Olkhon Island, part 3 / From Irkutsk to Ulan Ude

Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18
IMG_2715.JPG
We make our way across the island, and try not to kill the cows.
IMG_2725.JPG
We setup camp and enjoy the sunset.
IMG_2728.JPG
Despite the fact that I'm sick of fish by now, we have a feast!
IMG_2730.JPG
And I'm not so bitchy after all... even if I'm burnt by the Siberian Sun.
IMG_2731.JPG
Dmitry is happy after all. I love the gold capped teeth of this Siberian bear.
IMG_2733.JPG
And who couldn't be happy after polishing off a fifth of Russian vodka?
IMG_2739.JPG
My last night on Olkhon Island.
IMG_2762.JPG
The next day, we make our way back to Irkutsk through this grandiose metal entrance.
IMG_2764.JPG
I'm so hungry for anything but fish. I stop at "Domino Pizza" and order a mushroom pizza. But the sauce isn't tomato-based, it's ketchup and mayonaise... and it was gross! But I ate the hell out of it! Anything is better than a fourth day of fish.
IMG_2147.JPG
That night, I make arrangements to do a homestay in this apartment complex.
IMG_2784.JPG
The rather unattractive staircase reminds me of that of Raskolnikov's (in St. Petersburg) and feels a touch ghetto.
IMG_2785.JPG
Like everything in Russia, it's all a bit complicated. This even goes for the door keys!!!
IMG_2777.JPG
My hosts are nice enough, but somewhat curt. Svetlana is studying to be an architect and is days away from flying to Berlin to study! (Scarily, she plans leaves one day after the plane crash of Irkutsk.)
IMG_2770.JPG
Russian interior design can be interesting. The wallpaper is particularly unusual.
IMG_2766.JPG
There is a rustic feeling to this family's apartment.
IMG_2768.JPG
The kids network plays classic stop-motion animation for which the Russians are so famous. This is Sleeping Beauty.
IMG_2775.JPG
The daughter is adorable, and immitates the ballerina.
IMG_2247.JPG
Later, I meet my travel agent Natasha who invites me to hang out. She's very well travelled for a Russian, and has been to many countries in Europe.
IMG_2802.JPG
She considers herself "the Siberian Princess" (especially with this big slab of meat), but is nice enough. She is obsessed with the "other Lennon" (from the Beatles).
IMG_2821.JPG
The next morning, I'm on my way to the train station...
IMG_2822.JPG
...and find yet more Soviet military propaganda.
IMG_2826.JPG
West and East. I'm definitely heading East...
IMG_2828.JPG
...on train #8 (line 1) from Novosibirsk to Vladivostok, I plan to hop off at Ulan Ude--a mere 8 hours away.
IMG_2857.JPG
Heading East out of Irkutsk offers some of the most stunning views on the entire Trans-Siberian train.
IMG_2874.JPG
Lake Baikal in all its glory (and its downtrodden shacks).
IMG_2885.JPG
Even polluting smoke stacks seem miniscule by the lake's utter vastness. (Fortunately, Green Party activists have managed to get laws passed to prevent further industrial development aound the lake.)
IMG_2837.JPG
Dachas populate the route across the southern tip of Lake Baikal.
IMG_2920.JPG
The Ulan Ude train station.
IMG_2921.JPG
I stay in this Soviet monolith called Hotel Buryatiya.
IMG_2925.JPG
The view from my window!
IMG_3061.JPG
Another view over the city square. (If you look very closely, you can see Lenin's Head.)
IMG_2939.JPG
I take a trip outside the city to the Ivolginksii Buddhist temple--the center of Siberian Buddhism. It was built at the end of WWII, and was one of the few datsans to have escaped Stalin's wrath against religion.
IMG_2934.JPG
I personally never really knew that ethnic Buddhists even existed in Russia!
IMG_2932.JPG
Many kiosks hawking their wares lace the entrance of the temple.
IMG_2949.JPG
Buddhist tchotkes (primarily Chinese in origin) dot the stalls.
IMG_2947.JPG
At the restaurant, patrons eagerly await their pozas.
IMG_2940.JPG
The datsan is pretty cool, but there isn't as much excruciating detail as in other religious institutions.
IMG_2964.JPG
But for a place that is resurrecting itself from Communist eradication, it's pretty impressive. It contains the largest collection of Buddhist texts in Russia.
IMG_2971.JPG
The main temple was built in 1972...
IMG_2978.JPG
...and these comic tigers guard the entrance.