Aidan & Karen’s Travels

It was abit surreal heading back to civilisation after the Ger camp but as soon as we hit tarmac road the horn honking and manic driving started and brought it all home. Narkie (our guide) got the driver to stop at one of the hospitals on the way so I could get my plaster changed only to discover that A&E only operates in the afternoon in Mongolia. interesting start to yet another hospital visit. We checked in to “mongolia’s top hotel 2005″ which has to be said wasn’t hard to discover why it wasn’t of 2006 as well and headed to the state hospital. Triage at the entrance was in the form of a very young police man, fag in hand and the waiting area was full of all kinds of injuries. Again, no one had any regard for patient care or confidentuality and we were like a show piece. A guy in a bright yellow vest with “emergency” on the back obviously loved himself took us into the plaster room and looked at my xrays (thank god i have some knowledge about them and that it wasn’t a major break). I was glad to have stuart with me as at least there was some compassion as this guy wrenched my wrist about and put the most riddiculous plaster on ever. (i made a mental note at that point the next hospital would be western and prayed the alignment of my wrist was still intact!) There was a young boy there who had what looked like an open fracture not making a sound so i felt like a right wimp complaining as the guy moved my wrist about. We are so lucky to have the NHS. The room was pretty minging, open bags with all kinds of rubbish stoved under the sink and some very interesting bits of plaster that didn’t really immobilise anything. Anyway i think the best show was for Aidan in the waiting area with 2 nurses, again fags in mouths, holding up a chest xray to the light and jabbering on about it. Thank god nothing major was wrong with any of us!

We were glad to get out of there even if a massive full, wet plaster of paris cast added a few kgs to my arm.

The driving was horrendous which made our trip around town quite limited as we didn’t want to cross any roads. people actually drive at you on the zebra crossings and it really wasn’t fun so we played it safe in an internet cafe and headed out with Stuart for dinner  - safety in 3s!

Such a contrast to the Ger camp but we were keen to get on the train the next morning just to be away from the cars and constant fear of crossing roads.

The drive out to the Ger camp seemed to go on forever. Suddenly we pulled off the highway and headed into nothing. There was a faint trace of a path but little else to tell us that we were on a road. Again the road to nowhere seemed to last forever but finally we came to the top of a hill and saw our first glimpse of the camp.

The camp was made up of about eight circular tents. Each one had four beds inside, a sink and a stove. Surrounding the camp were a range of mountains and snow covered plains as far as the eye could see. There were only four other visitors to the camp which meant that we had our own tent. From the camp the toilets were about 50 metres or so - the perils of outside toiletting faced us again!

When we arrived at the camp we were left to our own devices and we relaxed and got used to our new homes. The main worry that we had was that the cold would be too much for us but we needn’t have worried after the women sorted the fire on the stove out the tent turned into a sauna. Unfortunately for me she continually came into the tent and stoked the fire so that the temperature was unbearable - this even happened through the night. I tell you that it comes as a surprise to find a Mongolian woman stoking your stove at 2 o’clock in the morning (wahey!).

Anyway, we spent the rest of the day relaxing - essentially the camp is liek a Mongolian Butlins. For dinner we had Mongolian barbecue which is meat cooked on a metal plate - nice but not very exciting. The next day we went to a Nomad family’s Ger. It was quite a walk but worth it. As we approached the Ger it was as if we had stepped back in time or rather that we were in some kind of Western. It looked like a homestead straight out of Shane. We were invited in to the tent for tea and biscuits. However, the tea was sakty and the biscuit tasted very peculiar but not wanting t be rude we drank it all (and complained later - the true English way). Stuart was convinced that the tour gides had set the Nomad family up for the tourists - equipped with fake cows and sheep.

After the salty tea we headed up a mountain so that Naki could get reception on his mobile phone to phone about placing another cast on Karen’s wrist. From the mountain top you could see in the distance a silver statue of Genghis Khan in the distance. He is everywhere in Mongolia - I don’t really think that they have another historical figure that they can idolise and as a result he is put on everything from rugs to vodka.

Stuart’s and my own fear of horses put pay to the prospect of riding in the afternoon. So instead we stayed in the Ger and played another Mongolian game using sheep bones again. Before sitting down to another plate of meat (obviously Karen had veggies).

The following day we had to say goodbye to the camp and return to Ulaanbaatar. It was a real shame leaving the camp as we had such a relaxing time there and felt totally at home, even the outside toilet didn’t put us off it. However, I think the diet of salty tea and barbecued meat might get to us after a while.

Ulaanbaatar beckoned and so did another hosiptal - I have made Karen promise me that we won’t visit a hospital in every country we stay in.

