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My Asia Adventure
  • Ashley's Adventures

My Asia Adventure

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  • Awal trip
    27 September 2017
    Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures

    Up, up and away

    27 September 2017, Kanada ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Well the day has finally come and am off to my last continent. I can’t believe it, three years in the making it’s finally happening. I’m a bundle of nerves since it’s been so long since I’ve travelled by myself, but I am confident it’s going to be an amazing trip. I don’t know what it is but being at the airport seems to calm me and thrill me at the same time.

    This trip has required tons of patience, practicality, suffered postponement and money. Not going to lie, the visas alone were almost $600 ... 🤢

    But I’m doing it.

    This trip signifies a lot for me. It’s the last continent I need to cross, once I’ve landed I will have stepped foot on all seven continents. Quite the feat for someone under 35. This makes me proud and feel accomplished. And I also am visiting where my cousins were adopted from (Russia) which I have longed to go there since I was 13/14.

    So follow along as I share my journey through Asia, from the hidden hutongs, wandering the Great Wall, sleeping in a Yurt, and walking through the Red Square. I’ll try and post as much as I can of my journey, but when you’re going to be on a train for upwards of 40 hours, WiFi may not be readily available.

    Boarding is starting, so Ta Ta For Now ... Let my Adventure Begin 😀    Baca selengkapnya

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  • Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures
    Interesting name for a company lol

    Beijing Experience

    28 September 2017, Cina ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    Well, I made it. Long ass flight and all.
    It was a fairly uneventful flight to be honest. Watched a few movies and slept ... yup exciting times!!

    It took forever to get through the Beijing airport but it was fairly simple. Not really friendly, chatty people.

    I’m now hanging out at he train station waiting to catch the train to Xian. Got the run around to get my tickets, which meant a lot of pointing and then an attendant helping me. But I made it.
    It’s a high speed train so that will be cool, but I’m so exhausted I just want to get to the hostel for the night.    Baca selengkapnya

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  • Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures
    Bell Tower, Xi'an
    Starbucks, Xi'anIt looked like the Chinese version of a Hobbit doorOn top of the wallStreet below the wallOne of the watch towers on the wall

    Xi'an

    29 September 2017, Cina ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Made it here late last night ... and boy did I think I was going to be taken away and murdered ... lol, just kidding.

    First, last nights train was super cool. It had the smoothest ride and the fastest we went was 308 km/hr ... in-frighten-sane. It was awesome. I managed to sleep for about two hours since it was a five hour train ride, and I needed that.
    When we arrived at the train station it became a hurd mentality, which I’ve noticed a lot here. Lots of pushing, shoving, and yelling, and of course I can’t understand a bloody word said. I guess ignorance can be bliss.

    The taxi ride took forever to get into town. I did think at one point I was being kidnapped, but alas I was not. Cause let’s face it who the hell would want me as a hostage lol.

    The hostel staff was super nice, and English was easily spoken. ❤️
    I decided to splurge and upgrade my room to a private room since they had availability. And I am glad I did. The bed and pillows were hard but who cares, the only thing that bothered me was they smelled faintly like cigarette smoke. It’s nice having your own space especially since everything is so crowded here, especially a bathroom with a REAL toilet lol.

    Today I’ve just been wandering around Xi’an ... and totally got lost. When I did get my bearings, it’s become easier, and I found a Starbucks. Judge all you want but this has been very stressful for me here and I needed a comfort from home, except a completely different menu lol. I’m having a Mango Passionfruit Frapp and damn it’s good. I also had to get my You Are Here Mug too!!!

    I’m currently near the beautiful Bell Tower and am going to head out to do more sightseeing... tomorrow is a busy one since I booked a tour to the Terra-cotta Warriors. So I’m doing all my shopping etc. today.

    Update:

    I wandered around a bit more just taking in the sights until I found the Muslim Quarter ... this was interesting but cool. I don’t know how to explain it, but walking down the initial street was like a mini Vegas. Lots of neon, people yelling, weird ass smells ... the only thing different was the crazy ass food and street meat people were hawking. It was tres cool.

    I did the entire “strip” so to speak and then wandered down into one of the side alleys, which was a huge maze. I found a couple small items I picked up but mainly what I got was lost. When I finally got out of these small alleys I ended up in a more residential area where there were locals, and of course I couldn’t find where it was on the map. So I did what I normally do ... pick a direction and act like I know where I am going. So far this method has not failed me yet, and I am proud to say it didn’t again.
    I ended up being way hella down from where I wanted to be, but when I checked my iPad for maps I knew I was going in the right direction.

    I was making my way back to the hostel since my feet were killing me, but I stopped off at Walmart for a small amount of groceries and food for the next day or so.

    I opted to chill out and eat noodles for a little bit to give my feet a break.

    Obviously I grew bored and decided to head back out. I bought a ticket to the Xi’an city wall and decided to do a nice walk. It was a nice walk and great for pictures. I only did a quarter of it since I didn’t bring enough cash for a bike, but it was still worth it. I learned a bit, got some amazing views and took part in a cool activity.
    And of course as tradition would follow, I got lost exiting, lol. I ended up being outside the city walls, when I wanted to be inside, but soon I again figured it out and made it back. Found the Chinese version of a 7-11 for a coke and chips (all Chinese of course, so it was a stab to see if I got what I wanted lol) and then went back to the hostel.

    I passed out before 8:30 I was so exhausted but I needed the sleep for the long ass day tomorrow will be.    Baca selengkapnya

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  • Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures
    Pit 3
    Pit 1Pit 1Pit 2Pit 1

    Terra-Cotta Warriors

    30 September 2017, Cina ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Today was the day I had been waiting for, the reason I came to Xi’an, to see the Terra-Cotta Warriors.

