Posted 8:47 AM by MelanieandSteve
RR-Trans Mongolia and Siberia: This Posting was Written 1 Aug about 11-18 July

THE BIG RR:

--SETTLING IN FOR THE EPOCH JOURNEY: We borded the World's longest single-service railroad for Mongolia, Siberia, and Russia. We radiated with excitement and we glistened with sweat from running late to the station (free hotel breakfast was important).

----ROOMIE RELIEF: We had very compatible first roommates, Aussies Jill and Rick. A fellow vegetarian with a matching belly button ring among other things in common, Jill could have been a sister to Mel - a relief after reading guidebook nightmares about train roommies getting drunk and peeing off the bunk beds. Of course, as Jill put it, if we'd had such nightmare roommies, we'd have had one day to suffer it, and a lifetime to laugh about it.

----CABIN CREATURE COMFORTS, WATER CLOSET WOES, AND DINING CAR DELIGHTS: Our cabin had four bunks, clean sheets and towels, and unlimited tea service. Our only hardship; the bathrooms locked 30 minutes before and after every stop. Unexpected stops could mean an uncomfortable hour. The fun dinner car, better for its social scene than its food, became a nightly meeting spot.

----VIEW FROM THE RAILS: between Beijing and Mongolia, the terrain was vast and arid. We saw the Great Wall as we left China. On a sunny day, we passed through a tunnel and were surprised to emerge into a gray misty climate. As we continued north, wild flowers glorified the earth every way we looked. Forests were unending.

--CHINA-MONGOLIAN 'BORDER EN-GAUGE-MENT': Passport checks and customs hoopla aside, there were hardware issues as well. Russo-Mongolian Rails are 5 inches wider than Chinese ones. No problem. Jack us up, yank our old bogies (wheels) off, clamp a new set on, and send us on our way. Imagine the scene: gaggles of photo-snapping passengers with heads hung out the windows of their wheelless train cars suspended ten feet in the air. Beneath, trusting in the industrial jacks holding us up, workers wore whicker hard hats. We thought the wicker was odd, but then we figured if a train fell on them it wouldn't matter what their hat was made of. A five hour en-gaugement, and we were Russia-ready to roll.

UNLAN BAATAR:

--DAY ONE: After a Mongolian buffet out on the town with Rick and Jill, we strolled through the central Sukbaatar square and enjoyed a traditional orchestral concert.

----THE SUKHBAATAR SQUARE: surrounding independence fighter Sukhbaatar's statue and mausoleum, the square was active at night with people mulling around, bands preparing to play, and little entrepreneurial stands selling unnecessaries.

----THE SOUND OF 'BEAUTIFUL MONGOLIA': The Orchestral music concert all in traditional dress with unique instruments was all good, but most notable were the Mongolian throat singers. Weve never heard anything like it. Men sang with their throats, not vocal chords. The result was a pensive, bird call-like sound. The sound was almost like the buz of a mosquito. Its as difficult to describe as it was to try.

--NADAAM FESTIVAL, TIMING IS EVERYTHING, AND A LITLE LUCK: We arrived during their annual Naadam Festival - like a Mongolian Olympics. Three sports dominated: wrestling, horse racing, and archery. Horse racing was on the open range, no track. Archery's target was flat on the ground. And Wrestling was outdoors with no boundaries lines. Wrestlers performed a ritualistic dance before fighting and upon winning. Opening and closing ceremonies come with much pomp and circumstance. We saw wrestling and closing ceremonies in the stadium and we even saw the president of Mongolia give awards. The flag of Ghengis Kahn made of horse hair stands in the middle of the field - one of only two times a year it is allowed to leave the state building.

--THE CITY: This former warrior nation was filled with super friendly gentle people. Buildings ranged from run down apartments, to cinder block assembled buildings that looked like Soviet era left overs, to built up fancy hotels. Near the square were small palacial edifices. A large city park had ungroomed wild grasses with lakes, boats, statues, slides, ferris wheel and other items of leisure. The park was well-used even though lack of maintenance left its attractions with faded paint.

