St. Basil’s Cathedral, Moscow
On a previous trip, we had taken the night train from Venice to Budapest. It was as exotic as it sounds, being awakened at border crossings in the middle of the night, peering into the dim lit corridor and catching a glimpse of someone “important looking” with an automatic weapon shining in the dark.
Although these old Soviet bloc countries were now emerging democracies, intrigue and mystery disturbed our sleep as we passed through places named Ljubljana and Zidani Most.But nothing quite prepared us for this trip – we knew it would be long: twenty-four hours. Our friends all thought we were crazy…”You’re taking the night train, from Moscow to Krakow, Poland?”
How do you prepare for such a journey? The day of the trip we searched neighborhoods for “rations”,
having experienced the austere provisions on the Venice to Budapest overnight venture: two prepackaged chocolate croissants and two bottles of water had awaited us, with our wash cloth, in the tiny cabinet above our sink.
So, after successfully rounding up our usual staple when traveling in Europe – great local breads – we loaded our luggage and set off on our much anticipated train adventure through Russia and Poland.
Securing our cabin for the night we settled in (and again, pre-packaged chocolate croissants and two bottles of water…). So, we anxiously sank our teeth into our artisan loaf, the size and shape of a dinner plate, only to discover it was no baguette: pretty much pure salt.
Belorussky Train Station, Moscow, Russia
As we slowly pulled way from Moscow’s Belorussky train station, leaving a far away city we felt we would probably never see again, the fading light held our flood of memories and emotions…We had walked in Red Square,on worn bricks that had seen tanks leave for battles that involved our countrymen and heralded military parades that framed many of the visual images we became so accustomed to as young adults.
St. Basil’s Cathedral, Red Square, Moscow
As Moscow faded from view, the unexpected began to rush at us with great speed, the staccato of night’s lights intruding our birth.
Morning broke with great splendor, its pink sun illuminating our adventure through the countryside. As we passed through the stations of curious places such as Smolensk, Terespol and Lukow, our day 
began to unfold as we had imagined: brightly painted cottages celebrating Eastern European folk art dotting the rushing landscape, alongside the primitive life that sadly lingers in the countryside of Russia and Poland.
But, then there is always the unexpected: like having to stop at the Belarus-Poland border to have all of the wheels on the train changed! Who knew they wouldn’t be the same size as the tracks in Poland…thus, adding an additional two hours to our voyage.
Of course no one was allowed to leave the train cars during the change over. It was a bit harrowing and stories of drunken passengers falling onto the tracks only added to the adventure.
“Train wheel changing station” Belarus-Poland border
A system created to impede invaders, and in particular advancing Nazi troops in World War II, the actual process at the “train wheel changing station” has changed very little since its establishment in 1972. The annoyance for travelers is a bit ofset by the admitted fascination with this “antiquated event”. It was unforgettable!
We eventually arrived at our destination, Krakow,Poland, and then began our love affair with this glorious and incredibly beautiful city in old Europe, a place so full of joy. Please do not over look this heart of Poland, about which I will soon write in a new post!
To learn more about “train wheel changing stations”, I have provided a link to a great article,”Soviet Spoke in the Wheels of Progress”.
Besides the required visa for entrance to Russia, you will also need a visa for travel through Belarus.
