Day 12 - Friday 10 March into East Russia ~ Train Day 6 ...... continued
Get back to our compartment and find we have our 3rd new room-mate, a 26 year old Russian naval officer old called Anatoly, he's a good looking extremely fit young man and Rosie didn't mind at all!
He speaks almost no English but we learn he is a 2nd Lieutenant based at the moment in Vladivostok but comes from inland eastern Russia. We are all fascinated how he appears to just with one bound get up or down from the upper bunk, he smiles when he realises we are watching in amazement. Mostly he sleeps for the 36 hours or so before we reach Vlad, but does try to join in with us at odd moments, especially when there is a phone signal and translators can be used.
Yesterday one of the two car toilets was blocked, but Helena was quickly on to it and called in a maintenance man from another car. Today it blocked again, this time along a bucket of water, a plunger and a what appeared to be a pink hot water bottle with a hose attached? were used, it didn't block again.
Helena is starting to look very tired, and says to us "sleep, I need sleep". It's no wonder as she is into day 6 of a more or less 24 hour a day job, and boy this woman works hard.
We have made a dinner date with Sharon the traveller and travel writer from New York City, we are meeting up in the restaurant car at 6pm. We spend 2+ hours over dinner, Sharon is fascinating to us all as we are all frequent travellers. She answers questions about her life in travel and writing, and if I have it right broadcasting too. Ruth asks almost as many questions as I do, this lady is very good company. We mention AU to her, she notes it down for future research.
Toward the end of the meal Dimitri and Maxim arrive back in the restaurant car for a few more beers, another couple of Russian men come in a few minutes later, it's starting to get busy and sees the staff animated at last. D and M have a young girl with them, about 10 years old, she is the daughter of a friend of theirs from Chita and she wants to meet the English speaking people she has heard about.
Sharon soon leaves us, she writes up notes at the end of her day and is always awake before daybreak, so it's early to bed for her. As Sharon leaves so a tall slim young lady with a big smile arrives, it later turns out to be Anastasia the 10 year old's mum. Now this really did happen.
She walks straight up to our booth - 'Nastasia is sitting between Rosie and I - she slides onto the end of the seat next to me, puts her arm around me, even bigger smile and Dimitri takes a photo of the 4 of us, I really thought my luck had changed but who is she?
They are all friends from Chita and she is a Firefighter going to Vladivostok to treat Nastasia to a water park at the coast, just hope it was indoors. This charming happy lady is the best looking Firefighter I've ever seen.
We all talk in the now familiar fragmented way and the good evening just gets better, train life can be so special. Nastasia is Harry Potter crazy and loves talking to Rosie (Rosie was a Primary teacher for more than 30 years and has a way with children). She calls Harry Potter 'Gary Potter' and after a couple of attempts to correct her Rosie knows better and also renames Harry. Nastasia is also a very good English speaker for her age, she can't get enough of hearing Rosie talk. Nastasia became the unofficial train translator.
Our Chita friends with Rosie and Ruth
After an hour or so we 3 are ready to leave, they have our phone numbers and we have theirs. We pay and bid our farewell to the restaurant car crew as it's the last time we'll eat there, and shake hands all round. I also shake the hand of the 2 unknown Russian men who have been sitting there drinking... mistake.
One is a bear of a man and invites me to drink with them, I explain that it's important to accompany Rosie and Ruth back to our car. The second man is bigger than the bear, has the sort of chiselled features the Soviets would have used on the heroic sculptures they created of strong men leading the way forward, and a handshake that could do serious damage.
We escape and get back to our compartment. Sit there chatting a little and the bear comes along, as usual our door is open, decides he will invite himself in and sits on a lower bed. I explain in German as that appears to be his best 2nd language that we are all off to sleep and although he is welcome we are all tired especially the ladies. Nope, that doesn't work, a drunk that doesn't look like he is drunk.
I ask if he will talk with me in the corridor, just so Rosie and Ruth don't have to cope with him. Ruth who can be feisty tells him to leave too and that does it. We gravitate down to the end of the car away from sleeping people and he sees Helena's open door, in he goes, this is getting worse as I look like his accomplice. 2 minutes later Helena orders him out and he goes, I say sorry and she scowls.
We stand in the doorway between cars and he produces from somewhere on his person 3 cans of beer, he thrusts one at me and says "drink". Really don't want to drink but take the can not opening it, this is not feeling like a good situation as the only real help in this car is Helena at 4' 11".
He explains he is an Army Colonel coming from Chita and going to a city a 1/2 day before Vladivostok. It's either his home or where he is based. He glowers and growls a lot because I wont drink, so it's open the can to appease him. He has pulled out a Russian Army tee shirt and says it's for me, then pulls the tab on one of his cans of beer and downs the contents on one go, wipes his face and says "I'm a man". Within seconds does exactly the same with the second can, now "I'm a real man", oh dear.
I start to sip very slowly and attempt a little humour, can't find a way out of this situation. Saying 'I'm not much of a man' falls on deaf ears and he's getting louder. Helena comes out and shouts at us to keep quiet but she didn't have the answer of how to get rid of him.
He's watching if I am drinking all the beer, then says in very good English in a low growl, " it would be very easy to kill you ", at this point I'm watching him closely and paying a lot of attention to what he says and does. No longer sure if this man is very drunk, angry or just lonely but didn't want to hang around to find out. Said I have to pee which he thought was reasonable, he stepped aside as the toilets are at the other end of the car. Thought of diving into our compartment on the way through but thought it could then involve the girls, bad idea. Longer time in the bathroom than needed and hope he has got bored, tired or wandered off as drunks do, great he's gone, phew.
Walk smartly down the corridor and almost there, he comes out blocking the corridor, between me and our compartment. He's holding his uniform jacket with lots of insignia all over it, points at a patch and says, "Russian Army", I nod and think will this ever end. He then rips the velcro'd insignia from the arm and gives it to me "Russian Army good!", I nod and mutter "very good" and think please don't insist I take it but of course he does. I tell him I'll treasure it and plan to hand it back in the morning. Can I be arrested for having a part of a serving Russian Colonels uniform? but that is less important than finding the escape route which he supplies. He needs to pee too which is no surprise. He goes one way and I dive into our compartment, lock the door and sit there waiting to see if he gets the idea, and yes he's gone.
Unfortunately the above is all true.
