Avoid Central Asia’s most CORRUPT train!
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- Опубліковано 23 гру 2024
- This journey was something I wasn't expecting! I took a train from Kazakhstan to Kyrgyzstan, with an old and outdated interior. But things got worse, as the staff asked me for something that I've never been asked for on a train before... 😳
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Journey Details:
Origin: Astana-Nurly Zhol
Destination: Bishkek-2
Company: Kyrgyz Temir Joly (KJD)
Train: Various + Ammendorf
Accommodation: Kupe Sleeping Carriage (C4)
Distance: 1286 kilometres / 799 miles
Price: 157,244₸ (£271.90 / €317.30 / $346.90)
Time: 25 hours 28 minutes, arrived 84 minutes late
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What would you do in this situation? Let me know in the replies! 😁
There would be genuinly nothing you could do, as if you didnt pay, you would get forcefully kicked off! perks of using a train in a corrupt country 🫤
Soviet style ... just pay the bribe and stiff upper lip. I was stopped three or four times a day in Moscow for bribes on everything and anything, including by the police, by medical staff, by professors, by customs and border control, by hotel staff and -- get this -- by the official Anticorruption Squad! Russia and its ex-dependencies are the mother of all corruption. Same problem in Ukraine even though its hushed up these days. If you hadn't paid the bribe, you would have been tossed off the train in the middle of nowhere, or more likely arrested under an Article 25 or Article 26 provision (all the ex-dependencies simply incorporated Soviet law upon "freedom"). Never argue with them, they are professional thugs at this. And you will lose. Also, next time, travel in First Class where this happens less often.
Thank you for all of your videos. Lulú
PS I was posted to my country's embassy in Moscow for four miserable years and even with a diplomatic passport and diplomatic protection (meaningless in Russia and ex-dependencies), I was forced to pay bribes right, left and center. Moscow and the ex-dependencies are some of the least expensive places on the planet. Because of persistent and endemic bribery, they end up being the most expensive.
It's a tricky situation. Especially if it happened at the beginning of the journey! It seems like they smelled money because you had purchased 4 tickets just for yourself.
The first time I took a long international train from Vienna to Bucharest, the Romanian staff asked me and my friends for a bribe because we had "too many suitcases". We were young and worried so we gave him a few coins and he seemed happy. After this, every time I was faced with someone asking for a bribe, I played dumb and pretended I didn't speak English. It may seem like they have the power in this situation, but that's just a feeling. They can't do anything. The worst thing they can do is make your journey unpleasant.
I still can't believe it's the FIRST TIME you have been faced with this! After all those trips in Eastern Europe!
This remembered me the situation couple years ago when I was forced to pay to conductor in UZ (Ukrainian Railways) just for charge the phone on the socket near boiler, also i had to stand the whole time there so nobody can steal my phone which is common situation in post-USSR countries.
V/L stands for Vladimir Lenin...
Isn't it?
Kyrgyzstan Railways didn’t disappoint. They tried to receive a bribe from my grandmother a few years ago for an “overweight” luggage, without even trying to weight it 🤦🏻♂️
Seems like you know a secret. How do you try to receive something?
🥸
i'd probably say something along the lines of "my ass isn't THAT big"
Lol the idea that baggage can be "overweight" on a train is ridiculous
@DandamanV Right? But they really had scales at the entrance of the "Bishkek 2" station back in the days
@@efimovx the railways in NSW have weight limits, but it's only so the staff don't throw their backs out
and the stuff in the cabin has a smaller weight limit, I presume for health and safety reasons- a careless passenger fumbling with a 30kg lead suitcase above your head doesn't sound fun...
„Being delayed for hours“ while showing German ICE, is the greatest of the greatest.
Waited 3 hours then found out it was cancelled
wehn did he do that?
@@Edy_Cras_Edits Cancelled trains don't count as delayed, according to the DB, btw.
@@Akronymus_ thx I guess
As much as I have enjoyed my holiday in Germany, I have to agree with you. I didn't have the best experience with ICE
The juxtaposition of the ultra-modern station looking like an airport, elevated rail coming out of it, burger king and escalators with the ancient Kyrgyz train which looks like it's been on fire at one point is truly something else.
😂😂😂
it really doesnt look that bad tho? looks pretty normal on the outside, a little worn down maybe
Give it time one day they might repaint the trains
They are "also Europeans", like Armenians and Georgians, after all!
Only a Polish can associate Burger King with modernity and first world 🎉
One of my favorite things about English people is how good they are at describing horrible things in a completely straightforward and seemingly unaffected manner. Thanks for taking this journey so I know not to! 😅
Meanwhile the Americunts scream "racism!" or "communism!" and blame Donald Trump or "Commiefuckya".
How would other nationalities do it
@@s125ish I assume with a lot of hand waving and expletives :)
😂😂😂
It's the war you know anyway tally ho
Reminds of the Copenhagen-Berlin sleeper in 1988. It had 4 carriages. The 4th carriage went to Moscow and was always "fully booked", because the compartments were used to store all the TV's and washing machines that the embassy workers were sending home to their families in Russia. My dad and I had booked a compartment in the old german MITROPA sleeping car for Berlin. At the border, the East German police wanted an extra "entrance fee" and got annoyed when my dad handed them some Ostmark, because local currency was considered useless. They only wanted dollars. We ended up giving them a bottle of wine and a watch that they could sell, and we were allowed to continue to Berlin.
