vladimirefl
Just Starting
Joined: 25 Jun 2005
Posts: 2
Location: Beaufort SC
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 Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2005 1:33 pm Post subject: Story about Rostov-Veliky visit |
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I have been working in Vladimir as an EFL teacher for the past three years, and this story is about my winter vacation trip to Rostov-Veliky.
The street kids are included
Tourist traps come in all shapes and sizes in all countries in the world, and even in provincial Russia, there are several ways for foreign visitors to waste their extra spending money. During my winter break trip, another American Home teacher and I got out of Vladimir and stayed for three nights in another smaller Golden Ring town called Rostov-Veliky (the Great). It was early March, and winter was still on in full force. However, the days had recently become much longer than in December and January, and arriving at the bus station at 3 pm, we still had about four hours of daylight to wander around the town. On a typical December day, the sun set at four, and it was totally dark by five at the latest. So, our trip started out well with what turned out to be our only really sunny afternoon. We walked around and took pictures of the quaint beauty of the small town, with its historic Kremlin, snow-covered lake, and surrounding monasteries.
By the time we had walked around the town, all the museums were already closed, so we stopped back by our “hotel.” We were staying in a small cottage, owned and run by a ceramic artist and his mother. In the guidebook write-up, it was even mentioned that guests were welcome to try to use the kiln and workshop if they wanted to. The only problem with the accommodations was severe cold on the first night, as the kiln and ovens were supposed to provide enough heat for the small bedroom through the walls. We both survived the first night by putting on all the clothes in our packs, and the elderly lady put a space heater in our room for the other two nights.
I imagine that this cottage would have been simply ideal if we had been visiting in the summer. The cottage is located between the Kremlin (fortress) and Lake Nero and even boasts a small museum dedicated to ceramic works from the region. After a half-day journey from Vladimir to Rostov and a walk around the city, we were ready to get some dinner in the town of seventy thousand people, so we headed out from the hotel onto the nearly deserted streets to find an open restaurant. It was a holiday weekend, and it seemed that very few locals had stayed in town for it, but there was some evidence of activity among a few visiting tourist groups staying at the hotel located inside the Kremlin. On the road beside the Kremlin, a few souvenir sellers were braving the cold to try to make some money from these tourists, and there was even a horse-drawn sleigh waiting to take tourists for a ride around the Kremlin.
From the books I had read about Russia before I came, I had a picture in my mind of Russians traveling through snow-covered villages in horse-drawn carriages as in old times. However, in several trips in winter to Suzdal, I had never taken the chance to go on a sleigh ride. So, I decided to pay for a ride for the two of us, and after failing to bargain the price down any, Ann and I got into the sleigh for a ride around the Kremlin. Only, we weren’t alone. A crowd of curious twelve-year old boys and girls gathered around the sleigh as we were discussing the price of the trip. They must have heard us speaking English, but since none of them could speak English very well, these kids started to ask a few questions in Russian. As we got into the sleigh, we thought that we had parted with the town kids. However, one of the boys was the sleigh driver’s son, so the driver let him ride along. Then, after some discussion, he also let four other boys hang onto the sides of the carriage, and we spent most of the ride being bombarded by all kinds of questions and conversation in Russian. The kids did give us one valuable tidbit of information: the fact that the Kremlin, which we were circling, was the main scene for the filming of the famous Soviet comedy, “Ivan Vasilivich Changes His Profession.” In the movie, a Soviet scientist invented a time machine, and another man accidentally changed places with Ivan the Terrible. It’s a great movie, but our sleigh ride could have done without all the “helpers” riding along.
I spent about four dollars for the ten-minute ride, and the driver didn’t even apologize for any inconvenience the kids may have caused us. So, I guess the street kids were included in the price of the entertainment, but it was no big deal. We ate pretty well that evening at a very reasonably priced restaurant, and much of the other entertainment around the town was either very inexpensive or free. The museum tickets were a fraction of Moscow prices, and during another walk around the town, we spent twenty minutes watching a house fire, along with many other town residents. No price can be put on the amusement value of seeing the shiny metallic Lenin statue gleaming in the sunlight, covered in snow and with a big bird resting on his head. Overall, tourist traps aside, the visit to Rostov was definitely worth the five-hour bus trip there and back, and I regret that fact that I won’t have a chance to return to the banks of Lake Nero this summer to see this historic Russian city in suitable weather. |
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jsaldanha
Just Starting
Joined: 12 Jul 2005
Posts: 1
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| Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2005 12:50 pm Post subject: Re: Story about Rostov-Veliky visit |
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Hello
We are a portuguese couple planning to go this summer to russia and some towns of the golden ring (Vladimir, Suzdal, Pereslavl and Rostov Veliky. We speak english, an d not russian. Could you give us some advice about traveling thru the golde ring towns, the people and the cultural life there. Does any one talk english?
