Up early to be at the talks being given today starting at nine, the sun rises around 9:30 and its not fully light until then but I was able to scrub enough ice off the window to see what lay opposite our hotel. Buildings previously hidden by low, snow laden clouds, revealed themselves. A burnt-out shell a little way off, windows blackened, lay under a dawning sky…a pink glow above us as we walk out of the hotel.

It’s a clear day with no clouds overhead, chimney stacks in the distance painted white and red pumping out fumes like great strings of cotton wool, expanding as they grow. Estimated temperature is -17C, just as last night but there doesn’t seem to be as much wind as we get going, though judging by the chimneys there is a breeze above the buildings. More people shoveling ice and snow from the pavement, bend-double, shoving with all their might against spades and scraping boards – a chunk breaks off and skids my way as one shoveler fails to notice us coming along. We round the corner of a block and get hit with a stiff breeze that sucks the breath out of you…a familiar sensation. In moments we duck inside to begin the day’s talks. An epic 17 of them! Did find a huge ice clearing machine though during the lunch break, a cut above your average shovel and scraper board to clear the snow.

…we finish the day with our hosts laying on a fantastic spread, and again with the vodka!, lots of salted vegetables and meats as well as some very tasty sweet foods. Russian food really isn’t bad at all and we were made very welcome being fed a fair amount of it. Clearly the thinking is that the extra ‘layer’ will help keep everyone warm…I was only happy to oblige!