You actually officialy had to forcefully exchange money "Zwangsumtausch" for each day in the GDR -so they would get foreign currency and you weren't allowed to take out the "Ost-Mark" (for whatever reason; maybe that you wouldn't brag how worthless it was at home😅)
They were very strict with that at the Inner-German border; but I don't know how it was at other places
You got a receipt for the forced currency exchange so this attempt to get money was different.
@@juavi6987 Yes it was common occurrence in Eastern Bloc countries.
That attendant was probably annoyed with you booking all the bearths as he probably planned unofficial rents to passengers along the way.I have had the odd similar experience in eastern Europe but not that common.Unfortunatly there are crooks in every walk of life.
Yup! 🤷♂️
there really isnt, just in dirty eastern countries
Berths
ב''ה, then there's USA.
@@josephkanowitz6875 If an Amtrak car attendant tried to demand a bribe or unofficially rent out extra sleeping berths, they'd go to federal prison. US federal government has ZERO tolerance for corruption ... by lowly civil servants, politicians are another story haha
I spent a semester in Romania, but that was twenty years ago. Back then they were always very helpful in pointing out when they wanted a bribe. Once i rode a night train to Bucharest and the conductor actually offered me a cabin for myself for a bribe. I took that offer immediately.
Gotta love Romanian bribes.
My dad (Romanian) once went like 40kmh over the speed limit and got stopped by a policeman. He handed him two 50€ notes, the policeman handed him one back, said 'there are no more controls for the next 300km' and wished him a nice day.
Man Police here in india would never do that...gotta love the romanians tho@@gefitrop3496
@@gefitrop3496This is exactly one of the many reasons Romania shouldn’t be a member of the European Union. And helps us God if the Ukraine would become a member of the EU anytime soon.
@@heindaddel2531 vanya, you glow, try harder next time.
@@gefitrop3496 I took a very long train ride with a group in Romania about 2007 or 2008, to go to the mountains. On the way back, we went to the ticket office of the relatively small-town train station, the train was already in the station, the conductor has seen us, quickly sped past us, went to the door of the ticket office, and physically stood in our way, blocking access to the door, and said that instead of buying the tickets at the ticket office, we should pay him instead (unofficially) because he'd then give us a discount.
It's like the classical joke from the Soviet era, the Trans-siberian express stops in the dead of the night in the middle of nowhere, and just stands there, and just stands there. Time passes, there is some movement outside, and one passenger shouts out the window: "why are we waiting?"
A voice from outside: "We're changing the locomotive!"
"What for?"
"For vodka!"
😂😂😂
That downstairs area at the station looks like a parking lot they decided they could make more money renting to the dealership.
Two floors bellow the train rails were supposed to be car parkings. But, since most of the people in the city use public transportation and/or are not used to leaving their cars behind for a train trip, are very underutilized
The "good" old times ... In Romania in the early 1990s staff sometimes also charged bribes ... In Europe this is now impossible. Has something to do with poverty I guess and the idea that foreigners are rich. My worst experience on a train was again in Romania in that period. As I refused to pay a bribe to customs officials they called the police to take me off the train. Eventually they were satisfied with German marks and coins I threw at their feet. The train had 30 min delay because of this incident. Recently I was in Romania again, it so much changed and was so agreeable, at last these bad memories were effaced.
Sadly Romania still has problems with train staff wanting bribes from passengers
@@ThobiasTutorials really ?
Apparently now, the train staff accept ticketless travel in exchange for a small bribe. 🤷♂️
@@ThobiasTutorials
🤡 try next lie
3rd class really brings me back to my time in Russia. Travelled the entire Trans-siberian railway in 3rd class in 2022 and only managed to ride coupe for shorter trips due to their lower cost. They all DID have airconditioning though
That would be because Russian trains are much more modern in general. And the old carriages from Russia are likely to end up in Kyrgyzstan and such
before or after the war started?
that's what I was wondering, cause I'd love to do that but its not really possible right now..
@@stoneageman18 my educated guess is: after. The war started in February, and you don't need AC during the Russian winter.
@@stoneageman18 Russia produces its own modern carriages and trains for some time already (with some German help, hehe).
‘*correct at time of bribing’ loved that 😂 Pretty shocking though, certainly puts me off doing something similar.
Thanks! It's a real shame, but don't be put off by the area, most trains in the region are a fantastic and authentic railway experience.
I think if you were in 'steerage' you wouldn't have been bothered.
They discovered that you are a rich english person, so corrupcy kicks instantly
Shame, I've never had it before on any regular domestic KZ train!
@@SuperalbsTravels Enough said though. I am super into intl travel and trains/railways, and the more expansive system the better. This country would fit the bill and now I'll never set foot in it. That $45 cost his countrymen way more in lost tourism.
corruption
lol is corruptcy even a word? 😂
@@CST1992
@@CST1992is corrupcy even a word? 😂
In countries where corruption is wide-spread and viewed as "normal", always remember the rule:
high class/private compartment = customer with above average income = higher bribe potential
If you want to stay out of the corruption schemes, try traveling like a below average local citizen. Still not a guarantee you'll not be approached (especially since you are a foreigner), but still.
1 hour for the train to be rescued is not bad at all. In a small country like the Netherlands it often takes longer, due to the fact that there are almost no standby locomotives anymore at stations and almost all trains are EMU with different couplers than the locomotives have.
