Nigel: So leaving Yekaterinburg on the train was the start of the longest train journey so far and likely ever to be. 57 hours stuck on the train and our only time to get fresh air was when the train stopped at the station long enough for us to get out. Even then we didn't venture too far in fear of the train going without us and our walk consisted of going from one end of the carriage to the other and back again. The journey also marked the crossing point of Europe and Asia.

We were apprehensive of who we would get in our compartment, as we had heard some horror stories and getting someone good or bad could potentially make or break the journey. As luck had it, we got the friendliest people you could ever ask for and fortunate again, they were going to the same place as us which meant that we could relax knowing no one else would be getting on. Their names were Nina and Igor and they lived about 40km outside Yekaterinburg. There English was not the best but they could understand some words and speak a little English. They also had the internet so they were able to translate questions (when it translated it correctly!). Another tough task was working out what quantity of food and drink we would require for the journey. We wanted to try and get enough food as we knew that even though you could buy items at the main stops, they would be inflated prices and we would be limited in what we could get. Alison will tell you more about this.

You would think you would get bored being on the train for nearly 3 days with your only connection with the outside world being when stopping at stations but in reality, it isn't that boring. Even though our days would consist of sleeping, reading, eating, viewing out the window, and even more viewing, the days didn't drag at all. You also get the sense that not every day you ride the Trans-Siberia, so enjoy every moment.

Alison: As Nigel said, Nina and Igor were really nice people and they really made the journey for us. As with the other train from Moscow to Yekaterinburg, it was again quite awkward when we first all sat down together at the start of the journey but the ice was broken when a lady from the restaurant cart came to take the order for our meal (unlike all the other trans-siberian trains we were going on, this one includes lunch in the price of the ticket) and Nina kindly translated fish or chicken. After that, we began to start to chat and stumble through a conversation in the usual actions and hand movements way. Sometimes it can be a bit uncomfortable when either you or the other person you are trying to talk to doesn't understand what you are trying to say but it wasn't the case this time. We/they would try to get their message across for a little while and if it wasn't working then we would all just look blank for a few seconds and then laugh and shake our heads. We were able to translate a little on the internet but the signal wasn't good unless you were at a station so when we were out of range, more complex conversation would promptly stop and we would laugh and say 'next station' before doing a bit more scenery viewing or returning to easier things like looking at maps of our routes together or discussing food or the weather. Nina even showed us all of the pictures from her daughters recent wedding! This might be some peoples idea of hell but it was really nice that she was so warm and friendly and felt she could share personal things with us. Nigel decided to show them some of our pictures. Firstly he showed them a picture of our old house in Subiaco (fair enough) and then he showed them a picture of a golf ball that he managed to get stuck in the tree whilst playing. The house I can understand but after Nina sharing such personal pictures, I have no idea why he thought they would be interested in a golf ball in a tree! Apparently it is a tricky thing to do. Boys eh!

Despite having lunch provided to us every day (traditional Russian beetroot soup called borsch to start and chicken with rice for main for all 3 lunches!) we also stocked up on food for the journey prior to boarding the train. We weren't really sure what food to take as we didn't know how long things would keep on the train so we went for the safe option - pot noodles, crisps, bread, jam, caramel wafers and croissants. We were very ashamed of our food when we saw what Nina and Igor had....they had a huge bag of fresh fruit and veg, sausage,cheese and home-made bread. We had heard that Russian people will often share their food with you on the train but we were blown away by how generous they were! They were serving us melon, dragon fruit, freshly prepared salads with bread, cheese and sausage.We tried leaving the cabin when they were starting to prepare food in case they felt obliged to share it with us but Nina would come and get us and insist on giving us food. It was all a bit embarrassing trying to share our stuff with them. They had a couple of wafers but we couldn't tempt them to any jammy bread or crisps!

We didn't arrive at our next destination Irkutsk until the evening and we were a bit worried about finding our hotel. Luckily Nina and Igor's hotel was not far from ours and they were walking to theirs too. We all headed off together and then the heavens opened! We quickly said our goodbyes when we got close to the hotel and they pointed us in the right direction but it was now dark and we were wandering around for awhile looking before we spotted it. Someone was definitely looking down on us (and google maps helps!) because it was another situation where we could easily have been walking around for hours. I was definitely glad that my Mum had made me buy a sensible pair of shoes for the trip that night!