every step must be sprayed with your blood 

It was a cold, clear morning, and the lake, a sunlit ocean of ice, seemed to merge with the far-off White Mountain ridges of Khamar Daban. For most of the day the train travelled along the southwestern shore beneath sheer cliffs and steep woods, offering sudden dazzling views of Baikal as it threaded through the tunnels…..By late afternoon, however, its fascination had worn off, and everyone was glad to get to the Mongolian city of Ulan-Ude, where the train stopped for several hours. Almost all the passengers went into town to shop in the trading arcades…..when they returned, one or two of the women came up to the children with a large box and told them to look inside. 

There they saw a tiny baby swaddled tightly…

word of the event spread quickly, and for the rest of the day people crowded into the carriage to see the new arrival: Rudolf Nureyev’s first audience….

“RUDOLF NUREYEV” Julie Kavanagh