Strangest thing I had on a train was in Zimbabwe, we left Rutenga station on the Way to Bulawayo, after half an hour and well over 35 km away from Rutenga the train stopped and reversed all the way back to Rutenga! Turned out that a freight train was underway at this single track line which didn't fit in the passing loop where we normally would have crossing it.
Oh wow, that's amazing! 😂
MY WORST RIDE ON AMTRAK WAS VASTLY BETTER THAN MY BEST GREYHOUND RIDE!!
@@rossbryan6102 That's pretty normal. Few forms of transit in the entire world are worse than Greyhound. Sketchy soviet era trains in central Asia are better than Greyhound. Long haul buses in India are better than Greyhound haha.
That was really impressive. If it was Amtrak you could be waiting hours for a rescue locomotive and you might even get sprayed with oil (apparently GE Genesis locomotives love to spray tons of oil out the exhausts if the turbocharger seals fail).
They need to learn the saw-by. And yes, that's why I think long distance trains at least should be loco-hauled, despite the presence of 'Thunderbird' locomotives.
"What's the worst thing that's happened to you on a train?"
Nightjet train Munich-Venice, that didn't go, missing the ferry connection to Greece and thus forcing me to travel alternatively, via Vienna and from there by airplane.
Instead of passing through Austria sleeping, I had forced stays in Salzburg and Vienna, discovering how nice Austrians actualy are. That was a nice touch.
Oh no!
I had a similar experience several years ago on that same train, however I was forewarned of the bribes and had a sneaky plan.
I googled the general managers name of KTZ and wrote it down. When the train journey had begun I too was approached and asked to furnish extra cash to secure my cabin.
I asked the 'briber' to write his name for me which he only gave me his first name, I then pretended to call on my phone and asked to be put through to Mr (what ever his name was) and pretended I was on hold.
When I did this the 'briber' said nothing, so I thought my plan was foiled but another comrade of his whispered in his ear & then he frantically began saying NO NO NO and waving his arms about. NO MONEY NO MONEY he repeated.
I was not bothered for the rest of the train journey.
Kinda reminds me of a story an old eastern european colleague told me.
This guy had some real connections though.
I believe it was in Bulgaria.
He and his wife was trying to cross the border in a car but were stopped for some time and well, the whole bribe thing came up.
So he called his connections and well, didn't take long before the border guards received a scolding from their higher-ups.
As they quite embarrassed let the car through without getting what they were hoping for.
That old colleague instead gave them a heartwarming middle finger as he slowly cruised by.
I traveled from Moscow to Bishkek with Kyrgyz Railways in 2017 and had a really great experience. The provodnik has always been ready to help. After a couple of days of travel, we became friends and (tried to) talk a lot. Just before reaching Bishkek, we exchanged out contacts.
A couple of days later, he called me and invited to go eat shashlik with his family somewhere in the mountains. That was really kind.
One year later, I needed to travel from Chimkent (kz) to Moscow, so I called him some months in advance to ask on which day he would have been on that route, and then I booked accordingly in order to be on his carriage. And so we met again :).
Therefore, I wouldn't suggest to AVOID Kyrgyz railways.
It is a well-known fact that money helps oil the wheels of commerce in a lot of these countries. When I used to travel as an engineer, my expense-claim forms listed 'sundry expenses'. As the company did not allow bribery in any form, these had to be made up to include papers, snacks, replace lost shoes, stolen clothes etc. In the middle-east, 'baksheesh' was very common, and went down as taxi-fare.
This is true. When companies want to make business in such countries they have to dedicate some of their budge to "unofficial" expenses because otherwise doing business will be borderline impossible.
And it's harming those countries. It's harming their development, their progress. It's not coincidence that countries with a lot of bribery are also not very democratic.
What type of engineer are you that is in demand worldwide?
@@Anton43218 Most likely a Petroleum engineer, they're needed pretty much everywhere, from extraction and processing rigs to pipeline design and installation.
@@ValleysOfRain meanwhile in Romania petroleum engineers get paid 1.0x-1.5x the minimum wage
Another chance to enjoy an unpleasant journey vicariously 😄. As usual, a really well presented video with a great commentary.
Thanks again!
Thanks for taking one for the team to show this journey
Ahahaha, no problem!
my worst train experience....
the scariest (though in a way fascinating) experience, was getting snowed in for 64hours on a courier-local of the Norilsk-Dudinka railway (НЖМД-6)...
another hair-raiser was
being left on an unmanned platform in the Neutral zone between two countries (my passport and most of my money still within the train) - the unairconditioned train was awaiting a wheel change, and we were allowed out to a well next to the empty shunting-yard we were stopped at, however, the steward got the departure-time wrong, and when the train left without us, he took no action. (when we caught up, the guy was not even sorry!!!)
the worst was though probably just stories of personal discomfort, such as long nights in the extremely cold, barely heated post-soviet carriages (when fuel was getting syphoned off & sold on the side) during arctic winter ... or hours of hot rough rails, getting out into the bush, on some French-built line using "India-imported fast suburbans". trains, where you were not allowed to get up because it was too shaky, even as the wire-mesh of the seats left a red pattern on your behind that would last for days...
certainly, whilst I love trains in all types and sizes, a percentage of my rail experiences did have a certain shadow to them.
