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Intourist
Talk Show Host
Joined: 21 Dec 2004
Posts: 245
Location: Moscow
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 Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 3:02 pm Post subject: |
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| scholar wrote: | Compare Moscow to Tokyo.
Given than in Moscow things are more expensive than in Tokyo:
Moscow is less comfortable.
Service in Moscow is consistently rude.
Moscow has bad food. Moscow has few restaurants.
Moscow has a dirty, unorganised, subway system.
Moscow's airport is not connected to the city.
Trains to St.-Petersburg are slow.
The police are not helpful.
Despite being run by a KGB man, the country has terrorists running around the capital. |
Wow ! Who peed in your Wheaties ? Aside from the negative tone, I think you're plumb wrong or intent on seeing things only as you want to.
1. There are plenty of places with great service. Hotels, restaurants, stores, etc. If you want a couple of recommendations, I'd be glad to provide them.
2. Moscow has literally thousands of restaurants from nearly every corner of the world. A rather extensive selection and range of pricing, too.
3. Domodedovo IS connected to the city by express train.
4. Trains to St. Pete on average take about 6 hours. There are high-speed trains which take 3.5 hours.
5. I won't argue about police. This is about the only correct thing you've mentioned
6. Funny, I've never run into one of these terrorists running around the city.
7. The metro system is one of the most efficient metros I've seen worldwide. Unlike most American metros, there isn't an ounce of grafiti, trains come at LEAST ever two minutes, and you can get practically anywhere you want to go. Aside from that, there are some truly beautiful stations (architecturally). Tourist groups can be seen taking 'metro tours' in some of the more intriguing stations.
Your login of 'Scholar' seems to belie the lack of time you put into writing your mostly erroneous statements. |
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AliceFromMoscow
WayToRussified
Joined: 10 Jul 2004
Posts: 411
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 3:59 pm Post subject: |
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well... comparing our metro system with theirs.. (look here) http://aisb.ru/moe/2579932hbk.jpg
our metro might look... a little bit.. simple... i think... )) |
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DennisF
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 05 Nov 2004
Posts: 97
Location: Texas
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| Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2005 5:42 am Post subject: I vote for Moscow |
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Whew! I'm glad I don't have to make sense of that metro map, Alice. Simple (or at least simpler) sounds great to me. Moscow may seem somewhat expensive to country boy from Texas, but I am still excited about going there. I suspect that Moscow is not that different from from New York City. You can spend as much as you're willing or you can tighten the purse strings a bit and still have a good time. (Actually maybe the people in Moscow will be more polite than in New York City, or, if they're being rude, at least I cannot understand it) How's that for a positive outlook?  DennisF |
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vorteks
VIP
Joined: 08 Aug 2004
Posts: 571
Location: European Union
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| Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2005 8:08 pm Post subject: Re: I vote for Moscow |
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| DennisF wrote: | | I suspect that Moscow is not that different from from New York City. You can spend as much as you're willing or you can tighten the purse strings a bit and still have a good time. (Actually maybe the people in Moscow will be more polite than in New York City, or, if they're being rude, at least I cannot understand it) How's that for a positive outlook? DennisF |
Moscow is way safer than New York for a tourist, even tho the official crime rate is 3 times higher. As a single, count on at least a 100 USD/day budget per day, less if you share your accomodation. |
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Skip
Talk Show Host
Joined: 19 Jan 2005
Posts: 283
Location: Planet Warez
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| Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 2:58 am Post subject: |
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Moscow isn't overpriced if you don't approach it like a dumb awestruck idiot of a tourist... it costs less than Paris, London and Bruxelles... hell it costs less than Luxembourg city... and that's in terms of hotels, restaurants and the like, add on cheaper taxis, metro and train tickets... and you get even more of an advantage...
One night in the Rossiya with a double room overlooking the Kremlim cost me about $28 - now, tell me... in the Champs d'elysees... or in Londons Regents Park area... am I wrong to suggest that a double room would not cost less than $500 or does someone want to question my maths?
The metro is cheap and some of the stations are works of art... there was not more street crime than most major British cities, and whilst I do concede the staff of banks and other establishments seem to be very rude... there's more to Moscows credit than discredit by a long chalk 
One of the places in Moscow where you'll spend longer queuing, waiting and kicking your heels for hours on end isn't even Russian, it's the British Embassy of all places 
No... I do not think Moscow is overpriced... but always go places with someone who speaks the lingo and you're far better off of course  |
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vorteks
VIP
Joined: 08 Aug 2004
Posts: 571
Location: European Union
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| Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 12:04 pm Post subject: |
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| Skip wrote: | | One night in the Rossiya with a double room overlooking the Kremlim cost me about $28 |
Did you sleep on the balcony with your own tent and sleeping bag while doing special favors to the gorillas guarding the liftsfor that price ?  (30% of what stoopid tourists usually pay).
Anyways, the Rossija shouldn t survive very long to the hunger of international investors...keep some postcards of it while it still exist, they might be worth something in a few years.
