Advice from a local on blending in, not getting lost, and saying safe
Written: Oct 07 '02 (Updated Oct 07 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Very safe. If you get lost, you'll easily find your way.
Cons: Can easily get lost.
The Bottom Line: If you use your common sense, you will not feel threatened or unsafe, and you won't get lost.
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| hippiedi's Full Review: Moscow |
Moscow is my city. I went to school there, I took music, dancing, and drawing lessons there, I skipped rope there, I've fallen off swing sets there... I grew up there.
I love Moscow. Right now, I am in the US for college, but hope to go back to Moscow to live there. It's mine. It's where I feel at home. It's where I feel safe.
After not being back for 6 years, I went back this summer for a month. Before I left the United States, I got all sorts of ridiculous and impractical advice about how not to be mugged, kidnapped, raped, or killed. It ranged from not stepping outside after 6 p.m. at all to carrying pepper spray to not wearing makeup.
However, they ignored a vital point: use your common sense and don't do anything that'll make it obvious from 100 feet away that you're a foreigner.
Obviously, to blend in, you need to look and act like you're from Moscow. Wearing a soviet KGB hat that you just bought at the open-air market will not help your cause. If you're a relatively young woman, wearing one of those large shawls with big flowers on them that you can also buy at an open-air market or a souvinier shop will peg you as an "outsider", though not necessarily a foreighner. It might be more a sign of being from a small town. You don't want that, either.
So, you don't want to dress stereotypically Russian, a la Police Academy's ski and ushanka getup. You also don't want to look like you're touring Hawaii or New Orleans. Most Moscow residents wear what Americans call "business casual" every day, unless they're going to the country for the weekend. So dress nicely.
A note to women: Don't wear shorts unless you're going to the country. While of course there's no absolute rule prohibiting shorts, very few Moscow women or teenagers wear them, even when it's hot outside. Wear a skirt or capris instead. Also, do whatever you want to with your makeup. Whatever you do, within reason, you won't stand out. The not wearing makeup advice is ridiculous.
Tennis shoes are frowned upon, especially white ones. Yes, people wear them, but not people from Moscow. I know this is trivial, but please just wear sandals or normal shoes or boots or something like that.
It's ok to walk around with a plastic bag and use it to get stuff you just bought to your appartment or hotel. By "plastic", I mean the type that in the US, you'd get your clothes wrapped into at a department store. But don't put your wallet into it. Put your wallet into your pocket, or get one of those flat pouches that you can hang around your neck if you're really paranoid. But really, putting money in to a pocket is good enough.
Honestly, I don't usually heed this advice, and keep money in a purse. As long as your purse is somewhere you can see (i.e. not on your back), you should be fine. But just to be safe, put it into your pocket.
Health Care
Contrary to popular belief, Moscow's hospitals and pharmacies aren't "sub-standard". If there's a serious emergency, you want to go to a large hospital near the center of Moscow. For something like a cold, just go to your neighborhood one. The doctors are underpaid, but they do know what they're doing.
If you forgot your prescription drugs or you develop a condition that you can self-diagnose (allergies or some kind of an infection), you can get a lot of medicines that are prescription-only in the US over-the-counter in Russia. Tell the pharmacist the name of the drug in English, and they'll look it up for you. Oh, and they'll be cheaper, even if you don't use your insurance card. Speaking of which, I didn't use mine at all for the entire month I was there, though I definitely stocked up on medicines (skin medications, specifically).
Public and private transport
So you have to get around Moscow somehow, right? The most obvious choice is using public transportation. It's very good, and quite safe. You don't want to rent a car. Even if you have been driving in a large city in the US, you probably don't have the skills to drive in Moscow. It really is that bad. For example, on a road marked for 3 lanes, you can easily see 5 lanes of cars. You don't want to drive there.
Taking the Metro, the bus, the trolley, or the above-ground train are all good, economical options. You can get maps in the Metro.
Or, if you're truly adventurous, you can hail a car. It doesn't have to be a cab. If you feel that your Russian is good enough, and you're in a group, you can hail a car and ask for a lift for a small fee (under $5 for your whole group). The shabbier the car, the better. If the driver who stops looks sketchy, just don't get into his/her car. That simple.
Street Vendors While there really isn't anything terribly dangerous about street vendors, they will raise their prices when they realize that you're a foreigner. Either try your best to not let them know you're a foreigner (it won't work if you don't speak Russian... but if you do, pretend you're Russian!) or try to talk their prices down. Chances are, you'll agree on a lower price.
A note about electronics. If they're not battery-powered, they won't work in the US. You'll need a converter. No matter what the vendor tells you, ask to see the plug. Just by looking at it, you can tell that it's not what you want.
What to scream
If something bad does happen, scream. Loudly. Moscow is so densely populated, somebody will hear you. "PozhAr" means "fire", "POmosh" means "help".
Not getting lost
Before you leave your friend's appartment, get them to draw you a map to the nearest Metro. You will get lost otherwise. Most small streets, especially far from the center don't have names, so it makes giving directions considerably difficult. And "turn right at the 9-floor white building" loses its usefulness when you realize that there are half a dozen 9-floor white buildings in the surrounding area. Ask someone to draw you a map. Refuse to set foot outside until you have some idea how to get to a Metro, bus, or trolley station. If you think you'll feel stupid asking for a map, you'll feel a whole lot more stupid wondering around lost.
If you do get lost, just ask a passerby, preferably elderly, where the Metro is. Everyone knows where the nearest Metro station is. They'll point you in the right direction. Once you're at a Metro station, you're not lost, even if you have never been in this station before. Just look at one of the maps on the Metro wall, and find your station.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Singles
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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Epinions.com ID:
hippiedi
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Location: New Haven, CT
Reviews written: 9
Trusted by: 0 members
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