I still remember my winter train trips on trans siberian - window insulation was that bad that my pillow got stuck frozen to the wall every night. I slept in my winter coat sometimes.
@@stariyczedunyup... certainly happens
Fascinating! I've spent a few hours researching the Norilsk Railway in the past, it's a really cool one.
I'm wondering what an Indian imported suburban train constitutes . Very interesting stories though !
@@jkardez4794 to be exact, a Chennai-Perambur Integral Coach Factory made #16 ICF Rake DMU unit of 6 cars... modified for use by Tanzanian Railways...
Great video! If you feel like depriving yourself of any enjoyment in life, you should try the Hungarian Interpici trains owned by Mav-Start. A route like Nyiregyhaza to Vasarosnameny lasts about an hour, and it is absolutely unbearable. but the tickets cost barely anything! so if you could one day review these 1980's time machines that would make for a great video idea :)
I doubt they're that bad. I mean its also bargain value so there's that to consider, it'd be something else if the trains were really expensive... like DSB in Denmark.
@@drdewott9154 out of all the Bzmot I have rode, not a single one had aircon. The seats are old and made out of leather and sometimes fabric. Usually very dirty too. I rather go by car than be stuck on an Interpici 😂 regardless would be a good video
isn't there a train that runs from budapest all the way to hamburg and its these crappy intercities? i remember i once rode a part of it in czechia and started to be grateful for czech railways lmao
@@vaclavnutil2646 Yes as far as im aware mav start runs through the neighbouring countries of hungary like romania, slovakia, poland, ukraine etc. however i cant imagine spending more than 2 hours on those crappy second class seats
@@vaclavnutil2646it's kind of nice that leaving czechia by train is a downgrade in any direction. would not want to be in slovakia, or poland, definitely not hungary or germany. only in austria do the railways get any better than ČD is offering
In Croatia this summer the bus driver gave us two used tickets from the day before so he could avoid using the machine and pocket the cash. We queried but he just said they're valid for a month. No wonder Arriva want you to use their app.
😂😂😂
I hope you reported it to Arriva?
To all those complaining about the bribe, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made the trip very uncomfortable for those who don’t pay, like getting the worst travel companions or treasure hunting with your belongings when you go to the toilet.
Asking for around £35-€30 is completely taking the Piss. Maybe better negotiating skills were needed.
Yeah so? That still makes them asking for a bribe absolutely awful.
@@UnbelievableEricthegiraffefrom European spending power perspective
@@bocahdongo7769that's a lot of money from European perspective.
@@bocahdongo7769 From someone who makes a living off UA-cam adverts and channel memberships, with fewer than 100,000 subscribers. I don't think he's raking it in.
Really enjoyed that video, awesome job as usual!
Thanks! :)
Was part of a student group and we traveled 2015 from Germany via Poland, Ukraine and Russia till Almaty in Kazakhstan by train (mostly Platzkartny ;-) ). Just for the last step to Kyrgyzstan we took the minibus, because the train connection between Almaty and Bishkek is such a big waste of time. The Lwiw-Moscow train was in the same age like your train but cleaner and still in much better condition.
Amazing! And the Almaty-Bishkek train is pretty slow... 😂
I love slow trains but not overpriced ones.@@SuperalbsTravels
@@tomaud Thankfully, most trains in this region are exceptional value, this is just the worst!
"What's the worst thing that's happened to you on a train?"
18-hour delay on the Seattle-Chicago Empire builder amtrak because of a freight derailment near Fargo North Dakota, padded with the special shuttle-buses for the affected stations deciding not to arrive until the morning after we found out
"First World Problems"
😅
@@slypear That's even worse cause you'd expect the train then to at least be up to some kind of standard even if it's in a country that hates trains.
@@ForelliBoy Empire Builder has seen some crazy delays. There are stretches of single track, and sometimes waiting while a freight trundles past in slo-mo. (Portland to Spokane stretch)
@@surelyyoujokemeinfailure7531 I had a decent enough ride on Coast Starlight but that was 2020. Hopefully it won't be so bad this year.
18hr is pretty bad! 😂
I like it that You provide the actual loco numbers. So people interested in it get to know which ones are still in service
For this part of the world, check out www.railgallery.ru. They can provide more information on working locos than I ever could!
thanks for that
We booked a private sleeper carriage with Thello in 19 from Paris to Milan (both ways), we were then downgraded to a 6 person couchette (both ways), sharing with others, no explanation, no refund nothing. The trsin manager on boarding spoke perfect english, but when challenged couldn't speak english.
Thello never even bothered to reply to my complaint
That's rubbish, I seem to remember Thello customer service was never great... :(
I mean
I admire your dedication to giving an impartial review.
If id been asked for a bribe and had to haggle? I'd have just made this whole video an unmitigated take down of the people who tried to screw me.
I appreciate your dispassionate, even handed approach.
A pretty poor journey - but you are still more than willing to point out the good or enjoyable where it exists. Credit to you.
Thanks! Despite the staff doing that, this was a beautiful trip on trains and tracks that I love. 🥰
The 2D100 engine used by the TE10 series locomotives are interesting to me. There's not much info for this engine on the internet. I only know that it is an opposed-piston two-stroke design.
it's an upgrade from a submarine engine which itself was bought from the US around the 1940s
@@НиколайИванов-в8ы1я Is the engine efficient? It's exhaust has so much soot.
