Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Yekaterinburg
Our next adventure started in the train to Yekaterinburg. We were in the same compartement as Yura and Vova, 2 fellows from Cheboksary, in the Chuvach Republic. The first was heading up north towards the arctic circle to a town near Salekhard where he works as an electrical security engineer for Lukoil. The latter was going back to his family in Yekaterinburg.
Stacked with homemade pies and cranberry schnaps by his wife for his 3 day journey, Yura generously shared his provisions. They could speak a few words of german and english, and with our 5 words of Russian and the liquor, we established communication. Vova then called his daughter Irina who studies french in gymnasium...
On arrival in Yekaterinburg, it was raining. Vova's wife and daughter were at the station and helped us out with our onward train tickets, then very kindly invited us to stay at their place.
The next 2 days were probably the most memorable we had so far on our trip: fully pampered and catered for! We ate like kings and were offered a full guided tour around Yekaterinburg, with chauffeur (Larissa, a friend of the family) and translator.
Amongst the sights were the Romanov Cathedral where the last tsar and his family were murdered, the wooden church complex to their memory in the forest where they were buried, the statue of Sverdlov (the Bolshevik who ordered their execution), the Romanov's Faberge eggs exhibition, the impressive memorial for the local Afghanistan war casualties, the tower with panoramic view of the city, the Europe-Asia border line, the photograph museum and it's pictures of old Yekaterinburg and the Ural.
... comrade Sverdlov:
... on the Asia-Europe border:
Stacked with homemade pies and cranberry schnaps by his wife for his 3 day journey, Yura generously shared his provisions. They could speak a few words of german and english, and with our 5 words of Russian and the liquor, we established communication. Vova then called his daughter Irina who studies french in gymnasium...
On arrival in Yekaterinburg, it was raining. Vova's wife and daughter were at the station and helped us out with our onward train tickets, then very kindly invited us to stay at their place.
The next 2 days were probably the most memorable we had so far on our trip: fully pampered and catered for! We ate like kings and were offered a full guided tour around Yekaterinburg, with chauffeur (Larissa, a friend of the family) and translator.
Amongst the sights were the Romanov Cathedral where the last tsar and his family were murdered, the wooden church complex to their memory in the forest where they were buried, the statue of Sverdlov (the Bolshevik who ordered their execution), the Romanov's Faberge eggs exhibition, the impressive memorial for the local Afghanistan war casualties, the tower with panoramic view of the city, the Europe-Asia border line, the photograph museum and it's pictures of old Yekaterinburg and the Ural.
... comrade Sverdlov:
... on the Asia-Europe border:
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Dear Yura, it is nice to hear from you again! We wish you and your family a very good year 2005 too!
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