I've been looking into my next vacation and i'm thinking either; 1) Paris, 2) London 3) Moscow 4) Dubai. I've done lots of research on everything but Moscow. I noticed pictures and I love the place. I heard the nightlife is also quite tasty. Can anyone fill me in a bit more? This is a serious inquiry.
Been there on business twice, 6 years ago, travelling to various mining operations in Siberia & the Urals. I was carted around by a Russian agent of ours (no, not that kind - he sold stuff for us), so I can't really help you much as I have hardly any idea of where I was in Moscow. But I can say this: 1. I had a great time. 2. Food was nice and different but still European in flavour. The whole atmosphere was more European than I had expected and I felt quite at ease there. 3. Traffic is a major hassle in Moscow. Russians are nutters behind the wheel and there are lots of traffic jams as well. It is quite normal to take 3 hours to get out of Moscow to the airport. 4. Hotels are expensive. In fact, most things are. 5. Not a lot of people speak English. Since you can't read the Cyrillic script, if you are there on your own, you're going to struggle. When I returned on a second visit we were without an interpreter for the evening and ordering food was the old "point at the menu and hope" thing. Even though I could already recognise a couple of words we still had no idea what was going to come out of the kitchen! 6. The girls are breathtakingly beautiful. But they know this and can have quite the attitude. Outside of Moscow, very different story - there they are very polite and interested. The only problem is: how do you talk to them??? 7. Vodka is a really tasty drink. Never would've guessed. 8. Don't go skinny dipping at below-freezing temperatures just because it sounds like a good idea after having a few vodkas... Thankfully, it was only my colleague who was that dumb. I, on the other hand, was trying to sober up on the couch. Like I said, vodka is a tasty drink. But dangerous. All in all, it was a 100% positive experience and I'd love to go back. I have been thinking of going to Moscow for a short trip, but I would like to visit St. Petersburg more. That's also very close to Helsinki, which is a lovely town as well. Been there just one morning and need to go back. Have a nice holiday, wherever you choose to go! Onno
Thanks for the well-articulated post. I went to Croatia this summer and must say the women there were breathtaking as well.
