Russian Trip Day by Day: Day 7
September 20th, 2006Russian Trip Day by Day: Day 6
August 30th, 2006UGLICH
Traveling up river on our way to Uglich, the first stop on our Volga River cruise, I was blown away by the vastness of the green Russian forests. I should not have been. There is enough clean water in this country so cold, to feed the world’s millions for a long time. The weather cooperated on these first few days. It was very pleasant and the first day on the water nearly the entire compliment of passengers seemed to be on the boat’s top deck. Chairs were at a premium. As the next couple days progressed and the weather turned cooler this wasn’t a problem.
We did see the ship’s pool such as it was. Covered of course although why we could not imagine? This was the Russian summer and no pool? What was that about? Oh well, I guess it was not convenient. We did see several Russian men and boys either swimming along the river bank or fishing without shirts. It was balmy to them.
I noticed a nice young lady reading a book and I sat down across the table from her. Before long I noticed she was Italian and I quickly asked from where. Maria Luisa as I came to find out was from an area outside of Rome. We conversed for about 45 minutes in Italian before I heard her speaking to someone else in English. We laughed because I guess my Italian was better than expected and she let me speak it. Our conversation continued in English because her mastery of the language was probably better than mine. This was really funny.
We played a game I liked to play in 1999 when the millennium was approaching. Name the 10 events and 10 people who had the biggest impact on the 20 th century. We discussed them with the computer, the atomic bomb, Adolph Hitler and Franklin Roosevelt taking major positions. She couldn’t understand however why I didn’t put Gandhi on my list but did list Bill Gates. We discussed this at length deciding to disagree. Gandhi is almost in my top 10, with apologies to my son-in-law Sriram who is from India and for whom the leader of the non-violent movement is a hero.
I also met a doctor from Sicily who was on the Italian tour as well as others. The doctor, I and Maria Luisa said hello whenever we got the chance, passing in the ships narrow corridors.
Whenever I travel I always make it a business trip making sure to purchase items to re-sell back in my retail store in the States. I was bound and determined to bring home as many as 50 Matrioshka dolls to resell. My tour guides stressed Uglich would be the place to reach the best deal. They were right.
Uglich is a small town of a few thousand people. The center of town had a square, a few shops and a small but gorgeous church. We did the walking tour and also saw the steps where a young Czar to be, was killed likely by the henchman of future Czar Boris Badenov. The official government ruling on the child’s death was he had a seizure and during the attack stabbed himself. It brought to mind the story of the gambler who owed his mafia loan shark $10,000. He couldn’t pay and they found him dead the next day. The official report said he slipped and fell on an ice pick --- six or seven times.
Claudia wanted to purchase a set of tea glasses with the simple metal holders much like those she had seen Sean Connery use in “Hunt for Red October.” They were cool but we could not find them in Moscow. After a little asking around we found them in a house wares store in Uglich. The four cost us about $3 each. We found them later in St. Petersburg for about $7 each. It pays to shop in a small town for something so common.
On the way back to the boat I began checking out the vendor booths looking for someone to negotiate and buy from. It wasn’t long before I spied a woman in her 50’s who spoke several languages and seemed fairly amenable. We made eye contact and immediately I felt “this was a woman I can deal with.”
I approached her and said basically I would like to buy everything and let her go home early but I could not because I don’t know how I would get it home. She laughed and we joked for a moment. Then I explained I wanted to buy a large quantity of dolls to resell in my store in the USA. And, I was willing to pay in US Dollars. She understood perfectly and added this was the second time this week this happened. Another man from Europe made the same offer on other goods she carried. This was good. I knew we could come to an agreement.
To make a long story short we agreed to 50 small and medium Matrioshka dolls for $200 American Dollars or basically $4 each (100-120 Rubles each). I saw her doing some quick math on her calculator and knowing she was happy/flustered thought she made an error in her calculations. Then again, I thought, maybe it was just me. It wasn’t.
As we packed them into bags we realized after bagging 30 of the dolls we needed more variety. So she went to get more. Upon her return I knew something was amiss. She asked me again what was the price we agreed upon and I told her about 100-120 Rubles each. Her face hit the floor.
“I cannot do this,” she explained.
I insisted we had a deal but she went on to further explain the price was about 50-percent lower than she paid for them. After much consternation and polite discussions I believed she was telling the truth and thinking back on her calculations she had earlier made a mistake. We agreed to re-work the deal for 26 Matrishohka dolls for $200 and another six very large dolls for $100. This was still a great deal and I could sell them for three times what I paid for them and still be cheaper than the Russian stores in my region in the US. So it was cool.
