THE TRANS-SIBERIAN RAILWAY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13925, 5 December 1908, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE TRANS-SIBERIAN RAILWAY.

No. 11.

BY O. W. S. PATTERSON.

From Baikal and Irkutsk the ■ traveller settles down, in surroundings no less comfortable than hitherto, to seven days' uninterrupted, peaceful journeying, and excepting the novelty of criticising daily the nomads and natives at the various watering places and stations, one might almost imagino himself on an ocean-going steamer, so regular and systematic is the daily routine of the life. Only, it is never monotonous. Some famous bridges are passed before the Ural Mountains are readied, notably those spanning the Volga at Samara, and others over the rivers Yenesei, Obi, and Irtisch. If the passage is made in the summer season, the country is not unlike the South African veldt, excepting the fact that the rolling contour of the steppes is frequently broken by vast forests of silver birch, and here and there thickets of larch and other indigenous trees. In winter, of course, the landscape is blotted out by an all-enveloping mantle of snow. The Alexandra bridge over the Volga is a marvel of engineering skill, and the scenery, as the train rushes along the river bank for a couple of hours before crossing, is unimaginably fine. Here, also, to descend from the sublime to the practical, the passenger, if he is lucky, will find on the menu card, the item, fresh cavaiare, or sturgeon's roe, and it is well worth coming across Siberia to taste it. Siberia proper ends at the Ural Mountains, which take two days to cross, and the winding, tortuous crossing makes a pleasant change after the slight monotony of the interminable steppes. At many of the stopping-places in the neighbourhood of the Urals one can purchase most beautiful turquoises, chryeoprases, topazes, and alexandrites, the lastnamed being immeasurably the most precious and the most fascinating of all gems. With the exception of the River Volga, there is little of interest for the voyager to see between the Urals and Moscow. There is a depressing sameness in the Russian landscape, and the plains of Samara,' through which he will pass, are no exception to the rule. And possibly at this tail end of the journey ho will begin to shorten, in anticipation, the few hours that remain before Moscow is an established fact. But it 'is certain that, once arrived at that city of palaces, he will decide that the experience has been a pleasant one. MOSCOW AND WARSAW. The eights of Moscow could not be adequately described in half-a-dozen guidebooks, and, in any case, our traveller has no time for sight-seeing. Therefore he will, after gathering his belongings togather, engage a drosky to take him direct to the station at the other end of the city, some three miles distant, to catch the mail for Warsaw, and with a yelling Cossack on the box, flourishing a formidable whip, dash through the cobble-paved streets of Moscow (pronounced as spelt, please " Mosco"), in an endeavour to save one or other of the express trains leaving for the south. From Moscow to Warsaw is only a 30hours' journey, and the trains, even the best of them, are sad falling-off after the luxury to which our tourist has become accustomed. Seats or sleeping berths cannot be booked except on the cars, and through the director of the train. The eys.j%i is superior in one respect only, to the arans-Siberian, and that is in the matter of speed. | Arrived at Warsaw—or, as it is called on the Continent, Varsovie — another chango is necessary, also much inspection of passports and examination of baggage and effects, but these petty details are as nothing to the second inspection which: takes place on the German frontier of Alexandrovno, where one realises at once that the courtesy of tho Russian official is left behind for the bearish bumptiousness of the most tyrannical official on earth— the uerman railway employee. Here, also, our traveller will decide by which route he intends reaching England and Home. He may go by Berlin and Ostend, by Flushing, or by Calais-Dover. But we will conclude that so far as the Siberian railway is concerned, our interest in him is at an end, and leave him to his own devices, and to make his way on, by the— him—most convenient route. Vale ! he, has served his purpose. WHAT THE TRIP COSTS. Such an account would, however, be incomplete without entering into some detail of the time and money expenses to be incurred from the setting-out point, which, for purposes of comparison, we will assume to be Auckland. My table, approximately, is as follows: Days. Cost. £ 8. Auckland to Sydney. 4 7 0 Sydney to Shanghai ... 21 37 10 Shanghai to Vladivostok 4i 8 0 Vladivostok to Moscow (Ist class) lOj 26 0 Moscow to London ... '. 3J 14 10 Meals en route, tips, baggage, expenses, etc, at .£1 per diem ... 17 0 Totals ... . w 43i 110 0 By travelling second-class across Siberia, howeverand I regard the superior class as sheer waste of money— alternative fare would be £17, instead of £26. The item of £1 per diem for expenses on the journey may have also been somewhat overestimated, as the very excellent restaurant fare rarely exceeds four roubles a day, roughly 8s; but the increased cost will be easily made up, when transportation of luggage, tips, etc., are taken into account. There arc also certain indispensable expenses connected with travelling anywhere for which I have made no allowance, for the obvious reason that no two persons will agree on the margin of unforeseen expenses one should take into consideration when estimating the cost of a journey from any one place to another. HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS. For the convenience of anyone contemplating this journey, I append certain hints and suggestions which ars worthy of note, and, as they apply to conditions which are not likely to vary for many years to come, may bo of use in the future. In the first place, if the intending traveller is, as he will probably be, a stranger in Shanghai, it will be as well for him to register himself as a British subject at the British Consulate of th.it town; the fee is two dollars, Mexican, or 4s. A passport may I e obtained at tho same address, provided one has letters of identification, is kndwn to local bankers or merchants, or can otherwise be vouched for. The cost of this indispensable document :'s ss. The pasrporb must then be taken to th-j Russian Consulate, Kiukang Road, Vice-Consul's office, to be viseed, fee ss, and this, excepting, of course, passage money, concludes the necessary formalities and expense. A passage to Vladivostok, by the route I have indicated, can then be booked at the East Asiatic S.S. offices, 19b, Scechuen Road (cost £8), and here it is as well to request the agent to wire to the Russian port for. accommodation on the train by which it is proposed to travel. This can be done at no expense. A visit to whatever bank honours the traveller's drafts should then be made, and sufficient Russian currency obtained %(it is always available in Shanghai) to meet the expenses on the way. Unless extensive purchases or prolonged sight-seeing is anticipated, some 300 roubles should suffice a rouble, as all the world knows, approximates to our florin, the Japanese yen, and the Mexican dollar. If the tourist is an adherent of the no-license party and a discourager of alcohol he need not consider the question of beverages en route, but the ordinary man will find it advisable to lay in a small stock of whisky or brandy, if only for medicinal purposes,

