Column: Russian travel is not for faint of heart

Russian travel in the ’ 90s: perfect for thrill seekers

November 1991 Moscow, Russia

In a city this size, transportation is obviously a major concern. Besides cars and trucks, there is a public bus system, an underground Metro (rapid transit), an intercity train system and Aeroflot airlines. I haven’t used the buses, but the Metro is very efficient and widely used. Moscow is proud of its beautiful underground stations. I’ll use the train next week when we go to Riga (Ree-ga), Latvia. But mostly I’ve used taxis.

They have a system all their own here. To flag a taxi, you stand in the street and hold your arm down and out. A taxi will stop.You tell him (only men drive taxis) where you want to go. He either agrees to take you there or says no and drives on. If he agrees, you then haggle over the cost. The deal is struck before you ever get into the vehicle. Regular taxis don’t have meters. But a taxi is any vehicle that stops — even ambulances stop and give people rides. Many people will stop and offer to give someone a lift in order to get a few extra rubles. The taboos against hitchhiking simply don’t exist here.

A typical fare from downtown to my son Ken’s apartment, about 10 miles out, is 25 to 30 rubles.

Of course this whole process is exceedingly difficult for someone like me, who doesn’t speak Russian. I have yet to see a taxi driver who speaks English. Yet, it’s the best option available. Ken’s apartment is beyond the end of the Metro system, so to get downtown without a taxi, I’d have to take a bus to the Metro station and then change trains a couple of times. This would take even longer than the 30-minute taxi ride.

We went with a tour group to Central Asia just north of Afghanistan. More on that trip later; for now I’ll tell you my impression of our chartered Aeroflot flight. Aeroflot is both better and worse than you’ve heard.

Arrangements for fuel stops were made and paid for in advance. The planes were newer and more modern than I expected. They didn’t follow international safety standards. There was a stewardess on board, but she didn’t tell us to fasten our seat belts or how to use the seat bottom as a float cushion. She didn’t speak English, although all the passengers did. I could see no earthly reason for her to be there, unless it was to entertain the pilots after hours.

Takeoff was delayed several hours because of snow, so we left in the middle of the night. The seat backs were very low. It was nearly impossible to relax enough in those low seats to be able to sleep.

After three hours of flight, we stopped for fuel. It took a bribe of several bottles of cognac and vodka and two hours to get the fuel we’d already purchased. We had to stop for fuel several times, and each time it was the same situation.

Ken’s apartment is in a new complex that is part hotel, part apartments. It has two bedrooms and is quite spacious, except for the kitchen which is horribly small and inefficient. It is Scandinavian built, as are all the nicer new buildings. He has the advantage of being the first tenant, so things are neat and clean. The outside walls are concrete, so it’s impossible to drive a nail to hang a mirT R AV E L O G U E ror, etc. The entire apartment except the kitchen has the same wallpaper — Jeanne Keatts pleasant enough, but it is tiresome after a while. The apartment is on the seventh and top floor and is provided by his employer, who also provides a van for Ken and his co-workers, who also live in this building. They use the van only for driving to work and back. There is enclosed parking underneath the building — not common in Moscow. Ken’s employer furnished the apartment with basic furniture. Ken has purchased some nice handmade rugs and native crafts and paintings for decor. The storage space is adequate for Ken’s meager possessions but would be sorely lacking for a family of three or four that could have this apartment. Ken has rented a piano and acquired two kittens, now nearly grown.

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Keatts is a retired Clarkston businesswoman who owned and operated an accounting offi ce for many years. She loves to travel and shares excerpts from notes sent to loved ones detailing her adventures with Golden Times readers. Previous tales, starting in May 2022, can be found online at lmtribune.com under the “Special Pubs” tab.