Bright and early - so early I have to get a taxi as there's no public transport yet early - I set off for the station. I allowed plenty of time this time, so much so that I had time for a cup of coffee (asking for boiled coffee gets me a Turkish coffee! excellent). Shared a table with Dimitri from Armenia, we managed to have a good chat in German about business in Russia today. Hard work is what it's all about and there's lots to improve upon!!!! But we pay too much rent in Sydney apparently!!!

My comparment was also occupied by the lovely Valeriea and her daughter Olga, from Minsk in Belarus - the cleanest city in the CIS! and also Mr ?? a lovely gently spoken man from Kemarova, the end of the line for them. For the next two days we sped through the Siberian countryside, officially crossing into Asia at Yekaterinburg (slept through that bit I'm afraid!). It's amazing how quickly time can fly when you're laying about on a train.
Train Travel Tip: the best way to go is sideways!
A lot of European trains are divided into small compartments, two benches facing each other, or in this case, 2 sets of bunks. You can see out the windows, although from the upper bunk this requires more of a hanging your head sideways and upside down, which can give you an interesting perspective on the world!, but my favourite way to travel is to stand in the corridor and gaze directly out into the landscape. Wooden villages, thick forests, soaring kites and buzzards, villagers heading home from the forest with cloth covered buckets of berries and mushrooms, farmer cutting the hay with sythes, fields of green gold wheat extending to the horizon and skies so big you feel like a tiny little stick creature.
The cute little provodnik (usually female but my carriage had a young guy) brought us tea in glasses with lovely silver holders and he gave me a Russian lesson in exchange for me helping him with his English. He couldnt understand why I was taking the train when surely I was rich enough to fly! Didnt manage to get the concept of adventure across to him!
Pot noodles, cheese and crackers, chocolate and pivo. Not quite fine dining but we did well. The train stops a few times a day for about 20 minutes and the platforms are usually crowded with babushka's selling berries, dried fish and icecream. Some opportunistic women kept walking up and down the train selling (well trying to sell) woollen shawls. It was 30 degrees outside and probably about 35 in the carriage. A scratchy woollen jumper is the last thing you're likely to buy!!!
I got off in Novosibirsk, where I had to start dealing in double time. Trains all run on Moscow time, but here it's three hours ahead of the capital, so right now I'm checking both my clocks on my watch - for when my internet runs out and when my train leaves!