Top 5 Best/Worst things about your trip to FSU

[Tamara]

I have searched through the forums to discern whether anyone has created a list of observations that have made their trips memorable.  I see many individual trip reports, but no compilation of inputs in one thread.

I have made multiple trips to Russia over the past 4 years with clients who wished to conduct business and who sought personal fulfillment.  Regardless of initial intent, each trip has been some combination of both (people do not undertake such a journey only to leave without experiencing the delights of our rich heritage).

To better understand what makes a client feel fulfilled on a trip, and to assist me in providing superior results, I conduct an exercise with the client that I call 5 & 5.  Simply stated, I ask each client ahead of time to think about their trip as it progresses and to take notice of what made it memorable.  These are to be both positive and negative, or as I like to view them, successes and opportunities (opportunities for future success).

What are your top 5 positives and what 5 things would have you changed to improve your trip? 

Perhaps this exercise will help others prepare for their first trip or you for the return trip that awaits you.   Remember, just like the song, “Hotel California” by the Eagles, “you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave…” once your have been to Russia! 

So, what do you guys think makes a trip a success?

[2tallbill]

Here are a couple

First up to a  point I would suggest the old adage
"When in Rome do as the Romans do"

Enjoy the FSU food, etc. If you try to live exactly like you
do in Albuquerque then you will not enjoy the full experience
and you will be frustrated. Sure you can find better steaks in
the US, but you would be hard pressed to find better borscht,
fresh veggies, fresh juice, various salads etc. 

Enjoy what they have there and don't worry about what they don't

Second I would suggest bringing your sense of humor. Rather
than being frustrated you should understand that things will be
different and you should just imagine the stories you can tell
your friends and relatives or here at RWD.

A positive attitude, being polite and helpful have turned things
around for me a number of times from bad to good. I remember
when I had a bad seat in Aeroflot. They don't let you have an
exit row seat at the gate unless you are fluent in Russian.

I helped a couple of babushka's lift their carry on luggage into the
overhead bins. A flight attendant saw this and I was moved to an
exit row seat.

[Shadow]

My trips have been mostly positive, but I am always looking for the positive things in life.

Some helpful tips.

1. Do not judge a book by its cover.
If you go for the apartment do not be scared of the look of the outside, or the portal. In general there is lack of big maintenance but the inside of apartments are taken well care of and are kept up to modern standards.

2. Do not expect Russians to live like Americans/Western Europeans
Not only the mentality is different, but also what is seen as good and modern is very different in Russia as in Western Europe or the U.S.
In some things you may find yourself 20 years back when visiting the houses of Russian friends and/or family. Don't let it fool you. first of all Russians like to buy good quality things and keep them a long time over cheap stuff that expires in a year or two.
Secondly you will find modern things like a DVD player and a computer with internet, especially in the cities.

3. Use the transport locals do
Especially in big cities like Moscow or Kiev, do not waste your money and time on taxis if they are not needed. The metro system is one of the most beautiful and safest around, and with some preparation its hard to get lost.
Minibuses are the second means of transport, if you know where to go or have the skills to ask.
If you are with a Russian native, let them stop a car and negotiate the fee. They will know who to use and who to avoid.
Only if all other method fail, use an official taxi.

4. Blend in
Do not think that you need to flash your wallet at all occasions or people expect you to pay for a whole group. Let them pay for you if they insist, they can take a guy flashing his money as offense. But know that you are expected to take care of your date in all aspects, and that does include the bills of food and whatever you will visit. It does however not include obligatory shopping sprees.

5. Be ready for new experiences
So you have never eaten lemon with Cognac, or drank juice after a shot of Vodka ? Try it, you might actually like it.
Follow Russians in their habits, but do things at your own pace. Be willing to try something that looks like your lunch of last week thrown up and warmed, it might actually be good.

6. Be yourself
Should be obvious, but sometimes the will to impress takes over. However know that you can not act all your life, there for you need to be who you are and not change too much your personality. Be confident and know that if they can not accept who you are, there will not be a chance for the future.

