candy bars, fresh fruit, cheese and deli meats. Also, pack a sharp knife, two forks, two spoons, two cups and two bowls. Remember, you won’t be moving much, so hunger may be fleeting.

Drinking - Stories vary, but it is common for Russian travelers to arrive at your cabin door insisting that you join them for vodka either in the dining car or in their own cabin. It is considered extremely rude to refuse this invitation. The only workable way out seems to be mimicking illness. Otherwise, head out and drink up!

Sleeping - If you travel in a pair, book a top and bottom bed on the same side. This guarantees a place to lay down and seats for two at all times. As for when to sleep, just listen to your body. Time is truly of the essence on this adventure.

Cabin Crew - Trains are - 99% of the time - staffed by middle-aged women who hate their work and hate you more. Do all you can to butter them up. This can come in the form of chocolate, vodka or jewelry. Such bribes are crucial if you ever want to use the toilet, as they’re locked for nearly 50% of the journey.

Time - While Russia has eight different time zones, all trains run on Moscow time. That is, it may be 6pm in Irkutsk, but that’s 1pm in Moscow and your train might leave at 7pm, but that’s Moscow time - so midnight in Irkutsk. So while the local citizens have their clocks set to local time, all the train stations house enormous clocks displaying Moscow time. This provides hours of conversation on the train. It goes something like this: “What time is it here? Okay, it’s 5pm Yekaterinburg, which is three hours ahead of Irkutsk, which is one behind Beijing. Now, we leave at noon Moscow time on Wednesday - what day is it? - Tuesday, okay. So we leave at noon Moscow time on Wednesday which means it’s now 4am in Los Angeles on Monday and noon in London, so with the stars in the third quadrant of the Milky Way and our having just passed the sixty first parallel, I think it’s time for lunch!” Set your time to Moscow when you leave Mongolia and work out everything from there. If this sounds confusing that’s because it is.



Bits and Bobs

As you cross the border from China to Mongolia, the train actually has all of its wheels changed from “Global Gauge” to “Russian Gauge.” The Russians did this to fend off invading trains during the Cold War. If you get off the train, plan to be off for several hours. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The “Duty Free” shop houses an impressive array of fake top-shelf liquor, from “Johnny Worker Song Red Square Whiskey” (Johnny Walker Red Label) to “Absolutely” vodka (Absolut).

Brush your teeth twice a day. This may sound obvious, but it keeps your body on some semblance of a schedule and keeps you clean.

Bring your own toilet paper. The train’s supply seems to disappear within minutes.

Let go. This is Siberia and it’s incredible!

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Kyle Taylor

Russia Video Mash-Up 2009

A few of the wildest moments in Russia that fit into three nice themes: riding the train, eating the food and swimming in the frigid lake! It's all set to music by Becca pants and Clarkie-poo. Enjoy!

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Kyle Taylor

It’s 6 O’Clock Moscow Time, Which Means It’s...I Have NO IDEA.

I came across a travel article prior to this trip with the tag line “lose all sense of time and space on the TransSiberian.” While I now completely agree, it is for a very different reason. The article suggests you just get wrapped up in the scenery, the ride and the adventure to really understand where you are. It’s much simpler than that: While the rest of the world sticks to time zones, Russia keeps all eight of theirs intact but runs all the trains on Moscow time. That is, it may be 6pm in Irkutsk, but that’s 1pm in Moscow and our train might leave at 7pm, but that’s Moscow time - so midnight in Irkutsk. So while the local citizens have their clocks set to local time, all the train stations house enormous clocks displaying Moscow time. Meanwhile, my watch is set to London time with the dual clock set to Pacific Standard Time. Follow me?

This has provided hours of conversation on the train. It goes something like this: “What time is it here? Okay, it’s 5pm Yekaterinburg which is three hours ahead of Irkutsk, which is one behind Beijing. Now, we leave at noon Moscow time on Wednesday - what day is it? - Tuesday, okay. So we leave at noon Moscow time on Wednesday which means it’s now 4am in Los Angeles on Monday and noon in London, so with the stars in the third quadrant of the Milky Way and our having just passed the sixty first parallel, I think it’s time for lunch!”

Meals seem to happen whenever your body feels like it and once it’s dark outside, all bets are off as to what you should be doing. Sleeping? Reading? Eating? Drinking? NO CLUE.

