How is Moscow to live in as expat? (pay, English, Russian)

[Muscovite]

Stay in Moscow. Visit Petersburg. Use the high-speed train.

In the Underground the signs are in Russian. But the underground maps inside the trains are translated into English.

[Tall Traveler]

Originally Posted by swissdude

I hear St. Petersburg is not as Russian as Moscow is. I initially had the choice between Cape town, Tel Aviv, Tokyo, Mexico City and Moscow. I was torn or still am between Tokyo and Russia, but as long as you are in your 20s I guess Moscow is more attractive.....

Moscow is a fast paced and stressful place due to it being the center of Russian government and business together with the high cost and low pay for most locals. They say the biggest secret behind the iron curtain was just how beautiful the women are....so if you're a single male, this might interest you. As a married man, I could only observe that there seemed to be some truth to that.

Given your choices listed above, I would have gone for Mexico city as I would really love to learn Spanish, it's relatively inexpensive, I love the MC climate, and proximity to USA.

[swissdude]

Hi there....I am thinking of moving to Mocow for english teaching reasons but would first like to get some opinions of Western Europeans who have lived there before. Is it comparable to any city we are more familiar with (Berlin, Munich, Amsterdam etc) or is it totally different? Any inputs are more than welcome.....

[sepfemale]

It is very obviously not as developed as Western Europe.
There is a rapidly growing rich and middle class in russia, but poor people remain plenty.

[The Postman]

It's more dangerous than western Europe.

[Maksim_Frolov]

In St. Petersburg, often wet weather and cold wind from the sea. Many people don't like that kind of climate.

A need for knowledge of the language depends on what you plan to do.

[swissdude]

Hi there...I am moving to Moscow as an expat and need to know what to expect there. The best advice would be from people who have been in a similar situation before, or also have made a move like me from a smaller city in Western Europe to Moscow.

Also what would be appreciated are first insights or realizations people have had about the new city. Or if these first impressions resulted in simple stereotypes tourists declare who come to visit from all over the world or if, nonetheless, such stereotypes persist even after having lived in the city for a period of time. I am curious to find out how everybody reacts when entering Moscow the first time, especially to see how the different cultures in this world judge such a huge city as Moscow is.

Also greatly appreciated would be insight of how life especially as an expat could be while not speaking the local language or just enough to cover basic needs. Are there groups or gatherings that take place among foreigners or is everybody basically immersing into the city life with whatever skills one may bring along?

Last but now least I would like to know what the dating experience is for expats and if there is possible pattern to be extracted from it. Are russians looking to basically marry and move out of the country into a more civilized region of the world and take advantage of project based foreigners or do they tend not to put up with foreigners whatsoever etc etc.

Any insights are welcome...d-day is next month :-)

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by swissdude

Last but now least I would like to know what the dating experience is for expats and if there is possible pattern to be extracted from it. Are russians looking to basically marry and move out of the country into a more civilized region of the world and take advantage of project based foreigners or do they tend not to put up with foreigners whatsoever etc etc.

Wow.

Rule #1: Lose the attitude. As difficult as this may be for you to grasp, most young Russians think their country is civilized, and they love their country. You wouldn't necessarily want to date the ones who didn't, anyway, because you could never be sure if they only wanted you for your visa potential or not.

The quality of your experience will increase enormously if you learn to speak Russian well. At least--you'd be able to find your way around.

Start your own meetup group for expats in Moscow.

My impression of Moscow is of a huge city, congested traffic, hordes of people. HOT and humid in the summers. Your apt. may not have air conditioning.

Where will you be living? Is an apartment being provided you?

P.S. Do NOT drink the water out of the tap, beware of the ice cubes in drinks. Drink ONLY boiled water. (This usually comes in the form of tea.) Cheap meals can be had at workers' canteens/cafeterias, marked: СТОЛОВАЯ. ("sto-LO-vaya") The trick is to find a good one; quality varies. Restaurants are marked : РЕСТОРАН (pronounced, pretty much, "restauran"), but they'll be very expensive. Banks are marked: БАНК. You may run into people offering to change money unofficially. This is illegal, and you risk running into counterfeit bills from China/N. Korea. Wear your passport in a little pouch under your shirt, hidden.

Good luck. Prepare to be overwhelmed.

[Maksim_Frolov]

What exactly are interested in?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Maksim_Frolov

What exactly are interested in?

The OP will be teaching English in Moscow, and knows virtually nothing about the culture, city, or language.