Russia

For me Russia will always be the wide-open space of Siberia, for that is where I spent most of my time there. After finishing my teaching contract in Japan, I had the prospect of Asia at my doorstep and no job to hurry back home to. It was the perfect set of circumstances to justify climbing aboard the slow Trans Siberian train for a shot across the heartland of Asia. As I would soon discover, time would develop an entirely new meaning as days would blend into each other while scenery almost never changed. At first I was worried about boredom, but I never grew tired of looking out the window at a world so different than any I had ever seen.

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On the left, my Russian visa. The visa application specifically warns against smiling in the photo.
On the right, the emblem of the now defunct USSR graces the side of each train boxcar.

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One of countless little Russian villages our train slid past. Each was indistinguishable from the others. The relative poverty of the region is evident by the fact most of the dwellings are still made of wood.

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Every now and then a real city would pass into view with signs of modernity, like this power plant.

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Woman picking flowers. The weather was absolutely fantastic and surprisingly hot in mid summer.

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We stayed on the train as far as Irkutsk, where we disembarked on headed to Lake Baikal. There we homestayed with a Russian family for a couple of days while soaking up the scenery of a typical Russian village. Below is one of the many Russian Orthodox churches that dot the countryside.

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Walking along the train tracks on the shores of Lake Baikal

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Train tunnel along the tracks.

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Enjoying sticks of mystery meat in the city of Novosibirsk ("New Siberia"),
unexpectedly the only place in Russia I found Dr. Pepper.

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Changing of the guard ceremony at the Kremlin's World War II memorial.

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The McDonald's brand name stands out even when written in Cyrillic letters.

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In Red Square in front of famous St. Basil's Cathedral, erected in 1560 by Ivan the Terrible to commemorate his victory over the Tartars. The czar was so enamored of the finished project that he poked out the eyes of the architect to prevent him from ever again creating something as beautiful.

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Below, a closer shot of St. Basil's signature domes. I love this shot because its bright colors and warmth are completely misleading, a proof that the camera doesn't always tell the truth. The weather was solidly overcast & chilly that day, very dreary conditions for picture taking. Despite it being cold enough to see my breath, I loitered in the same place for nearly a half hour waiting for a small break in the clouds to pass directly over the cathedral. This was the only real patch of blue sky I saw that day, and it lingered overhead for only a couple of precious minutes while I snapped a few shots off. Seeing this photograph always reminds me of the virtues of patience .