The train to Ulan Ude was delayed by a few hours so we spent most of the time people watching in the station and hoping that our train would turn up. We finally got on the train at 3.30am and found ourselves in a cabin alone. However, most of the other people on the train were drunk Russians so we pretty much kept ourselves to ourselves, especially when some of them kept calling me American.

We were picked up by our driver In Irkrutsk and taken to another homestay which was about two minutes from the city centre. We were given some time to relax before being picked up again and taken to a Budhist Temple, or Datsan. The drive out was again not the most comfortable - what is it with Russian roads? However, the Datsan (which was in the middle of nowhere) was well worth it and was serene. When we entered the temple we were greeted by a lama that was smiling and waving at us. I looked again and thought blimey that looks like the Dalai Lama, we’ve really lucked out here. However, on closer inspection it turned out to be a wax work model - c’est la vie.

As we drove back to Ulan Ude we stopped off at a Buryat village and had lunch in a Buryat home. The host was very friendly and gave us mounds and mounds of food. We also were given a traditional Buryat drink of green tea and milk. I thought it was OK, but Karen wasn’t impressed. The smell of the tea was still around two days later. Aftr lunch we played a Buryat game called knuckle bones which was a bit like subbuteo but played with sheep’s neck bones.

On return to Ulan Ude we were pretty much left to explore the city. There wasn’t much to see in Ulan Ude except a massive statue of Lenin’s head which totally dominates the square. Surreal is the only way to describe it.

Our next day in Ulan Ude again began with a visit to a Datsan - this time a much bigger monastery. There was more tourists at this one, albeit Russians and most of them were on their mobiles whilst spinning prayer wheels. I then had one of the most bizarre experiences of my life in the afternoon. We were given tickets to a puppet show which was a traditional Buryat show which depicted a folk tale from the Buryats. It was wierd. From what I could make out a tyrant terrorised a village and an old man told a younger man to go and kill the tyrant, but the young man kept turning into an owl. Admittedly I fell asleep (as did the little boy sat next to me) so I may have missed the most importnat part but it was still very strange.

Again we pottered round the city - although it was a bit bleak - and waited for our next train which would take us over the border into Mongolia.

A day here was not the most facinating but it snowed heavily which was beautiful. We took in some of the sights with Jean and had our photo taken by the Alexander III statue as a tribute as he completed the trans siberian railway so really with out him we probably wouldn’t have made it to where we were.

A 2nd trip to the hospital revealed pretty much nothing but i picked my xrays up and then Sergie made one last attempt at killing us on the roads when driving us to the station. As he somehow squeezed at speed between a bus and an on coming car with inches to spare either side we tried not to laugh/cry and the he exclaimed “I love driving”. Somehow i think his dream was to be a rally driver. The station was a great place to people watch and to be honest i think we were both chuffed to be getting on the train for a few hours away from any madness and be heqading west towards Ulan Ude.

it seems a long time ago now but Lake Baikal was such a stunning place and broken bone aside it needs an entry of its own! We were met at the station in Irkutsk by our guide who as he said “wasn’t top of the guide list” and it soon became apparent why. He seemed to dislike tourists with a passion and was totaslly disinterested in us. We stayed with a local lady in Listyanka village. A great place built of wood with all rooms around the central stove. Inside was so warm but any trip to the loo required layering up and only done when absolutely desperate. The outside loo did have a velour toilet seat so at least there wasn’t a moment of dread where you realise skin sticks to icy things like when your tongue sticks to the ice cream scoop when you’ve licked it. (yes, i am sure you have all experienced that at some point!) The best thing was the sauna in the garden which was heaven after 3 days on a train and a trip to the hospital. So we gathered our stuff, wrapped my cast in a trusty ASDA bag and hit the sauna. Could be very romantic… however we were just trying to get clean and cope with the fact life was going tp be a little more difficult for a few weeks.

The second day was glorious too so we walked for miles, unfortunately the steps onto the lake weren’t worth risking but it was all very bizarre seeing frozen lake as far as the eye could see. We hit a few souvenir shops, bought some terrible postcards and phoned home to ensure the tale came from the horses mouth as oppose to finding out about my break from the blog.

Jean joined us at the house and we swopped tales and notes as he was heading to Moscow and we were off West.

Apologies that The Adventures of Sir Barnaby Goodspeed has not been updated for some time. I have not had time for fiction with all the excitement of reality (the first time I think I have been able to say that in my life!)

Rest assured that he will be making an appearance with many a ripping yarn when I reach Australia and hopefully have bit more time. It’ll be worth the wait.

