Woke up in Yekaterinburg this morning, it felt good to sleep in a hotel bed after our marathon 56-hour train journey from Irkutskt.
(We had thought it was a little shorter but totally overlooked the fact we would be crossing THREE time zones. 
Which of course led to jokes in the group about the trip that never ends because they keep moving the clock on us!). Having said that, we all enjoyed crossing Siberia — this really is a cool journey, to see such a vast landscape, and to watch the changes in terrain as the miles roll past. And one advantage of getting in late and going to sleep “on land” is that I woke up steady on my feet. After the last long train segment, I walked a bit like a drunken sailor for an hour or two, unused to my world not rocking and swaying.
Started our day with a walking tour of the city. One highlight was The Church of the Spilled Blood, constructed on the site of the assassination of Nicholas & Alexandra and their children. We were surprised to see the commitment that Russia has made to honouring them (given the Revolution and all) and they have even been made saints by the Orthodox Church. This year is the 100th anniversary of their deaths, and Yekaterinburg is bracing for pilgrims expected from all over Russia, and indeed from around the world.
Another highlight on our perambulation was the Sevastianov House — originally the property of a wealthy pre-Revolution merchant, and now the Yekaterinburg official residence of Vladimir Putin. I do hope the picture I am attaching is clear enough for you to see that it looks like a very delicious cake!
Geoff and I struck out on our own later in the afternoon, as we were the only ones in the group who wanted to see the Yeltsin Centre, an interesting museum covering Boris Yeltsin’s life and times. It made me want to go find a book to remind myself about his presidency, as I found that I remembered only high points, but didn’t have an appreciation for the amount of change that happened during his time in office.
Back on the train tomorrow morning, heading for Moscow — but it will be merely a 24 hour trip. For hardcore train people like ourselves, this will seem like hardly any time at all… 🙂
When you come back home after all this train traveling, you will not be able to sleep in your bed…Somebody will have to rock your bed and make the choo choo sounds! 🙂
Also did Geoff find the vast landscape of Siberia too touristy? 😉
No, he did not. I think we were the ONLY tourists! Not like Moscow….
Yup…more like the ONLY PEOPLE…:)
That is why I would never want to live in a big city…enjoying the suburbs so much more…the vast landscape of my 2×3 m backyard LOL