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White Nights Article in New York Post
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White Nights Article in New York Post
Today, January, 6 2004, we have received the following letter:
"Hello! My name is Kevin Raub. I'm a travel journalist who used your services in Jan. 2003 for the Trans-Mongolian railway. I loved the help you all gave me, both in coordinating my ticket and accomodating my late request to be escorted to the airport! Anyway, my article on the trip has finally run in the New York Post and includes contact info for White Nights. I just wanted to let you know. It was in today's travel section"
White Nights: "Thank you, Kevin!"
"Going a long way for a vodka tonic"
COPYRIGHT New York Post.
Original article: NYP Travel: "Going a long way for a vodka tonic."
Training SIBERIA
Rail buff KEVIN RAUB unwinds on the Moscow-Mongolia run.
 April
EVERY Tuesday at almost midnight, one of the greatest train journeys in the world leaves without fanfare at Moscow’s Yaroslavski Station.
The Trans-Mongolian follows the same route as the Trans-Siberian and the Trans-Manchurian to Zaudinsky in Eastern Siberia. It then turns south and winds up in Beijing — April six days, six time zones and 4,728 miles later.
The train has no showers, no edible food, and tiny, four-man compartments are the norm. But for $330, it’s hard to complain.
The journey does include a lot of drinking. Shortly after sunrise on day two, as we passed charming dachas summer homes) in the heart of European Russia, a local fellow insisted fellow passengers imbibe shots of his country’s famous spirit.
It was a scene repeated throughout the trip.
The train, of course, makes stops, and you can stock up on provisions. I loved the pirozhki sold by elderly Russian ladies. Also being hawked were smoked fish, fresh bread, Russian beer and, of course, vodka.
The stops range from five to 20 minutes (except for two-hour stops at border crossings), and the train will leave without you.
Days flew by. As the startling Siberian countryside whizzed past, endless birches confirmed that this is one of the most isolated places on earth. At times, picturesque log cabin villages dotted the landscape.
When time dragged, I learned about new cultures. For example, the Chinese know zero about throwing a frisbee. The Chinese attendants tried their hearts out — but managed to launch a Frisbee backwards.
The Mongolians, in turn, are not pleased with unidentified flying objects.
And the Russians have no clue what “cold” is. In the middle of Siberia, on the shores of Lake Baikal, the deepest, oldest lake in the world, a young Russian was tearing into an ice cream cone.
But for the record, let it be known that ice cream followed with a shot of Stolichnaya in subzero temperatures is one of life’s most exhilarating experiences.
Get going! Arrange your trip by contacting White Nights tours at (916) 979-9381 or check out www.wnights.com.
COPYRIGHT New York Post.
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