Moscow to Ulaan Bataar - finally escaped from Russia

Not written on here for some time as Russia has limited cheap access. Left Moscow on a 1 day/2 nights train to Yeketeringburg, arriving at 3am in a very very freezing and snowy morning. Went to the tourist info across the road in the nearest hotel and found it didn't open until 9am and the rooms were 65pounds a night. So we returned to the train station to join the gypsies and vagrants in the waiting room for 4 hours instead. Finally found a much cheaper hotel, that was much cheaper looking aswell! Straight out a 50's communist movie with brown water coming out the taps and communal showers in the basement for an extra 50p. Yek was not much to write home about-had 3 days to kill in a city with very little to do. Spent 2 nights in the cinema-Bluberry nights in English and 10,000BC in Russian (but such a corny movie, it was still easy to follow). 2 pound entry fee. They seemed to like English bars here, with waitress service-4pound a pint and 10pound a meal! Most places were though! Managed to watch the boro draw against Arsenal.
Next stop was Irkutsk, a 2day and 3 night journey away. Met all sorts of local Russians on the journey who could not understand why we hadn't flown and spent a lot of the journey communicating with drawings! Don't go to Russian buffet cars!!!!!!! Craig spent the night being sick over rotten chicken with blood dripping out of it-yum yum. Just to say got over it now. Rachel woke the whole carriage up after having a nightmare and screaming very loudly-it was like a scene out of Miss Marple, Murder Mystery. The carriage attendant dashed to every room to check everyone was OK and no one had been murdered, to find that it was only me-Whoops!
The Russian in the carriage with us was left with a bewildered look. That journey is long you must like trees, snow and wooden huts!
Arrived in Irkutsk early in the morning and decided to get the bus straight to Lake Baikal. Arrived on the shore in Litsvayanka beside the frozen lake-1 metre deep in ice. Spent out time there walking on the lake, peering at cracks in the ice and watching the locals do wheel spins in their cars. Craig had to spend the 1st day in bed, but it was a gorgeous wood log cabin with lovely views, not that he was enjoying them! For Rachel's birthday treat we went on a dog sleigh in the forest, being pulled by Zvodlock, a 9 year old dog who was the Russian champion at dog sleighing. We were able to ride the sleighs ourselves, being pulled by 7 dogs and got a lift back on a quad bike. Was ace! Saw some divers diving through the ice and igloos and ice bars that the locals had made. Just made it to the lake as the thaw was just starting.
On to Mongolia we went on a 1 day/2night train with a 8 hour border crossing!!!! and a very grumpy Russian carriage attendant who was not at all helpful and kept locking people off the train as she could not be bothered to open the door as she wanted to go to sleep! This is even stranger as the whole train was only 1 carriage long with 9 people on it. The border guards spent several hours with their torches looking for stow aways. Generally the Russians seem a little grumpy at first introduction, but we have found nearly all of them helpful and friendly. However, Russia we were glad to see the back of as everyone walks around looking miserable. We were glad we did not stay at Irkutsk, it was more like the wild west.
We are now in our first day in Mongolia. We are in Ulaan Bataar and are surrounded by mountains and the people seem very welcoming. We are heading out tomorrow on a 3 day trip to a Ger Camp and monastery and a sharing a very small car with 2 czech blokes who both look like Rachel's brother-very tall. It is going to be a squash on the 7 hour journey!