Our train to Irkrutsk left at 4 in the morning and as we got to our compartment we realised that we had someone in sharing with us. The Russian way is to put the light on and just get in and put your bags away. However, as we’re English we crept around in the dark, whispering and generally making a lot of noise. We finally got in and settled when suddenly my bag fell from the top compartment and was met with a trail of Russian obscenties and shouting.

In the morning we woke to find that our sleeping partner was an old Russian lady who spoke no English at all. But international relations were rebuilt through the exchange of biscuits and the odd word of German and some excellent miming.

We think that a career in the diplomatic service looms for Karen.

With all the drama of the past few days we are well behind with the blog. The ballet in Ekaterinburg turned out to be really good. The theatre itself was really impressive and the ballet was beautiful. However, it took a while to get over the lead dancer’s choice of tights which left nothing to the imagination - those Russian lads pack a punch!

The next day we went Husky dog sledging with an ex Arctic Explorer, Andrei. He was a real Ray Mears survival guy. Having been in an ex Russain army van for a hour whilst we drove to the sledge track he let the dogs out and they went wild - lots of yellow snow around us! He hooked up four to a sledge and with Karen on the sledge and me driving we headed off into the woods. Unfortunately, the dogs went at a quicker pace than I realsied and when we hit a bump and made some air I came off and left Karen in the sledge being driven by a pack of mad dogs with no driver and no way of stopping. As she got nearer and nearer to the van I realsied that she was going to hit it, but luckily she just missed it. We joked about how she was lucky not to get abother break travelling - oh the irony.

After that we got the hang of sledging and made the most of teh vodka to keep us warm as we headed through the Russian woods. We had lunch made for us on an open fire as we trecked up a hill and had the most picturesque and coldest wee we will probably ever have.

Another train trip followed.

Disaster has struck and the Dunkirk spirit came through. Adapt, improvise and overcome is now the motto of our trip.

Whilst staying in Lake Baikal and hiking around the hills around the shore, Karen slipped in some ice and landed on her wrist. Immediately she knew that she had broken her wrist and we had to then explain to our guide, Ramon, that we needed to be taken to the hospital in Irkrutsk (an hour away). After hitching a lift home to the family stay by a random Russian blooke (in a big fur hat and a lada) Ramon made some phone calls and said that a driver would be about two hours. We waited and waited and Karen was really feeling the pain by this point. Finally Sergei, the driver arrived, and so did the strangeness.

Sergei can be best described as a Russian version of Manuel from Fawlty Towers crossed with Arthur Daley. He immediately took us into town in his car and promptly got stopped by the police on the highway for speeding )doing 70 in a 40 zone). When we got to Irkrutsk he didn’t take us to a hospital but to a shop that sold bandages and started pulling bandadges down to see if they would fit. At one point he pulled a manequins hand off - not a good sign! We made it clear that we needed a plaster we left for the hosiptal.

The hosiptal was equally surreal. Sergei didn’t bother with patient confidentiality and opened every door until he found the doctor he wanted and we were immediately shown in. Well I say we - Sergie wouldn’t let me in and it was just him and KAren. At this point I don’t really knwo what happened inside but I sat in the corridor for ages. (Go to Karen’s page for her account)

Karen had x-rays done and her hand put in plaster and it was all done really quickly an defficiently. It was then that Ramon (after a hushed conference with Sergei) said, ‘You may want to give the doctor some moeny. You are not registered in Irkrutsk and what he has just done is illegal’. OK, then. We paid the doctor $40 and we were back into the car to be taken back to our home stay.

On the way back we were stopped twice by the police again - seems Sergei never learns!

When we got home we had a Russian sauna out in the back yard and finally made it to bed!

After all that excitement it was nice to have a realxing and uneventful day yesterday. Who knows we might be able to write something about all the fantastic stuff we’ve seen and done on the blog!

We have made it to Ekaterinburg travelling on the Trans Siberian express. Looking out the window from the train it was as if we were travelling through Narnia. We also had a compartment to ourselves - not many people travel at this time of year because of the cold - but we still found it a tight squeeze. Not sure how we will manage with more than two people in a compartment - but we may find out.

Ekaterinburg is an interesting city, but unfortunately the main thing that we have noticed is that it is much colder than Moscow. We have walked around the city and just taking a quick break in the City’s post office before heading into the cold again.

We’re off to the ballet tonight to see ‘Giselle’ - not sure whether it will be our thing, but at least Karen has heard of this one so we reckon we’ll be OK.

Husky dog sledging tomorrow and hopefully some time for the blog - we still have things to write about Moscow!