I cooked in Irkutsk
Trip Start
Feb 14, 2009
1
5
8
Trip End
Mar 06, 2009
Irkutsk,
Siberia,
Russian Federation
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
23rd - 25th February
We only paid for dorm beds (we're on a tight budget - moving to a recession ridden country to look for work might not have been our smartest move to date) - we were the only ones staying in the Hostel so he said it didn't matter. We braved the snow in search of an ATM, internet & dinner. We ended up going to a British pub which was attached to a nice hotel. Being MAN'S DAY I got a present from them. Gotta love Russia.
After dinner we went back to the hostel, drank lots of vodka, ate lots of noodles and watched lots of Entourage. The next day was more of the same, in fact Milli didn't go outside once. I left to go to the train station so we could get our tickets for the trip to Moscow the next day. As there didn't seem to be a tram coming (Hello Melbourne) I walked the 2 km round trip. There was so much fog I could barely see 5 metres in front of me. When I crossed the bridge over the river I could just make out the giant patches of ice floating down stream.
Leonid, his wife & 4 year old son Nikita came over the next night so they could see Leonid's new inflatable raft. Nikita instantly took a liking to my MacBook, iPod touch and camera. He took most of the photos that night, except for the ones where he is posing like a model. Fun kid but I was worn out after an hour (Leonid seemed pretty happy about the free baby sitting) so I'll stick to my childless existence for a bit longer thanks.
Milli says:
I thought Leonid's hostel was new but that, coupled with the fact it was low season, meant we were the only people staying there. And Leonid lives half an hour away. So he gave us the big good double room for the price of the dorm which was really nice (though leaving us with the apartment to ourselves he probably thought we'd sleep there anyway!) and he left us saying he would be back for beers later.
We went for a wander and it was VERY cold. We found the internet which was good as it was the only place we'd found for a while, and after that it would be the train for four days so nothing there. Tried to email dad but the time ran out and it was quite expensive. Leonid had told us about 'Man's day' so we weren't surprised when at the English Pub the meet and greet lady there gave Shane a present of a beer glass. Its all about the man! (Shane was loving it to the Nth degree). I asked for sauce with my chips and got tomato paste, and it cost about two dollars. Wont do that again! Russians love their sour cream so I should have asked for that. Found the supermarket and bought up big as we wanted to eat cheap and also use the apartment we had at our disposal!
Back at our room we did eat and watch TV shows etc, but I let me Hollywood influence take me over and started getting freaked out at being the only ones in the apartment - and expecting a maniac with a mask on to call us or smash through the doors. Admittedly there was fantastic spy type security on the doors but then that's why Leonid would be perfect and an obvious choice for the stalking and murders!!
I was convinced. There were some unknown people running around in the apartment above (probably children), and the light fixture jingled every time. I drank more beer and vodka and tried to forget about our impending doom.
I did feel a little silly when Leonid did come back with some local beer, as well as his wife and child. They were super sweet and Nikita was adorable. He confused Shane by going up with his hand out and Shane thought he wanted to try some of Shanes beer. He looked over to see if this was ok or not with Leonid but Leonid then explained Nikita was just going up to shake hands and say hello.....wow, Australia really is uncultured....
Leonid kindly dropped as at the train station the next day too so we definitely have to give him and his hostel good feedback!!
While in Irkutsk I was able to read a fantastic book but I know I'll have to get back into War and Peace which is almost as long as the train trip!
***** 21st March 09 *****
Shane says - just found this article in the age
Eaten by her friend after a drink and a fight
- March 17, 2009
A woman from Russia's Siberian region of Irkutsk has been
arrested for killing a friend then eating part of the corpse, Interfax
news agency reports.
The attack occurred on March 5 when
the two women were drinking together at the suspect's home and an
argument broke out between them.
"Investigators
have information to suggest the woman cooked pieces of her murdered
friend and ate them," said an official with the Russian prosecutor's
investigative committee, Vladimir Salovarov.
He
added that the perpetrator killed her friend with an axe and that
uneaten parts of the victim's body had been found in a nearby waste
bin.
The detained woman had confessed her guilt, he said.
In
a separate case, prosecutors in Russia's Udmurtiya region said last
week they were searching for a man suspected of cannibalism after the
mutilated body of a woman was found in the town of Izhevsk.
AFP
