Tuesday, October 9, 2012

How (not) to be bored in the TransSiberian

Many people have asked me (and I confess it had already crossed my mind before I got in the train): "How do you spend your time during 4 days on the train?". In reality I never felt bored and I barely had time to update my travel journal which I had left to update since the first day in St. Petersburg.

So... what are the options to spend the nearly 90 hours of train riding? Plenty!

1. Getting installed (it doesn't seem like it, but we were...)

Adapting to the top bunk (my "home" for the next 3,5 days)

First contact with the downstairs neighbours

2. Looking out of the window (or each other)




3. Interact with the locals
This was one of my bottom bunk companions. I gave him that flashlight and he carried it everywhere
(after the second day of hearing the constant zz zz sound of the handle I wished I hadn't done that)

There were two sisters that entertained/terrorized everyone on that carriage. This was one of them (the most... curious one)
This was the other...

This is the mother (the other person in our cabin)
Just to be clear, none of them knew how to speak English or anything else and our Russian... was... a bit rusty :p. But gestual language, smiles and a bit of patience takes everyone a long way :)

4. Get fresh air (you can't tell by our clothes but it was really fresh)

One of the many stops that people used to stretch their legs or have a smoke

5. Negotiate with the platform vendors

Isa buying something (underlining the something) in one of the platforms

6. Going to the dining car



7. Writing on the journal

But the update of the journal was always late I might add.

8. Sleep AND writing at the same time (90 hours are short for everything we have to do, so multitasking is important)



9. Taking Russian lessons
BTW this is Dmitry our tour leader/Russian teacher

10. Making new friends (she was quite “fond” of Nuno for a day and a half, but as he didn't shave she moved on)
Nina was one of the vendors of train and she was into Nuno that night, and the next day

11. Being obsessed with Soduku
But it was a special Soduku, as you can see in the photo!


12. Drinking Vodka (of course!)
Nasdrovia!! The vodka inspired the chess players!

13. Drinking cappuccino/coffee/tea and admiring the view out of the window/sneezing/torturing the locals




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