We left the hotel with our luggage at 20.30 and headed for the metro to get to Yarovsky train station for the 21.30 train to Irkutsk. On the metro a tipsy matronly ex-army middle aged lady decided that she would lead us to the correct platform. It obviously appeared to her that we were incapable of getting ourselves there……or maybe she was just being kind. Communication between us was a real problem and she was getting very frustrated that we couldn’t understand her. We got to where we needed to be and she stood with us on the platform talking at us in Russian. We offered some money and cigarettes for her help, but she declined and eventually we said our goodbyes thanking her over and over again, as that was the only Russian word we knew would have any affect.
We found our carriage and walked down the corridor to find our cabin to see that Mark and Siobhain were in the cabin next door to us. We said that we’d bump into them again, but we didn’t know it would be so soon! Small world. We got settled in and bedded down for the night.
The first full day on the train was spent reading and solving puzzles. I also slept for a bit. The weather outside was grey, misty and uninviting. In the evening we wandered down to the restaurant car to see what was on offer. Pat was offered soup and chicken and the very friendly barman and lady offered me salad and a fried potato dish when I explained I was a veggie. Siobhain joined us for dinner and the 3 of us attracted the attention of 3 drunk Russians, one of whom was busily helping himself to our beer and spilling it all over the table. They were harmless enough, asking where we were from and assuming we were American. One of them, however, was getting fighty making provoking gestures at Pat, so we decided to leave. The rest of the evening was spent playing cards with Mark and Siobhain. It was good to have a chat and get to know them. I had also discovered a liking for Russian beer and managed to drink the equivalent of 4 pints by the end of the night, unusual for me.
The next morning we were woken up by crappy Russian music playing on the train radio system. The dials in our cabin were broken and off was not an option, unluckily for us. I was feeling ropy. We arrived at Omsk where Mark and Siobhain were getting off to break up their journey. We said our goodbyes after a few pics were taken. The rest of the day was spent in our cabin reading, playing cards, yahtzee and backgammon. All of which Pat won. We watched the film Children of Men to make an even more gloomy atmosphere!
We woke up to see a blanket of snow everywhere and I instantly felt cold and started panicking that I didn’t have enough clothes and would freeze. We got up early to adjust from Moscow time to local Irkutsk time to ensure that we get off the train at the right time and not too jet (??) lagged. Strange how you can get it on a train. We spent the day lounging and reading, looking forward to getting off the train and stretching our legs.
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