A day in the frantic, bustling (and smoggy) capital of China – Beijing – today. With a pollution warning of ‘high’ today, we took the complimentary face masks out with us for the day. How many other hotels in the
Day 22 – Beijing
Day 20/21 – Train to Beijing
Another day on the train today. We left the hotel around 6am for a 7.30am departure from Ulan Bator. The route took us through the Gobi Desert and while a remote and desolate landscape, it nevertheless had a raw beauty
Day 19 – Ulan Bataar
At last, a day off! The relentless pace of the trip has slowed slightly today as we have a day completely to ourselves in Ulan Bataar. For the morning we decided to have another wander around the Gandan Monastery. It
Day 10 – Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg is famous for two things. Which one is more significant, I will leave you to judge! We arrived there on the train after lunch today having crossed the Ural Mountains. Yekaterinburg is the fourth largest city in Russia with
Day 9 – Vladimir and Suzdal
Slightly bizarrely we spent the first part of the trip heading off to the east, stopping for a couple of hours at Novgorod and then heading all the way back west again! So, when we woke up in the morning
Day 8 – Moscow
A particularly exciting day today as we saw Vladimir Putin. Well actually we didn’t, but our guide was fairly cyonvinced that he was in one of the line of 15 or so blacked-out Mercedes which streamed last us as we
Day 6/7 – Overnight to Moscow
At 16.05 we boarded the Polonez sleeper train at Warsaw Central Station. We had a compartment between us with a wash basin (under the table) but it was very comfortable for two. Initially it was all a little fraught and
Day 6 – Warsaw
Poland has seen a lot of conflict over the years, not least during the Second World War. The Warsaw Uprising in the summer of 1944 was led by the Polish Underground Resistance to try and free Poland from the German
Day 5 – Berlin to Warsaw
Another day on the train today. We were split into two groups this morning and the first group drew the short straw – a 4.30am start. Our start was much more leisurely – we left the hotel at 8.45am for
Day 4 – Berlin
If ever there was a city which made the case for not building a wall, then that city is Berlin. Today we had a full day in Berlin and they laid on a city tour for us. A prompt start