As we cruise tomorrow Moscow on this - our final leg of the “official” TransSiberian journey - I’m getting slightly confused. Will my legs work? What will I do with all this time that will no doubt begin to appear? How will I know when to eat and sleep? What does a shower feel like? If there are any “take-aways” from this journey, I think they have to begin with a new-found appreciation for hot good, cold beverages and showers.

Oh, and give gifts to the women in charge of your train. For whatever reason, they’re all incredibly mean (minus our current chief, who has smiled at me. TWICE). The last one was wearing black leather lace-up thigh boots and an entire stick of lipstick. Upon coming to collect our sheets, she proceeded to throw a tantrum in Russian because a wash-cloth was missing. After pointing to our bags in an apparent attempt to pin us as a vicious Siberian ring of face towel thieves, we were booted from the cabin so she could look in every nook and cranny, eventually finding said wash-cloth under the seat. She held it up in our faces, shook it violently then stormed off. I looked at Matt and asked, “what just happened?”

Just as we have no doubt lost all sense of time and space, so too has this blog post. I have no idea what’s going on right now. Should I stop? Is there more to say? Maybe a snack break or an exciting trip to the dining car? Well, according to my watch and reading the path of the sun, it appears it is time to close. I shall now return to staring out the window.

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Kyle Taylor

Lake Baikal - Perfection

Our $3 public bus careens down a ride straddled on both sides by pine, aspen and cedar trees. It is fall and the leaves are changing in a brilliant display of how beautiful nature can be. I’ve hoisted my pack on my lap to make room for a man and his baby. He opts to stand instead, probably fearing the damage my bag might do should it roll off of my lap and into his child.



Andy and Charlotte have joined Matt and I for this part of the adventure - a two-day, one-night stint in Lystvianka alongside Lake Baikal - the world’s largest freshwater lake. The entire thing is drinkable (it tastes delicious) and has enough fresh water to quench the thirst of every person on earth for FORTY YEARS. It is on average 30 miles wide and nearly 400 miles long, surrounded by tiny villages and the largest forest on earth. Called the Taiga, the forest itself is three times the size of the Amazon and LARGER THAN THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES. Who knew Russia was so awesome?



After checking into our chalet nestled up on a hill overlooking the lake, the four of us spent the afternoon taking in the splendor and building up for our big swim. The most mesmerizing views came from atop a random ski lift we stumbled upon at the top of the mountain. Orange, read and yellow trees flowed seamlessly into brilliant blue water, ending abruptly at snow-capped mountains lining the opposite shore. It was otherworldly.





By now, evening was fast approaching. Charlotte, Matt and I decided it was time to “man up” (Andy was not so inclined, but offered to video and take photos). Our guide book told us of an ancient myth that swimming in Baikal adds 25 years to your life and hey, who couldn’t do with a few extra annums? We had asked our waitress at lunch where a good swimming spot might be and all she would say is “niet.” Too cold for even the Russians, apparently. Hogwash!



Moseying down to our own spot of choice, we ran into some Russians who had just emerged from the sea. They were enthralled. The three of us ditched our clothes in favor of swimsuits and - on the count of three - waded in together. Having a slight Channel-training advantage, the 9-degree water (47 degrees Fahrenheit) was still intense but not deathly.



A few strokes out I turned to find Matt screaming incessantly while heading to shore. Charlotte was only ankle-deep. “Come on,” I shouted. “25 years!” In the end we all made it in and have both a photo and video to prove our 70-second ordeal actually happened. In fact, on our second day we took a boat cruise on the lake and went swimming again - this time diving right off the boat (I’ll post video when I can).



Post-swim, feeling energized and rejuvenated, we returned to our lunchtime cafe to show the waitress our video. She smile broadly and began to laugh before returning to her more traditional, seriously serious demeanor. Then, mid meal, something happened. She came over to the table, pointed to me and said “Actor? Lost?” She was convinced that I was Matthew Fox! Matt burst into laughter and I said to her in Russian, “sorry, no.” She went back to the bar and spent the remainder of our meal looking over at me and smiling. After we’d paid the bill she produced a camera, pointed to me and said “picture?”



