CONTACT US | ADVERTISING INFO

© 1996-2013 Asian Media Group Inc
No part of the contents of this site may be reproduced without prior written permission.

GOLDSEA | ASIAGATE

MOSCOW TO BEIJING VIA MONGOLIA
PAGE 2 OF 3

Our last day in Dubna is actually spent in Sergiev Poussad, home of the Russian Orthodox Church. We see some of the most beautiful churches and services. It is an overwhelming experience that words cannot describe. We go to a mass service. We have never seen anything like it--mostly old women with head shawls in aerobics-class formation crossing themselves right to left and bowing while chants are being sung. According to Jeff, this is unlike any Catholic service he has seen. You can feel the Russian soul here, Marina says. She's right.

The next day Marina takes us to the Moscow railroad station where we are to catch our train across Siberia. I'm still in a state of shock and Jeff is just as anxious. No matter what, we finally made it. At first we are the only ones in the humid, closed-in compartment. It's strange boarding a train in Russia with Bobby Brown blaring over the intercom. Annoying, actually. Thank God for Marina. Without her this trip would have been a nightmare. It's sad to say goodbye. I feel as though we both had met a new mother. We will always remember her.

We are soon joined by Taiya and Sasha. Taiya is from Novosibirsk, a housewife and mother of two children. Her husband is an army colonel. She is writing down as much English as possible for her sons who want to learn. We give her a balloon, some gum and a fruit roll. She is wonderful. She serves as our translator. Jeff speaks some German as does she. When I talk to Sasha it becomes like playing telephone. Sasha speaks to Taiya in Russian. Taiya translates to German for Jeff and Jeff translates for me. It's a little confusing at times.

Sasha's history is very interesting. He is a Russian businessman selling copper between Sverdlovsk and Moscow. His business is 50/50 good. I guess it must be good enough to put food on the table. His father was sent to prison in Irkutsk by the Stalinist purges in 1939 for no good reason. Sasha then moved out of Irkutsk to Sverdlovska a little later. Conversations like this is what makes the reading so interesting. All this beautiful territory is strongly associated with the Stalinist and Tsarist purges. Solzhenitsyn is brought strongly to mind. I can imagine the 10-12 million people sent to Siberian gulags along these tracks, looking at the same scenery we are.

Sverdlovsk is interesting for historical reasons. The tsar and his family were chopped to little pieces and burned here. Gary Power was captured here. Boris Yeltsin was born here as well.

The train mother "conductor" tries to ask about my camera, but gives up. She walks down the hallway muttering something like "idiot Americans". Our food makes an entertaining conversation piece. Freeze dried beef stew, spaghetti and other delights. The train matron has not seen anything like it, and makes sure to pass by once to watch us eat. She refuses to try any.

[CONTINUED BELOW]

We stop at Novosibirsk. Taiya gets off and is met by her family. The father invites us there anytime. We may take up that invitation someday.

As Taiya gets off, Alexander gets on. Tall, lanky, 25, looking older, stinking of hair spray. He is carrying two large bags of expired Russian hair spray cans which he is selling. He starts drinking beer. He offers us beer, tea and cakes. We offer granola, cigarettes and M&Ms and, in the end, whiskey. We all drink whiskey and play blackjack all night. We smoke Marlboros outside the cars. Alexander says he is a rocket engineer in Kranoyosk. That is where he is going. He is obviously engaged in side business for himself. His English is pretty good, which takes me by surprise. The presence of alcohol helps produce a language understood by all nationalities. We sleep well that night.

Alexander leaves the next morning. Later, a kid named Jonah, about 13, comes into our compartment. He is on his way to Irkutsk. Jeff and I kill time by playing crazy eights with Jonah. I like the routine of exchanging food. Jonah brought a simple meal--hard-boiled eggs, cheese, bread, sausage and potatoes. The Russian diet is relatively simple, especially for the average citizen. Real food is a welcome change after all the packaged foods we have been eating. Jonah enjoys the chocolate and various American junk foods. I don't think he smokes yet. We have some fun taking pictures of one another. The batteries in Jonah's camera have died. To my surprise it takes AA batteries and I happen to have a huge supply. I offer him a roll of film and some batteries. Jonah is quite happy with his new acquisitions.

The scenery is marshier, still green. And goes on forever. The beauty is fantastic and tranquil. Jeff says he would love to be out there except there would probably be millions of mosquitoes ready to eat him alive. Jeff seems content with himself. He is very satisfied with his life and things seem balanced for him. Good job, great girlfriend, supportive family. I envy him for the great balance he has found. Not many people do at our age. I'm just happy to be here right now. There is nothing I would trade in the world right now for what I am experiencing.

Getting to Irkutsk was easy. We get off the train and say our goodbyes to our traveling companions. Their faces have become familiar to us and we will always remember them. We walk outside the station, get on the Intourist bus and they drive us to the hotel. Everyone speaks English. We meet a lot of Dutch people as well.

Ah! It's wonderful to take a shower after four days.

We rush out to catch the daytrip tour of Lake Baikal. During one of the stops we notice some trees covered with ribbons. It's a custom of the local Buryat tribe to cut strips of cloth and hang them on trees to make wishes for the future. We know this because the tour bus stops at a park before the Lake to show us and to delay the tour. We have to wait a half hour before they let us move on because Boris Yeltsin and Helmut Kohl are out partying on the lake--shooting deer, fishing the big fish and, I imagine, downing the vodka. Doing the male bonding thing. PAGE 3

Page 1 | 2 | 3