Irkutsk

Our train was 8 hours late and we arrived in Irkutsk about 11 at night.

Some of the passengers who had been on the train since Beijing were continuing on to Moscow. I was glad that I was going to take a two-day break in Irkutsk (even more glad after I met Natasha). I couldn't imagine how they could stand three more nights without some sort of relief.

We finally made it to the hotel. That episode deserves to be told in its own chapter. Doug and Dave had to leave for Moscow in the morning. We said goodbye in the hotel.

The next morning I had some time to take a walk before the Lake Baikal tour. I was thrilled to be in Siberia. The weather was excellent. A little cool. The rest of the month was to be hot and very humid.

What a change from Japan and China. Wide tree-lined streets. No brick walls separating houses. Western architecture. Not much activity, though. Only a few cars. Now that is something really different from Japan. Natasha, soon to become my new friend, told me how to get to a bookstore near the Intourist Hotel. I walked there, bought some post cards, a dictionary, and a map. The weather was ideal -- the only segment of my month trip that wasn't hot and muggy.

I noticed that no one was riding bicycles. Odd, for you'd think they'd be a convenient way of traveling around for the people who don't have cars. Later in the evening Natasha revealed that Russians simply don't ride bikes. They're not into that kind of thing.

Natasha

Twenty-years old and has spent all her life in Irkutsk. She was the Intourist guide for the excursion to Lake Baikal I signed up for. Later in the evening we had drinks in the Intourist Hotel bar and I learned all kinds of things about Russian life. I wish this day and night could have lasted much longer.