Tim and Gem's Honeymoon Adventure: A quick stop in Irkutsk before our train to Tomsk October 14-16

After nearly a week in Olkhon Island we were bound for Irkutsk, with another bumpy, 5 hour mini bus ride to get us there. This time we knew what we were in for and it felt a little shorter coming back (as return trips generally do). The scenery was stunning with rolling hills, bright yellow pine trees and a scattering of snow covered fields.

We arrived to Irkutsk and found our hostel with out any problems. As soon as we walked in the door, the hostel owner Marina, told us we were in for a surprise - which in Russia, could mean anything!

The surprise being… that something was wrong with our room, and we couldn’t stay there.

But, the owner was quick to reiterate that we would in fact be staying in her apartment, and that she would drive us there! We weren’t sure if this meant she had a 2 bedroom place, or if we’d be staying on the outskirts of town. But grateful of an alternative, and slightly embarrassed that we were imposing.. we jumped in her car and were on our way to her place.

This petite, quietly spoken Russian dancer looked minuscule behind the wheel her oversized 4WD. But looks are deceiving, and it turns out she drove like Schumaker wearing 4inch heels, belting along the roads with no regard for speed limits!, It took us no time at all and we were at her apartment. She led us in to the building and opened her front door (which has a lock system similar to that of a fort knox) and the apartment was beautiful. A French inspired flat, complete with gramophone and chic French couches. She showed us everything, gave us the keys, and told us that we could use anything we wanted, and that she would be back the following evening to take us to the train station.. we were overwhelmed with her hospitality.

The apartment was too nice not to make the most of it, so we decided to get some supplies and make a home-cooked meal! After a wander around the shops we came back and filled the deep sunken bath and enjoyed a soak with a glass of red wine then made some home cooked pasta and watched a movie. Feeling very indulged, we climbed in to our king sized (and extremely comfortable) bed and caught up on some TV series we had missed. Followed by a deep and amazing sleep!

We slept in, and then decided we should go take a wander around the town. Irkutsk has a lot to offer the traveller with a fair few sights to see and things to do, we would’ve liked another day here to really appreciate and explore the city. We got in a minivan taxi/bus and for12rubles (about 35cents) we were at Central Market in 15 minutes.

Central Market is not very big, but it’s interesting and is a wonderland for fresh food. Majority of the stalls are people selling fresh vegetables and fruits and looked to be pretty cheap. There were also stalls selling warm wooly socks and gloves. Along one of the walls were all the cute old babushkas selling jars of home made jams, spreads and other pickled goodness.

We walked around aimlessly just enjoying watching the people at the market and on the streets for a couple of hours. Then eventually we deciding to head home and fix up our bags before Marina came and picked us up for the train station.

Marina came, we loaded up her car and we were headed for the station. Some fast, heart-stopping driving took place on the way to the station, and a double break down on one of Irkutsk’s three bridges meant a huge traffic jam disrupted our journey and we were close to missing our train. We made it to the station with not much time to spare, so Marina led the sprint (in her massive heels of course) to the ticketing area where the automated machine decided it didn’t want to give us the ticket we had brought online. So we lined up for the counter, watching the clock tick closer and closer to our trains departure time. I’m not sure what was said, but I am pretty sure Marina worked some magic as the lady behind the window didn’t look like she was going to give us tickets for some reason, but with some what seemed heated words from Marina, we were given our tickets! After a quick dash back to the car to collect our bags we only had a matter of minutes until our trains departure.

Down some stairs, up some stairs, with our clunking 20kg luggage, and we somehow made it to the platform as the steps of the train were being pulled up ready for departure. Luckily, the train guard saw us and pulled us up on to the train! We weren’t at the right carriage, but it didn’t matter we were on the train. Then another lady kindly led us all the way, through about 6 carriages to our carriage and our coupe, sweating, panting and ready to pass out. We made it, thankfully!