Adventures in Siberia

"Ulan Ude - Moscow." Our trip to Lake Baikal started at the train station in Kazan at 2:30 am (because that was when the train went through our city). We spent three days traveling and six on and around Baikal. Our train had started in Moscow and was heading to Ulan Ude, hence the sign.

Our train! - at the station in Barabinsk, one of the little towns we stopped at in Siberia.

Tanya, my traveling companion :)

The frost on our window in the train. It formed beautiful shapes like leaves and flowers and changed slightly every day. We both had top bunks in third class. Lots of fun! (You can't imagine)

At every station they would bang on the wheels and other parts under the train to check their soundness. The sound of ringing iron became very familiar.

The dining car decorated for New Years.

When walking the length of the train, you have to pass through this section between cars. It was really cold! The white stuff is frost.

Siberian sunset over a village.

Our hotel on Lake Baikal. Very cozy.

Our room! The logs were pine and made the whole room smell good.

Frozen Lake Baikal.

The sunset our first day there.

There were places on the lake where the ice had cracked, heaved up, and froze again.

Where the ice wasn't covered in snow, you could see different layers of cracks and sometimes, where is was shallow, all the way to the bottom!

A spiral in the ice.

We took a ride on one of these. They have a huge propeller on the back that propels them across the ice and spins them around.

Skiing next to the lake! (I snowboarded) There was a beautiful view of the lake from the slopes.

We went to a view point to watch the sunset one evening. This group was there and asked us if we would like some tea. We siad yes and were handed glasses of vodka. Russian tea!

The village by the lake where we stayed.

Getting water at the well. Most people didn't have running water there. In the winter they pull their water jugs to the well on little sleds.

The fish market where we bought dinner our last night on the lake. It was delicious!

We spent a day exploring Irkutsk. This is the river that runs through the center of the city.

There was grafity (sp) and writing on EVERYTHING - bridges, statues, benches, walls, doors, gates, and fountains. It was actually kind of artsy in way.

Dasha, a friend of a friend. She kindly showed us around the city!

Irkutsk's ice slide. Every city has one!

More ice sculptures

Sunset over the city.

Our hotel room in Irkutsk. Like the leopard bed spreads? :)

Next we went on a two day cross-country ski trip. This was our little cabin.

The village where we stayed.

The cabin was very authentic. :)

A real wood stove (Russian style). Just like home.

Siberian forest. Everyone says that you should visit Baikal in the summer, but I think Siberia puts on her best show in the winter. It was absolutely beautiful!

We had fairly nice weather when were were there, but there was one day where it got down to -16. Really cold! This time the frost on my eyelashes was deifnitely visible.

Wild berries. In America it seems like most people assume wild berries are poisonous, but in Russia they eat almost all of them. These were a little bitter, but good!

The little cabin we stopped at to eat lunch and warm up.

When I descibed our cabin as authentic, I meant it. There was no running water and the little spring we got our water from was three minutes down a little path into the forest by the village. Our guide broke the whole with a hatchet, then we made several trips carrying buckets of water to the house and to the banya (sauna, Russian style).

Our banya, that we heated with wood that we chopped and where we bathed with water that we brought from the spring. Then we proceeded to hit ourselves with pine branches and run around outside in the snow. (I love this country)

Banya hats. It gets so hot that you have to wear them.
Thus ended our trip! Tanya flew home to Germany and I flew on to Vladivostok to see everyone I knew when I lived there three years ago. I'll post those pictures later!