@@吳秉樺-b7j most of modern day TE3s to TE10s were built around 1950s (look it up, they were beautiful) with the majority of the fleet recieving body and engine overhauls around 1980s, then USSR falls apart, no more new engines and spare parts plus complete neglect during the 90s and 00s and you have a few thousands of these things guzzling around. Not to mention unlike Russia, Belarus or Ukraine both Kazakhstan and especially Kyrgyzstan never invested too much into their rail infrastructure since said 1980s because no money. So the farther you go from Lugansk, where they were built, the worse they will get.
@@НиколайИванов-в8ы1я So sad about the state they're in. Their opposed-piston two-stroke engine are so unique.
@@НиколайИванов-в8ы1я They have nothing to do with Submarine engine from US. You are confusing it with ALCO, which was the influencer of TEM1.
I lived in China for a while, including in Xinjiang, and I had a beautiful view from my apartment of the Tianshan.
Sounds amazing! 😍
8:34 the views are absolutely amazing throughout the whole vid.
Combined with the peaceful aesthetics that's one of the biggest reasons why I love it so much.
I know for a fact that I will grow nostalgic for the experience
Yeah, despite the trouble I mentioned, this was one of my most memorable and amazing journeys.
The only electrified bit of Kyrgyz railways is the corridor of Kazakh railways near Taraz.
By the way, great video. Reminded me on many Kazakh trains and even one Kyrgyz train (Bishkek-Tokmok) that I took this spring - of course in the Platzkartny class!
That's correct, very good. :)
Wow, just from the intro I can tell you're in for a helluva time. I was on a long Myanmar train journey that broke down halfway and took about 27 hours to do an alleged 15 hour trip, so I'm with you in spirit!
14:35 VL80s The abbreviation for this locomotive stands for *Vladimir Lenin 8-axles 0-Odnofaznyy (onephased) S-Sekcionniy (with Multiple Unit system)*
That's what I know about it, it might not be accurate.
Yes, you're right! 😅
That's a great video, love it. It really is a different world out there, isn't it! Well played, Alb, very well played.
Glad you enjoyed it! 😁
Magic video. Love the trip and especially the """ extra"" cost. However the rescue was accomplished very well
I agree! :)
You know YT, you can run as many ads as you want. I will NEVER support or purchase ANYTHING from the businesses your interrupting ads show. EVER. How's that for ads working?
LOve Germany and Germans but every train journey there has been a nightmare. En route from Brussels to Linz the train stopped outside Munich with the station in full view for an hour, causing us to miss the connection and endure a five hour coach journey.On returning we couldn't board our direct train to Brussels from Frankfurt Hauptbanhof due to terrorism and had to travel from the airport station to a Cologne suburban station on a train so packed that I was standing on the door steps and then transfer, via several stairwells, to another platform for a twenty minute journey to Cologne Hauptbanhof to change again for Brussels.I wont even start on journeys endured during winter from Schoenefeldt airport to Berlin and back due to train cancellations caused by snow.
I'm impressed by the delay of only one hour to get two rescue engines out to your train. I was on a train when the engine broke down - 90 minutes later we were on our way. But we weren't in Kyrgystan --- we were in Queens, New York on an Acela!
That station in Kazakhstan looks like someone's school project that's labeled as "Modern infrastructure."
😂😂😂
This
Post-Soviet architecture is like this. Imagine being an architect and doing the same prefabs your entire career. Suddenly, you get your hands on all those new materials and building techniques. You want to unleash your creativity. You want to go wild, but nobody really taught you about esthetic or good taste...
The train looks beautiful with this touch of "old style", however, this thing of the staff is unacceptable...they should be ashamed! Beautiful video as always greetings from Italy ❤
Thanks. It was a great journey. But the staff were very bad! ☹️
Ashamed is not compatible with Central Asian mentality when it comes to Money 😂...
Dont ask me why but I believe they recently changed the name of Nur-Sultan back to Astana again.
They did.
Yes, it changes every now and again.
Thanks!
Thank you so much! 🥰🥰🥰
When travelling by Interrail in Morocco in the early nineties, we had booked two berths on a couchette type sleeper on the Tangiers to Marrakesh night train. At boarding, some people scrambled to the front of the queue to bribe the attendant into selling places that had already been booked. The situation nearly turned violent. We were glad to finally retrieve our berths. Five minutes after departure, the train reversed into the station to pick up some carriages that apparently had been forgotten. When awaking, I was shocked to see the state of the extremely stained pillow. Still, this was a memorable trip allowing for some great views and conversations. Al Boraq was still ages away…
Oh wow, what a trip! 😂
Great video! I've been considering this trip and details like the half Kazakh-half Kyrgyz split, plus no restaurant, are really useful!
Best of luck! And enjoy it!
Looking back at it when you get older, you'll be like ... pfft.. that was all good fun.
It reminds me of my week-long trip on the Trans-Siberian during the
Brezhnev era. One section even used steam back then.
Cheers and thx for a nice video.
Amazing. And of course, I will always remember this journey for the fun I had on it, even if it was terrible.
An excellent video, hats off to you!