I obliged and just like that, the rumor began to spread through all of Siberia that Matthew Fox went swimming in Lake Baikal. Russia is SO FUNNY!

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Kyle Taylor

Stop. Go. No, Stop. No, Go. Wait, where Is The Engine Car?

We are awakened by the older cabin matron who jolts our door open, points to her watch, shouts “passport control” and slams the door shut again. It’s seven thirty. An hour later the train rolls into Mongolian border control and we are boarded by suited officials. Let the waiting game begin.

I run through the day in my head: “okay, so this many hours for this, another x number of hours for that, some time to eat and a decent night’s sleep.” DAY PLANNED!

DAY LOST. For whatever reason all sense of time and space seems to disappear on this epic adventure. We are all convinced this is in part due to the obscene amount of time we spend not moving in a state of perpetual “um, border control? wait, toilet? um, huh, what, where, who...” that really curtails any type of forward progress.

We are re-boarded and our passports are returned to us. I look at my watch. It has been TWO HOURS. The train rolls all of ten feet forward and we are boarded again - this time by Mongolian customs officials. The waiting game begins yet again. Caroline from down the hall stops in to tell us what’s going on. How she found out, I have no idea. “We’re going to be here for a while and you can get off and go to the bathroom. I’m gong to feed that dog over there.” I de-train and use the toilet not because I have to, but because I am bored. In fact, I haven’t needed the bathroom for what seems like days. Friends had told me horror stories of getting trapped at the border for ten and twelve hours with no access to toilets. In anticipation, I cut myself from all fluids an hour before we boarded the train. Maybe dehydration is part to blame for lack of mental prowess.



I re-board and another hour passes before we begin to screech slowly forward yet again. This time we carry on for a good thirty minutes crossing from Mongolia to Russia. We pass the electric fence (yes, electric fence) that runs the length of the border to stop all those pesky Mongolians from fleeing to the frigid, snow-covered, poverty-ridden Siberian side and pull into the Russian passport control and customs station, where we are boarded by at least twenty Russian soldiers that all look exactly like what you’d think a Russian soldier should look like.

They inspect our passports with excessive seriousness then instruct us to “leave cabin.” The four of us get up, unsure of where we’re going. A small gymnastic woman enters our cabin and proceeds to do an uneven bars routine while looking in every nook and cranny for who knows what. Drugs? Money? Mongolians? I de-train, [pretend to] use the bathroom, arrive back to find they’ve moved a bit further down the cabin and return to my flux state-of-being that is both unproductive and uninteresting.



I also notice that we are no longer attached to an engine car, which is just super. FOUR MORE HOURS PASS. The cabin matron has made yet another wardrobe change (she has a different outfit for each activity - collecting trash, punching tickets, doing needlepoint, screaming at me, etc). She is now vacuuming THE ENTIRE TRAIN with a dust buster, even coming into our room. She motions to our feet and points up. We lift and she sweeps under our feet. She then motions to our feet and points down, as if we would have stayed in that formation permanently otherwise.

We are shaken by an abrupt “push” forward as an engine is attached. We start moving ever so slowly forward. Caroline reappears to inform us of the party happening later in the evening. “Apparently there is actually a Russian on the train and he has invited all of us to a Vodka party later.” Everyone enters a “do your own thing” mood for a few hours until we’re reuniting to attend the party.

The four of us - Andy, Charlotte, Matt and I - pick out our outfits and get dressed as if we’re going for a night on the town. Having sat for nearly 36 hours, actually having something to do is rather exciting.

The real-life Russian never shows but sure enough we end up with 3 Aussies, 4 Americans, 2 Brits, 1 Austrian and 1 Belarussian all squeezed into the same cabin. All proceeds well until a few of the attendees decide they want to drink with the Russian Army, who have invited the whole lot of us to the dining car. Valuing my life as well as my unbroken bones, I pass and head to bed. WHAT. A. DAY.

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Kyle Taylor

Caroline, Queen of Siberia

My watch reads 8:23pm as our train pulls into the Ulaanbaatar platform. We’re standing in the blustery cold under nearly 2 inches of snow thanks to a fluke snowstorm that forced the temperature down 35 degrees in twelve hours. Matt is to my right attempting to dodge the sways and dips of a very drunk Mongolian man. To my left is a dapper American fellow named Chris. Chris is a missionary from the Mormon church, which I identify from the universal name tag that all missionaries seem to wear.

