Amur

Šestog jutra, vlak je prolazio kroz ruski Daleki istok. Tajga je promijenila karakter. Drveće su sada bili korejski bor, mandžurski jasen i mongolski hrast. Šuma se činila bližom. Ovo je umjerena kišna šuma ruskog Dalekog istoka, jedna od najvlažnijih šuma na svijetu izvan tropa.

On the sixth morning, the train was running through the Russian Far East. The taiga had changed character. The trees were now Korean pine, Manchurian ash, and Mongolian oak. The forest felt closer. This is the temperate rainforest of the Russian Far East, one of the wettest forests in the world outside the tropics.

Polly je bila sama u kupeu. Pavel je izašao u Ulan-Udeu. Vojnik se preselio u drugi vagon. Nova stanarka gornjeg ležaja bila je mršava žena koja je većinu dana spavala.

Polly was alone in the compartment. Pavel had gotten off in Ulan-Ude. The soldier had moved to another carriage. The new occupant of the upper bunk was a thin woman who slept most of the day.

Teretni vlak prošao je u suprotnom smjeru. Bio je gotovo dva kilometra dug, prevozio je drvo. Polly je izbrojala trideset i osam vagona prije nego što je prestala.

A freight train passed in the opposite direction. It was nearly two kilometres long, carrying timber. Polly counted thirty-eight flatbeds before she stopped.

Vlak je stigao u Habarovsk sredinom jutra. Habarovsk se nalazi na rijeci Amur, osmoj najdužoj rijeci na svijetu. Amur čini veći dio granice između Rusije i Kine. S perona, Polly je mogla vidjeti rijeku kroz procjep između dviju zgrada. Bila je široka. Boje jakog čaja. Na suprotnoj obali, kroz izmaglicu, bila je Kina.

The train arrived at Khabarovsk in mid-morning. Khabarovsk sits on the Amur River, the eighth-longest river in the world. The Amur forms much of the border between Russia and China. From the platform, Polly could see the river through a gap between two buildings. It was wide. It was the colour of strong tea. On the far bank, through the haze, was China.

Polly je skočila dolje i prošetala duž vlaka.

Polly hopped down and walked the length of the train.

Ždral s ruskog Dalekog istoka stajao je na rubu male močvare blizu željezničkog dvorišta. Gotovo dva metra visok, crno-bijel s crvenom bojom oko oka. Ždral s ruskog Dalekog istoka jedan je od najrjeđih ždralova na svijetu. Možda ih je ostalo tri tisuće, gnijezde se uglavnom u slivu Amura.

A Russian Far East crane was standing at the edge of a small marsh near the station yards. Almost two metres tall, black and white with red around the eye. The Russian Far East crane is one of the rarest cranes in the world. Maybe three thousand left, breeding mostly in the Amur basin.

Polly je nagnula glavu prema njemu. Ždral je nagnuo glavu natrag. Polly je prišla bliže. Ždral se nije pomaknuo.

Polly tilted her head at it. The crane tilted its head back. Polly walked closer. The crane did not move.

Kondukter je zazviždao. Polly se vratila natrag u vlak. Okrenula se i pogledala ždrala. Ždral je još uvijek gledao u nju. Zatim je vrlo polako podigao svoj dugi vrat i otišao, promišljenim koracima, u močvaru.

A conductor blew a whistle. Polly hopped back to the train. She turned and looked at the crane. The crane was still looking at her. Then it lifted its long neck very slowly and walked, in deliberate steps, away into the marsh.

Vlak je krenuo iz Habarovska i skrenuo prema jugu. Pacifik je sada bio manje od sedamsto kilometara daleko.

The train pulled out of Khabarovsk and turned south. The Pacific was less than seven hundred kilometres away now.