Blogs from Moscow, Northwest, Russia, Europe - page 65

I have found that it is very easy to get Russian professors off topic. They will go on tangents about just about anything. Which really isn't bad at all because they speak Russian the whole time. So I'm still learning. Yesterday we started my Russian literature class having a debate about how well Pushkin knew Russian. During the 1800s the Russian aristocracy spoke mostly French, so Pushkin learned Russian as a second language. My professor says that he constructed sentences like they would be constructed if it was in French. Somehow from there we ended up talking about gender roles in Russia. The professor said that Russian men often live like babies their whole lives. Both the husband and wife normally work but the husband rarely does anything around the house. He also said that women ... read more

Saturday September 9, 2006 - I took the overnight train to Moscow last night. When I got to the train station and found my train I had to ask a few people which train car I was on and then show my passport along with my ticket to board. But so did the Russians. I then had to ask which bed was mine - it turned out to be the upper bed above the small table that also turned into a bed. I had chosen third class instead of second to save money, and it was a car without separate sleeping compartments. Just the whole hall was filled with beds. It ended up being a good decision. Someone helped me store my bag on the rack above my bed and then I read my Russia guide ... read more

Auf dem Bahnhofsvorplatz herrscht wie immer Unruhe. Riesige Packete werden verladen, Reiseproviant fuer manche Passgiere fuer sieben Tage werden zurechtgepackt, die Taxifahrer preisen Ihre Fahrten an, hunderte Menschen stroemen aus der Metro. Der Jaroslaver Bahnhof in Moskau befindet sich an einem Platz mit zwei weiteren Bahnhoefen. Zwei Stunden vor Abfahrt um 21:25 bin ich am Start um die Athmosphaere zu schnuppern und um mich zurechtzufinden. Der Zug Nummer zwei von Moskau nach Vladiwostok, der Rossija, ist bereits an der Informationstafel angeschrieben, der Bahnsteig fehlt noch. Hunderte Menschen stehen vor der Tafel und warten. Verhaeltnismaesig wenig Touristen. Dann gehts los. Der Zug ist 500m lang. Ich wandere den Bahnsteig entlang. Wagen 5, Bett 18. Dort werde ich fuer 89 Stunden wohnen. Zu viert sind wir am Abteil, ein junges russisches Paar aus Tschita (Stadt zwischen Irkuts... read more

Dear Diary, The trip to Moscow was completely mis-sold. It would seem that the famous Warsaw to Moskva Express has lost much of its Expressiness. It's now more of a Warsaw to Moskva clatter and crawl. It takes 21 hours to complete the journey by which time the passengers who opted for the less conventional two-stop route have already been in Moskva for two hours. Still, the border guard at the gateway to the Russian Federation was nice - no need to bribe him or offer him cigarettes as many people seem to experience. We even go a smile from him when he opened the cabin door and Vik banged her head on the bunk above as she leapt forward with her passport held infront of her like a priest brandishing a bible at an exorcism. ... read more

After an 8 hour overnight train journey we reached Moscow from St. Petersburg. This was our first experience of Russian trains and it was very positive. Arrived at the hotel at 6am, but couldnt check in until 10am, so we sat in the bar staring at the receptionist until 10am. We then slept until our guided tour at 2pm. I doubt we were the most enthusiastic tourists our guide had ever had. After being introduced to the scarily efficient metro system, we headed into the city centre. To say our tour was based heavily around Moscow's architecture would be a minor understatement - lets just say the woman could tell us when every brick was laid and by whom. Still the tourwas quite interesting. After a traditional Russian dinner of Pizza we headed back to the ... read more