Trans-Siberian Railway: The Summary
November 27, 2018
12 trains, 115 hours, and 14,645km. This Trans-Siberian Railway journey took us 27 days. What an incredible experience, and it all went by in a flash. I could have easily double the time for this trip, and dig deeper into each of the places that we visit. If this trip has been on your bucket list, I encourage you to…
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Getting Russian & Mongolia Visa in China
November 27, 2018
Preface Xavier (French) and I (Taiwanese-American) were living in Shanghai at the time of this trip prep. I was staying in China on my Taiwanese ID, but will be traveling on my US Passport, so I needed to obtain Russian visa in Hong Kong. US citizens do not need a Mongolia visa at this time. French needs both a Russian…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 10 – 3 Days in Moscow
November 17, 2018
Journey to Moscow After hours upon hours of long-distance train travel, we hopped on a high-speed rail to reach Moscow. The train was impeccably new yet comfortable. Somehow, having been used to the luxury of spreading out on our beds during train journeys, the 4-hour ride on a seat felt long and rigid. We could have taken the slow train…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 9 – 3 Days in St. Petersburg
November 16, 2018
Journey to St. Petersburg After 3 wonderful days in Kazan, we headed back on the train for St. Petersburg. For this 22-hour journey, we shared our cabin with a young man who looks like he was in the military. His parents sent him off at the platform. I snapped a photo of the emotional moment between mother and son. The…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 8 – 3 Days in Kazan
November 12, 2018
Journey to Kazan Our train left for Kazan from Yekaterinburg early in the morning. The 13-hour journey was our first non-overnight train; the perfect time to do some good old-fashioned reading without the distraction of Internet. I read Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind and completed Hillbilly Elegy in one sitting. I cannot remember the last time I read a…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 7 – 24 hours in Yekaterinburg
November 11, 2018
During my planning, I had read that Yekaterinburg is a good stop point to break up the Trans-Siberian route, but that it was an industrial city not worth lingering. I took that silly advice and only allowed for less than 24 hours in this lovely city. Self-Guided Walking Tour If there’s any place that I wish we could stay longer,…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 6 – Irkutsk to Yekaterinburg
November 9, 2018
This was the longest leg of our entire train journey, lasting over 48 hours. I splurged on first class for this leg, in order to have the comfort of privacy. We took train #1, the Rossijia. When I was booking tickets, not all the trains had first class. We stayed in Irkutsk for an extra day to be able to…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 5 – 4 days in Irkutsk & Lake Baikal
November 6, 2018
Day 1 – Irkutsk Wandering We checked into our hostel at Katyusha Travel Centre, a no-frills hostel that is clean, spacious with a large common space. I didn’t realise that bathroom wasn’t en-suite for a double room, but hey, a little hostel living is good for the soul. First order of business is to get a Russian SIM card. I…
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Trans-Siberian Railway Part 4: Ulaanbaatar to Irkutsk
August 16, 2018
Our train departing from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia was already at the station when we arrived, but boarding didn’t begin until around 30 minutes before departure. When booking this trip, I booked second class for journeys that are around 24 hours or less, so for this 23-hour leg, we were in second class. Old World Charm The 305 train is markedly older…
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