    I got up early to have a hearty breakfast, pack my bags and meet my tour. I had a fantastic breakfast at the hostel, delicious and cheap. Can’t ask for more really.

    I met my tour driver outside the hostel, we waited for a while, but I wasn’t sure why since there ended up being no one else from my hostel going. So to kill time I made friends with the resident dog named Moon. He was so fun and playful, he made me miss my dogs.

    We had one stop to make where we picked up the other 15 people going on the tour with me. They were a variety of people, mainly students from all over the world. Who knew China had a diverse college/university program. One of the guys was from Vancouver but lives in Edmonton. We only chatted briefly throughout the day, and then there was a Chinese-Australian guy who was nice and chatty. We had a few laughs as he was super friendly.

    The tour guide we had was really good, her English was well spoken and she was very detailed.

    The drive up to where the Terra-Cotta Warriors were was interesting. First I should mention that the drivers here are insane!!!!! Second, it gave me another look / different perspective on the areas outside the tourist areas. The people seemed very poor and their housing showed that. Sadly, it’s something I’ve grown accustomed to seeing when venturing outside to the more rural areas.

    Now onto the good stuff ... the warriors. Jiao Jiao our guide insisted we visit the pits in the order of 2, 3, and then 1 since that one was the best.

    Pit 2 was cool because it was our first taste of what to expect, and it gave us an idea of what the active excavation looks like. The soldiers here were all in pieces, and we got to see the workers actually working on the soldiers which is a rarity since they usually work at night. Pit 2 also allowed us to get up close to the warriors behind glass. This was neat because some of them still had the color on them from when they were found.

    Pit 3 was small, since it was the last one being built and it stopped because the Emperor died. Most of the soldiers didn’t have heads but a few did. It was cool to see this pit as it was proclaimed to be their headquarters.

    Pit 1 ... this obviously was the crown jewel of the trip itself, and I’ll be frank, it wasn’t as grand/epic as I thought it would be. The pictures mainly shown to the public are misleading and make it seem that they have excavated more than they have. Now don’t get me wrong it was still amazing to see but just didn’t have the grandeur that I had expected. This pit contained mainly the infantry men, and the building was the size of an airplane hanger. They still are excavating it, so maybe in 30 years it will be at the epic ness I expected from today’s visit.
    I did find some things funny though ... in this pit they tell people no pictures at the rear since that is where they are re-constructing the warriors, and they even have an officer standing guard to enforce. However, if you walk a foot to the right you can clearly take a picture of the area without breaking the rules.
    As well one thing that was really cool, was they marked the spot where the hole for the well was dug that led to the discovery of the warriors. That was something I really appreciated as it’s hard to believe something so great came from one man trying to dig a well for his village.

    After we went for lunch and the food was ok. Mainly meat orientated so I had to pick through a bit.

    After we went to Emperor Qin Shihuang’s mausoleum .... let’s translate this to what it really is: a man made Hill that is too high in mercury content that they won’t excavate for another 20 to 30 years because of this. It’s said that underneath is a palace with rivers of mercury running through it. Let’s just say that most of us laughed at this and compared it to a Mummy movie. Which by the way the third one featured the Terra-Cotta Warriors, I didn’t know this and am going to hunt it down to watch.

    We made good time back to Xi’an and I was able to have ample time to take the bus to the train station, get lost and then find my way. Seems to be the way this trip is going.
    I’m now sitting on my “soft” sleeper bed which is hard as a rock, riding the rails towards Beijing. Let’s see how sleeping on a train goes tonight, since it’s been almost 10 years since the last time.    Baca selengkapnya

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  • Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures

    Beijing

    1 Oktober 2017, Cina ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Well not much sleep was had on this train. But it didn’t help I was sleeping with my backpack, doesn’t cuddle very much. But I made it alive and well into Beijing so you can’t really ask for more than that.

    I decided to take the subway to my hotel since it was the cheapest and most direct way. I wasn’t too sure about the public transit because the bus in Xian didn’t have English on its signs, but because this was now Beijing And there was English I thought I would be ok. And I was.

    The subway was super easy. I already knew where I had to go and which lines to change to so I was amply prepared. The train cost a whopping 4 Yuan, which was less than $0.75 Canadian ... bank breaker, Huh!!

    The train was pretty modern. It had a cool map on it for the route, a tv by every second door, and a nice announcer who spoke in Mandarin and English. It was pretty easy and a smooth ride. I did get a few stares not sure If because I’m white, had curly hair or looked crazy lol.

    Eventually I made it to my stop Chongwenmen, and there were four exits from the subway so I picked one. It turned out to be diagonally away from my hotel, so I had to cross a couple massive roads ... when I say cross, I mean run in between cars as they try to hit you I’m the crosswalk.

    The hotel was fantastic, they let me check in super early. My room is on the 6th floor at the front of the building, which is cool for the view but horrible for the noise.
    Since I was expecting a roommate I tried to keep as neat as possible (spoiler, never got one!!), but I needed to get my crap organized so out it came. Clothes, souvenirs, etc. but I did get it organized so yay me.

     I FaceTimed mom, and sent a few messages out, but my next priority was ... A HOT SHOWER. And this hotel delivered. The shower had so much pressure, and was hot, it was heaven. I didn’t want to leave.

    I tried to decide what I wanted to do that day, and I had a long list to accomplish, and said screw it and went to the zoo. I needed to grocery hunt first, since I knew nothing in the area I walked around and found “Beijing’s Best Bakery”, and it didn’t disappoint. I got some pizza thing, OJ, Panda Cookies, and Coconut Cookies. Everything was delicious. I kept the cookies to snack on throughout the day and the trip.

