The Trans-Siberian Railway

I've always dreamt about the Trans-Siberian railway. Taking the train for days, living on board and travelling across Russia's grass lands and forests It's also one of those things I can't really explain why I've wanted to do. To me it has seemed as something magical.

And in fact, it is something really special about it. You feel the train transform into a small community of its own and you feel that you and the people around you belong there.

We didn't get our own compartment because that was too expensive, so we shared a sleeping wagon with around 50 others. I was of course lucky enough to end up next to 4 drunken guys. They were drunk from the moment they entered the train until they left it. 9 in the morning they started breakfast with a 2 and a half liter bottle of beer and the evening was ended with vodka. Bottle after bottle. Oh yes, those Russians knows how to drink! They were noisy, nasty and played really loud music when the rest of the train wanted to sleep. Wonderful!

Luckily the lady sleeping below me was very nice. She shared her grapes, her tea and a little bit of everything she had. That is the spirit on the train, people share! My friend Julianne ended up next to some great people. They took good care of us, were really eager to teach us some Russian. We played cards, drank tea and laughed a lot since we didn't really understand much of what was going on all the time.

All in all the train was a good experience.Reading a book or listening to music while looking out the window seeing the landscape fly by, the old ladies selling food and beverages on almost every station, playing cards and drinking tea. It's magic in it's own special way.

The train

Ladies on the stations selling a bit of everything

River cruise in Siberia

We are sitting by the river in Tomsk, watching the people passing by, the fishermen that doesn't seem to be getting any fish and talking about how warm it is here in Siberia, almost 20 degrees today. There is a big, blue and rusty boat next to us playing really loud music. As we sit there, people start to get on the boat and I say: "Let's get on!" My friends get up and we run towartds the boat. Getting on we realise that we have no idea where the boat is going and how we are going to get back. Pretending we are on a river cruise we enjoy a bottle of beer and sing along to "Winds of changes". After about half an hour, the boat makes a huge turn and head back in the direction we came from.

It was in fact a river cruise.

Long live impulisve actions!

Autumn colours in SIberia

It's strange how important the weather is. At least it is to me.
When we came to Tomsk, a city in Siberia, two days ago it was grey and cold weather. I immediately didn't like it very much.

The second day here I woke up to a marvelling sun and a bright blue sky. The autumn colours got a golden glow from the sun and Tomsk changed for me. Tomsk is not a very big city, but as the guide book says, it is one of Siberia's most likable cities. It is packed with wooden houses with the most incredible carvings.

Street in Tomsk

I felt I stepped back 200 years in time as I took the bus with to French guys to a village outside Tomsk. It is a gorgeous little place situated next to the river. The landscape is as flat as you imagine Siberia to be and it is completely quiet except for a few dogs barking as we pass and the old woman and men harvesting vegetables from their gardens. Next to the bus stop some old ladies sit with buckets filled with onions, cabbage, potatoes and carrots, along with milk and dried fish that they sell to people passing by. The people in the village are farmers. The woman are wearing skarfs on their heads, long colorful skirts covered in dirt from the feelds and the men have old hats, big muddy boots and always a cigarett in their mouth. It's been long since I've seen a more idyllic place than that!Kolarovo

Siberia is beautiful in autumn, especially when the sun is shining!

Underground Moscow

In Moscow you have to go under the road to cross it. And at the end of the main street in Moscow there is one of these crossings. Almost every night there is a concert there. Live music at the underground. One late evening we we headed down there to see what it was all about. Lots of people dancing, singing and of course, drinking beer and vodka. We got a bottle of beer at the kiosk and joined in on the party. Dancing and having fun with the "underground-people" of Moscow!

Moscow

I stayed in Moscow for 5 days, and I didn't really do all that much. There was a lot of relaxing, sitting in parks watching people pass by and enjoying the warm weather.

Moscow state university

A small church. I love how small golden churches everywhere

An old lady somewhere in Moscow

The red square


Moscow is one of those cities that I can't really explain why I love. I just do.

St.Petersburg in pictures

early morning

fun
The Winter Palace

2 and a half liter beer

Tallin, Oh Tallin

Tallin was amazing. And that was all thanks to my wonderful host Olga! She invited me into her home and her life for the weekend and I absolutely loved it.

There was a street festival in Tallin that week-end, and Olga took me there. Workshops, exhibitions, salsa, music, food and concerts. And, as on every descent Estonian festival, there was a Street-sauna. And it was hot, burning hot! But still, it was fun, you can't say no to a street sauna when you have the possibility to enter one. We walked a lot. And I love walking in unknown cities. Seeing most parts of the town, the suburbs and the other areas where Estonians acctually live, not only the touristic parts. We talked and walked and met people everywhere before we finished up with the street sauna and a beer or three. It was a perfect day!

Next day it rained. It rained heavily all day long, but that didn't keep us from going outside. Walking around until we were soaking wet to the skin, we went to her favorite cafe where we tried to dry of and enjoyed a cup pf hot chocolate. The cafe was a lovely little place set in an old basement in the old part of town. The music was calming and the atmosphere great and we sat around for an hour or so before we went back into the rain.

We ended our day at the house of a friend of Olga. Watching all the 3 "Back to the future" films, eating cakes and drinking tea after tea. It couldn't have ended any better than that!

Had it not been for Olga, Tallin wouldn't have been as great as it was. I didn't see that much of the typical tourist stuff, but to be honest, I couldn't have cared less! That is not what is most important to me. It is not what you do and what you see that makes a trip worth wile, it is the people that you share the experiences whit that matter. And as I told Olga; both in sunshine and rain life is beautiful when you share it with beautiful people. Olga is one of those wonderful people that you will never forget. Thanks!

Et c'est parti

First day on the road. I arrived in Riga this afternoon and have been wandering around a few hours now. Riga is just as I remembered it, wonderful! The fairytale houses, the small streets and the lovely old ladies selling woolen socks and necklaces in front of the big church. Just gotta love it. One thing that still surprises me is how the Latvian women manage to walk on 10 cm high stillettos on the cobblestones that Riga is coverd with? Seriously don't know how they do it!

Wandering around the city I realized what I have embarked on. A year of travelling and new experiences, new places and new people. I'm gonna be away for a year! I have always considered the typical tourist to be the ones walking around with a back pack and a big camera around their neck, and I have always sort of disliked it. But today I found myself being that person, I guess I just have to get used to that now..

Anyways, since I've seen it all before, I quickly ended up in an Irish pub for fish n' ships and a pint of good beer. That is never wrong no matter where you are in the world!

Gotta go now so I wont miss my bus to Tallinn!

Promise to write more as soon as I can and I promise to post a picture of an old man playing the flute with pigeons on top of it. He was sort of charming in his own way..