[BC]

Top 5
Banya
People
Shashlik
Minibusses&Taxi's
Parks/Museum and just walking around exploring

Worst 5
Not knowing RU language better
Not knowing RU language better
Not knowing RU language better
Not knowing RU language better
Not knowing RU language better

[groovlstk]

One thing I noted during my search was that regardless of where I was in Russia or Ukraine, my impressions of each city and the overall experience were directly related to how successful I was in meeting and dating. During my first few trips to Ukraine I loved the place - at least until my relationships went belly up and suddenly I noticed the pollution, hordes of drunk teenagers, homeless children, etc. Only years after was I able to put everything in perspective and appreciate both the good and bad.

[Ooooops]

To better understand what makes a client feel fulfilled on a trip, and to assist me in providing superior results, I conduct an exercise with the client that I call 5 & 5.  Simply stated, I ask each client ahead of time to think about their trip as it progresses and to take notice of what made it memorable.  These are to be both positive and negative, or as I like to view them, successes and opportunities (opportunities for future success).

What are your top 5 positives and what 5 things would have you changed to improve your trip? 

Client means - some payment involved?   

[Gator]

Positive

1.  Women were just as fabulous as the agency hype, and very interesting too.

2.  Apartments - better than hotels considering price and women more relaxed than in hotel.

3.  Shashlik and watermelon

4.  Family gatherings

5.  Bolshoi and Marinsky ballet (slight edge over authentic banya).




Negative

1.  Bland food (next trip, I brought my own bottle of Tabasco sauce).

2.  Getting my visa registered.

3.  Unlocking my apartment door.

4.  Not being able to read the street signs when I took long walks (next trip, I learned the Cyrillic alphabet).

5.  Communicating with gypsy taxis.

[Kuna]

Top 5

- Food that reminded me of my childhood
- A REAL winter - because i live in a sub-tropical climate
- Family gatherings and sitting around the table eating with them
- Not just seeing, but sensing such vast history, because Australia is a very young country
- Struggling with RU language, and seeing the delight on people's faces when I try (OK, I ignore the frustrated people)


Bottom 5

- Knowing some people claiming to be friends were ripping me off
- The sadness in seeing a country so damaged by political corruption
- Seeing so much alcoholism
- Meeting/seeing some very poor examples of "men" seeking FSUW
- Coming home

[Makkin]

 Top Five

  (1) Meeting the best ladies in the world.
  (2) Finally visiting the Bolshoi (Russia) and seeing the French version of sleeping beauty.
  (3) Walking for hours with ladies and seeing as much as possible in the parks and the general public areas.
  (4) My first experience with Buckweat. Very good but something very hard to find here.
  (5) Discoverying that I LOVE Blini..lol.


  Bottom Five

  (1) Seeing children wander the streets and look for hope in a way not common to me in many respects.
  (2) Not understanding the language well enough to actually ask questions when I really really really would like to.
  (3) Understanding that it would take me many many years to get closer to understanding our Russian and Ukrainian friends.
  (4) That my trips were always too short.
  (5) saying goodbye.

[I/O]

Trip one, way back when.

Tops:

1) Baikal.
2) Impromptu fishing excursion (2 days and nights) with local Russians on Baikal.
3) Trying to figure out which direction that young German flew his plane into Red Square.
4) Disco / BBQ near Ufa. (I usually hate discos)
5) Carting.
6) Meeting that doll in DME who many years later became my SIL. (Sorry, had to ad number 6)

Flops:

1) Kras Air.
2) Passport control SVO. (On the way out, they all walked off the job at a busy time).
3) Home Brew.
4) Ticket service. (With one notable exception)
5) Leaving Sergei, Oksana and their little 15 Y/O daughter Christina, who was just so wonderfully kind to me in Irkutsk, knowing I'd prolly never see any of them again .

I/O

[mendeleyev]

My lastest trip was very short, less than 48 hours in-country, on assignment in mid-January.

