Ulanbbatour, Mongolia

I reached country number two the day before yesterday - it took most of the day to cross from Russia to Mongolia, especially as there was a powercut on the Mongolian side of the border, thus delaying the processing of our passports.

I arrived in Ulambaatour, the capital, yesterday morning, then headed out to the countryside for some traditional Mongolian food and a bit of hiking, not to mention rock scrambling, although I did pass up the opportunity of a horse ride. Last night was spent in a traditional Ger, on a very hard bed, before returning to UB this morning for some further sightseeing. I will probably get an early night tonight since my train to Beijing leaves at 8:10, which means being at the station at 7:10.

Overall I'm having fun, and Mongolia is a lot nicer than Russia.

Mark

Irtusk Pt2

Its my last full day in Russia - I catch the train to Mongolia tonight, which means the 10 hour border crossing tomorrow.

Off to see the sites of Lake Baikal this afternoon first though, having finally found a tour guide. My advice for anyone coming to Russia who doesn't speak Russian or read Cyrillic is to book everything before you leave, I'm wishing I had, it would have made it so much easier, and it would probably be cheaper as well.

Irtusk

I survived the 4 day train trip from Moscow, so I am now in Siberia, which contrary to rumors is warm and sunny. In fact the only rain I've seen so far on this trip was over the last couple of days, when I was on the train.

The train itself was very international - a big group of Germans, two Frenchmen Jean-paul and Olevier, a couple of Belgians Pascal ans Alexia, and a handful of Russians. Late night vodka sessions were conducted in a mixture of English, French and Russian.

Jean-Paul decided to have a change from the train on the second day and chased us in a taxi, which being a Lada broke down just before he reached the train. At subsequent stops we made sure that he didn't stray too far :)

Other than that it was a straightforward, if not smooth due to the Russian coaches, journey.

Moscow

Yes I have made it to Moscow - I just haven't had a chance until now to post anything. And I still haven't found an easy way to get my photos online.

I must say that Moscow isn't one of my favorite cities - almost nothing here is too little trouble, my Hotel is an anonymous tower block in the outskirts (at least the metro is cheap) and its big & crowded - basically the same as just about every other capital city in fact.

This will also be my last chance to post anything for a while, as I've got the next 4 days on the train to Irkutsk.

Mark

St Petersburg Part 2

I thought that the last post was a little brief, and having some time to waste before my train, I decided to get back on the net and post some more, rather than go into some smokey bar.

First impressions of Russia was "Ivan is crazy" especially when he gets behind the wheel. Seeing how quickly you can accelerate between jams, changing lanes as often as possible, and cutting red lights as closely as you can seem normal here. Still the weather is nice, hot & sunny, although it soon cools down when the sun sets, which is late, 9:45 here and its still light outside.

Feeling very footsore, as apart from a couple of boat trips I've walked everywhere. This is definitely a city where knowing Russian would be an advantage, as English speakers are few and far between. The English commentary boat trip I took yesterday had me and two American architectural students, I think we were outnumbered by the boats crew :).

A tip if you like museums but are a cheapskate, come on the 18th of may, since its "International Museam Day" today and entry to all museums, including the Hermitage, is free. So yes I did go round the Hermitage, and also the Russian Naval museum. The park next to the naval museum is interesting, since it seems that every St. Petersburg Wedding has its photos taken there - brides were literally queing up for the best spots.

St Petersburg

IMG_5011[1], originally uploaded by mark benger.

Arrived safely in St Petersburg on Wendsday - Net cafes are a bit thin on the ground (or well hidden) hence the delay in posting. Got lots of pics - but have only managed to get the first 6 ont Flickr so far - more experimentation required.

I catch my first russian train tonight - the midnight train from Moscow.

RGBI-Conference2007

RGBI-Conference2007-F183, originally uploaded by mark benger.

Final task before the traveling comences is now complete - all my photos from the RGBI conference 2007 have now been uploaded.

The photo here shows Stuarts proof that a uniform does actually make it easier to pull :)

Yes - this is still active

Just a quick post to confirm that this blog is still active - I've just been busy selling the car, clearing out the flat, packing, going to Rotaract conferences and trying to get my WoW toon to 70.

Mark