Around the World in (Approximately) 80 Days: Day 26: Van Ride from Irkutsk to Lake Baikal

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

As soon as I arrived at Admiral Hostel in Irkutsk, I asked Leonard of Baikal Explorer about the 3-day trip that Valentin had recommended. No problem, 8000 rubles (about $135) paid, and everything arranged in minutes. What I didn't realize is how easy it would have been to do the whole trip myself for half the price or less. But after missing out on a visit to a nomad's yurt in Mongolia, a trip to a Buryat village and the Old Believer's village from Ulan Ude, I wasn't taking any chances on missing Lake Baikal. Leonard is super nice, knowledgeable and speaks great English, so if you want to do it the easy way, book through them.

When my van showed up at the hostel at 9 a.m. sharp, I was already waiting at the door. But as soon as I got into the van and the door slammed shut, I realized I'd left my gloves behind. I asked the driver to stop and wait, but he didn't understand. As he started to drive away, the other passengers all looked blankly at me too. Then one guy spoke up and said, "No problem, I told the driver to wait."

I was confused because originally, I thought everyone in the van was in on the same tour. But since only one guy spoke any English, it didn't make sense. We drove through the city of Irkutsk to a bus terminal, where the driver parked and waited for more passengers. Now I was really confused. I hadn't had any breakfast and was tempted to hop out to buy some fruit at the outdoor market, but still haunted by my missed train in Beijing, I decided to stay put.

Finally, at 10:00 a.m. we started our 2-hour trip to Lake Baikal. I sat in silence for maybe an hour, while the other English speaker napped. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm quite sociable and sitting silently is not my strong suit. Once the guy woke up, I went and asked him if I could talk to him. He was not doing the tour with me, and as it turns out, neither was anyone else in the van. I was told by Leonard that I'd be riding public transportation without a guide, but I didn't realize that I was the only one from my "tour."

Diego turned out to be a totally fascinating guy. He's 33, lives in Venice, Italy, travels extensively, is fluent in Italian, English, Spanish, German, Russian, and quite good at Portuguese and some French. He's always been intrigued with Russia and lived a year in Moscow and a year in St. Petersburg, but this was his first trip into Siberia. Sadly, he was staying at a different hostel, but we agreed to take a walk around the village that evening.

To reach Olkhon Island, all the vans have to board a ferry. It's a short distance, but loading and unloading adds to the time. Once on the island, it was a short drive to the main village of Khuzir.

I really liked my hostel, Olga's Baikal Guesthouse. It's family run and I fell in love with the little toddler grandson, although none of them speak much English. She includes the breakfasts and dinners, which are delicious, all for $16 a night, with decent wifi too. The other guests come from all around the world and were very friendly, the rooms are a bit too warm, and the newly added indoor bathroom is huge. Someone should have told Olga that getting a prefab shower with massage heads and a million different features is just asking for things to break down. But I'm sure she thought she was getting the best shower. I'm just happy it had hot water.

After settling into our rooms, the Brazilian couple and I met up with Diego (thanks to wifi and whatsapp on my phone) and walked through the village to Burkhan Cape, a very spiritual place, topped by a row of shaman poles. Perfect timing, we were there for the sunset. The approaching dark and increasing cold told us it was time to go back to the hostel. Olga was waiting with a warm and nutritious dinner, followed by a cozy bed and thick comforter.

Irkutsk, the capitol of Siberia, is built beside the Angara River. I walked across this bridge several times between the train station and Admiral hostel where I stayed before and after my trip to Lake Baikal.

Irkutsk has many beautiful historic buildings.

And colorful ones too.

A typical scene along the way from Irkutsk to Lake Baikal. Siberia is filled with forest. Logging is one of the major industries there.

Waiting for the ferry to take us across.

The ferry looks too small to load all the vehicles that are waiting.

Somehow several vans, including ours, pack into the little ferry.

Almost across to Olkhon Island.

First glimpses of Olkhon Island, population 1500. However in the busy summer months, the population swells with tourists, thanks to electricity which came to the island in 2005. Cell phones and internet followed.

Olga's Guesthouse, where I stayed in Khuzir on the island of Olkhon, Lake Baikal. The rooms are cozy and the food is excellent. $16 includes breakfast and dinner, plus a bed and shared indoor bathroom (added last year).

Toilet paper rolls in Russia are more dense, without the hole. Also note the spray can of air freshener. There's one in every bathroom in Russia.

Nikita's Guest House is also quite popular. They've been in business for 17 years, even before there was electricity on the island.

On the island of Guam, in the Pacific Ocean, they call these "Guam Bombs" because it costs too much to ship scrap metal.

A litter of pups was living under the house.

This was not one of my brightest ideas. These cows have udders and horns. The white cow actually butted me with her horns. It surprised me, but didn't hurt.

This colorful bus reminds me of my home town of Santa Cruz, California.

An avid environmentalist, I'm always interested in recycling efforts.

Just before sunset I walked out to the water front with new friends, a Brazilian couple and an Italian guy Diego who speaks many languages, and me. I always like seeing yurts.