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Train for the Forgotten by William Daniels – It was the most expensive infrastructure project of the Soviet era. The BAM, the Baikal-Amur Mainline, is the railway crossing Eastern Russia, running for more than 4000 kilometers, passing through remote villages with no amenities, and certainly no healthcare facilities, and where it can take a day or more to reach the nearest hospital. So the authorities set up a medical train – the Matvey Mudrov – stopping at almost every village along the line. For the people, it is more than just a mobile hospital; it is their sole point of contact with the rest of Russia, with Western Russia which has surged ahead over the past decade, leaving the East behind. Here: A stopover in the deserted town of Elban, where the Matvey Mudrov crew are celebrating Maslenitsa, marking the end of winter, drinking vodka, eating kebabs and burning a doll. (Photo by William Daniels/Panos Pictures/National Geographic Magazine)
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