    I hopped back on the subway and went to the Beijing Zoo.

    So I’ll be honest here, I’m not a fan of zoos or aquariums unless they are rehabilitation centers or where if the creatures were in the wild they wouldn’t survive. I don’t want to pay to see an animal treated poorly, and yanked from their home and families. And I hadn’t heard good things about the Beijing Zoo, but I wanted to see those Giant Pandas, badly

    So when I arrived I was actually impressed with the Zoo. It was relatively clean, and the enclosures were definitely needed. People complain about them, but really they were for the animals safety since the people were so disrespectful to them. I could see the people climbing in to get those pictures, or their kids and getting attacked. We don’t need another Harambe incident.

    The Giant Pandas were cute and had a few different enclosures. It was neat getting to watch them just chill out and eat bamboo, or sleep. I really just wanted to give them a hug.
    I went through the rest of the Zoo and saw: wolves, birds, rhinos, hippos, giraffes, bears, polar bears, golden monkeys, and more ...but they had one place that brought out the child in me, Penguinland.

    There were a few different species that I hadn’t seen before, the only one I had was the African, and that’s from the Vancouver Aquarium. It was a pretty expansive enclosure, but the penguins weren’t too active which was normal. It was still pretty awesome to see them, and see a few new species.

    I checked out a few other exhibits, but to be honest I saw what I wanted to and opted to leave. Before I left I did send myself a postcard from the Zoo, I wasn’t able to send one from Xian so I figured this would do just as well.

    I made my way back to subway, and back to the hotel. I decided to wander around the area and see a little bit. I found a Starbucks and picked up a mug and a local drink. It was a black currant raspberry tea ... it was different, but tasty.

    I went back to my room to chill out for a bit before the meeting that night. And it was nice just to relax a bit.

    At 6 I went down and met my group, I was the baby of the group. All were older, couples, and a few singles, but it looks like a good group. Our CEO is Alex, from Russia. And I think he’s going to do great on this trip. After our meeting, we decided to have a group dinner at our own cost. It was the best food I’ve had the entire trip. We had duck, chicken, dumplings, etc. and it was all fantastic.
    After we all went to the grocery store, and picked up breakfast since we wouldn’t be able to have it before leaving tomorrow. We head off at 6 am for the Great Wall, and I can’t wait.    Baca selengkapnya

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  • Ashley's AdventuresMy Asia AdventureAshley's Adventures

    The Great Wall and Beijing

    2 Oktober 2017, Cina ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today I climbed The Great Wall of China.

    I had a rough start to the day, my alarm didn’t go off. I woke up at 7 minutes to 6, and we were to promptly leave at 6. Luckily, I had already laid my clothes out and was prepared. I was out the door in 5 minutes, and at the bus by 6. And I wasn’t even the last one.

    It was supposed be to take over two hours for us to get to the Wall, but our bus driver made it there in one hour, fifteen minutes. We were impressed.
    We had to take a shuttle bus from the parking lot, which required us to walk through a shopping village. At this time of day it was empty and desolate which was quite peaceful.

    We had a few options to get to the Wall, take a cable car, or walk the pathway. I purchased the cable car option, I wanted to save my energy for the way. This would take us up to tower 14 and from my research I knew that walking towards tower 20 would be the most challenging but also the most beautiful. It’s also the most authentic part of the Wall.

    We all separated our ways and ventured up different ways, but eventually we all almost crossed paths.

    The Wall definitely was challenging at some points, I decided that I wanted to go up to tower 20, I just broke it down and took rest breaks, but I was determined to do it. There were points I was almost crawling, but I did it. It was amazing. This was such a fantastic sight to marvel.

    It was a structure that I had to soak up. I took breaks between the towers, and just looked around at where I was and where I was standing. I thought about the people who built this, how many died, and how they built something without the technology we have today. It really made me think and appreciate where I was, it was humbling.

    Now by making it to tower 20 my legs were already jelly, and I realized that I had to make it back. And the stairs to leave tower 20 were enough to make your legs shake. I descended down sideways since the steps were so uneven going down backwards I was likely to miss a step and plummet to my death or severe injury. Slowly but surely I made it down.

    The walk back was just as nice and tiring. It also started to rain so we were getting cold too. It was busier at this time too, so we had to share the Wall with more people. This meant, waiting and pushing and shoving, so the usual.
    We eventually made our way out and to the cafe where part of the group was. Some ventured down earlier whereas some opted to stay on the Wall and jump the barrier to the higher towers. We sat down and rested a bit before heading back down.

    At the bottom I decided to grab a sandwich from subway since I only had a quick pastry breakfast on the way there. I also did pick up a bamboo portrait of the Great Wall, and had my name and date engraved on it. I plan to frame it when I get home.

    We made our way back to the shuttle, and then to the bus to head back to the hotel. By this time the Wall was already getting super busy, so I’m glad we had an early morning to experience a practically empty Wall, and be able to go as far as we did.

    The rest of today was really overshadowed by this morning. I’m still reflecting on how amazing it was, and that I’m here and climbed it. I’m very fortunate and feel so lucky to have done so.

    I’ll be honest I haven’t done much today afterwards, except go shopping for some small souvenirs for myself and friends. Yes Samantha, I did pick something up for you 😜
    Oh and I went to the grocery store. I’m slowly building a stockpile of food, and the hotel gives free bottled water so I’m hoarding what I can. Tomorrow will be grocery hunting day though because the day after is train day!!!!! First leg is 40 hours. I’m charging my power bank up to get it ready for that adventure.

