From haerbin, an industrial city in the north of china i had 5 hours break. IN the middle of the chinesse crowd you can distinguish few russians , they came here at the beginning of the 20th century because of the revolution, they haven t mixed up with chinesse (not like the russian community in Nice- FR).
In the train, going to the russian border in china , i met four fellows travelers. they was coming back of a 9 months trip around asia. THey was really interesting, i stayed with them for two days.
At the chinesse border, the police controled our luggages for five hours (me and those of the four rusians). The russians had a tibetan flag and things from tibet in their staff...really bad in that time ..After many questions ans researchs, the police didnt find anything out of law, so they released us in the middle of nowhere, we missed our bus so we had to hitch hike in the countryside of siberia. I t was night and - 5 degree.....welcome to russia. We got zabaikal the first russian village. We stayed in a resting room at the railway station, there we had a deserved dinner (vodka, siberian fish, bread, cheese,...). New tastes for me.
IN chita , it was interesting to visit the museum i appreciated the bouriate culture (people with mongolian face but russian nationality).
After chita, i went to slyudenka, there i walked on the icy lake baikal!! In winter it s a motorway...3 meters of ice. In irkust i was hosted at the russian homestay. I stayed one night also in a wooden house. The siberian landscapes are awesome....virgin landscapes without houses. In irkust it s six hours before moscow time, but everywhere it s written with moscow time...in your train ticket, it s moscow time!!!...you have to add 6 hours on your departure time.
In siberia , i noticed that most of the boys have scars...it s usual to fight when you re drunk.
In Irkust i visited the art museum, tasted Omul, pierniki, blinis,...Actually at this time of the year we are changing of season from winter to summer, that s why in the same week i had - 8 degree and 21 degree. THe climate is extreme here, no sea influence.
In russia there re not lot of foreign influence, i mean you don t find macdonalds, not lot of international chain, nothing is written in english...it s not a consumption society...russian enjoy simple things well at least in siberia...that s really nice. Russians are really friendly even if they seems cold...once you ve break the ice , they invite you easily to their house. I was invited several times. I ate caviar for the first time of my life.
IN russia, nothing is free...you ve to pay for toilets, for sugar in you coffee, for megabytes used in internet connection, for sourcream in your soup, for bread.
Actually i ve been exactly 17 days without slepping two nights in the same bed. Tonight i gonna pass the border between asia and europe. I m in ekaterimbourg, capital of oural region.
As you can see in the last articles, i m spending lot of time in the train. I enjoy staying in plaskart class, more tghan in kupe. People share teas, biscuits, noodles, it s a really friendlyt athmosphere.
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