Trans-Mongolian Railway : Packing already? No, packed already!

Remember when I was packing for the Camino de Santiago? How my pack was 15.5 lb all up and I was finding creative ways to shave 0.1 lb off various things?

Yeah... that's not this trip at all!  LOL

Check it out:

What we have here is the 2-months-out version of me being packed for Russia.

At the top is the day pack. Big enough to comfortably contain a jacket and some sleep wear and spare underwear items- for the two red eye flights. Also some essentials... disinfecting wipes for the icky things that I might encounter, wet ones for me when I get all icky too, headlamp, Chapstick, watch, tiny packable bag, toothbrush, hairbrush and the like, camera, fish-eye lens, headphones, computer, phone and compatible cables. And of course passport, assorted travel docs and info, money, journal and pen.

It's entirely possible that this pack alone is more than I carried on Camino!

Then there are the checked luggage items;

Enough clothes to alleviate any discomfort at my complete and utter lack of knowledge regarding availability and regularity of laundry facilities on this trip. Of course I expect there to be ample opportunities to wash, but honestly if it came down to a choice between doing laundry and seeing Red Square or Lake Baikal or hiking up a dune in the Gobi Desert, I'm not going to pick laundry - I'd rather wear smelly clothes!

The main suitcase therefore contains 4 t-shirts and 4 long-sleeved tops, 3 pairs of pants and some yoga tights, a weeks worth of underwear, 2 sweatshirts, down jacket and vest, rain jacket. I threw in a skort too... but will probably take it out again soon. Miscellaneous items include buff, hat, gloves, waterproof pants and a travel towel. Sometimes I think I will take out the gloves and hat... I'm on the fence still.

Shoes: Sneaker of course. There are many days of sightseeing ahead and if I'm not taking care of my feet, then who is? They will be paired with merino socks at all times. I'm packing a pair of slip on black flats too, for... I dunno, going out for dinner or those days I need to recapture a little girlish charm. And last but not least some black patent heels to rock the Bolshoi for Swan Lake ballet in Moscow. I'll break out my little black dress and crimson cashmere wrap for that occasion if nothing else.

You might be surprised to learn that all this fits into a carry-on sized suitcase.  The plan is that we'll be checking it all the way through from Denver to Moscow so we don't need to collect it at JFK and tow it around Manhattan all day.

So that's it. I'm super excited for our trip that begins September 18th.

I'm hoping to have practiced blogging a little more from this here new Chromebook so to have the picture editing, saving and inserting, done to an art by then. It might be the one skill I really use during our month away, since my the plan is really to unplug from this life and fully engage in the life of a tourist, adventurer and traveler... and keep a diary the whole way.

Trans-Mongolian Railway Trip : OMG. OMG. OMG!!!

The FedEx truck pulled up outside the house and I watched the chappie disembark from my office window. Normally he rings the doorbell then leaves a package on the doorstep and I don't bother to even go to the door. After all, it's probably airplane bits for Mark and it's only fun for me if I get to open the packets!

Today however, the doorbell chimed and the guy stayed standing at the door, so I made the effort to walk 15 feet down the hall and greet him.

OMG! The second he asked me to sign and I saw both Mark's and my names on the envelope I knew exactly what was happening. We were getting our passports back... with visas. For China and Russia!

This just got real.

Last night on a hike in the near dark, we were just discussing how long it might be before the visa's were ours. Today is July 18th. Exactly 2 months to departure.

I can barely contain myself. Yep, tears of joy and excitement are with me right now. I'm that person.

I know what you are thinking! Seriously not happy in that photo, is she?!

Picture requirements are weird and strict for Russia and China.
Russia absolutely doesn't allow smiling of any kind. If you are not looking grim and unhappy, you will not be allowed to apply for a visa. No exemptions!
China likes ears. All hair needs to be pulled back to expose your ears.... not even a wisp is allowed. And definitely... definitely no earrings, as they hide your lobes. LOL

Don't worry, now that we have visa's in hand, we are all smiles again. :-)

Trans-Mongolian Railway : Proposed Itinerary

Want to hear what our rough plans are?

I will be blogging most of the way although internet and time will definitely be a factor as far as keeping up the posts regularly.

This is the plan so far:

Denver to NYC - running about like headless chickens to see some of the wonders of an iconic American city for just a day! Mark has never been and I confess it must have been almost 10 years since I spent any time there.

NYC to Moscow - We have 3 days here. Day one will end at the Bolshoi Theatre for Swan Lake by the Russian Ballet... a little Tchaikovsky to put us to sleep after a long couple of travel days!  We'll fill the rest of the time with legendary Russian food and sights that surround Red Square etc. There is much to see and apparently if you dig deeper, Moscow is foodie heaven.

Moscow to Irkutsk - A 75 hour train ride in (fingers crossed) a first class compartment! Time to read and blog and rest after days of burning the candle at both ends. I'll give you a tour when we are safely on board.

Irkutsk - We have 3 days off the train here. The goal is to get to Lake Baikal and hike that area. 

Irkutsk to Ulan Bataar - The leg of the train journey is only about 27 hours.

Ulan Bataar - the capital city of Mongolia. We are in Mongolia for 7 days and have booked a tour for 4 of them. Outer Mongolia awaits. We plan on hitting the Gobi Desert to horse and camel ride, climb dunes and stay in local guest house accommodation. Both internet and showers are apparently going to be scarce.

Ulan Bataar to Beijing - another train ride of about 35 hours and the infamous Mongolia-China border crossing!

We have 11 days in China. It will be non-stop in order to explore a bustling Beijing, hike the Great Wall, visit a water town, admire the Terracotta Warriors, cruise the Li River and marvel at the the amazing Karst Mountains. I could not be more excited!

In early 2018... Dust be gone!

 Not sure I mentioned this but post-construction, I was wrecked. Months of working hard in real estate, making thousands of decisions and spending more money than I'd really ever seen left me feeling physically, mentally and emotionally spent.

We moved in, built furniture, hung window treatments, organized and arranged, cleaned and cleaned and cleaned up again the dust and filth that got tracked in the house by sweet selves and pets from the mud-pit we called "front and back yards". We took little weekend trips away but always returned with joy - and dread - to the project that still needed doing.

Then January 2018 rolled around and I found I had the inspiration and energy to work on the landscaping once again. It's one of my happy places and as we suddenly lost my beloved Smokey Joe to cancer, I threw myself (escaped) into the yard to release grief, create beauty and lose myself in something that symbolized new life in many ways.

Finding the ol' river bed was a mission in itself. Digging it back out from packed construction debris and dirt was harder than I thought it would be!

With the idea of hiring a rototilling guy to loosen the dirt in prep for amending and installing sprinklers, I first had to clear the yard of "stuff that isnt dirt". Then along came this chap... I just love him!

After the first rototilling event, I had healthy composty soil delivered and we spread it. Rototilling commenced again! 

Next came Jeff and his nephew, Nick. They had one of the harder jobs... first the sprinkler system, then the fountain (God bless them for this!!!) and finally the sod.

As for the 1200lb fountain kit.... Yeah, I may have underestimated the planning and execution of that!

It took 4 engineering minds to figure out how to install it. NEVER AGAIN!

The miracle of 2017-2018 was that I didn't develop a drinking problem. Perhaps in no small part in thanks to my tight budget?

What difference day makes, eh?!

From here on out it did seem easier, I admit. 

Even the 'yet-to-be-planted' front yard was looking more special. But for sure, the time had come to put more effort into that too...