In no apparent hurry, our train creeps along its tracks towards the city of
Chita, our next stop. It's been over thirty hours since we left the Birobidzhan
station. We encountered none of the expected problems getting our tickets out of
town, although there were two policemen dressed in Gestapo-like leather jackets
and boots patrolling the station. They seemed to be constantly looking our way.
Just curious, I guess, or maybe we were a bit paranoid.The train is by far the most comfortable way to get around Russia. It certainly beats the cab of a truck and most of Aeroflot flights I have been on. At some point we hope to devote a whole story to train travel but not on this leg of our journey. This is the first break we have had since I met Lisa in St. Petersburg back in late August. We plan to sleep and read and hopefully sleep some more. One minor milestone to note: somewhere along our way tonight we will cross the first of the seven time zones that separate us from Moscow.
