We arrived in Irkstuk after our marathon train journey looking a little worse for wear due to the lack of showering and requiring a decent night sleep. Sue insists I mention her hair was stuck to her head - I can't argue, it was.
We were split up once we arrived according to our tour selections. Sue, myself, Paul and Sarah (the english couple) going off to a Russian village on the edge of the lake to do a softies trek and Anthony, Kala and Nick (the english student) off to the Fishermen's village - we haven't seen them since so we are not sure what their stay entailed.
Our trip we were joined by 3 Australian ladies - they had misunderstood the time the train was getting in to Irkstuk and were rushed off the train at the station practically still in their PJ's.
Comment by Sue - These Australian ladies are middle aged divorcees, fantastically fit, energetic, good fun and have travelled hard and rough. If anyone has read the book the YA YA sisters and my mothers friends in SA will appreciate this but they reminded me of them. The conversations went along the same lines.....
We arrived all smelly and tired at our Russian home stay where our Hostess Rita had prepared a divine meal for us - let's just say I could have a seperate paragraph for each meal we had - all were yummy, all were 3 courses and yes it's amazing I can still fit into my trousers.
After brunch our tour guide (we never did get his name) took us on a walking tour of the village and took us to the museum - it was quite interesting and we got to see some fresh water seals. He then asked if we wanted to walk to a viewpoint to get some pictures of the Lake - we all agreed, but 10 minutes into the walk Sue had nicknamed the guy Satan - the track was all uphill (one smart Australian lady had opted to stay behind) - we were all wearing WAY too many clothes for a hike up the moutainside so there was lots of clothes removal - and not in an exciting way. The view was lovely...
We headed back down for a Banya (Russian sauna) - for those of you who are wondering - there are no showers only the Banya and yes the loos are all outdoors as well.
We all had a chance to Banya - which essentailly means going into a very hot room and then using a buckets of cold water to wash - I got more shampoo in my eyes than on my head that's for sure. Still it was nice to have some sort of shower after the train! Sue's hair was once again bouncy - so she was a happy camper...
Next day our guide Sasha started off by saying there was no such thing as a softies trek - he was not kidding, we hiked up and down hillsides all morning - walking sticks were fashioned out of branches just so we could get down the slippery, leaf covered slopes we found ourselves on. It was very exciting and by the time we stopped for lunch on the edge of Lake Baikall we were all ready for a break.
I know I wasn't going to mention food again but for lunch Sasha whipped out pots (for tea and mash), a saw (for the wood of course), sausages, oranges, chocolate, salami (of course), cheese, pancakes - and I am sure I have forgotten something - probably bread - we ate like kings.
After lunch we hiked back again - the secenery was awesome and I took LOTS of photo's - earning me the nickname 'click-click' for the rest of the day.
On the way back we stopped at the tourist market, the tourist information and for a coffee - which turned into 2 bottles of wine before we staggered back to the house for dinner - which at one stage involved a statue of David apron and purple underwear and another two bottles of wine - really I'm not going in to any details.
Next day we had a late start, shopped for souveniers, tried to go on the internet (not working in both places) and post some postcards (they ran out of stamps - don't mention it to Sue she starts to twitch). Admitting defeat we headed for a coffee and a boat trip around the lake - not the warmest experience I've ever had, but we still all ran around the boat like mad tourists taking photo's of everything that moved or didn't.
After the boat ride it was once again back to the house for another meal and another Banya!
The following day we finished our home stay and transferred back to Irkstuk - where we had opted to stay in a Hotel instead of another Home stay - say what you like but I have never been happier to see a shower - although I can see that being a feature of this holiday.
Gareth - add Borscht, Omul fish, russian dumplings, Siberain soup onto the list of different foods experienced.