Best
1- Seeing how much our youngest daughter has grown over the last months.
2- Sleeping in Moscow in my bed while hearing the sounds of shots, sirens, fireworks.
3- Walking our little dog in early morning hours when it was so cold.
4- Working long hours, and friends came over to visit anyway.
5- Leaving Russia to escape the cold.



Worst
1- Seeing how much our youngest daughter has grown over the last months.
2- Sleeping in Moscow in my bed while hearing the sounds of shots, sirens, fireworks.
3- Walking our little dog in early morning hours when it was so cold.
4- Working long hours, and friends came over to visit anyway but I was away working.
5- Leaving Russia to escape the cold.


Earlier this evening our oldest daughter, age 28 who is newly married and lives nearby, came over and invited me for a walk. We walk a lot for excerise in our family. The warmth of a 91 degree early March day had given way to a comfortable Phoenix evening and as we walked she asked about Mom (my wife) and another daughter who are in Ukraine right now at an art show. Doing fine and having a fun but busy time was my answer.

Then her voice softened and she asked if I miss Russia. Being married to a female and having 3 female daughters, I've learned that with females the key to understanding is to listen for the question behind the question. I spend a lot of time in Russia but this daughter married a typical AM last year who doesn't "get it" when it comes to her relationship to her former home. So I politely answered her question with the question, "do you miss Russia?"

We walked for the next 20 minutes and my only responses were "uh hum," "yes," "I remember," etc. She answered my question with a long list of fond memories, again driving home the knowledge of the strange and almost mystical grasp that Holy Mother Russia has on the soul.

[topofthekey]

I hate labeling them best and worst. What if the things about my trip are aren't really positive or negative just a new or different experience for me? Anyways I'll list a few things.

First, the women were just plain more attractive than the local girls in my backyard. Second, meeting and learning about them all on one trip just isn't going to happen. Third, is the food. It can suck and it can be really good. Fourth is the language. Many of the younger girls speak at least some english. But damn you sure are in a foreign land without a clue what the hell is going on a lot of the time. Other than that I have to bring up prostitution and rowdy western european (british) guys in Tallinn. I'm pretty sure it is illegal, but they do it anyways. I hope it doesn't ruin a fantastic city. That would truly piss me off. The way those guys behave (just around Old Town) really is a major turnoff to the local ladies.

[2tallbill]

I didn't want to be negative so I didn't list any previously
here are some negative things about my trip(s)

1. It's a L-O-N-G freaking way traveling that far sucks. If you have
long legs then double the sucking part. 

2. Apartment stairways smell like the urinals in a bad biker bar and are
not as well lit. 

3. I have studied and studied but Russian is incredibly hard to learn.
I know there are little Russian kids that can literally talk really fast
in and fluently in Russian but if you are a tone deaf 47 year old
Americanitz then it's easier to learn how to fly (remember to flap your arms).
I can fly only slightly less effectively than I can speak Russian.   

4. They have different electrical outlets than we do. They also have
220volts. You can make many American iems create big clouds of
blue funny smelling smoke with little or no effort.

I'm just kidding things are different than here, it's a long way to be
sure but its the FSU not Mars.

Udachi !


Bill

[CaptB]

Tamara,

I know my answer will not be very helpful.........all my experiences in Russia were possitive. You need to have a open mind.....and be adaptable......or stay home. When I here a guy start out his trip report with "......and when I got to the appartment.....which looked like something out of the 1940's/1950's (many do actually)....and it does'nt have matching silver, modern bathroom, jacuzzi, roomservice and a doorman.......I stop reading. My good and bad experiences.....were "all" possitive. I would'nt change a thing.....except being more fluent in Russian


Capt B

[Vinnvinny]

I hate labeling them best and worst.

Other than that I have to bring up prostitution and rowdy western european (british) guys in Tallinn. ...... The way those guys behave (just around Old Town) really is a major turnoff to the local ladies.

