Our route was Beijing to Moscow, however, we used local trains all the way with 2 deviations – on Lake Baikal we took the Circum Baikal train(local not tourist), visited Listvyanka, Olkhon Island and later Tomsk which required a small deviation from the main line.
In all 11 train ‘legs’ with a couple of nights at each stop.
Total trip from Hong Kong to Helsinki was 52 days and entirely by train between Beijing and Tallin with a few buses where unavoidable around Lake Baikal area.
Beijing – the obligatory departure shot
From Beijing for a considerable discount compared to the ‘Trans Siberian Train’ route we took 2 local trains – first stop Jining, then to Erenhot/Erlian where we crossed the border to Outer Mongolia.
A short stop for a rest in a hotel at Jining resulted in the hotel losing a China Id card which had to be either replaced or retrieved before we could leave China. Luckily the manager found it in the photo-copier the next day!
Then delivered by scheduled bus driver to us and delay was limited to 24 hours. Otherwise 4+ days to replace.
While waiting in Erlian for ID card, is that an ooops?Erlian ghost bustersErlian Police – where you go when China Id is lost by your hotel, office 100% women it seemed and very understanding/helpful. They were very happy when ID was eventually located.Erlian, finally on board, next stop Ulaan BaatarErlian, hooking upFly like the windDone a few kilometresErenhot, Helping other passengers with immigration formsZamiin Uud, refreshment stop and another engine changeZamiin Uud, hooking up carefulllyDarhan station artKrasnoyask, Keeping us safeThe Ubiquitous water boiler – 1 per carriage and not as scary as it looks, this one leaking a littleThe Ubiquitous boiler schematic, see not so scary2nd class windowHallway and gathering place for passengers taking a break from the compartmentBalezino, Hooking upBalezino StationEveningVladimir, exploring stationVladimir, a bit desolateVladimir, not much hereVladimir, exploring station, not much happening here eitherVladimirVladimir, last bunch of flowersVladimir, tackVladimir, let’s go outsideVladimir, waitingNow that is what I call a locomotive, we sped through the night behind this one
