Today is Friday, Friday is fish day, everbody happy, so I will smile

The time zones are getting a little confusing at this point.  Each day we move at least 1 time zone further East, but all Russian trains (including the local station clocks) are kept on Moscow time.   This means that you have to think local time for sunrise and sunset, not to mention for buying snacks on the platform, but you have to remember Moscow time to anticipate the arrival and departure times.   Another quirk is that we will be on Moscow time plus 5 hours (ie. GMT+9) when we cross into Mongolia, but Mongolia itself (just like China) is on GMT+8.   So after gradually moving from  GMT+4 to GMT +9 across Russia, we will go back 1 hour (although still heading south east) as we enter Mongolia.

One major frustration is the dirt caked onto the windows of the train.  Given that we rarely get off the train, and then only at stations, and that we have to plead to have a corridor window opened (the compartment windows are always locked), it is almost impossible to get a photograph of anything outside the train.   The German lady and her mum brought a long-handled squidgee but it didn’t make much difference to their window.

The terrain finally starts to change a little … ups and downs (as far as 600m altitude) .. rights and lefts … such excitement … we can’t contain ourselves … well, if we were still human, that is.   After 4,630 kms, you start to wonder what’s going on.   But mostly, you just think about the people who live here all their lives … and those who were forced to live out their lives here … whether because the Tsars sent them into exile or Stalin sent them to concentration camps.

As I mentioned, I’m reading a history of Australia and the chapters on the early penal colonies are coinciding with my alternative reading on the experiences of those sent to Siberia.   While life was tough for many sent to Australia, it was an idyllic holiday camp compared to the people sent to Siberian.

One item that Australia could learn from the Siberians is how they prevent silly drivers from taking liberties at level crossings …. Just look at the photo below … even the smallest remotest crossing has these traffic stoppers which, in the West, would only be seen outside Parliament Buildings of Police HQ.

Try running through this level crossing ...

De Goin' home after 14 years

Great idea ... even brought the squidgee ... but it made little difference

De Goin' home after 14 years