Across Russia to Japan and Malaysia - Part 2/12 (Kazan)

Our next stop was Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan. Kazan is a beautiful city and its Kremlin absolutely breathtaking.

Flag with the coat of arms of the Republic of Tatarstan.

In Kazan we stayed in the Hotel Guiseppe, which while not the cheapest hotel is highly recommended - a central location and excellent service.

 Peter next to the Kazan Cat monument on Bauman Street.

 Henry by the carriage of Empress Catherine II.

 Ladies strolling towards the Kazan Kremlin.

 Spasskaya Tower - the entrance to the Kremlin.

 The Kul Sharif mosque.

 The Söyembikä Tower - the leaning tower of Kazan.

A monument to the architects of the Kazan Kremlin.

A monument to the poet, Mussa Jalil.

After the sight-seeing, it was time to get something to eat and we headed off to Maximilian's Brauerei, where our Russian skills managed to get us four portions of sausages instead of two!

The restaurant where we had a very substantial meal.

One of the surprises on our trip was how little English is spoken in Russia, despite it being widely taught in school. Henry, of course, has studied some Russian, but it seems that the Russian he is taught and the Russian spoken in Russia are somewhat different.

Another difficulty was Henry's nut allergy, which meant that we had to be rather careful when choosing where to eat and what to eat. 

After our ample meal, we went for a post-prandial stroll to help the digestion. 

Russian cities are full of monuments and fountains, and Kazan is no exception - an example is given below.

One of the many fountains in Russia (complete with obligatory girl posing for a photo).

We would have liked to have spent a little longer in Kazan but we had to move on. Our next stretch was the two-day train journey to Novosibirsk.

 

Henry ready for the next stage of our trip. The stripy bag contains our provisions for the journey.

Russian long-distance trains come in four different categories, the highest category being named trains such as the Tolstoi or Tatarstan, which have the most modern rolling stock. The lowest category are trains with three-digit numbers such as this one which started in Adler, near Sochi, and travelled to Novosibirsk. Three-digit trains have older rolling stock and less modern facilities, but we found that they were in fact more comfortable. The slower pace made for a gentler rocking motion and made it much easier to sleep.

Each carriage has one or two carriage attendants ('provodnik'/provodnitsa'), who keep the place clean and make sure that all is as it should be. Our train had two young provodnitsa, who burst into nervous giggles whenever we approached them. We gave them the nickname of 'the sponge bobs' because of the T-shirt one of them wore while cleaning.

One of the best things about Russian long-distance travel is the samovar at the end of each carriage. This guarantees a supply of hot water for tea, coffee, soup, instant porridge and cup noodles. One of the favourites among Russian travellers seemed to be instant mashed potato.

 Novosibirsk - Adler.