Providing a neat book-end to my time in western Baikal, I am again awake at 6:30 am, sitting at the kitchen table of Baikaler hostel. In two hours I’ll be on a train to Ulan-Ude, the capital of Buryatia and the biggest city on the east side of Lake Baikal.
This time, instead of my sinuses [...]
Archive for June 21st, 2009
Sleepless in Irkutsk
Posted in Planning, Russia, tagged Baikal, China, Irkutsk, Mongolia, Russia, Severobaikalsk, Ulan Ude on June 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Everyone thinks I’m crazy
Posted in Russia on June 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
“You came here all alone?” Their eyes form perfect, bugged-out circles. “Alone?” they repeat, hoping I’ve made a mistake, that a friend or husband or (best of all) a tour group, complete with a guide carrying a red umbrella, is just around the corner. “You aren’t afraid? it’s dangerous!”
I’ve had this same conversation – almost [...]
