Russia!...St Petersburg
Trip Start
Jul 11, 2006
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2
32
Trip End
Jun 28, 2007
St Petersburg,
Russia
Saturday, July 15, 2006
It was a bit daunting getting off the plane, not being able to speak to the language or read the alphabet, but these are just some of the small challenges that face me. I feel I've almost overcome the problem by using the well established 'point and grunt' technique, whereby I point at the map and grunt something, they then point where to go, sorted. A similar technique works for food too, just point at the food, followed by how many using my fingers. I now know I wont starve or get too far lost! ;-) When I first came out of the airport I was going to get a taxi to the hostel I was staying at (the guidebook said ~$30-40) but the taxi driver was after $50+, so I got the bus instead. It took me to the nearest metro (tube) station and then the fun began; station names in Cyrillic, no English really, no free maps, no idea! I managed to get on the right train after comparing the guidebook to the Cyrillic writing but I didn't know where to get off and change, so I tested the point and grunt technique on the lad sitting next to me. He spoke a little English and actually took me to the right station, got on my connecting train with me and told me where to turn when I came out of the metro! Just shows how friendly some Russians are really. When I was sitting having a beer that night a Russian guy asked to sit on the same table as me as there were no other tables available. He also spoke some English, and was telling me about his life in the special forces, his wife, his kid, his job, it was cool.
A Cathedral or sorts
We had a few drinks in some other bars too. A good start to my trip I would say.The city itself is pretty fantastic; its full of history and beautiful architecture, along with hundreds of bridges which cross the labyrinth of canals and rivers. Things are comparable to normal city prices I guess, well alcohol is quite cheap, food isn't too bad but tastes very good! BY far the best value for money is the metro; only 12 r (about 25p) to go anywhere! Compare that to London!!!
I've seen some pretty cool places, like the Winter Palace and Hermitage museum, Peter and Paul Fortress, several different gardens, and now I'm pretty much all done with sight-seeing here! I've walked for hours on end every day, but it was worth it!.
I met a Swedish guy the day after I arrived who was staying in my dorm, so we walked around together for a few days. He was pretty chilled out and was also doing the same route as me to China. However he had all his stuff in a rucksack smaller than my day bag! He had everything in a 22 litre rucksack, now that is travelling super light!!!
Last night me and Magnus (the Swede) went on a pub crawl walking tour of the city to the places where the book Crime and Punishment was set. It was just the two of us and the guide so it was like having a private tour. It was a fantastic experience, seeing where Dostoevsky lived and where the story was set (Not that I've ever read the book but I intend to now!). We had some good cheap beer and the most amazing vodka! Seriously, it didn't taste harsh or burn my throat, it just slipped down like water; I'm going to buy few bottles of the stuff from the shop, about 2 quid a litre!
All in all, a great few days. I've got an overnight train to Moscow tonight so I'll send another update when I leave there.
Hope all is well.
Dos-vid-anya! (Goodbye!)
Neil
Comments
Transfer and accommodation savings
The way to save at Pulkovo airport transfer is to book a private driver transfer (not a city taxi). We did it via http://www.dailyexpress.ru It took $35 as seen at the web site. Also these folks are ranting apartments downtown fron $50 a night. Hope that information would be helpfull for the next trip to St Petersburg.