Trans Siberian 1

Leaving Moscow, we started our first and longest leg of the Trans Siberian railway – a 5185 km, 75 hour ride to Irkutsk.

The journey took us through European Russia, over the Urals into Asian Russia and eventually Siberia.

What to eat and drink was obviously our main priority for this trip of a life time so we managed to almost miss the train while running round the local streets trying to find a bottle of vodka. We didn’t know the Russians don’t sell vodka near their stations – it’s the only place you can’t find it.

On the train, food choices were either an over-priced and empty restaurant car, Babushkas (Russian Grannies) selling their wares on the platform at each stop or any of our own supplies topped up with free boiling water from our carriage attendant. We tried to be adventurous with the Babushka food but Iain didn’t really like the cabbage doughnuts and caviar flavoured crisps so we survived mainly on our own supplies - a diet of purple porridge with nice cups of earl grey tea and lemon.

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Food Pic #5. Purple porridge with a nice cup of Earl Grey.

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We both loved the days spent on the train with the only decisions being whether to keep looking out the window as Russia flew (or trundled) past, read a book or maybe have a little sleep. The views out the window were pretty consistent – vast expanses of grassland or birch forest spotted with haystacks, pretty wooden houses and ugly concrete towns.

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But despite mainly looking out the window at birch trees for 3 days, we were a bit miffed when we had to get off. Although that might have had something to do with it being 5 in the morning.

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Our main companions and neighbours on the train were a friendly pair of Finnish gents, escaping from their wives for a trip to China.

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Our cosy Lux wagon cabin.

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It was Iain’s birthday on the train. This nice Russian man gave us a lock-in at the restaurant car after we bought his under the counter Chinese vodka. (he also found and returned Iain’s cardigan the next day)

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Iain didn’t think much of the purple porridge.