I hate to label things too. Having been in Cancun during an American spring break I observed that your boys are a bunch of well behaved, tea total angelic gentlemen to whom the local ladies clearly admired for their personality, wit and general demure.  The fact they were spending lots of $$$$ I am sure went completely unnoticed.

[Vinnvinny]

When I here a guy start out his trip report with "......and when I got to the appartment.....which looked like something out of the 1940's/1950's (many do actually)....and it does'nt have matching silver, modern bathroom, jacuzzi, roomservice and a doorman.......I stop reading.

You don't get past Jerry's 1st paragraph then I take it? 

[steve057]

I have only been to Russia twice but here is my list,
Positive:
1)The women there are just as beautiful as you see on the sites and they are everywhere!
2)The food is very good ( actually surprised me the first time there)
3)I enjoyed learning the history of the country and each city I visited.
4)Public transportation is good.
5)People for the most part were helpful with only a couple of exceptions.

Negative:
1)Seemed like everything I went to see was closed, Red Square when I was in Moscow, Hermitage and Catherine the Great's Palace when I was in St Petersburg were all closed. Don't know why but they were.
2)The bathroom in the train station in Puskin. NASTY!!!!
3)The use of sand instead of salt on the roads in the winter.
4)Line jumping, for some reason this seems to be a national sport!:)
5)Not really a negative but getting used to raised voices even when people are not mad.

All in all I have not had perfect trips but they have both been good experiences for me and I have enjoyed my time there. Beautiful country in spots and very poor in others. Not unlike the USA there, in most major cities there are poor sections. I will go back!:))

[kievstar]

Based on about 50 plus trips my best and worst as follows:

Best:
1. Zags in Kharkov
2. Russian people
3. Zoo in Kharkov, Lugansk, Kiev, and Yalta. 
4. Russian sauna
5. Russian food

Worst:
1. Luganks for work
2. Small taxis
3. Numerous bribes you have to pay to do business
4. Line jumping
5. Chernobyl (not worth the visit)

[2tallbill]

Worst.

1. The trip home

[Whynot]

My contribution.

Top 5
1.  My expectations were met with one of the women i had chosen to meet
2. Baltika #7 and the choice and quality of Vodka
3. The experience i had with my fellow compartment occupants on a regional train - awesome and incredibly insightful
4. Red Square and the Krelim - the history is palpable and architecture awesome!
5. The low cost and efficiency of the Moscow Metro

Bottom 5
1. The smell of the bathrooms in the railway stations
2. The surliness of a number of service personnel
3. The cost of the visa
4. The BO of some taxi drivers (a problem in many countries)
5. Cyrillic-only place names in the metro

WN?

[bigdog]

Top 5 Reasons
1)   Seeing the best woman I have met in my life.

2)    The people- most seem genuine and give you
     The feeling that you have known them for a long
      Time, instead of a few days. The people look you in the
       Eyes when you meet.

3)   The architecture- Some magnificent monasteries,
Churches, Statues- I could go on and on.

4)    I like the fact that everyone walks and socializes so much,
It seems that is a thing of the past here.

5)   The apartments I have had.


Worst 5 Reasons

1)   I’ll agree with 2tall and say the trip home. Can’t move for 11 hours.
2)   Saying good-bye to the people you care so much for.

3)   Not Knowing Russian. I struggle with this also. For me it is very hard.

4)   The old folks begging for money near the shopping areas.

5)   Security at grocery stores, markets ect……..

[sillyboy]

Successes:
 
1) The train ride from Nikolaev to Simferopol. First class overnight ticket was only $43. in 2006. Clunky, slow, old, and an absolutely wonderful experience! The fact that I had an angel waiting for me in Simferopol certainly added to it's splendor...
 
2) Making certain that my basic needs were met by the travel agent. This was not consistent in every city, but looking back now it would have been helpful especially as green as I was on this first trip to Ukraine. A phone call from a friendly voice asking me if I required anything, and how and where to find it from my apartment.
 
