Boarding the Trans-Siberian express (Aug 15 at midnight)

The Trans-Siberian Railway is supposed to be one of life's greatest travel experiences...hopefully the Trans-Mongolian option as well (i.e. following the pink route to Bejjing as of Ulan Ude as opposed to travelling onwards to Vladivostok).




Journey before the first stop: Moscow to Irkutsk (Siberia) in on or about 78 hours (3 days, 4 nights on the train). Aaaah, is this bearable for someone without any patience?? It seems like a great way to relax and meet people though. Learn some Russian, try traditional Russian food, get drunk on vodka with locals...nothing wrong with that right?

A few interesting facts:

- average speed of train: 60 km/h (SLOW!!)
- crossed timezones: 11
- crossed countries: Russia, Mongolia, China
- distance: 9288.2 km
- most expensive section: 260 km Circumbaikal line, costs: over RUB 2 million per kilometer
- and, last but not least and not so much related to the railway, number of deaths per year from alcohol poisoning in Russia: 40,000

Yeah, the train is slowly making its way into the station....boarding time!




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Location:Moscow, Russia - Yaroslavl railway station