When we arrived at Nicholai’s homestay in Listvyanka on the shores of Lake Baikal we were met by the most enthusiastic and likable Russian, Nicholai himself. With very little English skills on his part and minimal Russian known to us we still managed to decide on a “banya” before dinner. We donned swimsuits and funny felt hats to protect our heads from the heat and went into the sauna. Nicholai added water to the stones and we stayed in as long as we could, cooled off slightly then went back in for more steam. The steam room is so hot but it feels good. Nicholai has us lay face down and he uses heated birch branches to massage our bodies vigorously. Outside for a breather then more of the same insisting that we flog ourselves with the branches while waiting (it smells so good). Then we jump into a cold pool and do it all over again. We loved it! We finish with Nicholai soaping us with a rough large sponge, rinsing with warm water then cold over our heads. Never slept better after a home cooked meal prepared by Olga and served by Nicolai. But the best was yet to come Russian blinis for breakfast!
Fed by over 300 rivers, 1637 m (over a mile) deep, the banana shaped Lake Baikal is breathtakingly beautiful. This is the world’s deepest and largest lake, larger than all the Great Lakes combined. It is over 20 million years old. It’s a chilly 9 degrees C or 49 degrees F today and even the Norwegians we met say they can’t swim in it. Our guide says Siberian swimming is running in, getting wet and running out. It freezes of course in the long Siberian winter and they actually have a marathon across it in March. It is home to the clearest waters and over 80% of it’s species of plants and animals are endemic including its star, a freshwater seal. The Circum-Baikal Rail we traveled on was hurriedly built to send soldiers to the Eastern Front during the Russo-Japanese war of 1904.
MORE NEW FRIENDS….While traveling on the Circum-Baikal Railroad today we met a couple from Belgium. They are both linguists (he speaks 3 languages and she speaks 6) and he works for the EU managing translation services and she is employed by Belgium as a translator. They are traveling the Trans Siberian Railway from Moscow to Vladivostok then taking the ferry to Japan via South Korea. They will complete their journey in 31 days. This trip has been on their bucket list for many years.
The Paris of Siberia, Irkutsk, (perhaps coined by Chekhov) is a vibrant college town, the capital of Siberia and lies halfway between Moscow and Vladivostok. In 1960 a meeting between Khrushchev and Eisenhower was scheduled to be held in this city to discuss easing Cold War tensions. In readiness a road was built to Lake Baikal, a residence and a fountain were also constructed to honor the American president. Then the U2 pilot, Gary Powers, was shot down and all was cancelled. Thirty years later Irkutsk was the site of a meeting between the American Secretary of State and the Russian foreign minister to end the Afghan war. This city served as an outpost for Russian expansion to the east and the claiming of “Russian America” (Alaska). A darker side of Irkutsk history is the home of “exiled dissidents” like the Decembrists, Trotsky and Polish scientists who flourished here after their exiles.
On to Moscow….