The Trans-Mongolian put Mongolia on the map – literally. Mongolia had thrown off Chinese rule in 1924, and once the fighting had died down the USSR made building a railway to Urga – now renamed Ulaanbaatar, “Red Hero” – a top priority in the first of its famous Five Year Plans. Even if you don’t stop (as you don’t, on this itinerary – but you can on others!) you still see some astonishing landscapes as you go thundering… well, alright, it’s nearer to “trundling”… through the Southern Gobi en route to Beijing.