bottom left Most
passengers bring their own
food. Instant noodles and
tea are widely consumed, as
samovars are free and readily
available with hot waterbottom right A modern
tram in Tomsk offers easy
After the first night or so, you look public transport
forward to being rocked like a baby
into a deep and dreamless sleep
The railway also tops many tourists’ bucket lists, and
understandably so. Long distance train travel still has an
air of romance about it, and there’s a great deal
to see along the way, from lakes, mountains, and forests,
to museums, churches, and opera houses.
The cheapest way to make the journey is travelling
aboard the Rossiya, the scheduled service from Moscow
to Vladivostok. The ride is uncomfortable, however –
the food isn’t great, and it’s difficult to get off the train to
sightsee: the timetable waits for no one!Riding the TR ANS-SIBERIAN
Waiting on the platform in Vladivostok, there’s a
tremendous sense of anticipation as the train pulls into
view. In the winter months when the snow lies deep on
the platform, it’s accompanied by the stamping of feet
and clouds of warm breath. The train rolls to a standstill,
the doors swing open, and the carriages disgorge
passengers and luggage.
On-board, you quickly become used to the perpetual
motion of the train and the dull clunking of the wheels
as they thud round and round. Personal space comes
at a premium, but as you do an ungainly two-step
with fellow passengers in the carriage vestibule, it’s
undoubtedly with a smile. You learn not to fill your
teacup too full, nor to walk whilst carrying a glass of
wine. After the first night, you look forward to being
rocked like a baby into a deep and dreamless sleep.The views from the train are ever changing, whether
you’re stood by the door with the window halfway
down, or sat looking out through the picture window
in your cabin. Dense forest gives way to emptiness; you
cross mighty rivers; there are painted wooden villages
and dachas, substantial cities, and forgotten stations
where the train never stops. Lake Baikal, the oldest
and deepest lake in the world, and a UNESCO World
Heritage Site, is the indisputable natural highlight of
the route, but there are man-made attractions, too.
A Soviet-era submarine-turned-museum stands
beside the suspension bridge in Vladivostok. Irkutsk
has its little wooden houses and painted churches.
The Opera and Ballet Theatre in Novosibirsk – the
Siberian Coliseum – is the largest theatre in Russia.
And in Yekaterinburg you’ll find more than 30
museums. Siberia is not, and never has been, empty.
It was only inaccessible. agSOPHIE IBBOTSON is an international business
consultant and founder of Maximum Exposure Limited.
She is also the author of five Bradt Travel Guides
covering Kashmir, Uzbekistan and Sudan.ANNIE LING is a Canadian photographer based in New
York. Her photography has been featured in The New
York Times, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and
The Guardian, among others. http://www.annielingphoto.comheritage