Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Trans-Siberian to Beijing - My mini-epic adventure 2015


Getting ready



Welcome to Moscow! my green suitcase never arrived, luckily I was ready for this eventuality with the essentials in my hand luggage.

@@#%#&£&&&!!!!
Don't worry, be happy and keep on going
Yaroslavsky Train Station

The waiting
Departure time: 23,45 (Moscow time)

4 hours to go and counting!
My cabin, shared with Jean Philippe from Genéva
Jean Philippe was going to Vladivostok
This is the first class
24 hours hot water dispenser
I am going through Mongolia to Beijing
The time-table always Moscow's time
Our Carriage Attendants, Andrei and Olga
Olga
Andrei, the one with a white shirt next to the door
and this was their cap


Mike, German living in Canada, going to Vladivostok
With Jean Philippe
Ishim, 2431 km from Moscow - Time zone + 2 (fm Moscow)
In Siberia most of the houses have windows with light blue frames


Cres & Jen from Singapore, they made me laugh so much!!
they were going to Beijing as well, with a stop of two days at Irkutsk

People from the Restaurant offering russian pizza!
This South Korean man was so funny, he was next to my cabin with his wife
and was all the time singing and laughing hihihi! the face of happiness!
(going to Vladivostok and from there to his home, South Korea)

Omsk 2712 km from Moscow - Time zone +3
At the restaurant playing UNO!


Kranoyarsk 4098 km from Moscow - Time zone +4
(after 3 days you get lost into a limbo of time/zones/days, you don't understand anything anymore!!)

Changing landscapes
At Irkutsk, 5185 km from Moscow - Time zone +5 hours, almost all my friends left to visit Lake Baikal. Only Emma stayed on the train. I had my cabin all for my own until Ulaan-Baatar (another 24 hours)

Lake Baikal

Laike Baikal, is the largest (by volume) fresh water lake in the world
20% of the world's unfrozen surface fresh water and
at 1.642 m (5.387 ft). The deepest

We went all around it, direction Ulan-Ude
Andrei & Olga cooked very nice pancakes


Ulan-Ude Train station - 5642 km from Moscow - Time zone +5

Naushki - Russian Border Post - 5895 km from Moscow - Time zone +6
Here took place a scary russian style passports control (for my sorprise, the
drog-detection dog was a little bit bigger than a Chiguagua!) couldn't
believe it!!
Bienvenidos a Mongolia
...and everything change...


Ulaan-Baatar - Guest house Golden Gobi (my place for 1 night)
They organize itineraries with very good prices
                                       In the meantime I received good news about my suitcase                                                       

Left after 2 hours without resting to the Terelij National Park
This is a dream coming true, to be with the Eagles
Wanted to kiss it!
to touch it (and so I did)
A Vulture
Lunch in a yurt with a nomad family (they live in the park)


Visit to the Chinggis Khaan statue


I feel very Chinggis
I slept that night in a yurt on the floor, after 5 nights sleeping on the train...
no toilet and in the middle of nowhere,
as a guest of a nomad family




My guide and my now friend Khishgee




Thank you family for having me here!


The yurt where I slept, the morning after...
From there we went straight to the airport to pick up my suitcase
Hello my darling! how nice to see you again!
It is the 2nd time that happen this thing with my green suitcase, it is the only suitcase
I know that doesn't like to travel.
Promise I will never use it again.
Gandan Khild Monastry - Ulaan Baatar





Back in Golden Gobi with my mates for almost two days
Center of Ulaan Baatar

Spent the rest of the day with Emma, I was exhausted,
That night, in a real bed, I couldn't sleep well because of the
noicy people around in the hostel and the excitement  to get back
on the train again very early the next morning

Good bye Ulaan Baatar!!
This time a chinese train
Different


Leaving the city
The stops
another 24 hours to Beijing

Lady selling drinks and food at the station
It was so windy, that after 5 minutes I have sand in my eyes, mouth... everywhere!


The carriage attendant & me
My mate in the cabin,  Odd from Norway
The restaurant before chinese border
Diana and Will from Scotland
Rainbow in the Gobi Desert

In the Gobi Desert, It is very easy to see camels, wild horses, antilopes
(I couldn't take even 1 pic of none of them) every time I was ready with
the camera, they were already far away.... 
Mongolian Border Post
Bienvenidos a China
At the station, the wheels of the train are changed to fit the Chinese tracks.
The stop is approximately 4 hours.


Next morning, sorprise! i found a new restaurant!




Finally Beijing! Sun was waiting for me at the station
i could not stop crying


Sun and her husband at home
The Nest

Beijing Zoo


Visit to Giant Pandas




Lama Temple





Confucius Temple
Even if is not a religious temple, many students come and pray here if they
have to do a difficult exam






Please Confucius, give me just a little bit of your wisdom
Sun's car plate....
Met Yaou Liu for dinner! how nice to see him again!!

Yaou liu became the most important chinese MRI expert for
Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis

...arriving to Moscow after only 7,30 hours flight!
Adventure ending