k to i

rolling along the tracks, somewhere around krasnoyarsk, in siberia, we cross a large gaping river, which seems to come from the distant mountains (hills?), veiled in mist. hills seem to erupt like sinosoidal sound waves. they crest and fall, sometimes in tandem to the rhythm of the train, at times to the silent beat in my head.

and along these slopes are certain inhabitants. some are wooden houses, built in respect to the aspect (onomatopoeia!), some are little pieces of grass, washed fresh from the previous shower, while others are trees of the taiga kind. they are tall and shrouded generously with a cloak of velvet green, but with awkward stark white naked trunks, punctuated with browish grey stripes.

come closer, they say. and the train obediently follows the hypnotic tired grey rails. as we edge closer to these 'flashers*', the marvellous feeling in me melts away. no longer do they look that interesting. their opulence and mystery seem to get wiped clean and all they look like are tired old guards of the hill.

pretty from far, far from pretty.

* because they're like dirty old men with green trenchcoats only.

-l

meet ewan(iwan?), dalgert and eriksia. do forgive me for my poor attempt at russian name spelling.

ewan is 32, eriksia is about the same age and dalgert is 25. ew and er are both mechanics.

er specialises in train carriages and I am guessing his specialisation is in the joints that link the carriages. I write that I guess, for I guessed from his hand signals and mine, while he was smoking. he was so excited and animated that he burnt himself and dropped the lighted cigarette. and he quickly picked it up, relighted and continued on his gesticulation. it seems the 3 second rule applies. however, I have witnessed an impressive 5 min rule, but that person was ravenous and it is a story for another time.

ew is also a mechanic and I guess he specialises in metals of some sort. again, I write that I guess, for he gesticulated to the 45 degs angled pipe that supports the upper bunk in the platskart (3rd class and cheapest) cabin. da (yes in paruski) da da I say, in a bright cloudy haze of sun, excitment and vodka.

dalgert is a mechanical engineer, on his way to ulan ude. UU is our next city after a week in irkutsk. he seeks work there and asked us to stay with him. a & k say it is awkward while I disagree, but we still politely decline and say that we have a hostel to stay in. he also listens to russian reggae, as do daria (from nizhny novgorod) and asya's husband (from kazan).

also, meet irina, aged 57, still with a good head of blond hair. she was on her way to krasnoyarsk for a 5 day retreat from being a book keeper. as well as a silver grandmother and her sister. and narcita, from chita. she looks 14, maybe 15, dresses like an 18 yr old and has a look that I cannot place my finger upon. she looks like she's half asian, half european, has strong cheekbones and slightly protruding eyes.

you might be wondering how we got to converse. I have in my possesion, a small thickish tome. it had a plasticky feel to it, now it has been made oily due to the various hands that have handled it. so it starts with someone introducing himself, me, in my conversation with irina, ew in his conversation with a. soon, the magic tome is used, and with some supplement from gesticulating hands and exaggerated facial expressions, the conversation proceeds.

I nearly forgot to introduce an old friend to you, didn't I? I last saw him in st petersburg, when he popped up with some strangers, who then became acquaintances, in a bar. it was such a surprise to see him again today!! he popped up again, without any warning in the same carriage that we were in. you see, this old friend of ours just mixes with anything, and is a very warm character. plus, he's so good at adapting to any situation and is excellent in introducing strangers to each other. did I mention that he turned all of us pink (some became red like a stop sign), because of his innate ability?

meet vodka, a colourless, near odourless spirit. russians drink it neat and chase it down with juice (cok, pronounced as sok).

dalgert insisted we drink, and so did ewan. once my eyelids became a little heavier and turned a healthy pink, dalgert insisted that we eat. so hello bread and salami. hence the oily phrasebook cover.

it is quite good, seriously. none of that throat burn that happens when you imbibe absolut or red smirnoff. grey goose exudes a strong alcoholic heat, but the ones i've had while in russia are surprisingly good!!

they slip down like tofu, and when I breathe out after it's gone down, I don't have any dragon breath. you don't really need a chaser for it. I can't taste any berries or notes of flowers or herbs. and I don't intend to try to. i'll just stick to trying to get my taste notes on wine right.

-l

the landscape here is amazingly. as we traverse the siberian region, the trees seem to change character. at times they look dowdy, old and tired, at times they look like tenacious survivors, at times they look triumphant.

the view is amazing. we've travelled along rides, rode up slopes and cornered, well, corners. and all the time, the amazing view is there.

it.just.takes.your.breath.away. the field stretches as far as the eye can see, right to the horizon, almost touching the clouds. it undulates. orange and yellow flowers gather riotously and trees grow close to each other. there are the few that stand nervously alone.

I can't put it into words, but the view is simply fantastic. if only you could see it for yourself.

-l

i'll try to write this without ambling merrily along.

i've been waiting for this ride, for more than a year. this train ride that I am on, 6 weeks from home, 3 weeks from aunty swee kat's place in london, a day from tomsk, 8 more hours to Irkutsk.

i'm happy, i'm glad, i'm not yet satisfied, I feel fulfilled partially, I think I might cry.

so this trip was decided for in about jan 2006, when a backpacking trip around europe didn't happen with a good friend, and my supervisor at work suggested taking a train from china into mongolia. he also couldn't make it due to leave complications, so I started to plan this trip.

come march, and I went to siem reap for 5 days. after that trip, I really felt that I had to travel, for there was so much to see. it isn't the sights that excite me the most, it's the getting away from things too familiar, it's the new experience fraught with nervousness, it's the fulfillment, it's trying to see things from a different point of view, it's an eye opening experience that will wither part of my myopia away.

so this train ride was imagined while kings of convenience played on in the main concert hall of esplanade, singapore, on the 17 of march 2006. I was seated with alan and isaac. now, the exact thing is happening, with 'know how' from KOC playing, while I sit at the window, watching the land run past me.

it's about introspection for me I guess? to think on the ride. i've had quite enough of churches and monasteries.

writing this hasn't emptied all feeling from me. perhaps it is a good thing? something that I keep and can return to again, when the land runs past me as I trundle along.

-l