All aboard the trans-Siberian railway may kindly notice that we are shortly going to undertake a 6 day long journey from Moscow to Vladivostok. On the way you can catch glimpses of the picturesque vistas ranging from Siberian rivers, the beautiful Lake Baikal and the graceful Barguzin mountains from your windows. Kindly be ready for the breathtaking journey!! Thank you!

Always wanted to undertake the epic Trans –Siberian railway journey but could never quite move away from your sofa?

Here is your chance to get aboard the longest train journey and that to only by sitting at your sofa because there comes yet again another great kitty from the Google bag! The Google Earth provides you an opportunity of travelling through the 5752 miles on a virtual tour. Not only this, you can also have an experience of a view in real time, watching the scene as it unfolds from the train’s window. Simultaneously you can plot the train’s journey on a Google map by tracing its path through the mountainous terrain or using the satellite imagery. You have a choice of listening to the clinker clatter of the wheels of the train. If that seems monotonous you can also switch to the candid Russian pop tunes or the reminiscent playing of the balalaika. You can also listen in sugary sweet calm voice to the Russian classics like the Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace or Nikolai Gogol’s Dead souls or Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov’s The Golden Calf. The virtual travelers can undertake the 150 hour journey which passes through 12 Russian regions and 87 cities s[panned across two continents. Among the all scenes the one that touches the heart most is the scene from Lake Baikal which was shot in brilliant sunlight and looks beautiful in its whole vigor. The entire journey which is of 150 hours of duration took 30 days of filming with the crew filming only during daylight in the scorching heat of Russia in August 2009. The crew had to stay at various Russian towns just to get the best possible shot to be brought to the viewers. The various spots have been shot in a way that best suits them like the hazy morning in the mountains, the beautiful dawn at the river or the amply sunlight lit lake. And if u think there was someone who could accompany you through the journey, DJ Yelena Abitayeva comes to your rescue who gives you a 3 minute guided tour of the important cities. Near Ulan Ude, Yelena shows off a large statue of Lenin’s head. Then she rotates some prayer wheels at a Buddhist temple while a cow is shown roaming in the background along with a Lada speeding past by. The train journey `can be undertaken via the Moscow Beijing route or via the Trans- Mongolian route which spans across the Gobi desert and various other places of interest. What is more is that you can stop by different destinations and can further explore into the surroundings without paying for an extra fare!

The Google’s Technical advancements have to be yet again applauded for the geo tagged videos which allow you to navigate through the map plotting the actual train journey in real time. Plus, kudos to the Youtube support for the ultra high definition videos. For the virtual travelers there is no need ofcourse to stand in a queue for going to the loo or shower. Also no headache in case you need to share your cabin with an omnipresent snorer. But in hind side what you lose is the aroma of the scalding black tea served in a silver leaf and glass holder unless you get that at your home! Nevertheless the beautiful landscapes are a welcome respite and are very soothing. Moreover, a journey that costs around 6509 roubles (£145) for a basic seat, and 17,500 (£388) to 19,800 roubles (£440) for a bed in a shared carriage one way if comes for free without even getting a booking, then what else could be better?