The Trip to Siberia Finally Begins: Flying to Irkutsk and the Great Hotel Hunt

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Well, the trip to Siberia has finally begun. My trip began at Pulkovo Airport as a result of a number of factors, including a Trans-Siberian Railroad strike and the fact that it's 96 hours nonstop by rail. In any case I showed up at the airport with time to spare and sent a few postcards. When check in was announced I walked over to the desk and went through the necessary formalities. It was decided that my backpack would have to be shipped as luggage (something I was not terribly excited about). However this is not just idle concern. I have seen the way baggage is handled and the way Russians pack — see they took my luggage (in a suitcase which is then tightly wrapped 10 or 12 times in paper and then tied a dozen or so times). Since I didn't have any choice I resigned myself to not seeing my luggage again in this lifetime. While waiting for the boarding call I amused myself by watching cocker spaniel puppies run around the airport. They belonged to a young Chinese couple who was heading for Irkutsk with 5 cocker spaniels and 4 boxer pups. They were extremely cute and I wanted to volunteer to take a pup on my lap as they seemed to have their hands full; however, fortunately, I realized that 8 or so hours with a baby puppy could be less than fun and possibly quite messy. I'll assume the puppies arrived safely. I didn't see them while I was on the plane.

I boarded the plane and got a third row seat — behind three drunk Arab journalism students. However this didn't last long as someone arrived and told me I was in their seat. I checked my ticket and sure enough I was across the aisle. I gave my apologies and made my way to my correct seat — which I found occupied by a huge boombox. I politely explained that it was my seat and he immediately moved the boombox and got up and sat in my seat. He then said "this seat is busy" and looked out the window and proceeded to ignore me. The plane was filling quickly but I saw an empty seat in the first row and made for it. I sat down, took off my boots,

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and pretended I was fast asleep. I was 'fast asleep' while the rightful owner of the seat was stating his case to the stewardess. Being 'fast asleep' was rather difficult as the drunk Arab students were now behind me and talking loudly. Fortunately there is no smoking on Soviet airplanes which prevented their alcohol laden breath from exploding.

After take off I actually did fall asleep and only woke up when we reached Tiumen (pronounced "two men") for refueling. This is my third time in this Airport and it hasn't improved. I'll skip the lengthy and gory descriptions, suffice to say that there are always 50-60 families living in the airport waiting for a ticket. I have resolved never to arrive without a ticket as the average wait appears to be a week or so. It was freezing and the sub-zero temperatures and the frozen landscapes we flew over had me rethinking my decision to travel Siberia in April.

However upon arrival in Irkutsk the situation improved. It was 5° and the sun was shining. With the wonderful weather and the fact that my suitcase had arrived intact, it appeared things would go smoothly.

I caught a cab to the hotel "Intourist" which is Irkutsk's finest. I had fond memories of this hotel, when I was here 6 months ago I got a luxury room complete with cable television for 50 roubles a room. However things have changed. I found the three Arab students in the lobby and we were told that for foreign students the rate is 1,500 a night. That's about $15 and not a bad price for a hotel but if I want to make it through 2 weeks in Siberia this price is impossible.

Well, I headed out of the hotel and began hiking the 1/2 or mile or so to the only other hotel I knew which is called the "ANGERA". On the way out of the hotel three kids waiting outside asked me for some gum and I gave it to them. They then proceeded

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to follow me down the street trying to trade various odds and ends for something I had. I told them five or six times I wasn't interested and then told them bluntly to go away. "Where?" they asked. I told them it wasn't that important as long as it was away from here. They finally left.

I arrived at the hotel "Angera" which supposedly is named after the river. However, I prefer to think of it as a derivitive from the english word 'anger' as last time I showed up they refused to listen to me and told me to go away. The Angera hotel maintains it's service record — they threw me out again.

For lack of anything better to do I went back to the hotel "Intourist". The Arabs were still in the lobby and hadn't recieved a room. I asked the clerk to ring the hotel "Baikal" on the lake — I knew I was assured a room there as this hotel is always empty. It also is right on the lake and has the best restaurant in Siberia. The day quickly went from bad to worse as it turns out the hotel is closed for reconstruction. I was out of options and asked for the names of other hotels in the city. She gave me a name and I went out to catch a cab.

The three kids came and bothered me again, asking all kinds of questions about what I was doing and where I was going. I took my backpack off and laid it on the ground and answered their questions while waiting for a cab. My backpack caught their attention and they wanted to know what was in the side pockets. I told them, in the left there is water and the right vodka. "You mean juice not water!" they said. I said no, plain simple water. Meanwhile a cab showed up and as I leaned into the car and talked to the driver I heard running feet. I turned to see the 3 kids tearing

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off down the sidewalk. I glanced at my packand realized they had just stolen my jug of water. Obviously they weren't convinced it was water (their eyes lit up when they said Juice). I got into the cab and we headed for yet another hotel. The driver wanted to know what had just happened and as I told him the full humor of the situation hit me. These 3 kids who live next to the largest purest supply of water in the world have just stolen a jug of leningrad city water which isn't fit to drink. I tried to explain this to the driver but couldn't figure out the Russian for bacteria and gave up. I owe the kids as they kept me snickering all day.

I arrived at the hotel, this one was called "the Siberia". I started to talk to her about a room and everything was going well until I gave her my passport. It turns out that they have the same special price for foreign students of 1,500. I put on my best "dejected and rejected and without a hope in the world" face and thanked her for her time but said I couldn't afford that. A little note on Soviet "Service" or the lack thereof: There are several ways to handle things, the angry demanding to get service, the meek pleading for service and the appeal to pity. The appeal to pity is always the most successful — the trick is to break through the outer working robot's shell and make use of the tremendous emotional depth buried deep inside it. On the island of Bali live a people absolutely expressionless and emotionless in behavior which have intrigued Psychologists for years. What the psychologists find intriguing is that every so often people snap and go on a killing spree from repressed anger. Russians have a similiar trait, they will beat you to death without rage or take you home and adopt you. In any case the pitiful look got me a question, "What are you going to do now?" I looked up bravely with my chin slightly quivering and said