My worst experience on rails? Going home to Debrecen, from Sopron, after an exhausting Iron Maiden concert back in 2018. Had to switch trains 4 times, and it took me almost 10 hours (including an unscheduled 1hr delay at Budapest-Kelenföld) to cover some 470 kilometers. The first leg from Sopron to Győr was godawful... all the carriages on the train were loaded to the brim, and I was dead tired, half-drunk and fell asleep while leaning at the wall of the carriage, with a cig hanging out of my mouth (smoking was forbidden on the trains, but I didn't gave a damn). Good thing is: the first leg of the trip was free of charge, since I didn't buy any tickets, and the conductor haven't had either the will or the time to check the tickets of the 1000+ people travelling on that train, or simply didn't gave a fudge. Could've made it quicker, in some 6 hrs, switching trains only once, but that would've meant waiting for a later train, plus it would've been more costly, so I can only thank my stinginess for that experience.
After watching videos on your channel I realised how good Indian railways are.
For sure!😂😂😂
They are much worse.
This one was superb! I loved every second of it and wished it would last longer 😅 Thank you!
Thank you, I'm really glad you liked it!
Wow this video is bringing back memories. When I was a child my family and I used to visit relatives in the other city. This was in mid 90s. Train cars were exactly the same. I don't know why but I absolutely loved everything about train travel. But nowadays it is not justified, because airlines are much faster while prices are on about the same level. So i didn't used a train for a long long time. But sometimes I want to do that like you just for a sake to bring back this atmosphere.
I'd recommend a train journey, it's (usually) always fun! :)
I guess there was that school trip to Naples in the early 2000s via the night train from Munich on which half the class had their wallets stolen at night because the compartments had no locks on the doors.
Oh god! 😭
Lemme be clear.... they took bribe for the seats you booked?
And they 'called' you to their section? Like some officer calling their insubordinate? Wtf
That's right!
In 1992, as one of the few westerners in Russia at the time, I took a train from Moscow to Prague. The train conductor was really nice and took me from economy class and gave me my own First Class cabin. When I arrived at Czech border customs officials came into the cabin with electric screwdrivers and started taking the panels cabin off. Inside the walls was stuffed with cans of caviar being smuggled out. They arrested the conductor.
This certainly is an adventure. However there is absolutely no excuse asking for bribes. That diesel locomotive's pollution is almost on par with a steam engine.
Agreed!
I've done the bribe thing on the Bucharest to Budapest 'Express'. I didn't get hit up on the Astana-Shymkent last winter though. Maybe because some Kazakh babushkas adopted me!
Holy guacamole, for a train in that part of the world I'd at least expect it to be affordable, but to demand such high prices (equivalent to sleeper class on some Western European night trains) and then have the guts to let staff BRIBE passengers, on a consistent basis too if other comments are anything to go by! Like What the actual fuck Kyrgyzstan railways?!?!
Also Astanas station is surprisingly impressive, but still weird how the ground floor looks downright abandoned.
Crazy, right!?
well, you did pay for 4 tickets, so in comparison to a flight it is still expensive, but not quite as bad as you made it seem@@SuperalbsTravels
@@mypdf But the four tickets I booked were more than 4x the price of one flight, so... 😥
By the way, the word you were looking for was 'extort'. The employees were bribed, the passenger extorted. The passenger paid a bribe, and was extorted.
Unfortunately, 4 democratic revolutions in Kyrgyzstan led primarily to rampant crime and disruption of order, which leads to corruption, and not to population growth.
Nice video. Thank you for uploading.
You're a brave man for doing this trip haha
Thanks! 😂😂😂
If a railway hub is so “silent”, mann that Railway has some serious problems
He paid a bribe to do what with what in his compartment?
Goes without saying.
0:03 long-distance station at frankfurt airport. the train is an ICE
and they are delayed frequently and sometimes they don't even arrive so it's kind of a good example
While travelling by train from Hanoi to Hue overnight, in a regular seat, some time after midnight I was woken by a guard asking me if I wanted to sleep (he did so in mime). He was, of course, offering to put me in a sleeper for a bribe. I tried pointing out that I actually had been asleep, but he persisted. In the end he went away, and I wasn't bothered again.
This has been normal practice in Vietnamese trains for decades. The staff in sleeper carriages earn extra money by offering passengers in coaches the unoccupied berths in exchange for some money. That whole amount would be gone to the staff's wallets instead of the railway company.
I'd take that offer up admittedly! 😂
@@SuperalbsTravels Will you travel to Vietnam soon?
@@thehungnguyen2186 No plans yet, but I want to! :)
I enjoyed this. My wife was born travelling on this railway line (I assume) when her parents left Kyrgyzstan in 1946 to go to Poland. Their journey took 3 weeks I’m told.
Wow, I bet that was an amazing journey!
Worst thing i had happen wasn't even that bad. Was taking amtrak from temple TX to Lancaster pa. Texas eagle was delayed bad enough we missed the connection with the capitol limited in Chicago. Amtrak gave me a food voucher and put me up in a really nice hotel overnight, and covered taxi to and from the hotel and union Station
Was also cool being so late as I got to see a lot of the route in day that normally is in night. Including some beautiful sunrise in Arkansas
Oh dear! 😅
@@SuperalbsTravels yeah xD wasn't really that bad at all. What was worse was the greyhound down to Texas where in Missouri, the driver was falling asleep at the wheel, drifting lane to lane, rumble strip to rumble strip.
Greyhounds safety number brushed me off and I was denied any firm of compensation as I'm sorry, but when half the bus is falling 911...
