Moscow time I had forgotten about that. Very disconcerting when the dining car serves breakfast in the middle of the afternoon.
Sylvia and I kept separate watches - one on local time and the other on Moscow time. (We also had another with Sydney time just so we could keep orientated for contact with family).
Moscow time Hi John & Sylvia, Yes - we've never had so many devices set on so many different time zones throughout the world. Even then it became confusing so, eventually went with the old body clock method .... if you're hungry - eat. If you're sleepy - have a nap. Seemed to work just fine after that. :) J xx
Fun reading your account is so excellent not quite being there but comes damn close. What a wonderful trip so far pleased all is going well - no more cold beers for you Jan
Fun Hi Glenn & Bon, This has got to be one of the most fantastic experiences we will ever have. Definitely an A-lister. Worth waiting all those years before being able to do it. Hard to pick just one highlight - impossible. Travelling is a great experience in itself but, it's being able to share those experiences with your travelling companions that only adds to your enjoyment of all that you are seeing and doing and we do have a great group on this trip - like all of our Intrepid experiences. Great to hear from you and enjoy your own upcoming holiday Thinking of you. Lots of love, J & T xxxx
You do get around! Hi Cindy, Yes, the changing of the gauges was an experience in itself. Interesting to see how it is done. Back in Oz, we'd just change trains. :) Thanks for dropping in - always love to hear from you . J xx
Jan, Ted and Jenns Marvelous Adventure Thanks Mike, you would love this trip. We miss our usual travelling companions but do have a great group this time around as well. Must be the Intrepid thing. :) Once again, Ted and I are the Mum & Dad in our group but still managing to keep up with the more youthful. They haven't left us behind yet. :) Great to hear from you. Love to you and Cindy. Love J, J & T. xxx
From Narvik Great reading your blog. We are having enough trouble with the motel rooms being too hot, don't think I'd cope well with your heat. Pleased you had an early morni g/late night too - we had the opposite going to North Cape to see the midnight sun, then leaving at 5.30 am to catch the Hurtigruten. Glad we didn't do the whole trip on that ship as we have heard some good and more bad remarks on the trip. In Narvik tonight, been seeing some beautiful scenery with greenery, mostly red homes, blue fjords and snow on the mountains. Gotta sleep, this almost 24 hours of daylight is very tiring. Was gunna send you a photo of us with Santa but they wasnted too much! Love to you all Mal & Ron
From Narvik Hi Mal & Ron, Yes, we have had some very hot days and, like you, are now experiencing the long days of sunlight and daylight hours. Seemed weird having the sun set at 10pm. and not getting dark until around 11pm. Consequently a definite lack of sleep whilst trying to get your head around going to bed while the sun is still up. Weird .... :) Sorry for the delay in responding. Have just crossed Siberia and 5 time zones in Russia (1 more to go) the last 3 days and, as everything runs on Moscow time - didn't know where we were (as everything was in Russian), what time it was, whether we were on Moscow time or local time (whatever that was) was it lunch time, bedtime (can't be that as the sun is still up). Thank heavens for my laptop - at least then we knew what day it was so, that was something. What a hoot! :) Hope you are now getting some cooler weather as we are heading that way soon. :) Love, Jan, Ted & Jen xxx
From Narvik Hi Mal & Ron, Yes, we have had some very hot days and, like you, are now experiencing the long days of sunlight and daylight hours. Seemed weird having the sun set at 10pm. and not getting dark until around 11pm. Consequently a definite lack of sleep whilst trying to get your head around going to bed while the sun is still up. Weird .... :) Sorry for the delay in responding. Have just crossed Siberia and 5 time zones in Russia (1 more to go) the last 3 days and, as everything runs on Moscow time - didn't know where we were (as everything was in Russian), what time it was, whether we were on Moscow time or local time (whatever that was) was it lunch time, bedtime (can't be that as the sun is still up). Thank heavens for my laptop - at least then we knew what day it was so, that was something. What a hoot! :) Hope you are now getting some cooler weather as we are heading that way soon. :) Love, Jan, Ted & Jen xxx
