Travelling in Russia

As we think about our next trip, we thought it would be good to go into a bit more depth about what it's like to travel through Russia. Here's a day-by-day breakdown of a typical trip with Children's HopeChest.

Day One-ish: In the morning, we leave our house and head to the Indianapolis International Airport. We fly from Indy to either JFK or Atlanta for a short layover before boarding the nine hour international flight into Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. On the plane I try to sleep (and fail) and Sarah snoozes off and on. After arriving at the airport, we go through customs and get our luggage. (Whatever you do don't make eye contact or try to be friendly with the customs agents.) We then meet up with one of HopeChest's Russian staff members and emerge from the airport and into daylight. The eight hour time difference means that it's already the next morning in Moscow. That's when the jet lag sets in and you realize just how upside down you feel. But it's okay, we know we'll adjust.

From the airport we head to the train station to drop our luggage in a locker and have Sbarro's for lunch (yeah, weird, I know but it's right by the train station and the food is decent). From there we head out for a little sightseeing. On our last trip we visited a picturesque monastery in the heart of Moscow. Sightseeing is a good way to ease into the new timezone and learn a bit about the country you'll call home for the next week and a half.

From there we head back to the train station and board the overnighter to Kirov. We usually book second class cabins. It's less expensive than first class but we still get some privacy, a bed, and a place for our luggage, which you don't get in third class. There's a dining car that sells drinks and food, but we usually eat bread, cheese and fruit that we picked up at a grocery before boarding. Each train car has its own attendant who brings you tea or coffee in the morning. The train rolls into the Kirov station early the next morning, but because of the jet lag we're usually wide awake an hour or so before we arrive.

I admit that the train takes some getting used to, but once you acclimate to the space and the feel of rail travel it can be really enjoyable. I usually sleep pretty well (it probably helps that I haven't slept for awhile) and you get to see some really beautiful and interesting countryside along the way.

Coming soon... what we do on the first day in Kirov City.