Yes, I've started packing my backpack. In my mind, I'm constantly thinking what else I have to buy, what information I need to bring with me, how much money do I need to change...IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING!

12 days to go for the start of our trip from Beijing. YTM and I are boarding the plane from KL to Beijing on 9th March @ 0050.

I don't know how to explain it, I'm really excited to go on this trip and it's getting more real as 9th March approaches but at the same time, it really really feels surreal. Maybe because we've been planning for ages it seems, for this trip.

I'm gonna leave here now to do my list of "to do" and "to buy" and "to find out" and "to bring"!

It has finally worked! That's how my Russian Visa look like and I now know how my name is in Cryllic!

Been checking on the weather at the stop overs that I'll be making on my trip. Beijing is about 3C, UB -16, Irkutsk -21 and Moscow -19. I can only tell you if my tear ducts freezes over when I'm there (I sure hope not).

Maybe I'm not so sane...this is my first experience with winter/snow and I chose to experience it in Siberia of all places!! But but but...I believe that if you wanna experience something new, you have to go all the way!

Applying for a Russian visa is not entirely complicated but there is an additional step to just filling in the Visa Application Form.

Russia still practices a somewhat archaic visa application procedures. Firstly, before you make your visa application to the Russian Embassy, you must already have obtained an invitation and a voucher from the accredited Russian travel agents. It only means one thing....you need to pay more money.

There are tonnes of Russian travel agents that you could find on the web who "sells" the invitation and voucher for a fee. You need to give them your passport details and the specific dates you intend to enter and leave Russia.

I basically got mine from Russian Visa Express who will either email or fax you copies of the invitation and voucher after you have made your payment.

I've had no problems with them and I fully recommend their efficient service (no responsibility undertaken if otherwise!).

Their link is at www.visaru.com

I'm having a little hitch trying to upload a picture of how my Russian Visa looks like but I'll try to fix it and when I do you'll see how it looks like!

russian visa

Wow...I can't believe this is finally happening. What started off as small talk in Colonial Cup with a bunch of lawyer friends having coffee and breakfast after the usual court sessions is becoming real!

Yes, it first started off as the Trans-Siberian Railway Journey which after 1 1/2 years of saving money, researching and lotsa mind-boggling planning has finally evolved and culminated into the Trans-Mongolian Railway Journey instead.

There is a misconception amongst alot of people out there about this railing journey, confusing rail routes of the Trans-Siberian, the Trans-Mongolian and the Trans-Manchurian Railways.

Whether as a matter of convenience or as a matter of confusion I'm not sure but generally the Trans-Mongolian Railway and the Trans-Manchurain Railway are carelessly referred to as the Trans-Siberian Railway (me inclusive!).

The Trans-Siberian Railway spans from Moscow all the way to Vladivostok. The Trans-Mongolian Railway is the route from Moscow to Beijing passing through Mongolia and the Trans-Manchurian Railway runs from Moscow to Beijing via Manchuria.

And NO, there is no such thing as a Trans-Siberian Express, as most of us are made to believe. A non-stop journey from Moscow to Beijing takes 7 days on the train but there are no hop-on hop-off tickets for sale.

And so much for a brief description of the 3 routes.

The idea is to backpack, as my friend and I being mere mortals here do not earn our living in US Dollars (no hostility intended - I come in peace!) and thus, to skimp on every little penny that we could. And what do you know! The best way would be to buy the rail tickets yourselves at the destination itself.

The plan is to fly from Kuala Lumpur (KL) to Beijing and then rail from Beijing to Ulan Bator (UB)(the COLDEST city in the world...yup, you read right...coldest...brrr...), Mongolia, see a little countryside, experience living in a Mongolian ger. Then it would be onwards from UB to Irkutsk, Russia to visit Lake Baikal (the largest and deepest freshwater lake in the world), do bit of 100% pure bred Kamchatka huskies sledding. Next on the itinerary would be from Irkutsk to Moscow including St. Petersburg.

So, that's the plan...hope we don't freeze our asses off!!

I'll tell you about getting Russian Visas and Chinese Visas next time! Malaysians don't need a Mongolian Visa.

railing, trans-siberian railway