    Off to dinner ... Alex has got something wicked planned, and he mentioned Scorpion Bowls?!?!?

    Evening update: no scorpion bowls were had, it was actually deep fried scorpions, yup. I ate two, and they were quite crunchy and tasty. And apparently starfish taste like ocean that was pissed in, and anything that is good is now “fucking delish” preferably said with an Irish accent.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Tiananmen Square & The Forbidden City

    3 Oktober 2017, Cina ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    My legs were barely functioning this morning from yesterday’s morning adventure, and it was another tour/walking day.

    We had a local guide named Miko come along with us, and he was to take us to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. To start our tour off right he had us hop onto the bus as that was the fastest way to Tiananmen Square. The bus wasn’t crazy here in Beijing so that was nice, it also was still early.

    When we got to the entrance for Tiananmen Square, that was a different story. It was crazy busy, just insane. Everyone was here. While we were waiting to enter the square, Miko gave us a bit of a history lesson as well as taught us the hand signals for numbers up from one to ten. Eventually we did make our way into the actual square.

    It was a neat experience to be there, to be where a lot of important events occurred for China. Miko explained which building was Chairman Maos mausoleum, the monument in the middle, the government building, the museum, and then the building which was the entrance to the Forbidden City. Miko provided a lot of informative information, most of which went in one ear and out the other.
    The other thing that was going on with us was that there were a fair amount of villagers and travelers to Beijing that had never seen white people / foreigners before, so people were asking to take photos with us, pointing at us, and slyly trying to take photos with us.

    We eventually made our way over to the Forbidden City, tons of crowds we had to fight. We spent a lengthy amount of time here, I felt like it took forever.
    The history of the city was amazing, how it was named, and what some of the buildings were for. I’d go into detail but I don’t remember most of it, except for a few small details ...

    - the ornate pathways up the middle of the pathway leading to each building down the center line were for emperors only, no one would walk down these, ever ... not even us! Haha

    - the only time another person was allowed to walk down the center line of the entire city was the Empress-to-be on her wedding day

    - the Emperor had over 3500 concubines there with him

    - there were 9,999.5 rooms created there, since the God in the sky had a palace with 10,000 rooms, he didn’t want to overshadow
    - only 8500 rooms are available to be viewed, and the half room is not one of them

    Wow ... I did remember a fair amount!!

    Our tour ended up running over four hours long, it was only supposed to be three. By the end of it almost all of us were starving, tired, and our feet were exhausted. We split off into groups and went about our merry ways.

    My group went on a hunt for food, while walking in the direction of the shopping district which was on the way to our hotel. We found a busy little restaurant that we thought would be a good place to eat. It was ok, nothing exceptional. Not really worth the price.
    After we were recharged, we decided to continue onto the shopping district, and this is where a few of us broke off and headed in different directions. One of the girls and I still headed back to the shopping district, which when we came to it was insane. The place was like Times Square, NYC during New Years ... that’s how crazy it was.
    We fought our way through, and stopped in at a McDonalds for an ice cream treat, as well as a rest for our feet, we were dying. I ordered a McFlurry with strawberry and cookie crumbles, what we didn’t realize was the ice cream wasn’t the standard vanilla, it was like a cappuccino flavor. Now if you don’t know me, I will tell you I hate coffee flavored things, even coffee that’s too coffee-ish. Yup, I’m weird, and don’t really care!
    Anyways, the mixture of the strawberry and cookie crumbles with the ice cream was actually tasty and I didn’t mind it one bit. After our recharge we were on our way. We stopped in a few shops, none of which had anything we wanted, or the sales people didn’t talk to us or we were just ignored, so we walked away empty handed.

    Once back at the hotel (almost 16 km later), I went to do my groceries so I could just relax that evening. Grocery shopping in Beijing is fun, some stuff is easy other is trial and error. I got enough for 4 meals plus snacks to carry me through for a bit. I’d been getting free bottles of water at the hotel, so I was stock piling them up for the train journey.

    Alex had planned one last Beijing Dinner for us, which he said would be the best, and it was. We went to a restaurant in the mall near our hotel, and we were taken to the top floor. As we waited for Alex to work his magic and get us past the huge lineup of people, we looked in awe at the mall, it had a full size ice rink in it. It was awesome. I watched a few people fall and struggle, it was cute and they looked like they were having some fun. A few minutes later Alex returned, he secured us a table.

    He got us not only a table, but a private room for us to enjoy. It was fantastic, and so classy. As usual we ordered two Peking Ducks, and a ton of sides to enjoy. The food was amazing. The flavors, and textures were fantastic, and the duck of course was impeccable. It was an outstanding meal for us.

    The journey back to the hotel was not far nor eventful, but I did take advantage of the bathtub and have a nice soak. It was the perfect size for me. I also watched a movie and just enjoyed myself. It was a great way to end my last night in Beijing.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Goodbye Beijing, Hello Railway

    4 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    Today it was adios Beijing, and hola to our first train ride of our journey.

    I woke up early for some reason, and couldn’t fall back asleep so I enjoyed an early breakfast in my room while I FaceTimed with my mom ... I mainly want to check in on my dogs to be honest. I miss them so much when I’m away, and it’s nice that technology allows me to virtually be there.

    I decided I wanted to check the bakery by the hotel to see if they had any Coconut Cookies I have become addicted to, and sure enough they had them this morning. I bought a couple containers for the train trip, I’m hoping I can at least bring one home, but who knows. Also I finally found some postcards so I could send Samantha & Co. one.

    Once back at the hotel I FaceTimed with Samantha and the kids, which was a nice treat for me. I like being able to see people when I’m talking to them, but it also is nice to be able to show the kids where I am and what China looks like. I did have to cut it short though because we were leaving pretty soon.