He asks me where I’m from which is followed up with: “so, have you heard about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints?” While I award an A for effort all I can think is, “does this really seem like the right moment to pitch the church? I’m wearing a 40-pound backpack on my back and a 20-pound pack on my front standing in two inches of snow on a train platform in Mongolia.” The whistle sounds and I excuse myself, apologizing for needing to hop aboard.



We are joined by Andy and Charlotte in our 4-person, 4-bed, microscopic cabin. It appears that - once again - all the foreigners have been placed in the same coach. We begin to chat our plan our coordinated attack on arranging our berths. “Okay, if you put your right foot here then I can put my left arm there and pull down this bunk. Good. Now, if you suspend your body from that rail I can do a front somersault vaulted twist into my bed. Ready, steady...”

Conversation on travel, work, school and home (they’re both UK residents and London-bound!) shifts abruptly as Caroline bursts into the cabin. We first met Caroline in Beijing, as she and her partner were on our group tour to the Great Wall. They miraculously reappeared on our train to Mongolia, where we brushed shoulders and spoke of our epic adventures. While we stayed in different places in Ulaanbaatar, both of us took overnight trips to the National Park (though we did not see each other). Then, while standing in the snow and chatting with the Mormon missionary, I caught her gaze across the platform.

Caroline seems to know everyone on the train, including the staff, border guards and customs officials. Austrian, she lives in London and “take one major trip every year.” You can hear her bubbly, enthusiastic laugh from six cabins down and whenever she shows up you can be sure there is some new train-wide news or gossip to be disseminated. She is the foreign traveler’s matriarch on our train journey through Siberia and thanks to her precise smoking schedule, I could set my watch by her movements.

She offers us Vodka all around which the four of us politely decline. This is followed by a number of hilarious anecdotes including a profile of her new Mongolian friend, her love of feeding dogs and how she made friends with our on-board cabin matron. The conversation carries on for several more highly entertaining hours before the four of us are sufficiently tired. Matt and Charlotte both accidentally stumble into the matron’s berth whilst looking for the bathroom and get a stern gaze for interrupting a frantically paced session of needlepointing. With that, we drift off to sleep...

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Kyle Taylor

First Class Is Actually Second Class & Other First-Day Musings

We arrived at the station a good hour pre-departure and boarded to find that we were - in fact - two of only four people on the entire car of the train which is meant to sleep forty. In turns out that there are a total of 26 people on the entire 18-car train and we are in fact outnumbered by porters, cooks and conductors. What’s even more hilarious is that all the foreigners are bunched into the back three cars, which the rest of the folks enjoying the others. To top it all off, some Australians we just met are the only four people in their car as well. What makes this amusing is that there are all in THE SAME CABIN and were told that spreading out is “impossible.”

It seems that the food is country-specific, with different food cars being attached at border crossings. Speaking of border crossings, after a day of napping, reading, blogging, staring out the window, movie watching and game playing we were welcomed to the Sino-Mongolian border by an enormous Chinese army brigade marching ominously along the platform to a German symphony blasting from the speakers. We were then invited to “detrain and shop a little” while the wheels were being swapped (while the entire planet runs on the same size tracks, only Mongolia and Russia continue to use a network that is 3.5 inches wider than EVERYWHERE ELSE (naturally). This means the train cars have to have all their wheels swapped out at the border.



Fortunately, there was an extensive selection of “duty free” to explore that included some fabulous options like “Absolute” Vodka, “Jieku Hueihai” Whisky and “John Work Song” Black Strap Whisky. Note the remarkably similar names and labels, despite being roughly 20% of the cost. It was the perfect farewell to China. Well, that and being allowed to roam freely through the customs area despite having our passports confiscated, left to wait aimlessly on the platform for “two to six hours” with knock-off liquor and an enormous group of foreigners.

Moments later at the Mongolian border we were treated to a form written entirely in Mongolian script and told to “fill it out.” Ten minutes later the border agent reappeared and as I was attempting to mime my illiteracy she nabbed the incomplete forms from my hand, stuck then in her pocket, stuck her tongue out and blew. Where, exactly have I taken this train?

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Kyle Taylor