3) Renting a cell phone. This is something that I should have had immediately upon entering the country. It was a great confidence booster knowing that I had backup if and when I ever needed it. It also allowed me communication with the ladies that I was there to see, who of course, all had cell phones. Even if they didn't have the confidence to speak English on the phone, most had the ability to text in English and it was helpful to confirm plans with them.
 
4) A personal guided walking tour of Odessa! This city was just too wonderful not to see as much of it as possible. I had a free day while there and hired a girl to take me on a personal one-on-one guided tour of the city. This was by far my favorite city in Ukraine. The tour was only supposed to take two hours, but it was so interesting and fun for both of us that we were together for five hours! We ended the tour in a cute little sidewalk cafe where the waitresses dressed in traditional Ukrainian clothing. We talked about everything from relationships to the different sounds our farmyard animals make.

5) The city square in Kiev. Underground shopping, beautiful monuments, public fountains where you are encouraged to walk through barefoot. And because of how it's lit, it's even more beautiful at night!
 
 
 
Opportunities:
 
1) Being abandoned in the Odessa airport. Because of an error made by the Ukrainian travel agency, the driver and interpreter arrived at the airport six hours early, and when I wasn't there they left and never came back later when my flight came in. I had not rented a cell phone yet, and I can't remember now if there was no working pay phone available in this small airport or what, but I ended up overpaying another taxi driver to use his cell phone. There was no answer at the agency phone in Odessa, no answering machine or service with an emergency phone number, so I called the taxi driver that I previously used in Kharkov who worked for the same agency but spoke very little English, and spoke to him through this taxi driver from Odessa. The agency finally sent a driver and interpreter to pick me up, but not without a very long wait, and much attitude. The agency never admitted to the error, even when I showed them my copy of THEIR itinerary. They never apologized to me, or offered to compensate me in any way.
(Wow, that could be one thru five right there!)
 
2) Beggars. At the Odessa airport a young boy (eight years old?) followed me to and then almost right into my taxi. Never saw an adult with him, but I certainly hope that a parent was nearby.
 
3) Not knowing the language. This put me at a horrible disadvantage. At the very least I should have been able to read a map.
 
4) Not being able to sleep. At most I slept maybe four or five hours each night. And this after not sleeping at all on the nine hour plane ride over, on top of not sleeping well the entire week before I left. And I am a "mental midget" if I don't get at least seven hours of sleep. The next time I went I used a sleep aid. At home one glass of red wine before bed does wonders.
 
5) Ice, or the lack of it! The only place I could find ice was in the nicer restaurants. After a sideways look, the waiter would bring me ice in one glass, mix in another, and thee fingers of whiskey in a third, because... "what's a milliliter?"
 

[XMan]

Top 5 Best:
1) Doing something that I would never have dreamed of doing 5 years ago, surviving it, and more importantly almost entirely enjoying it.
2) Finding a special person.
3) Experiencing a radically different culture.
4) Taking things in stride, keeping a cool head, and finding solutions to some vexing and sometimes scary scenarios.
5) Making friends and having some fantastic food.

Top 5 Worst:
1) Things not working out in the end with a special person (for reasons too personal to list here).
2) Coming back home.  (Enjoyed every trip, and hope to have a successful next trip.)
3) Not being able to travel with greater frequency and/or stay longer.
4) Speaking a limited amount of Russian (and learning so incredibly slowly).
5) Setting expectations too high for myself.

[erudite]

The worst is the plane ride over and back (overnight) and the second worse is US Customs in JFK NY.  I felt like an alien criminal trying to get into my own country.

[BC]

The worst is the plane ride over and back (overnight) and the second worse is US Customs in JFK NY.  I felt like an alien criminal trying to get into my own country.

ditto that!

I used to get excited as a kid when we flew.. but guess after a few hundred times it feels like I did when I got on the Greyhound bus waay back. simply sucks.

I dunno why, but my paranoia pecker hits high noon when crossing US borders.. RU/UA/any other EU country OTOH is a breeze. Strange.  Starts at the overseas check-in point where they are asking all those stupid questions no one else in the airport going anywhere else in the world is being asked and already scanning your passport.