Irkutsk, Siberia, Russian Federation
October 19, 2013
After last night’s escapades I wake at about 10am feeling more refreshed than I expect for having only a few hours’ sleep. As much as the hostel was in the middle of the Irkutsk ghetto near the train station, it did have cracking wi-fi. I’m guessing one of the local lads must have managed to get his hands on a big reel of fibre optic cable on special offer somewhere! So I had some new digs booked up and ready to move straight into once I was packed back up.
Remember how I mentioned that issue with not having registered my Visa during my stay in Russia? Well I had asked the girl at the hostel when I arrived last night if she could register it for me and she stared at me blankly, shrugged her shoulders muttered something in Russian and pleaded Ruskie innocence. So when checking out this morning I was surprised for her to take the key back off me, smile and say “oh, here is your registration for your stay with us last night”……eh? Last night you didn’t have a clue or speak a word of English! Oh well, I’m happy to get that ticked off the list at least. I was also surprised that she refunded my second nights’ stay straight away as this really didn’t seem like the kind of place that would be too keen on handing money out, unless it was for a few kilos of Columbia’s finest.
With a taxi sorted, off I head to my new digs much further into the town centre and I was surprisingly not ripped off by the taxi driver as I had been last night with the taxi from the station. To be fair last night I would pretty much have paid the guy what he wanted to get me away from the station…and also to let me get out of his taxi in one piece. So things were looking somewhat up.
With lake Baikal off the menu I decided to take a wander out and see what I could find on the streets of Irkutsk and to grab some food and a drink. I headed down to the local market square which is busy on a Saturday by the looks of it. It certainly didn’t seem massively unpleasant compared to last night’s fiasco, the odd shifty character about but enough families and decent folk kicking about that you feel comfortable and more relaxed. I took in a few statues and art works, some sculptures, had a laugh at the array of beasties available for the little ones to take a ride on. Horses, Ponies, Camels even a Reindeer. I somehow couldn’t imagine seeing that sort of a line up in the market square in Sunderland on a Saturday afternoon.
I just went for a general mosey around to see what I could find and popped in a few little places every so often for a coffee and bit cake and relax. I’d put some laundry in to wash as I desperately needed some clean clothes so popped to check on that and then headed out for some tea. I couldn’t really find anywhere local or traditional (don’t forget these folks in Russia are desperately trying to keep up with western standards) and to be fair, I had had my fill of meat, potatoes or eggs from the train the past few days so I settled for a place that looked pretty decent serving the bizarre combination of Italian and Japanese…..I know, the two just go hand in hand and complement each other ever so well. May as well have said you serve Marmite and Haribo! Strange fusion aside it was pretty cheap and decent enough so I settled for some pasta. The place I was in seemed quite popular with a lot of trendy wannabes in Irkutsk, in fact in the centre during the day that’s very much the impression I got, everyone trying to feel a little up market and manicured within an inch of their life. I couldn’t quite see why they felt the need to start blaring poor quality techno and house music half way through my meal but I guess they thought it added some ambiance to the fusion of sushi and pizza. I ignored the usual stares from a few of the local lads in there and just relaxed for a bit with my food a beer and a cuppa before heading to back to see how that laundry was getting on. Laundry sorted I got back to the hotel and it had a distinct different feel to it. A lot of suited up big Russian chaps were around the place with the standard 20ft tall, 6 inch wide supermodel on their arm (trust me it’s gets very boring and repetitive after you’ve seen the first few hundred of these creatures, they are everywhere in Russia) and the place appeared to be turning into some kind of dodgy club. So I grabbed my laundry, headed past the blaring dodgy Russian dance music and decided to do a bit more reading up on Mongolia and catch up with some friends on Skype.
It must have got to about 11pm and I had planned on settling down around then as I needed to be up about 4am for my train when the music a few floors below seemed to crank up another notch. Not long after that the town square directly in front of my room turned into a joyriders playground and drifting circuit……and it went on…..and on….and on for hours and hours. During that time I think I only saw one police car in the square and the only thing that broke the monotony of the squealing tyres and squealing music and squealing women was the beautiful crisp note of a gunshot! Yes that’s right I kid you not a gunshot, not too far from the hotel and it seems the ghetto likes to bring itself into the town on Saturday nights. I’m pretty sure not on Fridays as from last night’s experience the ghetto was most definitely still in the ghetto, trust me. So I lay there trying to sleep during this din but couldn’t for the life of me, just too much going on.
I get the impression that Irkutsk is a busy place with travelers and tourists during the summer months as it’s the nearest major town to Lake Baikal. I guess this appeases the locals somewhat during those months. The shopkeepers and pickpockets alike. However during the out of season months I guess times are hard and this must have been what I have experienced, a frustration and lack of trade and money coming into the town hence the lawless state it appeared to have morphed into. To be fair I can’t really blame the people who live here, it’s what they are used to I guess and everyone fights for themselves to keep going, but you have to question the state and how the place is ran in general. There are enough local militia around to Police these places but they are generally all corrupt so no wonder these places in the sticks turn into lawless towns and villages.
Another gun shot goes off. I can’t sleep. Awake and unable to settle I pop in the shower to freshen up for the dash to the train station. Thankfully about 4am things started to calm down outside. The squealing tyres slowly die down, most like due to like of petrol or tyre rubber by now and the streets emptied somewhat. My taxi I had booked for the station didn’t arrive however one of the lads at the hotel gave me a lift for a ‘reasonable’ amount of Roubles. The station was pleasantly deserted and I found my train waiting there, ready on the platform. It feels safer getting on this train than it does getting off.
Once on board there was a massive contrast compared to the train I had traveled on from Moscow to Irkutsk. The train I had used then was the direct one from Moscow to Vladivostok and it showed by the sheer volume and diversity of locals on board hopping on and off at the small stations and villages along the way. This train however is the Trans-Mongolian line and I was surprised to see the difference in people aboard. Hardly any Russians at all. A few Mongolians, a lad from Brazil in my cabin called Diogo, two girls from Mexico, and elderly couple from Austria, two girls from Finland, and an American family, a bit of all sorts really. This was a big shift to a travelers train compared to the locals train. The train is a lot cleaner as well, the sheets don’t smell of beer thanks to a lack of Igor and his cronies. The trains in Russia are numbered with number 1 being the best standard and the higher numbers being cheaper and a lesser standard. My train from Moscow to Irkutsk was number 44 which says it all. This train must have been in the top ten at least. I settle in for a good relaxed night’s sleep, well mornings sleep as it’s now past 6am. Looking back it’s certainly been the adventure I expected so far and for that I would not change anything, certainly an experience to remember. I’m now looking forward to getting into Mongolia and seeing what that has to offer and saying goodbye to Russia. An experience certainly but not one I’m looking to relive any time in the near future aside from St Petersburg.
