Several lifetimes ago I was a fledgling historian and I wrote my senior thesis about a group of Czechs and Slovaks who had been conscripted by the Germans and Austrians in World War I, captured by Tsarist White Russians, used to fight Red Russians, captured by Red Russians, revolted against the Reds, almost saved theRomanovs, then traveled east through Siberia to catch a boat to the US with a promise that, if they made it to all the way around the world to the Western Front, they would be granted an independent homeland. Yes, that's as simple as I could word that.
Their route looked something like this
I knew that would be my subject long before I even transferred to my beloved Cal, and thinking of my thesis, of such a big adventure, set the tone for much of my college experience. I had Socialist Realist recruitment posters plastered on the walls of my little studio, had an old Czech lady I knew translate all she could from memoirs of these guys and would tell everyone I could about how I would one day recreate their journey.
It really is an awesome story. Here's a website that does a better job of explaining it than I ever did http://www.czechlegion.com/TheCzechLegion/Introduction.html
Anyhoo, I'm turning 40 next year and I got this idea to celebrate it by taking the Trans-Siberian railway from St. Petersberg to Moscow to Ekaterinberg to Ulan Bataar to Beijing. My thought was to drop the boys off in England with Hubs' parents, run off to Russia then hop a flight back to London.
But then I was checking out a website and saw a picture of a woman with her daughter on a train... and my daydream changed. I want to go with ALL of my boys, and the little guys would have to be older, so now I'm thinking it would be awesome for my 45th(yeesh) birthday.
Here's the thing, I'm not an ambitious person. There are very few things in life that have made me go, "I must do this!" but I must do this. When I was in high school I thought, "I have to go to Prague!" then after I went I said, "I have to move to Prague!" And I did.
Without the certainty and hubris of youth, I gotta say this may be the same sort of deal. I need to take the Trans Siberian Railway.
That sounds awesome! How long is the train?
ReplyDeleteIt DOES sound awesome, doesn't it?
DeleteI think if you take the train straight through to Vladivostok it's around a week. The trip from St. Petersburg to Beijing, with stops along the way, takes about 3 weeks.