Planning a trip to Moscow, what to expect? (country, black, bank)

[jeffpv]

I would highly recommend trying to learn the Cyrillic alphabet before you go. You will be surprised at how many common words are shared between English and Russian if you can read them.

[Signor Asparagus]

1. Don't exchange more than 100 dollars/euro in the airport.
2. Don't use taxi in the airport, use trains of "Aeroexpress" they will take you practically to the center of Moscow in 30 minutes (about 350 rubles ~ 10$).
3. Don't use Sberbank for currency exchange.
4. Use only taxi (but also be careful), taxist must give you the check after ride.
5. All stations in the subway also have latin names.

[Tall Traveler]

I worked in Moscow for 6 months. Not much English spoken there. It seems almost Asian in that people don't talk to people unless introduced. I didn't like Moscow but the women are gorgeous and the metro is excellent. It's relatively safe...I had a Russian attempt to mug me in a subway station but I beat him off and he got nothing from me but that was the only incident like that and I felt pretty safe there in general.

[Greysholic]

Originally Posted by Natsku

Its not that scary really. I didn't feel unsafe at all there and loved it. Hoping to go back again next year to visit a friend.

I'd visit there if I can find a white friend that speaks Russian who would go along with me.It's probably stereotypical but I really don't think it's safe for an Asian who doesn't speak a word in Russian to travel there alone.

[Muscovite]

In Spain and Italy people don't speak much English too (I was surprised, we all think here: "They are Europeans, so they must speak English), but they can help you by gestures. Here, I'm not sure, we are more reserved and not so much into tourists. So, it's still beter to find a young person, looking like student. Perhaps, he or she will speak English.

The police (it's called the police now) don't speak English, it seems to me. They aren't bright in this organisation.

[Ruth4Truth]

OP, are you male or female? What kind of hotel will you be staying at? There's a wide choice these days, from 1st class to bed-and-breakfast type, to hostels.

1. Do not get in the car of anyone pretending to be a taxi driver who approaches you in the airport. Your hotel should send someone to wait for you, that's the standard procedure in Moscow. Ask about it when you book the hotel. These days for an extra fee, someone can meet you at the airport. Otherwise, if you take the Aeroexpress into town, you'll have to find the right metro station yourself, to continue on to your hotel.

2. Don't exchange money with any private parties, it's illegal (though people do it anyway). Change money in the bank. БАНК <----- Learn the alphabet so you can find a bank when you need one.

3. Do not drink the tap water. Don't drink drinks with ice. Drink only boiled water (tea), or bottled water.

4. Leave most of your money and your passport locked in your suitcase in your room. If there's a safe, you can put those things in the safe. If there's no safe in your room, you can ask the front desk to put your things in their safe, but personally, I wouldn't recommend it. I use a hard (not cloth) suitcase with a combination lock, and use my suitcase as my safe.

5. Have you considered visiting St. Petersburg instead of Moscow? Seriously, IMO there's much more to see, and it's a much more beautiful city, far less traffic congestion, and probably less potential for police harassment, and so on. Sorry, I couldn't help but mention the option. It's one of my favorite cities. And I generally don't like to visit cities when I travel. It has an excellent metro, just like Moscow.

[Muscovite]

Ruth4Truth
Do not drink the tap water.

Yes, a smart advice, but I thought that it's something usual not to drink the tap water (in fact I know some people, who do so and don't get ill, but I think it's not a good thing to do).

Do people in the other countries drink the tap water?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Muscovite

Yes, a smart advice, but I thought that it's something usual not to drink the tap water (in fact I know some people, who do so and don't get ill, but I think it's not a good thing to do).

Do people in the other countries drink the tap water?

Yes. This is important for Westerners. They're used to clean tapwater, so они не закалённые, as they say. Very sensitive to microbes in the water.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Ariete

I've never been to Russia, but some of my friends have traveled extensively in St. Pete, Moscow, Vyborg, Sortavala (whatever it is in Russian), Pskov, Tver, Novgorod and whatnot. The only advice I've picked up is indeed the passport bribery thing and other corrupt Militia issues, but otherwise no problems. Of course they are white males, but usually the word "finski" has gotten them off the hook. So if you avoid the shady suburbs, taxis and strip clubs, and aren't provoking anyone, all the Russian cities seem quite safe.

haha, that's funny! The cops go easy on Finns? I wonder why. Does it go by nationality? What if someone said Shvedski (Swedish), or Kanadski? Of course, we all know what would happen if someone said Amerikanski--the extortion would double, lol !

[Muscovite]

Thank you, Ruth. I thought that all parents in the world told their children: "Don't drink the tap water". In books about Europe they don't speak about such small details. That's why I like this forum, it's great to learn something new. Thanks.