as neither can be obtained in the train or at any of the various stopping-places. Russian beer, vodka, and French or Russian wines are the alternative beverages. Some attention should be paid to the trunks in which the personal effects are •arried, as only dress-suit cases, small handbags, or Japanese baskets axe admitted into the coupees. This is, however, a difficulty which, by exercise of a little diplomacy and tipping, can be modified considerably. Heavy trunks can be "expressed" through from Vladivostok to Moscow, but, in any case, one has to turn out at least one station east of Irkutsk and have them searched by the Customs people. The traveller, if he be wise, will send all his heavy- luggage by intermediate P. and 0. or other steamer by sea to his ultimate destination before leaving China. On no account should a small supply of tobacco be forgotten, if the vice is indulged in. Pipe tobacco is unobtainable on the way, though .Russian cigarettesthe finest in the world —can easily be obtained. Passports will first .be demanded ,on board the steamer when leaving Shanghai. The steward takes it, and if one goes by direct line it will not be returned until the boat reaches Vladivostok:; by the other route it is not produced until leaving Tsuruga, and is returned after being inspected by the Russian authorities in the same manner. -

And, whilst on this wearisome passport business, it may be as well to re>mark that, once arrived in Russia, the holder must deposit the precious paper with the landlord of whatever hotel he stops at. It is returned to him on leaving, and the landlord is also expected to procure the necessary permission to leave Russia. All is done without trouble to the voyager unless, of coursi;, he is a suspicious character. At the German frontier another examination is made and the police permit given , up, and the traveller has no further use for his passport, except for purposes of identification on the Continent, or, suitably framed, as an ornament in his home and a silent record of his wanderings. On the train, following the French custom, nothing is cooked until mid-day,, except tea or coffee, though cold viands are always on the restaurant-car tables, and, if one cares to do so, ho can eat the whole morning. Dejeuner is served between noon and two o'clock, and the dinner at seven. The cooking is excellent and the meals without reproach. For 2s one can have three or four courses, and if still craving further nourishment, order from the card until Nature cries, Hold, enough!" Lastly, as regards clothing. In summer, the lighter, the better in winter, under no circumstances omit to * take a fur-lined coat with 'ear-flaps and overshoes, and beware' how you leave the heated cars without them.