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Trippin in St Pete

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2tallbill:
 I have made a relatively unplanned trip to St Pete. I got a quick visa from go to Russia which has offices in San Francisco, so I dropped off my
passport and picked it up with a visa in it a few days earlier.

My house keeper usually stays with my son during these trips but she is 9 months pregnant and due any moment. I drove 12 hours to my Grandfathers house on the 23rd with my 16 year old son and spent New Years Eve and a couple of hours Christmas day with them.

My Son will stay with my sister. I then drove the short 12 hour drive back to California and slept the rest of Christmas night. I had to arrive at the airport at 4:00am on the 27th so I just stayed up all night and left my house at 3:00am. Parked in long term and began my journey.

Some back ground on me. I am a 45 year old single Dad business owner in the San Francisco bay area. I have been to Odessa once (Stirlitz as my guide) to Kiev twice (Stirlitz and Pavel once each) then I went on my own to Lugansk. I have only finished 9 lessons on Pimsleur so my Russian is very basic.

I got onto my United airlines flight to New York with out a hitch. I tried unsuccessfully to get a bulkhead or exit row seat I am 6' 7" and they reserve these seats for people under 6 foot.

On the Aeroflot part of the journey I was told that I couldnt get an exit row seat unless I was fluent in Russian. So I was seated with a woman very beautiful Ruskia but with a two year old raised by the devil himself. I was bit not once, not twice but three times. I was the oldest of 6 kids and raised a few myself but have never dealt with a kid so wild.

The Aeroflot flight was two hours late and so I missed my connecting flight. I dont sleep on planes and of course I stayed up all the night before to get to the flight at Oh dark thirty. I arrived in Moscow and my bags were not there. No problem buying clothes for a 6' 7" man since every clothing store has clothes my size......... NOT!!!

I went to the baggage clerk and he assured me that my bags went on to St Petersburg without me. I didnt believe this. I knew that I had to take my bags through customs. I had a change of clothes on my carry on and then went into the airport looking for the free shuttle

Of course finding the free shuttle in a barrage of lying taxi drivers is close to impossible for a man who cant read a single word of Russian. I went and got something to eat before negociating a $20 fare between airports.

Of course the price changes as we were leaving but I stuck to my guns.
the driver was not going to let me leave the car but I gave him my I havent slept in DAYs look and I have three bites on my leg look and my I would like to kill you look if you try to stop me. One of those looks made the driver suddenly think that the 20 fare was a fair price since we agreed on it before I got into the cab.

to be continued

jinx13:
 Hey Bill,

  I am also a tall (6'4) business owner from the San Francisco Bay Area  :) I'm in the East Bay, Brentwood (near Walnut Creek)

  Sounds like your trip is off to a rough start so far, but hopefully it will get better. I'm sure St. Pete is beautiful during the holidays, but probably bitter cold, you're much braver than this California boy!

 What is the reason for the trip? To spend New Years with  a special woman, or are you planning to meet some new ladies?  - Dave

Rags II:
Happy Holidays 2Tall!

Being 6'3" and having endured way too many Aeroflot flights with unruly kids (usually the parents being passed out drunk leaving them to terrorize the rest of the passengers) I feel your pain. I'm wondering why you didn't fly Aeroflot through SEA to SVO. Maybe that route has been cut since I did it in 2000.

In any case I hope that your trip goes well and that your bags are indeed in SPB waiting for you.

Stirlitz:
Sorry to hear about that. For some reason, they so often lose baggage! Outrageous.

Have fun in Peter!

TwoBitBandit:
I'm wondering why you guys even take Aeroflot at all.  I took Aeroflot my first time to Russia and my experience was so horrible that I'll never do it again.  Now, I only use them on intra-Russia flights where nobody else flies.

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