Alma and Maxim put me on the 4pm marshrutka from Elista to Volgograd.The marshrutka driver told me that I was not going to make it to Volgograd by 9pm.I had a train going from the train station at 917pm to Rostov on Don.If i miss my train , i'm screwed big time.
Guess what , ,i missed my train but got a more interesting experience instead.I arrived at the city at 920pm.The train had already left.I told the marshrutka driver about my train .He and another passenger started making phonecalls to their friends to ask about the next train out to Rostov.He told me that the next transport out of Volgograd to Rostov was by bus.He dropped me off at the bus station and wished me well.
Here goes.The next bus leaves at 6am the next morning.I bought my ticket.
It is 930pm.Now what?
It was pitch dark outside.I could see the train station from the bus station.But it was separated by a canal.The bus station closes at 11pm.What in the world am I going to do?How do i get to the train station without being mugged?
Standing at the entrance of the bus station , I saw a young couple walking towards the bus station and I asked them for directions to the train station.Apparently they were going to the train station too.The girl told me to wait for them and she went in to buy her bus ticket.
So it turns out that the girl is from Astrakhan,Marina She had missed her bus back home and needed to buy a ticket for the next bus (departing the next morning ).The boy,Tioma, is from Cheboksary and was waiting for his cruise adventure down the Volga river the next morning.So 3 lost souls found themselves some company.
They brought me to the train station and told me to leave my bags with their's.Let the babushki(grandmothers) guard them.The babushki are waiting for their trains too.So my luggage was lying around with theirs guarded by the babushki for free.It's amazing how much i trusted them.I then left with the 2 russians to have a walk near the Volgograd train station at 10pm at night.
We sat at the park talking about ourselves,thinking about how strange a way it was that we all met.Must have been fate.
After the little walk around, we went back to the train station and slept on the benches.Tioma was a little bored and wanted to know more about Singapore.I happen to have 2 books with photos of Singapore (intended to give them to my friends in Ukraine ) and I let him flip through them,along with the Russian Newsweek magazines that was in my backpack.As I went on typing in my laptop in russian , he leaned over and started correcting my Russian grammar!
Tioma and I had spoken a little about Cheboksary earlier.He never imagined that a girl from so far away would have been to his city and I told him about my experience there.He was astounded by the number of cities in Russia I have visited.Astonished after I said да to every city that he mentioned.And his mouth dropped when I said yes to Cheboksary as well.
My impression of Cheboksary was that of a city with modern and new buildings.He agreed that the city is indeed very modern with the new buildings but it is an old city with it's own unique language,Chuvash (similar to Turkish ).He even let me listent to a song on his mp3 player.
The night at the Volgograd station allowed me to explore the station as well.They have very very nice and clean bathrooms which nobody uses because you have to pay to use them.Western style.Very clean and modern.And they have fantastic hot showers as well.
Sleeping at the station was not exactly very comfortable.Every seat had seat handles and I was too big to squeeze in between the handles to lie straight down.Marina was petite and was able to squeeze between the seat handles and lie down comfortably.
The next morning, we bade Tioma goodbye and left for the bus station where Marina and I had buses departing for our various destinations.
She gave me a mirror she bought from Saint Petersburg as a souvenir and I gave her a bookmark from Singapore.To remember this night in Volgograd.Great company ,great experience.
I'm glad they were my angels in the time of crisis.
I just wish that i had taken down their email addresses.Will be nice to contact them again.
If you readers recognise the 2 russians in my photos, do let them know and get them to drop me an email.Will love to talk to them again.
I don't know what made me trust these 2 russian kids so much.My instincts just told me that they were trustable.And im glad I trusted them and enjoyed their company at the station that night. :)
Volgograd Photos
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Guess what , ,i missed my train but got a more interesting experience instead.I arrived at the city at 920pm.The train had already left.I told the marshrutka driver about my train .He and another passenger started making phonecalls to their friends to ask about the next train out to Rostov.He told me that the next transport out of Volgograd to Rostov was by bus.He dropped me off at the bus station and wished me well.
Here goes.The next bus leaves at 6am the next morning.I bought my ticket.
It is 930pm.Now what?
It was pitch dark outside.I could see the train station from the bus station.But it was separated by a canal.The bus station closes at 11pm.What in the world am I going to do?How do i get to the train station without being mugged?
Standing at the entrance of the bus station , I saw a young couple walking towards the bus station and I asked them for directions to the train station.Apparently they were going to the train station too.The girl told me to wait for them and she went in to buy her bus ticket.
So it turns out that the girl is from Astrakhan,Marina She had missed her bus back home and needed to buy a ticket for the next bus (departing the next morning ).The boy,Tioma, is from Cheboksary and was waiting for his cruise adventure down the Volga river the next morning.So 3 lost souls found themselves some company.
They brought me to the train station and told me to leave my bags with their's.Let the babushki(grandmothers) guard them.The babushki are waiting for their trains too.So my luggage was lying around with theirs guarded by the babushki for free.It's amazing how much i trusted them.I then left with the 2 russians to have a walk near the Volgograd train station at 10pm at night.
We sat at the park talking about ourselves,thinking about how strange a way it was that we all met.Must have been fate.
After the little walk around, we went back to the train station and slept on the benches.Tioma was a little bored and wanted to know more about Singapore.I happen to have 2 books with photos of Singapore (intended to give them to my friends in Ukraine ) and I let him flip through them,along with the Russian Newsweek magazines that was in my backpack.As I went on typing in my laptop in russian , he leaned over and started correcting my Russian grammar!
Tioma and I had spoken a little about Cheboksary earlier.He never imagined that a girl from so far away would have been to his city and I told him about my experience there.He was astounded by the number of cities in Russia I have visited.Astonished after I said да to every city that he mentioned.And his mouth dropped when I said yes to Cheboksary as well.
My impression of Cheboksary was that of a city with modern and new buildings.He agreed that the city is indeed very modern with the new buildings but it is an old city with it's own unique language,Chuvash (similar to Turkish ).He even let me listent to a song on his mp3 player.
The night at the Volgograd station allowed me to explore the station as well.They have very very nice and clean bathrooms which nobody uses because you have to pay to use them.Western style.Very clean and modern.And they have fantastic hot showers as well.
Sleeping at the station was not exactly very comfortable.Every seat had seat handles and I was too big to squeeze in between the handles to lie straight down.Marina was petite and was able to squeeze between the seat handles and lie down comfortably.
The next morning, we bade Tioma goodbye and left for the bus station where Marina and I had buses departing for our various destinations.
She gave me a mirror she bought from Saint Petersburg as a souvenir and I gave her a bookmark from Singapore.To remember this night in Volgograd.Great company ,great experience.
I'm glad they were my angels in the time of crisis.
I just wish that i had taken down their email addresses.Will be nice to contact them again.
If you readers recognise the 2 russians in my photos, do let them know and get them to drop me an email.Will love to talk to them again.
I don't know what made me trust these 2 russian kids so much.My instincts just told me that they were trustable.And im glad I trusted them and enjoyed their company at the station that night. :)
Volgograd Photos
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