Saturday morning we set out to explore more of our city. It was a chilly but sunny day, so we went to the port to take pictures at the enormous lake on which our city lies. Our timing was perfect and we saw something you may not see anywhere else in the world. The one railroad that runs through town comes from a neighboring country and ends up at the lake. But, instead of going around the lake – which would take a very long time and a lot of track – it goes across.
How does this work?
Well, as you can see from the pictures, the tracks go right up to the water where a large boat docks. The boat is equipped with rails so the train can back onto it. They load every train car with all its heavy cargo onto the boat - all except for the engine. Then they take the cars and cargo across the lake to a similar dock and unload them with another engine that will take the cargo to the western part of the country. We saw the unloading part of the process.
We thought it was pretty crazy and watching the process made for a fun Saturday morning. They even invited us on the boat! Yes, our idea of fun has had to change a little since living in Central Asia.
No comments:
Post a Comment