I guess if I hadn’t wanted more variety the deal would have been really great but at the same time she would have been cheated and this was not my purpose. It all worked out in the end and since then I’ve sold many of the dolls in the US to some happy customers who also got a great deal.
Back to the ship, pick up a Russian sub commanders fur hat with three flaps along the way (I’ve always wanted one) and onto dinner and more cruising. At dinner I was treated by some of the Brits on the cruise to the fact I was the spittin’ image of an actor named Alf. Alf was the bigoted English forerunner to Archie Bunker when All in the Family debuted in the US. Evidently and I heard it a lot, Alf and I could be twins. Oh my.
Russian Trip Day by Day: Day 5
August 22nd, 20062006 Russian Trip
Day 5
I should have mentioned that last night the tour guides decided we needed a tour of Moscow by Night. This sounded great. It left us very flat. Not needed, not well done and well, let’s just say the Russian tourism industry has a long way to go to understand westerners.
We drove right by the cemetery where Nikita Kruschev is buried as well as other leaders. For baby boomers such as us, which means nearly everyone on the trip, this was an important site. We all said the same thing, why didn’t we go there? The answer was “It is not convenient” and it was closed at night. For us the former Soviet leader was as vivid as he could be, even today. The Missiles of October, the bomb shelters, the shoe pounding on the desk at the United Nations were all highlights of our lives, or low-lights. This was the Russia we knew.
The entire night was a flop and certainly wasn’t what we expected. The next day we made the same rounds in the morning and even passed by a Russian Swap Meet. All of us talked about how we would have loved to have gone there. Not on the tour. Not even thought of as being on the tour. We did stop at a convent which held a Russian Czar’s wife as prisoner once. The beautiful lake outside was calm enough to take a mirrored photo which I could not resist.
This day actually belonged to The Kremlin. We were also joined by some locals going on the tour and others who had made their stops in Moscow to join up with our tour boat.
Heading toward the Kremlin walls we passed by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier guarded by goose stepping Russian soldiers. We watched the changing of the guards. The eternal flames were burning as they do in other countries, as ours does in Arlington National Cemetery. Still this is always an impressive and somber site. Especially when you remember the millions of Russians who died defending what is now St. Petersburg during the cold German invasion.
Entering Red Square it is impossible to imagine how big it is unless you are there. If you have been to St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City you will understand. It is massive. The Kremlin is on the right with its giant walls and Lenin’s Tomb anchoring the vastness which is this place.
St. Basil’s Church at the far end, a smaller church to the left and the Gum Department store on the left flank. This was the Moscow I covered as a reporter from afar off during the Cold War. This was the Moscow I came to see.
It was massive. We walked the cobblestones taking in the history we lived and my friend Milton and I discussed the days of the Kennedy Speech in 1962 when I remember asking my father if we were going to build a bomb shelter. His answer was only that many people were going to be building bomb shelters in the USA now. Thankfully none were ever needed as the Soviets pulled their missiles from Cuba.
Claudia and I decided to enter Lenin’s Tomb. Whoops! A two-hour wait for tickets. I never liked Lenin anyway. Let’s go to the Gum. A giant 100 year old department store which sheltered every little store under the sun, the Gum was once the center of Russian shopping. It is much less important today since Russians can buy Levi’s and Gucci anywhere. It was known more during the Soviet days as having a basement serving as a KGB prison. We used the restrooms down there but didn’t really go much farther. We did have a quick coffee and a bit of relaxing in one of the small indoor café’s.
Meeting up with friends outside we walked to St. Basils, took some photos and headed back toward our group. Strolling around the outside of the Kremlin we were led to the famous bell which has never rung and the Czar’s giant cannon which has never fired. A crowd was gathering and our tour guides explained we were in for a treat if we wanted to stay for awhile. The Russian horse guard was going to parade through one of the side squares and put on a precision demonstration. Of course we all said we’d love to watch. It was impressive as some 50 of Russia’s best cavalrymen marched their high stepping steeds as the band played. It was very cool.
When the parade ended the rest of the group was heading onto another tour which we didn’t care to take. Our guide said the bus could drop us off at our planned destination; Detsky Mir. One of the world’s oldest toy stores this four story complex was not to be missed. The bus driver stopped right across the street and we made our way inside stopping at the first food place we found; A young man hand crushing pomegranates into juice. For a few rubles we refreshed on the very tasty nectar and went in search of toy-land.
First up, the long standing carousel which stood two floors high. Kids and parents alike rode to the music while above swung an oversized balloon with its carriage of stuffed animals. It was definitely something to see.
