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I don't really know what to say about Moscow... I guess i could sum it up by saying it wasn't quite what I expected.
The most expensive city in the world? Cold and miserable weather with people to match? Over zealous polizei on every corner demanding passports, papers and possibly a small bribe to boot? Vodka for breakfast, lunch and dinner...vodka with everything!?
The first day here was pretty miserable. Cold, grey and pissing down with rain. The famous Red Square was closed off, guarded at every entrance by metal barriers and stony-faced police. Even the tourist information centre was closed...a day in the hostel, stashed away in our box-room eating noodles and watching russian TV beckoned. Strangely, this felt like how Moscow should be...
But the next day the sun made an appearance and we were taken on a free tour of the city by a local girl showing such friendliness and enthusiasm she could have been on a personal mission to dispel the myth of the moody Muscovite once and for all. The Red Square was open and the guards no longer seemed officious - even those inside the Kremlin, waving their black and white sticks the moment a tourist stepped off the pavement, seemed to be doing it through more through embarrassed boredom than any sense of duty.
Lunchtime brought a slap-up feast of russian delights - Boyarsky (beef tongue and chicken salad), Lamb Dushenina (stew with sour cream) and Pelmeni (meat dumplings with sour cream) - enough local fare to satisfy my food fetish and enough cream to give my arteries an extra coat. The hefty bill was almost enough to complete the coronary but instead it became a "f*** it" day!
Backpacking tends to bring with it a need to be frugal but today all bets were off. An night in the pub drinking beer and vodka chasers - followed by the inevitable pit-stop at an over priced kebab-type establishment on the stagger home - smashed the budget wide open. A couple of days living on bread, cheese and vodka will soon claw that back...
Yesterday the sun was out in force again, more t-shirt and shades weather than coats and brollies. A long wander into the Arrbat district found a long pedestrianised lane packed with cafes, street performers and quirky buildings. There was a very chilled, almost Bohemian vibe about the place...somehow more St Petersburg than Moscow.
As I'm spending my last day here sitting in a cafe, typing this as I wait for my flight to Beijing, there doesn't seem to be a lot else for me to discover about Moscow. Expensive? Yes, but no more so than London. Miserable people? Moody looking and sometimes rude yes, but ill put some of that down to language barrier as for the most part they seen happy and proud. Over-bearing officialdom? Not that I've experienced...but I'm not through customs yet - a thorough cavity search may change my opinion somewhat!
And what about the vodka?? Well I didn't pour any on my cornflakes in the morning but the way locals walk around swigging beer like its a soft drink, it wouldn't surprise me if they did!
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