BACK ON THE TRAIN, GANG: Again, good fortune with roommates, Annika from Netherlands and Mike from New York. Both had been teaching English in China so we gained further insights into Chinese culture. Along with conversations, we enjoyed our window views. Deep in the Gobi Desert, there were low grasses with fine sands and fields of wild horses. Further north in Siberia, the terrain became more lush. Wildflowers began to abound. Melanie thought these were some of the best wild flowers she'd seen. Steve pointed out that they had every color but reds.

LAKE BAIKAL: Siberia

--WHERE THE RUSSIANS VACATION: We barely saw our stopping point Irkutsk, former 1651 capital of Siberia. We headed straight for Listvianka on the shores of lake Baikal. This is the deepest freshwater lake with 20% of all the World's fresh water. It is thickly surrounded by trees. Wood cabins adorn the hills, and with 120,000 residents, it is barely populated. A hike up into the hills revealed a panorama of lake and river, wildflowers and wild grasses.

--AT HOME IN A HOMESTAY: Our homestay was meters from the water. Our host, Galina, met us at the door and made us comfortable with afternoon tea. She was mother of Maria (18), Michel (22), and sister of Damara. This was no hotel. It felt more like staying at a friend's house. We stayed in Michel's and Maria's room. There was a computer, books, folded clothes in the corner and other items of every day living the way a friend's room might look. The lake-view window was a bonus. The whole apartment was small: two bedrooms and a tiny kitchen - no living room. At first, it seemed too small, especially since while we were there they all shared the one remaining room. But the people were so warm and friendly that soon the tight space seemed natural.

--GIRL TIME, GOOD TEA, AND GREAT TALKS: One evening, Melanie went hiking and planned to meet Steve at a restaurant. When Melanie stopped in the homestay to get dressed for dinner, Galina, Maria and Damara met her at the door ... time for Girl talk. Through language difficulties, they questioned her about careers, ages, relationships and life. They asked Melanie to sit for tea and there was no way she could say no, even though Steve was waiting. Melanie absolutely fell in love with these women. Galina was beautifully stereotypic - Proud, aproned, large, caring, full of questions, and full of love. She was a fantastic home cook. She explained how she would go out into the woods to find her own tea leaves. She was so proud of her children, Maria and Michel. Like Melanie, Maria studies Law. Melanie felt bonded with them all. She loved that evening tea, and still made it out afterwards for dinner with Steve.

--WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME: Listvianhka was so small. We went to the only real restaurant there. We saw all the people we had met on the train before. We also befriended Phoebe and Peader of Ireland with whom we spent many subsequent evenings.

--LAKE SHORE DAY: we tried to catch a ferry to the traditional Russian town of Bolsha Koty, but the small town Ferry simply didn't show that morning. So we hiked around and found a secluded beach, just big enough for two. The weather was perfect. Steve built a fire, and we layed in the sun and swam.

--RUSSKY FRIENDLINESS: Walking on the beach of Lake Baikal, we passed some partying picnicing Russians who talked us into joining them. They were so high energy, generous, and full of spirit. They played guitars and sang Russian folk songs - - off key. They shared their feast and tried unceasingly to talk with us without common language. As soon as they learned that we were from California, they immediately wanted to talk Arnold Schwartzenegger.

STRONG RUSSIAN OPINIONS ON DRINK:

--BEER: Beer can be sold in 2 liter bottles like soda pop ... of course, high alcohol.

--VODKA: "Rusky Vodka": Russky Rules: First Vodka, second fruit juice, third potato. It doesn't take long after befriending a Russian for the finger to point to the throat, meaning "drink vodka". Generous Russians don't easily take 'no' for an answer, but we held our own.

--WATER: Russians are even opinionated about water. Once, Melanie had a bottle of name brand water. Disapproving of the brand, our Russian friend grabbed it, threw it in a bush, and gave her his 'superior' local brand. His was lake Baikal water bottled from one kilometer below the surface.

LEAVING LISTVYANKA: On the hydrofoil to Irkutsk, again we encountered Russian festive spirit. A group of Russians raucously sang and laughed while one played guitar. Melanie went to watch and they welcomed her into the center of their cicle.