    I packed on my gear and headed downstairs, I checked out and waited for the rest of the group. Soon we were all assembled and walking to the train station, it was about a 15 minute walk from the hotel, so it wasn’t bad at all, especially with us carrying our bags and food.

    At the train station one of our group members did run into a problem with her passport, her passport number and her tickets ... the end result was her having to purchase another ticket on the train. The Chinese are very particular on things, and sadly this thing was one of them.

    We barely made the train, as we were all waiting with baited breath on whether she was going to make it or not. When we saw her come into the station, Alex yelled to grab bags, and we were running to the train. We made it through the ticket check with time to spare so we quickly grabbed a group photo together in front of the train. After Alex told us our cabin numbers and we were boarding rail car #6.

    The cabin is modest, nothing fancy but it’s comfy/cosy, and it’s to be our home for the next 30-ish hours. Once we got everything set up and put away we all relaxed and got to enjoy another side of China. The landscapes did rapidly change, and it was quite interesting so see ... And of course I stuck my head our the train window to get a view whenever possible.

    We did get lucky in the fact that we received both lunch and dinner free on the train. Don’t get me wrong they weren’t the greatest meals, but they did satisfy and they were free. Apparently dinner for free on the train doesn’t happen ever, but we got lucky.

    I saw an amazing sunset, a cool looking moon, which I finally saw the man on the moon, and just a different side of China than the hustle and bustle of the last few days.

    Everyone has bunked down for the night, and I probably will join them soon. Let’s hope I can get some sleep tonight, cross my fingers the train lulls me to sleep.

    10 pm Update:
    We’ve arrive at the China-Mongolian border, the border guards have come and taken our passports, checked our identities and the train has moved into the rail yard. The Chinese still have our passports.

    12 am Update:
    We’ve reconnected to the engine, and are just hanging out in the rail yard. It looks like they are just finishing the last rail cars up, but really who knows at this point, lol.

    1 am Update:
    Passports returned

    2 am Update:
    Mongolia has taken passports

    4 am Update:
    Mongolia has returned passports ... the official got a nice view of my room mates butt as she was trying to confirm his ID.    Baca selengkapnya

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    More Rail and now Mongolia

    5 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Around 1 am we finally got our passports back from the Chinese border, then shortly after we had to surrender them to the Mongolian border.
    Mongolia returned them around 3 or 4 am, I don’t remember much since I was pretty groggy from being woken up.

    When I woke up a few hours later, closer to 8 am we were in the desert. It was so barren, so not much to see. We did see a few bits of cattle, camels, horses and goats. There were colorful little villages we did pass through that were pretty cool looking.

    We had a couple short stops along the way but not long enough for us to get out and stretch our legs.

    We were about 30 minutes to and hour late arriving into Ulaanbaatar, but our guide Toya and driver were waiting for us. Toya quickly navigated us to the bus to drop our belongings, and then head back into the rail station to exchange our money.
    Afterwards we were taken directly to the hotel, assigned our rooms and given an hour to freshen up before we were on our way to the Mongolian Cultural show.

    The cultural center wasn’t far from the hotel so we walked there. It was a jam packed show, so we had to split up and get seats wherever we could. The show was separated into three acts, and was amazing. The music, the throat singing, the dancing and the contortionist was fantastic. It was worth every penny.

    Afterwards Alex took us to a restaurant where we could each order a meal, it was the first one we’ve done together that wasn’t family style. I finally got a vegetarian dish!
    The food was great, and we all enjoyed our meals. Alex then asked if we wanted a night cap, where we said sure and went to the highly reviewed Sky Bar.

    Sky Bar was cool, and it was nice to get to see another view of the city. It was so beautiful. It was the best way to end the day.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Ulaanbaatar & Ger Camp

    6 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Today was a busy day in Ulaanbaatar, we had to pack our bags to leave, go on a city tour and then head out to camp.
    I had done most of my arrangements last night once we got back so I was pretty set to go, just had to put in last minute toiletries.

    After breakfast Toya took us to the Gandan Monastery complex where we got to see a number of temples. What was cool is the monks were in the middle of their chanting ritual so we got to see that happen while touring around the temples. We went to three.

    The first one was the oldest temple left over from the 1800’s whereas the rest were built well after. The second temple had a massive statue in it of one of their Gods and its size was simply remarkable. And the third was the weather temple that was from the Dalhi Lama. It was a very interesting site to visit.

    Next we went to the old home of the last king and queen of Mongolia. This was a very simple palace, nothing elaborate to be honest. But the temples inside the complex were very well cared for, and inside of them was pretty fantastic. They had temples dedicated to gods, ornate silks, and all sorts of other things. This palace complex was truly fascinating.

    Lastly on our city tour we went to Zaisan Hill to view the city, but also to see the monument to the Soviet soldiers who helped Mongolia out during the revolution. The view was outstanding.

    After lunch we grabbed our overnight bags and were on our way to the desert for the ger camp. We made two stops on route, one at the grocery store, and the other at the statue/monument to Chinggis Khaan.

    The monument was massive, and really cool. At the base of it there is a movie, and a museum. On the main level there is a giant Mongolian boot and an elevator to the top of the monument. At the top, you can get out and walk onto the horses head that Chinggis is riding. It was so cool to get that close and see the details, but also to have a panoramic view of the area. It was an fantastic site visit.

    After we exhausted our time here, we headed back on the road to the Ger camp. We did on road and off road driving, got held up in a Mongolian traffic jam (herds of cattle and horses taking up space on the road) and saw some crazy driving techniques. Eventually we made it around 7 pm, just in time for dinner.
    We had enough time to get to our gers and get settled in before having dinner. After dinner we went to the Welsch’s Ger for vodka, junk food, s’mores and socializing. It was fun. We know how to have a good time.

