Intermission.
I’m calling today’s entry an intermission. My intention is to open up a few albums on Picasa that will be connected thematically and span all or most of the trip but that are not necessarily tied to a specific place or activity.
Some of you may have already looked at the first two albums of this type – “Miscellany” and “Hotel Views.” For those who haven’t, in Miscellany, all but one of those pictures were taken in or around Beijing and Hotel Views are precisely that as I share with you what I saw when I looked out my hotel windows.
The first folder I’m opening today is “Signs”. Those of you who have traveled with me by way of photos before know that I like to take pictures of signs I think are unusual or that I find amusing whether because of the location 
such as this one that I spotted at the French Embassy in UB (because all Mongolians speak French, right?), or because of the mistranslation into English, or because, although they may be perfect in the context of the local culture, my American eyes spot humor.
Next up is “Show Us Your Curves.” The motivation for this one ties to the theme of scenic boredom. A few of us in the group entered into a friendly competition to see who could get the best shot of the train rounding a curve. Though I haven’t seen hers, I’m going to guess the winner will be Rosemary.
I didn’t take pictures of every cabin on every train but I did shoot a few. I want people to have an idea of the size and relatively Spartan nature of our quarters.
This last album was not born exclusively of scenic boredom though that certainly played a substantial role in its creation. It has the self explanatory title “Train Stations.” Since sometimes train stations can have a certain grandeur, I had planned to take pictures of the stations in the larger cities and even at the border crossings:
And some of the shots started as a “what the hell” idea but when the terrain becomes an “ooh-ahh”, you look for some photographic distraction – any photographic distraction. For me it was train stations. Although I didn’t get a shot of every stop, I did get a lot. I think I’ve sequenced these correctly and who knows, you might find some of them worth a look.
Finally, I’d be remiss if I neglected to mention the best purchase I made in preparing for this trip – my travel vest. I made the mistake of waiting until after we left China to start making heavy use of it but it was a blessing. Where most in the group were carrying a fanny pack, a back pack or some combination of those, my vest accommodated just about everything I needed on any daily excursion and even was a nice accessory when I went out in the evening.
It’s designed with many inner and outer pockets and to lay flat so even a close observer is not likely to be able to ascertain how much stuff you’re actually carrying. (If you’ve been paying attention, you read the story behind this photo in yesterday’s entry.)
Tomorrow morning we arrive in Moscow. But first we have to endure another twenty-four hours on a train.
French language signs in non-French locations: or it might be that the French are extremely protective of the French language – even having a gov agency devoted to the protection and expansion of French. (And, in the not too distant past, a person was not considered well educated unless they could also speak French). While the protectiveness of the language is relaxing a bit (you will see English language ads in the Paris metro), it is still fiercely defended.
The French sign brought me back to my years spent in the lovely and wonderful city of Montreal (which I miss very much) where we had to endure the occasional intrusions of the local “tongue troopers” into the world of English speakers. Montreal, which tries to promote rampant tourism from the USA (get those $$) has all of the Provincial signage around historic buildings and sights in French only (while the Federal govt. is required to have signs in BOTH official languages); I guess they are still pining for a past when French was considered the “International language” and well-educated people all spoke French. No matter, the majority of tourists from their great neighbor to the south probably don’t bother to even look at the historic signs anyway – too busy shopping for bargains and eating poutine (look it up). Anyway, the pomposity of the French in general around their language does not surprise and the sing in UB is quite amusing.
On another note, LOVED the campaign posters! Wish ours were as non-sensical as theirs seem to be. Would make our interminably long political campaigns much more engaging, don’t you think? The signs don’t have to make any sense at all – the politicians sure don’t!
Where did you obtain your wonder-vest?
The manufacturer is ScottEVest. I bought it through Amazon so I could get free shipping but the company has their own site. You can search travel vest and it should pop up.
One more thing regarding the ooh-ahh effect. I love that explanation of tourist phenomena. I have had many experiences with the same thing. In NZ with the scenery, in AU with the wild cockatoos, parrots, etc., with the churches in Europe and the bison out west. At first, really big oohs; after many times seeing the same or similar things, it is ahh – just another _______ (fill in the blank).