LONG WAY TO MOSCOW:

--ROLLING ROLLING: Next thing we knew, were were back on the train headed for Moscow. This time, with Russian Roommates, Serge and Alexander; the jolliest fellows this side of Baikal, and every bit as generaous as the guide books said Russians would be. Basically, anything in that four seater cabin belonged to everyone. They shared their Russian salad, and Steve could't keep his hands out of it. They brewed us tea. They shared everything, even our things. To Mel's surprise, they downed her whole bottle of water. Later she discovered they had needed the bottle for drinking their Russian spirits.

--THE PLACE TO OURSELVES: When Serg and Alexander got off, we had the luxury of a cabin to ourselves for two nights. But the first day wouldn't have been the same without their energy and contageous friendliness.

--BIG CITY STOICS: As open as the Baikal and train travelling Russians were, we would find that in the big cities people were stoic and cold. No 'hellos' in passing, and uninterested in conversation or being helpful.

--GATHERING HOT SPOT: We spent almost every evening in the dining car on the way to Moscow. Each day we met up with Phoebe and Peader who we met at Lake Baikal, and we also met several Australians traveling as a group.

--THE SUDDEN STORM: One day a huge storm hit. In seconds, the climate abruptly changed from still and sunny to intensely windy and rainy. Power lines to the train were cut off and we were stopped for five hours. Telephone poles bent in the wind. We watched an industrial crane break lose from its ties and slide dangerously and quickly for hundreds of meters. Safe inside the train, we waited, and sweated the storm out without power, missing the air conditioning.

--CONTINENTAL BORDER WITHIN A COUNTRY: on 18 July, we crossed from Siberian Russia into European russia at the barely noticeable Ural Mountain chain. Everyone on the dining car cheered!

NEXT TIME: The European Side of Russia. Capital Times.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: Erin D
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO: Nate and Sandy.

Posted 8:45 AM by MelanieandSteve
Beijing: This Entry was written 19 July about Beijing 5-10 July

BEIJING OPENING SCENES: REALITY OR FAÇADE?: Per the guide books, Beijing is a burgeoning, golden child of Chinese cities geering up to shine at the 2008 Olympics, - but, say the guide books, it does not represent the real China.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: we saw some of both sides of China. On the positive side, urban planning was apparent in shiney sky scrapers, well maintained sidewalks, subway street crossings and walking bridges. The streets bustled with people. Girls were dressed expressively and chatted and laughed in happy groups - no obvious signs of oppression. But at the same time, high pressure illegal "taxi drivers" tried to overcharge us, bicycle cab drivers hoarded around us like vultures, and kids inundated us with unwanted flyers. We walked 2km with heavy packs rather than deal with this tourism chlaustrophobia.

WHAT IS CHINA?: Visitors that we spoke with had different perspectives depending upon whether they were working here or simply travelling . Travellers told us that cities outside Beijing were healthy and impressively developed. People working in China, on the other hand, told us the "real China" was economially depressed, undereducated, and undermotivated. Who to believe? All we know is Beijing. While it had room for improvement, it was in many ways better than we had expected.

COMMUNICATIONS, LACK THEREOF: China has been the most challenging land for communicating. People often weren't willing to try despite our gestures and monkey dances.

HOSTEL OR BOMB SHELTER?: Our room in our Hostel was 4 floors In the rickety elevator . . . D - O - W - N. No windows, no frills, barely even oxgen. Also, no stairs - or there were some, but they were locked. We tried not to think of words like "in the event of a fire..."! But, on the bright side, having visited the bomb site of Hiroshima, underground living could have it's benefits in safety. Tired from our air travels, Steve slept. Melanie, went exploring. Two blocks away was Wangfujing street - a hub of social activity and shopping as well as art students trying to sell their work - always on the "last day of the exhibition" - and always still there the next day. Wangfujing, lined with shops, closed to auto traffic, and dotted with icecream stalls and beer gardens (with gold, dark, or Green beer) was energetic and fun.

BUSY STREETS, BOUNCY JOGS: The streets were crowded, even in the early mornings. Crossing the street meant crossing packed walking bridges. People don't get out of your way. Mel had to get used to bouncing in place.

QUEUING: Basically, the queue doesn't exists in Beijing. You push ahead or you don't get on. But "when in Rome ...."

SITES AND ACTIVITIES: Beijing had a lot to offer, and in our five days there was no way we could see it all.

