Triple Overnighter

We treat the next train journey with trepidation. Leaving Ulan Ude Thursday 27th February early afternoon, we are due to arrive in Khabarovsk late evening on Saturday. That's nearly three days and two nights on the train. Of course it's nothing to the train journey enjoyed by those who do the whole Trans Siberian in one go on trains 1 and 2, but as restless types, we like to get out and explore rather than sitting on the train for too long. Anyway, we soon settle into the routine of our temporary lodgings, the restaurant car with ample staff (but limited stock and fictional menu) and enjoy the fantastic views of the surprisingly diverse eastern Siberian landscapes.

The routine is subjected to an unscheduled interruption a few hours before our arrival in Khabarovsk as our train comes to a halt some miles behind a derailed freight train (at least that's what we speculate has happened). The sheer volume of freight on the route means that if anything goes wrong, there is major disruption. After every previous train on our trip being bang on time (to the minute, if not the second), we are now have the prospect of a serious delay.

On occasions like this, my rusty command of the Russian language comes in handy as we are eventually evicted from the train with our luggage in the dark across icy rails, and are led to one of the waiting buses which have been rustled up to take the trainload of passengers to another train beyond the incident which has blocked the railway. We cram into the last standing room on the bus (far too polite) and are then driven under police escort across icy roads to the next train. After a major bureaucratic process to allocate us to compartments on our replacement train (a Vladivostok to Moscow service which was turning back) we settle into our bunk beds for an unscheduled third consecutive night, and are on the move at 0315, nine hours late.

We check into our hotel in Khabarovsk rather later than planned at 0730am, much to the surprise of the receptionist, and retire to our rooms for a much-needed "deep clean". Although we are sometimes at risk of a sense of humour failure, the incident does not seriously impact on our itinerary, and will provide plenty of anecdote fodder to bore people with when we get home.