    We all didn’t make it very long since we were all exhausted from the day, so it definitely was an early night for all of us, especially with tomorrow’s activities just on the horizon.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Ger Camp

    7 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    I slept amazing last night in the Ger. It was so nice to have the moon shining into the tent, and to sleep in actual peace and quiet. I was exhausted, and the beds are comfy.

    We got to sleep in today which was nice, and we got to have another homemade breakfast. After breakfast we decided to try archery out. Archery was fun, we mainly laughed and joked as well as heckled each other. We all tried our best and had a lot of fun with it. Only a couple people hit the target. The target being a piece of fur stretched between posts.

    After this we went to visit a local family, and see the true Mongolian nomadic lifestyle. We took the “adventurous” was through a bog and brush. It was half frozen, but still thawed to some degree. I used my side to side hop to get through, and at one point we had to make a log bridge for us to use to pass over. Sadly our driver fell off and went knees deep into the bog. We were all laughing as he couldn’t stop laughing either.

    Eventually we made it to the nomads ger and saw their stables. Their animals are animals to them, they do not name them as that would make them pets. This goes for dogs, horses, ants, etc.
    We were invited inside the home where we were served Mongolian tea, which was super milky tea and to try dried curd (rock hard, could have broken a tooth). We sat there and chatted with the family and Toya was great at explaining and translating for us. Some of us brought small candy and toys for the little boy who was very happy about this.

    We opted not to take the bog back, but the road. It was just as fun since Mongolian drivers are crazy.
    When we got back we had a bit of a break to relax before lunch.

    As always lunch was good, and had the bestest dessert, some type of log roll that was delicious. After lunch we were going to do a hike.
    I opted not to do it since I haven’t been feeling well today, and I decided to nap.

    When I woke up about an hour and a half later, my ger mate Fallulah told me it was snowing outside. I couldn’t believe it. I decided to hit the bathroom to see for myself, and low and behold it was snowing. Almost like a hail. I was surprised when I stepped out of the ger.

    Our fire was roaring in the ger, so when Fiona came back from her hike she was super happy to get warmed up. We relaxed in the ger for a while until I was just getting too warm. I decided to open the door to give a little bit of a break from the heat, and was shocked to see everything covered in white. It was beautiful. I can’t believe I’m in the Gorkhi Desert and it’s snowing outside. This is truly amazing. I love it.

    As we had dinner and then socialized with vodka and s’mores at the Welshes Ger the snow is continuing to come down, it makes this place even more beautiful.

    As the girls and I were at the outhouse, we interrupted a game the young boys were playing ... throw snowballs through the top of the outhouse to get the guy inside. It was hilarious, and even in the ger we can still hear them playing around enjoying the snow.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Ger Camp & Ulaanbaatar

    8 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ⛅ -2 °C

    Woke up a bit cold today since our fire burned out overnight, and the camp was covered in close to a foot of snow. It was beautiful, and such a treat to wake up to. Except it was cold, and I didn’t have the proper dress for it. Layers it was for me.

    After breakfast we left the camp to head back to UB for shopping, and sightseeing.

    On route back we stopped and saw a cool rock formation, and made wishes at a shaman marker. It was pretty neat.
    Once we got to UB, day rooms were given to us by the hotel, which meant repacking for the train, and hot showers. I opted to sightsee and shop first then head back to the hotel and relax.

    Our sightseeing took us to the main square that we had only seen at night before, as well as the Beatles square which was blocked off due to construction. There isn’t really anything super significant here, but it is a nice city. We got some shopping done at Mary & Martha’s Fair Trade & Ethical store, where we all spent a fair bit. The items were cute and made by women who are trying to earn an income, as well as female prisoners trying to generate income to make the prison more hospitable. It was a great little shop and I’m happy to pay a little bit more to give back to the local community .

    Afterwards I went to the department store for souvenirs. I really wanted my knockoff Starbucks mugs, but couldn’t find them. I did get some souvenirs for people and a few for myself.

    On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at Burger King for some real “authentic” Mongolian food, lol. We also hit the post office up, and sent off a bunch of postcards.
    As we were cutting through the square we weren’t sure if there was a protest or a concert going on, but it was fairly interesting to see and watch.

    And now after a hot shower, we are relaxing at the hotel. Another forty minutes in comfort before we are on the train for two days. After the two days we arrive in Irkutsk and go to Lake Baikal for a night before moving on to Yekaterinburg.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Train To Russia

    9 Oktober 2017, Mongolia ⋅ ☁️ 3 °C

    This morning we woke up at the Mongolian border with Russia.
    Our train engine played crash boom ditch (similar to ding dong ditch, except with rail cars) during the night, and left us in the middle of the tracks. When we woke up we only had 30 minutes to use the border washroom, which we had to pay for. Because from 8am till 10 am we were without passports as we had to surrender them to the Mongolian officials. Just after 10 am we received them back.

    Next we were taken to “no mans land” which is the area between Mongolian and Russian borders.

    Without going into the glorious details, the Russians were very thorough with their carriage inspection, passport inspection, and dog sniffing inspection. There were about four different officers we had to deal with.

    After everything was hunky dory with the Russians we were given our passports back and allowed to leave the train. We had a three hour window to wait until our engine came with another set of carriages to attach to us. We were in the village of Naushki and it was a tiny cute village. We saw babushkas selling their goods, to which I bought my first piroshki!!, a cow just walking down the Main Street, and ramshackle buildings. We walked to this little rustic cafe where we had hot borscht, and drinks. The food was very good, and cheap, just the way I like it!