--TIANEMAN SQUARE: - a place of pilgrimage for many a Chinese person, always completed with a picture in front of Mao's portrait. Mao's Mausoleum stands in the middle surrounded by people strolling through, having an icecream in the heat of day, and soaking in the atmosphere. Creative kites such as floating fish, sharks, and birds, brighten the sky.

--CHINESE ACROBATS: The show was edge-of-your-seat amazing. Every flip and contortion, balance and bravery was awe inspiring. We topped off the evening out with a friend Alfred from Ghana. He liked China enough to consider moving there.

--BIG DAY, LONG HIKE, GREAT WALL: From Jinshanling, we hiked 11Km along the Great Wall to Simatar. Rumor has it that the emperor who united China and had the wall built, used 10 years of labor, tons of rammed earth, and corpses from deceased workers for materials. Parts of the wall are in rubble. Others are rehabilitated for tourists. The wall was amazing. The shere length of the "10,000 Li Wall" (a Li is about 1/2 a km) was striking. It spanned as far as the eye could see, snaked up impossible steep ridges, curved with the will of the Earth and settled into it like it was born there. We watched clouds roll in and become a lighting storm. We hiked with Paul, a six-year traveller, and he put the wall among his top 10 sites. Its among our top two or three.

DINNER FOR 4: We topped off the hiking day and subsequent days with dinners out and abundant political debate with with Paul and Todd, fellow hikers and U.S. expats. (Speaking of politics, we'd love to hear people's predictions and thoughts on who will own the oval office after November.)

--DAY TOUR: For the sake of speed, capturing the most of Beijing in our little time remaining, we decided to hop on a guided tour.

----We visited FORBIDDEN CITY, THE TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, AND SUMMER PALACE. There was only one other guest on the tour who spoke English. Our guide had to say every thing in both Chinese and English.

----FORBIDDEN CITY was a former Emperor's home. The front patio had 15 layers of brick to prevent tunnel-digging assasins from popping up. For the same reason, there were no trees for sneaky assasins to hide behind. Trees were reserved for the Emperors lush garden in back.

----The TEMPLE OF HEAVEN: Here, the Emperor would pray three times a year. Temples were round and with square bases since Chinese believe Heaven is round and Earth is square. Two fun architecural creations stood out. The Echo wall encircled the temple. If you talked into the wall at one end, your voice carried all around the wall to the other side. We chatted together from opposite sides of a 65 meter diameter wall, and it worked. The "Round Alter" was also an acoustic fete where the Emperor used to give speaches. There was a stone surrounded by 9 tiles, surrounded by 18 etc... all in multiples of 9 since "Odd numbers are Heavenly" and 9 is the largest single digit odd number. When we stood on the center stone, our voices resonated loudly. We sang a few notes.

----We took a ferry to SUMMER PALACE by the lake, and there we walked along the "longest corridor in Asia" lined with art work depicting the epoch stories of the Monkey King and the Dream of the Red Mansions.

MAKING THE BEST OF THE LAST: Our final day in Beijing was a series of botched attempts to get to places - but "Life's a journey" and we learned a bit and had some fun despite failed plans. We shopped at the Xinxui Silk Markets - a series of outdoor stalls good for deals and people watching. Steve picked up a few new shirts. We headed for internet at the world trade center, but it was no longer there. So we headed for Marco Polo Bridge, famous from Marco Polo's writings, from the beginnings of the Chinese Japanase war, and from being the oldest bridge in China - but we never got there - bizaar rules forbade our taxi drivers from going there. So we walked again through Tienamen square and then packed for Russia. We spent the last evening out with friends Paul and Todd at Wangfujing. At our pre-departure hotel, we wondered about China and Form versus Substance. Our hotel looked like luxury, but the shoddy service was no better than our bomb shelter hostel. We liked Beijing. But sometimes it seemed to be more show than substance. It will be interesting to see its progress by the 2008 Olympics. We wish we could have gotten a better understanding of China by visitng other cities.

But tales of rails awaited. . . Tune in Next time, Same Bat Channel . . .

HAPPY BIRTHDAYS TO Aunte Anne, Rob Rule.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO: Mom and Dad