João Saldanha
| vladimirefl wrote: | I have been working in Vladimir as an EFL teacher for the past three years, and this story is about my winter vacation trip to Rostov-Veliky.
The street kids are included
Tourist traps come in all shapes and sizes in all countries in the world, and even in provincial Russia, there are several ways for foreign visitors to waste their extra spending money. During my winter break trip, another American Home teacher and I got out of Vladimir and stayed for three nights in another smaller Golden Ring town called Rostov-Veliky (the Great). It was early March, and winter was still on in full force. However, the days had recently become much longer than in December and January, and arriving at the bus station at 3 pm, we still had about four hours of daylight to wander around the town. On a typical December day, the sun set at four, and it was totally dark by five at the latest. So, our trip started out well with what turned out to be our only really sunny afternoon. We walked around and took pictures of the quaint beauty of the small town, with its historic Kremlin, snow-covered lake, and surrounding monasteries.
By the time we had walked around the town, all the museums were already closed, so we stopped back by our “hotel.” We were staying in a small cottage, owned and run by a ceramic artist and his mother. In the guidebook write-up, it was even mentioned that guests were welcome to try to use the kiln and workshop if they wanted to. The only problem with the accommodations was severe cold on the first night, as the kiln and ovens were supposed to provide enough heat for the small bedroom through the walls. We both survived the first night by putting on all the clothes in our packs, and the elderly lady put a space heater in our room for the other two nights.
I imagine that this cottage would have been simply ideal if we had been visiting in the summer. The cottage is located between the Kremlin (fortress) and Lake Nero and even boasts a small museum dedicated to ceramic works from the region. After a half-day journey from Vladimir to Rostov and a walk around the city, we were ready to get some dinner in the town of seventy thousand people, so we headed out from the hotel onto the nearly deserted streets to find an open restaurant. It was a holiday weekend, and it seemed that very few locals had stayed in town for it, but there was some evidence of activity among a few visiting tourist groups staying at the hotel located inside the Kremlin. On the road beside the Kremlin, a few souvenir sellers were braving the cold to try to make some money from these tourists, and there was even a horse-drawn sleigh waiting to take tourists for a ride around the Kremlin.
From the books I had read about Russia before I came, I had a picture in my mind of Russians traveling through snow-covered villages in horse-drawn carriages as in old times. However, in several trips in winter to Suzdal, I had never taken the chance to go on a sleigh ride. So, I decided to pay for a ride for the two of us, and after failing to bargain the price down any, Ann and I got into the sleigh for a ride around the Kremlin. Only, we weren’t alone. A crowd of curious twelve-year old boys and girls gathered around the sleigh as we were discussing the price of the trip. They must have heard us speaking English, but since none of them could speak English very well, these kids started to ask a few questions in Russian. As we got into the sleigh, we thought that we had parted with the town kids. However, one of the boys was the sleigh driver’s son, so the driver let him ride along. Then, after some discussion, he also let four other boys hang onto the sides of the carriage, and we spent most of the ride being bombarded by all kinds of questions and conversation in Russian. The kids did give us one valuable tidbit of information: the fact that the Kremlin, which we were circling, was the main scene for the filming of the famous Soviet comedy, “Ivan Vasilivich Changes His Profession.” In the movie, a Soviet scientist invented a time machine, and another man accidentally changed places with Ivan the Terrible. It’s a great movie, but our sleigh ride could have done without all the “helpers” riding along.
I spent about four dollars for the ten-minute ride, and the driver didn’t even apologize for any inconvenience the kids may have caused us. So, I guess the street kids were included in the price of the entertainment, but it was no big deal. We ate pretty well that evening at a very reasonably priced restaurant, and much of the other entertainment around the town was either very inexpensive or free. The museum tickets were a fraction of Moscow prices, and during another walk around the town, we spent twenty minutes watching a house fire, along with many other town residents. No price can be put on the amusement value of seeing the shiny metallic Lenin statue gleaming in the sunlight, covered in snow and with a big bird resting on his head. Overall, tourist traps aside, the visit to Rostov was definitely worth the five-hour bus trip there and back, and I regret that fact that I won’t have a chance to return to the banks of Lake Nero this summer to see this historic Russian city in suitable weather. |
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