That's kids why I took amtrak back, and why I'm neve taking greyhound again. One too many stories with them
84 minutes delay is considered legendary and very impressive for Amtrak standards . Usually long distance trains here are delayed at least 3 hours, and some routes are regularly delayed for 10+ hours due to freight interference/low priority, trespassers, broken equipment, FRA crew hour requirements, etc. and on top of that you aren’t even guaranteed a compensation for long delays, unlike airlines
The sheer size of these counties is so insane to me.
The longest train ride there is 63hr, and I've filmed it too! :)
@@SuperalbsTravels Crazy! You could probably bike from one end of my country to the other in that time. 😅
A friend of mine once told me how he was told he had to pay an extra charge by an employee on a train in Russia once. He just picked up the guy, carried him out of his compartment and closed the door on him. The guy never bothered him again.
😂😂😂
This channel is fxxking amazing. Not gonna miss this video.
Thanks, I am super proud of this one! 😇
The cost of the journey was significantly cheaper than flying if you account for the fare-minus the bribe-spread across four tickets. I was quite impressed with the journey time too; it took 25 hours and was only an hour late, which is remarkable considering it was on old rolling stock. Interestingly, in the UK, one of the wealthiest countries, we’re still using locomotives and carriages from the 1960s and '70s. I really enjoyed your video-thank you!
Second-worst thing that's happened to me on a train: A group of drunk and downhearted football fans have their day turned around when two post-menopausal and even drunker women decide to treat them to a strip act; they passed out sprawled naked on the tables and the football fans had to figure out how their clothes worked.
Worst: Their even more wasted friend propositioning me repeatedly before passing out in my lap and gassing me with wine-farts, occasionally waking up to tell me that I'm a gentleman, snuggle into my groin, smile contentedly, and let one rip.
Not even close: Somehow, getting the three of them off the train, down the stairs, and into a taxi became my problem.
UK, Virgin Trains Pendolino, First Class. What I saw and smelled that night is seared into my memory. *shudder*
Bet it was To or from Glasgow- London-Glasgow.
@@UnbelievableEricthegiraffe The train was on that route, but this was between Milton Keynes and Warrington.
Oh god! 😭😭😭
Very nice video!
Also tysm for showing the border crossing because i really like border crossings between countries on railways
I suspect the bribe for you to keep your room is not going to the railways but is staying with the person you payed it at (providing you paid cash)
yes of course, thats what a bribe is
@@austriankangaroo the way he says it it sounds like he thinks it's the railway asking for it tho, not the person on board the train
Yes, it is a bribe, so not at all official.
Great video ! - Shame about the breakdown and the train staff demanding a bribe like that ! - I would have most definitely written a letter to the train company to report this ! and demand your bribe money back or you'll be contacting the local press !
Those train carriages definitely look much older than the 1980's... I would say 1960's to 1970's !
Bruh, I am from India and I thought our trains were bad. Now I am truly grateful of Indian Railways 😂😂
In fact, Indian Railways is one of the best.
india has probably like 100 times the yearly income of katakhstan^^
in what form?@@amitkriit
@@treeslayerr for e.g. it is the second most electrified network after the Swiss railways (better than EU, US, China etc).
Indian Railways still needs a lot to improve. But we are getting there.
Never really had a bad experience on a train. But living in the US, we don't exactly ride them that often unless you live in a place like NYC. My one Amtrak experience was back in 1988 and I was a little kid, a 2 day trip from NY to Denver, and it was actually pretty decent back then. I will get the fun of experiencing UK rail in a couple months as I am traveling to the UK.
It's because Amtrak tickets aren't cheap. It's like $2000 to ride the Zephyr on sleeper. At that price I could probably take Delta in first class
"maybe you've been delayed for hours"
Showing ICE 💀🔥
Glad you noticed that! ;)
Broken Kyrgyzstan Railways engine looks similar to diesel rail engine i saw in Riga, Latvia.
0:17 thought that this was you : )))
15:33 That locomotive was already in comatose state.
a car dealer ship in a train station? And i thought a car dealer ship in a mall is kind of weird🤔
in a train station it would be weird but alright
in an unlit carpark from Zombie-Apocalypses which calls itself the station's lower floor, now that's spooky......
It was so strange! 😂
Love your journeys!! I actually think this journey was quite acceptable. It’s a bit like going back in time, totally worthwhile IMO. Bribes are common outside of first world countries where corruption happens at a much, much higher level.
First time seeing train service in Kazakstan and I'm not impressed. For a price of 270 GBP/350 USD, I at least expect a charging point in every seat & AC. That's the least you could ask for. What really disappointed me is the bribe and a complete breakdown of the locomotive. Simply not worth it in my opinion. Outdated, Underperforming & Uncomfortable for the hefty price tag.
Remember this was Kyrgyz Railways who operated this train. I have always found rail travel in Kazakhstan to be fine, and certainly with no bribes!
That's an international train with overprices (Post-Soviet 'mezhgos').
And that is the cost of 4(!) Tickets, so the comparison in the video versus plane is not like for like
@@AlanBrett The same distance will be half priced in one state ($140 for Kazakhstan)
@AlanBrett The comparison in the video shows that the plane is less than a quarter of what I paid, so the comparison is valid.