    As we made our way back to the train station we were allowed to explore the area a bit, not that there was much to see, except the cow that was wandering around Main Street was now wandering around the train station. He also picked up a friend too. None of the locals batted an eye, while tourists like me were like Wtf. It was pretty funny.

    I boarded the train shortly after, but with time to spare so I could enjoy my warm piroshki. My goody attracted me some new friends, six to be exact. I had dogs follow me to this carriage door, it was quite funny, except for when I asked my cabin mates if I could bring one with us ... I was met with a resounding no, lol.

    After this I’ll be honest, nothing exciting happened except good conversation, a beautiful sunset and instant mashed potatoes.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Irkutsk / Lake Baikal

    10 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    This morning we were met with a “lovely” wake up call at ten to six in the morning, 😖.

    We had to be off the train a few minutes after six, so we had an hour to eat, pack our packs, strip the beds in the cabin and be ready to disembark. There was a shuttle waiting for us as we left the train station in Irkutsk. We had the most Russian driver possible, who also had a wee bit of road rage.

    We were getting taken to the resort town of Listvyanka on Lake Baikal. This is said to be the Riviera of Russia where the celebs etc. go. However at this time of year it was frighten cold, and it was.

    On the way to Lake Baikal I fell asleep so I couldn’t tell you about the drive, but I can tell you it was lovely getting that extra hour of sleep.

    When we arrived at the local B & B we were staying at we couldn’t check in, but they would store our bags, and we also could get them to do our laundry (clean clothes, yay!) We chilled out here for a bit using the WiFi, and warming up since it was quite cold here. As well the place was on the lake, so we had a beautiful view we could take in. After a bit Alex took us on a tour of the town and we got into some of the local delicacies.

    We were a 20 minute walk away from the market / main area, so we walked along the lake enjoying the sights and gathering information about the area. When we finally arrived at the market they were just setting up for the day, Alex gave us the task of buying Omul ( fish only found in Lake Baikal) that was smoked and steamed, then coming into the cafe beside the market to eat.
    In the cafe I bought some piroshkis and a coke to go with my omul. The omul was really good, you eat with your fingers and it was delicious. The piroshkis were just ok, not as good as the first one I had.

    After lunch we wandered the market and picked up little souvenirs, I finally got some nesting dolls. When we finished this we decided to do a two hour boat cruise on the lake. It was wonderful. We even saw a naked man on the beach praying, it was hilarious. We saw ample amount of old trains, abandoned boats, luxurious beach properties ... there was a mixture here.

    After the boat I opted to skip the hike since I was still a bit sick and walked back to the B & B. I did stop off at the post office to grab some stamps which was super convenient. Once back to the B & B we were allowed to check in.
    The rooms were really cute and cosy, we also had a central living room to gather with everyone that was in the rooms upstairs. The showers were fantastic, and it was also like a private sauna, it was so warm, and great for my breathing.

    I hung around in the common room with half the group. We had a blast laughing, joking, and just being silly. It was simply great fun. After a bit everyone did break a part to go do their own things, but Nigel and I did go off to see the sunset and get some pictures. It was quite beautiful.

    Dinner was at the hotel tonight, and it was a typical Russian feast ie: covered in dill.
    After dinner we again just spent time laughing and telling stories, just enjoying ourselves. A great way to end the evening off.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Schedule on Moscow time ... this makes train travel fun
    Siberia isnt Siberia without some snow

    Irkutsk & Train Adventure

    11 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ☀️ 3 °C

    Well, it was another early one today as we had to leave the lovely area of Lake Baikal, and head back to Irkutsk for a city tour and then leave on the train.
    I had enough time to eat breakfast quickly, and then run to the post office.

    When I got back the bus had arrived and we were just loading everything up, so it was perfect timing. The drive back to Irkutsk was uneventful, just some beautiful scenery along the way.

    When we arrived in Irkutsk we picked up our local city guide who took us around to various sites, and churches, etc. We learned about the founders of Irkutsk, the history and just lots of information. At the end of the tour we got to visit the Russian Orthodox Church which was beautiful. It was very ornate and the decoration inside was amazing.

    After lunch and a bit of wandering around we had to head to the train station to catch our afternoon train. We would be spending about 54 hours on the train give or take the few stops we can leave the train on. This would be the longest section of train time we would be doing, and covering 3470 kilometers to Yekaterinburg .    Baca selengkapnya

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    Train Time

    12 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    By 9 am today I had already done a train station tour, had two breakfasts and a nap ... I had a productive morning. That’s what happens when your cabin mate is an early riser and there is a time change.

    It’s a full train travel day today, so nothing exciting but relaxing and chilling out is on my agenda.

    We did decide to check out the restaurant car as we heard fantastic things about the pancakes (crepes) and red caviar. While there we met an Australian guy who was on his way to being drunk, and insisted we have vodka with them. We did one shot with him, and it wasn’t bad vodka, but since I can’t drink vodka cause it grosses me out right now, it was a bit of a challenge.

    The Australian then decided to bring back a couple friends, and things changed in the atmosphere, one of the guys was Mongolian and kept making violent references, the other guy was Irish and he was cool. He’s a Game of Thrones extra. Because of the actions the Mongolian guy was making the restaurant manager was giving him hell, the girls and I opted to settle our bills and leave. Seemed like the safest alternative since I’m pretty sure the manager was going to chuck him out the rail car window and leave him. And if she couldn’t do it, I’m pretty sure the chef could have.

