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A Moscow Survival Guide A Moscow Survival Guide . (Student study group preparing course outline) for students and short term residents. Created for our students and guests by ANO Pericles, Moscow © Pericles International, 1997 8th Edition © ANO Pericles, 2004. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means other than by the written permission of the copyright holder. However, you are welcome to link to this page without seeking prior permission. This Survival Guide was most recently edited April 2004. Please be aware that political, economic and bureaucratic changes in Russia occur daily. Although ANO Pericles strives to keep its information up to date, we do not warrant the accuracy of any information contained herein. None of the advice herein is intended to be legal advice, nor relied upon in lieu of contacting legal counsel. None of the firms mentioned or recommended herein are affiliated with ANO Pericles, and we do not warrant the quality or availability of their service on any particular matter. To inform Pericles of changes or inaccuracies, or to obtain further information, please contact us at one of the addresses below. ANO PERICLES PERICLES AMERICAN BUSINESS & LEGAL EDUCATION PROJECT TVERSKAYA ULITSA 10, # 319 MOSCOW, 125009 RUSSIA PHONE (7-095) 292-6463/5188 E-MAIL: [email protected] WWW.PERICLES.RU INTERNATIONAL MAIL: C/O GLOBAL POST, 666 5TH AVE SUITE 426, N.Y., N.Y. 10103-0001 Table of Contents Introduction to a Successful Visit .................................................................................................3 Preparing for Your Trip................................................................................................................4 Visas.............................................................................................................................................5 Arranging Hotels........................................................................................................................7 Things to Bring...........................................................................................................................8 Things NOT to Bring ...............................................................................................................11 Money ........................................................................................................................................12 Arrival Formalities.......................................................................................................................16 Passport Control.......................................................................................................................16 Baggage Claim..........................................................................................................................18 Clearing Customs .....................................................................................................................18 Leaving the Airport..................................................................................................................19 Checking into a Hotel...............................................................................................................21 Visa Registration ......................................................................................................................22 Your Visit Itself ............................................................................................................................22 Identification.............................................................................................................................22 Water--–Hot and Cold and Sometimes Drinkable................................................................23 Apartment Hunting..................................................................................................................24 Getting Around the City..........................................................................................................27 Getting Outside the City..........................................................................................................29 Finding Things..........................................................................................................................30 English Language Reading Materials ....................................................................................31 Keeping in Touch .....................................................................................................................33 --MAIL...................................................................................................................................33 –E-MAIL/WEB......................................................................................................................33 –LONG DISTANCE..............................................................................................................35 –LOCAL CALLS...................................................................................................................35 --CELL PHONES...................................................................................................................36 Food ...........................................................................................................................................38 Bars............................................................................................................................................42 Health Clubs & Fitness Centers..............................................................................................44 Religion......................................................................................................................................45 Shopping....................................................................................................................................46 Dry Cleaning.............................................................................................................................48 Weather.....................................................................................................................................49 Dispelling Some Common Mythology ........................................................................................50 Crime and Safety......................................................................................................................50 Disease and Medicine...............................................................................................................51 Departure Formalities..................................................................................................................53 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................53 2 Introduction to a Successful Visit Visiting Russia for the first time can be both exhilarating and frustrating. By the time you have your invitation in hand and are ready to board the plane, practically everyone you know will have told you a story about the adventures of a past visitor to the country, and lots of people will have reminded you of Chechnya, mafiosi and other newspaper horror stories from recent history. Some people may have told you that Russians love Americans, and are warm, giving people, willing to welcome you into their homes with food and deep conversation. Others may have warned you about Russian women in high heals and too much lipstick, waiting to lure in men with foreign passports and fat wallets. Still others may have compared Russia compared to gang-land Chicago, where wheeling and dealing is a way of life, fortunes come and go like spare change, and danger lurks on every corner. You have probably read about the wild night clubs and casinos that work all night, and about lines outside grocery stores and failed banks. More recently, you have probably seen articles about miraculous economic recovery and the optimistic outlook for business. So in short, by now you probably don’t know what to expect. The truth is that the opinion you come away with depends on you--your expectations-- and the people you happen to meet. Whether you find Russian people to be hardcore capitalists, resentful nationalists, bureaucratic communists, or folks who watch The Godfather as an instructional manual, depends on with whom you choose to associate. If you try, you can find all those types of people here, but, more often, you will find people who don’t fit any of these stereotypes. On the main streets of downtown Moscow you can shop at Escada, while 10 minutes into the suburbs people still buy their staples from street traders in makeshift kiosks. Russians are both hungry for Western ideas, and jaded from the influx of them. Communist or bureaucratic attitudes will complicate some things you will try to do or explain, and not others. Some business people are “under the roof” of shady organizations, and many more are not. Some Westerners find it easy to adjust to Russia’s complexities, and others throw up their hands in frustration at dealing with a cultural, political and economic system that only native Russians can truly seem to manage. So how do you become one of those with a successful visit and happy remembrances? First, don’t take as gospel everything you have heard about Russia from casual visitors to the country. Instead be ready to experience the country on its own terms. 3 Second, don’t try to export
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