The train makes one more of its scenic stops, and there is
an announcement in Russian, on decoding it I realize it’s a 90 min break and as
soon as I start questioning the length of it, the 200 people on the train start
moving in all directions. I later realized that the break was not enough to
explore all the directions. That’s Circum Baikal for you !
A 140 km track laid 120 yrs back perfectly parallel to the
shore of the lake dotted now with small villages, normally in deep slumber but
buzzing with activity just as the tri weekly train makes its stop. Villages, where old women are eager to serve you the local version of vodka and smoked Omul, a cousin of
Salmon. A meal you cant say no to,
even after having your appetite done with the wholesome train lunch. Wholesome
and more tasty than any flight menu I’ve ever had. The Russian train journey is
an experience of its own and I can only imagine the whole length of the Trans Siberian
railway of more than 7500 kms across Russia. Where do you get the train canteen
stepping out and laying its products neatly on a table arranged by the railway
track, or a guide talking continuosly for 6 hours in a language which you cant
understand. I wont beat about the language now as I am getting comfortable with
using the sign language and yes not to mention feeling quiet good about the Russian's.
Sometimes a journey or a travel don’t instantly hit you, and
takes its own sweet time. This travel I know is like that ..
With Lake Baikal behind me ,I am now in Kamchatka, the
reason that I travelled here for. The changing time zones, the night journey’s
are insuring that I don’t have a fix time to eat. I eat when I get hungry and I
sleep better in air or the road than on my bed. Well its not as bad as it seems when you give yourself the
time this place deserves. In my line of work that is never possible.
On one of the stations I saw the Moscow – Beijing train come
in, I didn’t know how many hours
it had been on track and how many more there were to go. I don’t respect China
as a country and I don’t intend to go to Beijing in future. But for that brief
moment as I saw the engine leave, even I felt like jumping on the train to
China.
Such is the magic of the Trans Siberian !
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