Moscovites love to compare their prices to the most expensive capital towns in the world to justify their fares, forgetting to mention that the quality of services and investment is often not comparable and that the mean wage is at least 75% lower than those cities. They should compare the prices to comparable developing economies like India or China (the growth rate of those countries is way faster than Russia). And yes, there IS a double pricing system depending on your language skills. If you stay at a russian friends apartment and share the $60/month rent, only use public transportation, buy food in the small supermarkets in the surburb areas, you can survive there on a shoestring....it s all a question of time and relations. I slept in an office changed to unofficial shelter for 10 dollars a night, 15 minutes walk from the Kremlin. But usually visitors are on a 3 days visa and have no time to bargain...they just pay whatever is asked to have a chance...to queue up for 2 hours to get into the Kremlin 
Last edited by vorteks on Mon Feb 14, 2005 3:07 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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Skip
Talk Show Host
Joined: 19 Jan 2005
Posts: 283
Location: Planet Warez
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| Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 2:51 pm Post subject: |
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| vorteks wrote: | | Did you sleep on the balcony with your own tent and sleeping bag while doing special favors to the gorillas guarding the liftsfor that price ? (30% of what stoopid tourists usually pay). |
Nope... I had a bed, or two beds in truth... and was on level three with french windows opening right onto the lobbies flat roof... so I had a balcony the size of a hockey pitch with a full on view of the Kremlin and St Basils
Those elevator goons are awesome, l agree... but they're there to stop greater then ever numbers of hotel tarts and pickpockets managing to penetrate (pun intended) the hotels inner victals
Yes... the demise of the hotel in 2006 has been covered in another thread... so next time I stop there will be the last time... 
There definitely IS a double standards pricing system... everywhere in Moscow from the Hotel prices to what you pay for a set of Russian Dolls on Arbat from a street marketeer... caveat emptor  |
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overseas_expat
VIP
Joined: 11 Jan 2005
Posts: 676
Location: Moscow
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| Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 8:16 pm Post subject: |
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| Skip wrote: |
Those elevator goons are awesome, l agree... but they're there to stop greater then ever numbers of hotel tarts and pickpockets managing to penetrate (pun intended) the hotels inner victals |
Although I'll admit I have no personal experience with the hotel hookers, everywhere else in this town those 'goons' are part and parcel of the prostitution industry, not a protection from it. Working girls in Moscow who aren't part of the organization, tend to have short life spans. The goons get their cut of the profits (and possibly the action ). IMHO, this is a very very dirty town indeed. The hotel industry here is a ringleader in the sale of women. |
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Skip
Talk Show Host
Joined: 19 Jan 2005
Posts: 283
Location: Planet Warez
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| Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 9:03 pm Post subject: |
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Not these goons... they're there to stop thieves and hookers from jumping into the elevators to make it to the floors with private rooms... although I've walked in past them waving a hotel keyfob (resembles a grappling iron...) with a girl who wasn't actually booked in... no problems... and, no... she was a friend... nothing less 
They want to cut theft from guests rooms or the good name of the hotel would get dragged through the mud... and I guess they want to stop prostitutes from soliciting in the hotels corridors or vestibule...
I think you can even walk right on in with a call girl and get past them... unless she's someone they've had a prior ding-dong with that is... |
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Babuschka
Frequent Guest
Joined: 03 Mar 2005
Posts: 28
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| Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2005 1:33 pm Post subject: |
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I?m a bit puzzled where I?d rather travel to, in the end, Moskow or other parts of Russia. Probably St. Petersburg, just for the sake of making a compromise.
- Or which place would you guys recommend, if it?s supposed to be just a rather short term trip to visit Russia? -- The countryside? ... must be very beautiful, too!
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steven2046
Frequent Guest
Joined: 22 Jul 2003
Posts: 15
Location: UK
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| Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2005 12:29 am Post subject: about the price |
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again about the prices in Moscow
someone said it is too expensive or overpriced, compare with london, it is slightly cheaper. but compare the salary you can get in london with in moscow.
you can clearly tell the reason why moscow is expensive!
About the subway, I have just used once, and I donot feel comfortable to use them anyway, no matter in moscow or london or other cities.
there are no speed limit whatsoever in moscow!
I stayed in the marriot grand, there are a palace-look-like supermarket nearby. you can find everything you need there! and I just love those russian salads
again, I also paid for the wi-fi in my hotel $26 per day. thats not too bad, I can chat away with my friends anywhere in the hotel
oh yes! I love the Fast track service in the airport! afterall, who doesnot like to be treat a bit special? I love queue jumping! |
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van_man
Just Starting
Joined: 20 Mar 2005
Posts: 1
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| Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2005 3:40 am Post subject: Re: about the price |
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| steven2046 wrote: | again about the prices in Moscow
someone said it is too expensive or overpriced, compare with london, it is slightly cheaper. but compare the salary you can get in london with in moscow.
you can clearly tell the reason why moscow is expensive!
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Do you mean salaries are much higher in Moscow??  |
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blaked
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 29 Dec 2004
Posts: 180
Location: Moscow
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| Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2005 10:48 am Post subject: |
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This is my favorite hotel - Leningradskaya Gostinitsa. |
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steven2046
Frequent Guest
Joined: 22 Jul 2003
Posts: 15
Location: UK
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| Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2005 1:11 pm Post subject: again |
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what I mean is that prices in london and moscow are quite similar, but salary in london is much higher than in moscow. I think thats why people feel moscow is much more expensive!
who can afford $5 a bottle beer in pubs if you earn only $500 per month.
I had a meal in a chinese resturant in moscow, about $30 which is normally what I pay in london. but in moscow, how many people can afford it? As I saw that night, for a quite while, I am the only customer!
PS, I donot know the average salary in moscow, but most of my friends get around $500 per month |
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steven2046
Frequent Guest
Joined: 22 Jul 2003
Posts: 15
Location: UK
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| Posted: Tue Mar 22, 2005 1:13 pm Post subject: again2 |
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I just think when businesses are setting up the price list, they should consider the majority people's need.
Let everyone have a pint of beer after work! |
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