Trans-Siberian Railway Day 1: Somewhere in Russia
I open my eyes, and what I thought was a dream is still very much reality. The train is still packed with buzz-cut soldiers. I'm lying in a top bunk where I can't even sit up straight, and next to Seungjun, a grandma who looks about a hundred years old is sleeping soundly.
The Trans-Siberian Railway has the most expensive two-berth cabins, then four-berth, and finally the cheapest open six-berth carriages. Since we were obviously hunting for the lowest price, we booked a top and bottom bunk in a six-berth section to try and stay as comfortable as possible. Sharing this six-berth space with us is the heavy-set, seemingly century-old grandma on the bottom bunk opposite us, and a soldier on the top bunk who absolutely refuses to wake up. Later on, he would earn the title of Sleeping Master from us. On the opposite window seats, various soldiers keep taking turns lying down and sitting up without any assigned spots.
Poking my head out to look down the carriage, it's just full of soldiers. I got my master's degree and joined a defense company to avoid military service, but things got twisted and I guess I'm experiencing military life anyway. Ironically, Seungjun is reading Crime and Punishment in this situation. Hey man... what kind of punishment did Dostoevsky say we're getting?
When the sun comes up and it feels roughly like morning, the soldiers start getting their food ready. The hardest thing about riding the Trans-Siberian Railway is the concept of time. If we were blasting through time zones like on an airplane, it would be one thing, but we're crossing them at such an awkward speed that the time difference gets messed up little by little. However, traveling with soldiers makes this easy, because they always eat their meals right on schedule. We also had ramen for breakfast along with some bread we bought before boarding. Our full-blown beggar lifestyle has begun. Even so, this life would be heaven if we just had Wi-Fi and unlimited power, but unfortunately, there's no Wi-Fi, and they won't even let us use the power strip we brought. What was up with that blog saying you'd get a round of applause for using a power strip? The moment I took it out to use it, the attendant stopped me. You really shouldn't learn about the world just through text.
After eating, we were getting ready to seriously space out when a guy who spoke a tiny bit of English came over and asked where we were from and where we were going. My eyes lit up at finally having someone other than Seungjun to talk to. He introduced himself as the boss of the guys in this carriage, and it seemed like he wanted to figure out our personalities first in case a fight broke out, letting us know to find him if there were any problems. But all he really managed to say was that they were going to Moscow to chop wood. We wanted to keep the conversation going, but he apologized for his short English and quickly vanished. Just like that, the two of us were locked in a Cyrillic prison again, just blankly existing on the train. I really should have downloaded a Russian conversation dictionary...
Whether it knows how we feel or not, the Trans-Siberian Railway keeps chugging right along, having added two Koreans to a real Russian enlistment train.
As you'll know if you actually ride this train, eating and sleeping make up over 80% of the time spent here. If you've decided to try out the trendy minimalist lifestyle and throw away all complexities, I highly recommend taking this train once. There's really no better way to practice it.
After repeating the cycle of eating and sleeping several times, I suddenly looked outside and saw a blizzard raging. A blizzard in May. Staying inside the warm train, I had briefly forgotten that we were right in the middle of Siberia. No villages in sight, just white land and trees stretching far into the distance. It looked so charming when I saw it on TV, but seeing it from here, Siberia is as bleak as a prison. I think I understand a little bit why Russia sent political prisoners to Siberia instead of killing them in purges. Whether it knows my feelings or not, this train—more depressing than the Galaxy Express 999—is easily piercing through the Siberian cold.
Watching the daily life of the Russian army for a day, the vibe is definitely different from the US soldiers we often saw in Korea who sometimes acted like they were on drugs. Maybe it's just their faces, but there's almost no humor. Most of them just stare out the window lost in thought, play card games endlessly all day, gather to drink tea and chat quietly, try desperately to get a cell phone signal, or sleep like the dead all day. That's all they do.
One unique and somewhat disappointing thing—maybe because of military discipline—is that they absolutely refuse to eat or drink anything we offer them. If they were American soldiers, they probably would have been joking around, asking for booze, and annoying people with nonsense and tall tales by now. But these guys just drink tea and chat among themselves all day, and actually offer us their cookies to try instead. Maybe it's their mental training, but they never bother the people riding around them. Then, when we stop at a station for a long time, they all pour out to smoke, put their arms around each other's shoulders, take pictures, and come back in. I don't know if they're just innocent or really obedient, but there's definitely a unique, calm, quiet, yet pure atmosphere specific to Russian soldiers. For reference, most of the guys here are country kids from around Lake Baikal.
I slept all day, but now that it's night, I guess I have to sleep again. As I write this, the train is just passing the 20% mark of the entire journey. If the topic of today's post seems to be jumping all over the place, that's just the reader's feeling. It absolutely does not mean my mind is wandering. I am perfectly sane. I'm completely normal, except for the weird fact that Cyrillic letters are starting to read like the alphabet, and I occasionally feel like I'm hearing Korean or English.
Tips for Eating Ramen on the Trans-Siberian Railway
Since a picture of ramen popped up earlier, let's talk about ramen. For ramen eaten in Korea, the standard is to pour in the right amount of boiling water and eat it after 4 minutes. That's the textbook method. But for some reason, the water in Russia just isn't that hot. Because of this, products from ramen companies with thick noodles like Nongshim or Samyang don't cook properly. If you're thinking of bringing packet ramen to save space and making "bogeul-i" (cooking ramen directly in its bag), I'd advise against it. You're better off just eating the noodles raw. So what's the best ramen? It's Paldo's "Dosirak" (a popular Korean instant noodle brand), which has been massively successful in Russia. On the Trans-Siberian Railway, the closest you'll get to the taste you had in Korea is by adding about 5mm more water than the fill line to your Dosirak ramen, and waiting 5 or 6 minutes instead of 4 (feeling like you're letting it steep) before eating.
If There Are Soldiers on the Train
If there are soldiers when you board the train, it's probably best not to drink alcohol inside. Imagine how much these guys in their early twenties must want a drink while being forced to stay sober. But they hold back because they'd face severe punishment if they drank. There's really no need to provoke them by drinking right next to them.
Expenses (Per Person)
- Cookies (like Butter Coconut) 60R
- Dosirak ramen 65R
Total Expenses 125R
Total Trip Expenses 525,936 KRW + 12,081R + $53.16