Meandering around the store we noticed it was much more than a toy store these days. Clothes, handbags, restaurants. In the middle of an aisle I noticed a life sized statue of Shaquille O’Neal made of Lego’s. He was in a Lakers uniform no less. Outdated? Yes but still a neat photo. I convinced a small Russian boy to stand in front of the Shaq Daddy while I took his photo.
Hungry enough to take a break we found a small cafeteria style eatery on the third floor. My Russian was good enough or maybe bad enough to get us each a bowl of soup, a salad, fruit, some bread and veggies to go along with some ice tea. The total cost for both of us was about $5.00 US or 150 rubles. The group on our tour who took the box lunch from the boat was envious later on. Their lunch consisted of a cheese sandwich and an apple.
Claudia collects masks as well as the famous Russian dolls called Matrioshka’s and inside the store she found some Halloween style masks which looked much like the grand ball masks you find in Venice. They were inexpensive and decorative enough for what she wanted so she bought them. I liked the fact they were inexpensive!
Our goal was to meet up with our tour group at the McDonalds on Arabat Street, the famous Russian shopping avenue which is closed to vehicles. It was a short subway ride away but we weren’t sure of the direction. While in the Metro I sought out a few people to ask directions. One got us to one stop away but from there we were confused as to which train to take. I spotted a young Russian girl in her mid 20’s and began a conversation explaining we were trying to get to the McDonalds on Arabat. She understood everything I said except McDonalds. We went back and forth and she just didn’t understand. This McDonalds was so famous I was at a loss to explain why she didn’t know where it was.
Then I asked for a pencil and wrote it down. Her eyes lit up and with a very bright smile she looked at me and said — oh Mac-Donalds? — she said and then pointed to the proper platform and indicated it was the very next stop.
My wife and I looked at each other and just laughed. The pronunciation of Mickey DEE’s is the same in Russian as it is in English but for some reason WRITING IT DOWN made a difference. The girl laughed with us and it was a moment all three of us will remember as one of those little moments in time where the simplest of things became simpler by being more difficult. I guess you could say it was unreal.
We quickly found our group in front of the burger joint and after a little shopping — and a beer and a Russian snack down the street from McDonalds — we boarded the bus back to the boat. Sorry, but I try not to eat at McDonalds or Burger King or KFC when in a foreign country. I may try it once but I won’t make a habit of it. There are so many more interesting places to eat when dining abroad, why bother with fast food pseudo American style.
Back at the boat we had dinner and waved good-bye to Moscow as we set sail up the Volga River. Moscow was a place I’d like to visit again but aside from a tour group. Groups are nice and it was good to get the basic history with a local expert, but it would have been nice to explore the restaurants, the neighborhoods and places where the average people hang out. We may be back. I hope so.
For now we begin sailing up river to our next stop on our trek to St. Petersburg.
Russia Trip Day by Day: Day 4A
August 17th, 2006The afternoon return trip to the hotel was not uneventful. Since I had forgotten to look for the name of the Metro Station we left from it was a game of guess where we need to go. Having never been to Moscow this was going to be difficult. As it turns out my memory was jogged enough when looking at the map I figured I could get us to within at least one stop of our hotel. I was correct. The first place we got off was one stop too short. Back on the Metro we went to the next stop. I remembered it had only four letters in the title and there we were back at our hotel.
We met with Vera and some of the others from the boat, met a nice American couple, Milton and Carol from Long Island, and all grabbed our luggage and headed to the bus. The drive to the port was comfortable and our tour guide showed us around Moscow on the way there.
Upon arriving at the dock we were told about an old Russian custom. As we boarded the boat we were met by several members of the ships entertainment group dressed in traditional Russian clothing. As each of us boarded the ship we were to pull a small piece of bread from a large round loaf and dip it into a dish of salt before eating it. It has something to do with a good voyage but only reminded me of old cartoons and movies talking about being sent to Stalin’s salt mines. Some images are hard to lose.
We picked up the key to our cabin and off we went to settle in. Having never been on a cruise before I certainly didn’t know what to expect but this wasn’t it. Both of us laughed, after the initial shock wore off. To say the room accommodations were slender is putting it mildly.
The narrow, narrow room consisted of two beds on the wall. Each was six feet long and 24-30 inches wide with a table between them. I couldn’t help but think of my friend Stuart from Scotland. He’s 6-foot-6 and this just wouldn’t do for him.
A book shelf, a small double closet where you could hang four shirts, a couple small drawers and a vanity top and mirror. The facilities were all in one shower, sink and toile