Nice video mate!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed! :)
The worst thing that's ever happened to me on a train... Students have tickets for free, my card was ending, so I wanted to visit the mountains. On the journey there, the person at window told me that free tickets were "sold out", so I had to pay the full price. And on my return trip, I just hopped on the train, wanted to "buy" my free ticket (tickets are only sold in some stations, you never know which ones do sell them, or when are the booths open), but the train conductor argued with me that I should have had one beforehand and gave me a fine. I was a tourist, so, didn't know that that station sold tickets. And also, almost comedically, 20 km before the end of my journey, the loco broke down. So I had to jump on another train for like 1 stop.
That's bad! 😂
@@SuperalbsTravelsIt was, but doesn't even come close to your adventures 😀
ever thought about bribing onto the loco to have a look
That would be a bribe worth paying! 😂😂😂
VL stands for Vladimir Lenin.
Correct! :)
I once went on a train in China... Overnight 16 hour ride.... And yes.... At an internal inspection point... We had to pay $100 USD for the three of us... Apparently an entrance fee to that area......
Boa viagem bonito trem gostei centro da asia 4:45 trein
Lol yes
I am glad that you have such a sense of humour - necessary when making such a horrendous journey. I have had some horrible experiences when travelling, but they were mainly at airports (waiting 7 hours for a delayed flight for example) but there are usually things to do to pass the time (not that my wife would agree!). As for paying bribes, in the 1980s I worked for a British company which had to send its staff occasionally out to Nigeria to help the branch there. Colleagues informed me that in order to get out of the country on the return flight, you had to have money available to pay the local officials before they would let you out of the country. I never found out for myself. After getting an armful of the necessary injections (and getting ill for a couple of days as a result) my trip was cancelled 4 days before departure because there was one of the regular (for the time) coups d'états in the country and all flights were cancelled for several weeks.🤕
I had a similar experience in Ukraine on October 31, 2023.
I refused to bribe and was not allowed to enter the country.
In the fact I am banned from Ukraine up until mid-2025.
And in the paper I got there is no reason to explain, why.
They left that line simply empty.
Few days later I was entering Kaliningrad, than some more days later Poland.
The border guards in Russia and Poland told me that I made a "mistake" not to insert 5 or 10 Euro in my passport.
I have both US and EU passports and I am originally from Moscow.
No, thanks - I won't "cooperate" with any "authority" expecting a bribe.
There wasn't any miscommunication and the "authority" on the Ukrainian side was clearly ethnic Russian: she spoke without a single trace of Ukrainian accent. Therefore all this can't be tied to the armed conflict. It was "just" the common corruption the "Zakarpatskaya Oblast'" is (in)famous for. I won't support any government which tolerates such things.
Warning: anyone succumbing to pay the train staff, border guards, etc. is unwillingly committing a serious crime.
On the Hungarian, Polish, Russian border stations there is a warning in multiple languages.
I did not notice this kind of warning on the Ukrainian side. But officially it could be still a crime.
Be very careful and if encountering such things... better to turn around and leave.
Like I did.
Well said. Went through similar crap in middle east many years ago. They saw government service on passport and backed off fast. Misunderstanding right
What a shitpost
You are a Russian and it's obviously a national security risk to let you in in time of a full scale war. Honestly the audacity to even attempt to cross the border and then to complain about it
You did right not to offer a bribe though, this is indeed a crime and repercussions for that would've been more serious
>on the Ukrainian side was clearly ethnic Russian: she spoke without a single trace of Ukrainian accent
pfff, how to make conclusions absolutely out of nothing. You think if they speak russian they would absolutely love every russian they meet? Lmao
15:50 that locomotive looks like someone just finished excavating it from permafrost in siberia. The amount of smoke as if it was a steam loco.
of course, there are such bad old railway passenger cars in Russia, there are also new ones, but we don't complain much about all the inconveniences of the railway, because we perceive it as a temporary inconvenience that is gradually transforming into the best
by the way, greetings from Russia, the city of Tyumen ;-)
and sometimes we treat breakdowns or emergency situations with humor
during my trip, a breakdown occurred on the way, a diesel locomotive broke down, and as a result, 2 freight locomotives and 2 passenger locomotives dragged our train to the terminal station Tyumen, the composition consisted of 23 passenger cars
Sounds like you would be impressed with American freight trains that can be 4km long
@@mikew3194there are many freight trains in Russia from 80 to 140 wagons
Soviet train cars from 90's ? I doubt that. They look much older. These are either Egorov or older Ammendorf. Passenger sleepers in Russia in 90's were awesome. Look identical to those, but very clean, with AC, all lights working, better bedding, corridor retractable seats at the windows, some decoration in there.
Here they were running passenger train with single unit 2TE10 is very strange. Those are typically freight locomotives and 90% of the time work in pair. And 2TE10 themself are very old. In Russia they are retired. BTW the name of the locomotive 2TE10e stands for - 2 = double unit, TE10 - loco series, and last letter or two represent modification that allow it to run with passenger train, plus any depo overhaul that were done.
It’s quite interesting how railway staff seems to be more corrupt than the countries around, yet cops in Kyrgyzstan tend to be more chill and less bribe happy than the surrounding countries, or at least that is the impression one gets from people traveling the region. If correct, it would be interesting to discover why.
My worst: a trip from Picton - Christchurch New Zealand. Narrow gauge train late so we went @ light speed. We had to cling to our seats! Scary + bone shaking!
pakistan when?