    That was the highlight of our day to being the most eventful thing to happen. Other than that it was a pretty relaxed evening with a beautiful sunset that made the sky look like it was on fire.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Yekaterinburg Arrival

    13 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Today was a bit of an off day ... we went through two time zones last night so when we woke up this morning thinking it was 7 am, it was 5 am ... ugh, mornings 😞

    This made this day a bit longer since we still had another 6 hours to go on the train ride, but it was helpful to allow us to pack leisurely, condense bags down, and just relax.
    We had a few stops along the way, and I did get out at the first one just to stretch my legs and get some fresh air. I joined a group as we walked to the train engine and back again. The conductor however thought it would be funny to prank us through and honk the horn so that we started to run to our car. When we saw him after he was in hysterics (very rare for a Russian) ... I should also mention our car was the last car so we had a bit of a distance, but we realized shortly that the train was still in the station for a bit longer. We all had a great laugh at ourselves.

    We arrived into the city at around 1:30 pm, and traffic was so horrible it took us almost an hour to get to the hotel, when it’s maybe a ten minute drive. Yekaterinburg is hosting the 2018 World Cup, so they are doing a lot of upgrades. Hopefully it will be better than Sochi.

    We had just over an hour to get showered and changed as we were heading to out to dinner and then to the ballet that evening.

    Alex took us to this cute restaurant that was devine. The decor was super cute, and the food was amazing. The piroshkis were out of this world. We even sampled some of the restaurants homemade Horseradish vodka ... that was different.

    The ballet was held in the opera house, and the building was magnificent. It was just draw dropping to be inside of this place.
    Our seats were in rows 1, 2 and 3, and were excellent. I made friends with a Russian lady beside me, who was quite nice and very sweet.

    The ballet ... now I’m open minded to new experiences, even though I don’t consider myself an artsy/interpretive person who can look past the brush strokes and see the anger or pain, blah blah blah. I take it at face value.
    So this ballet was a bit of a challenge for me, there were parts that were what I expected a traditional ballet to be and that was great ... then there were the other parts where I was like WTF is going on. The women were graceful and beautiful, a little too skinny to be honest, but they are ballerinas. The men were just as graceful and had butts you could bounce quarters off of (legit!)

    After the ballet we headed back to the hotel, some opted for a nightcap, I opted for bed. It was a great day, with some new experiences    Baca selengkapnya

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    Courtesy of Sue Thomas, a fellow traveler on my group

    Yekaterinburg in Full

    14 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Today started off with a fantastic local guide who took us on a great walking tour around Yekaterinburg. She took us to see the old wooden houses, the historic squares and houses, various important monuments etc., and specifically to the Church of Spilled Blood. This is the site where the Romanov family was murdered nearly 100 years ago.

    The church was a main sight for me and it was beautiful. It was under renovations, so we weren’t able to see the recreation of the basement where the slaughter happened, but it still was a beautiful sight. I have to give our guide credit, she knew the history for both sides of the stories, and gave an unbiased story. She told us what she believed, and how her family was connected to the story, but she never forced her views on us, and really left it open for our interpretation.

    [I do recommend reading up on the Romanov family, and the tragic events that happened. The guide, Valentina, really poked at my curiousness and I am now reading a book on the deaths of the family, and the controversy around the bodies.]

    The other thing Yekaterinburg is known for is its military installments. There are tons. This used to be a military city locked off to outsiders, so it has a lot of history and museums attached to it. We did got by a few places and it was pretty damn impressive.

    After our tour finished, and we had a fantastic lunch (Alex nails it with the food!), the girls and I went to a local craft store, then headed down the pedestrian corridor. There wasn’t much to see but we ended up at the local hockey arena, then a flea market, and walked through a beautiful park. We found a random Beatles monument and a Michael Jackson one too, lol.

    We got back to the hotel, were able to get some groceries and then called it a night. I did have dinner at the hotel which was ridiculously overpriced and expensive for what I got.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Moscow or Bust

    15 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    It’s a full 24 hours on the train to Moscow. Super excited can’t wait to see this beautiful city.

    We’ve got the upgraded train car, which means more amenities, food and space. Oh it is glorious compared to the trains we started out with!Baca selengkapnya

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    Moscow

    16 Oktober 2017, Rusia ⋅ 🌫 12 °C

    We are here!! It’s Moscow!!

    As we stood in the train station, it dawned on me that we were in Moscow, I’ve waited so long to be here and here I was.
    We caught a transfer to our hotel, and were allowed to check in right away, which allowed us to freshen up from the night on the train.

    Alex was giving us an orientation walk that started out with us heading over to the metro, where we picked up our metro passes, and we were on our way. When we got off the train we stepped out right outside the Red Square.

    Most of us were in awe of the architecture of the city, I think it blew most of us away. We got a quick briefing of the immediate area and took a quick peek at the Red Square and St. Basils.
    After lunch we went to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to watch the Kremlin guards change. It was quite a sight to see these high kicking guards.

    Then we were free to roam Moscow!!

    I went to the Red Square first to snap photos of the GYM shopping center, the Red Square, and worked our way towards St. Basils. As we got closer to St. Basils it was just as beautiful as I thought, although slightly smaller than I expected. But none the less I was standing in the Red Square looking at this beautiful Cathedral. We all took tons of photos here and then thought of going inside but it was slightly expensive.

    We walked over to the old KGB headquarters. It was a bit of a walk from the Red Square, but we got to view more of this fantastic architecture so we were too distracted to notice the distance. Moscow is surprisingly cool.

    When we came up on the KGB building it was just as impressive as the rest of the city. What was funny was that a massive toy store was right across the street from it. The toy store had a viewing platform, so we went to the top and took a look at the Moscow skyline.    Baca selengkapnya

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    Akhir trip
    17 Oktober 2017
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