Exhausted Im exhausted already as you start your wonderful trip so far things have gone well and im sure the experience will continue.Good luck for your further edventures
Exhausted Hi Glenn & Bon,
Yes, sometimes just getting to the "jumping-off" point for a holiday can be a bit of a marathon but, you know it will be worth it all when you actually get there. Had a quiet day the following day after our arrival in Beijing which helped us recharge a little before our big adventure started. Thanks for dropping in and leaving a comment. We do enjoy getting them. :) Lots of love, J & T xxx
I like the perspective of this blog .... Hi Bob & Linda,
Thank you ..... I wanted a lead-in to our forthcoming adventure and thought that this would be a novel approach. This is a trip that we have wanted to do for so long that it had become a bit like an old friend waiting patiently, the thought of it has been around for so long. But, like a lot of things, the timing had never been quite right until now. Really enjoyed your accounts of your recent trip to South America. Brought back a lot of memories as we were over much of your territory back in 2010. Machu Picchu, particularly, is a very special place. Great to hear from you. Jan
Lucky you Sylvia and I did the Trans-Mongolian trip in 2008. Wonderful adventure. There were only four people in our group so it was like having a personal tour guide for the whole trip. Hope you enjoy it too. Be prepared for a loooong wait at the Mongolia/Russia border. It was almost 12 hours for us.
Lucky you Hi John & Sylvia,
Yes, we are lucky enough to have a great crowd in our group. All of us clicked right from the start. Mostly Aussies but also a guy from Britain and a gal from Germany. 12 of us altogether. Have heard that these border crossings can be somewhat lengthy. Need lots of patience. :) Thanks for dropping in and saying hi. Jan
Trans Siberia Hi Gary & Linda,
Many thanks. Hopefully, we should have some interesting tales to tell as we go along. I think this trip will be one of those that stand alone. How do you compare with anything else, what is about to unfold? Great to hear from you and thanks for your comments. Jan
Inspiring me to take a staycation Travelling within Aus is becoming more appealing reading all these stay at home blogs - I could smell the gum leaves, clean mountain air and mist reading this - thanks Jan :)
Inspiring me to take a staycation Hi Cindy, Yes, I think we do sometimes overlook what we have in our own backyard, so to speak, when it's so easy to become focused on other exotic overseas destinations. Thank you for your kind comments. We did have a great week down there. Always great to hear from you too. Jan xx
..... of Mountain Men etc Hi Dave & Merry Jo,
It certainly does. Best time if the day. The photo doesn't really do the scene justice as, the sunrise had just broken through a heavy rainstorm which did look quite spectacular however, the scene is still quite effective. Thanks for dropping in. J xx
Sydney Hi Dave & Merry Jo,
Thank you ... we are fortunate to live on one of the most beautiful harbours in the world. Lots of photo opportunities :) The "boat" on the extreme right is a RiverCat which is what we often take when we travel into the city along the Parramatta River which takes us right into the harbour. Beautiful scenery all the way and much nicer than the train. The other boat is one of the many ferries you will see on our harbour. J xx
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Addictions come in many forms. For us – it’s always been travel. Whether it be a week here and there holidaying in Oz with family or travelling the world to far-flung and exotic places.
We have been very fortunate to have visited many countries throughout the world as well as also having seen much of Australia by trains, planes and automobiles (and also motorhome) but, still lots more to see. We haven’t even scratched the surface of this vast, magnificent country of ours.
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John and Sylvia
John Wallace & Sylvia Bowman Wallace
Moscow time
I had forgotten about that. Very disconcerting when the dining car serves breakfast in the middle of the afternoon. Sylvia and I kept separate watches - one on local time and the other on Moscow time. (We also had another with Sydney time just so we could keep orientated for contact with family).