Final Scores

Ekaterinburg 5 0 Katie

Irkutsk 5 2 Katie

As well as not really being best suited to freezing conditions, Katie has had, shall we say, a few problems remaining upright whilst in Siberia. The combination of dead Doc Martens with no grip, Katie's woeful balance and packed down ice all over the streets has meant that she has managed some pretty spectacular wipeouts. After the first two, which took place in Ekaterinburg with her rucksack attached, I came up with a points system. The city concerned gets a point whenever Katie falls over, and Katie gets a point whenever she breaks something in the city. The final scores are above, and I think you will agree that it was basically a drubbing. I asked Katie if she would like to comment, and her comment is merely 'ow.'

Yesterday we went to Lake Baikal, and after two falls and one incident in which she karate-chopped me in the back of my neck in an attempt too save herself, we resorted to hand-holding. Combined with the fact that Katie is wearing approximately seventy-five layers of clothes, this basically means that she looks like a little five-year old all bundled up for winter.



My mysterious unknown Slavonic ancestor (I have been told many times -again - on this trip that I look Czech/Russian/generally Eastern Europe and not in fact English) has perhaps bestowed upon me a useful gene, for I've been finding the Siberian temperatures quite invigorating and actually not too painful. The coldest we've had so far is -32, although I'm hoping for -40 just so I can find out what that feels like. And yes, mother, I have been doing Siberia in my H & M coat....