hah, it scares me, too! :-) I don't know, I've gone to a few cities there on my own last time I went, and it was perfectly fine, buuut--! maybe I was just really lucky or something.
I haven't gone back for about 4 years, I think--too expensive for me. But I'm planning on going next winter given that I can scrape up enough money since my grandparents and other relatives want to meet my husband. Hopefully the fact that I'll be traveling with a man coupled with the fact that I don't look like an oblivious tourist and the fact that I speak Russian will keep us safe!
If you ever make plans to go to Russia, I'd say steer clear of Moscow and go to St.Petersburg instead. It's a lot safer, less dirty, more civilized and, imo, more awesome than Moscow. Moscow really scares the shit out of me (I've grown up in a much smaller city). Oh, and say you're from Canada :-) Last I remember, hating America was fashionable. It might have changed, but who knows.
OH SHIT THE ANYAS OF MY FRIENDS LIST ARE GOING TO BATTLE D:
I look very Caucasian so that's not a worry but idk it would definitely be awhile before I'd go. Hopefully by the time I get the balls to it will be a little chiller.
Haha I think what scares me about Russia is if you're like "I'm scared to go to (country)" the people of that country will be like "IT IS NOT LIKE THE MEDIA. THIS COUNTRY IS WONDERFUL YOU SHOULD VISIT!" but from you guys and reading on the interwebs Russians are like "yah you should be."
Have you seen Anthony Bordain in Russia with his bff Zamir? I'd go with them.
You HAVE to see the episode. It might even be on youtube. Anthony and Zamir also went to Uzbekistan which was A++.
Haha yeah. This girl in one of my old classes is teaching English in Moldova in January. Teachers of all languages are needed all the time and everything but dang.
it's not BAD, and I thoroughly love it, it's just... Not safe, I'd say. There is a lot of wonderful, friendly people, but it's hard to know sometimes who really is excited to meet a foreigner, and who's looking to steal the foreigner's wallet.
But I'd say that if you're generally of the type who's very cautious around people and generally suspicious of strangers (like I am), you might be okay if you hold on to your purse! :-) You just need to be very careful. Especially since a lot of people don't speak English and should you get lost that's a problem!
And Americans should always remember that the police probably WON'T want to mess with you since you're protected by America (the passsssporrrrt!) and they will be in really deep shit. Not so much the case for Russians, especially in Moscow.
The media coverage of Russia in the US is severely biased, though. The only time it ever appears in the news is when someone important kills someone important, someone sells weapons to some country, etc. etc.
haha, I really don't like Moscow :-) My experiences there can be summed up in a few words: hurry, cars, pollution, police, and clutching on to my shit so no one would steal it. St.Petersburg is more relaxed, there a lot of stuff to see there (A LOT!!! I spent a whole week just going to museums, palaces, etc.), and people there are friendlier, I had no problem talking to people at cafes whereas in Moscow I was extremely suspicious of everrrrryone (except my friends, of course). I don't know....
Also, in Russia if you look REAL Caucasian (as in, from the Caucasus mountain region, as in, a dark complexion), stay the fuck out! Sadly... That's the way it goes.
And, unfortunately, Russia is a very homogeneous society--white upon white, and your average person isn't what I'd call open-minded, so you're right. Not QUITE such a big deal in very big cities, but still. I am embarrassed for my Motherland... :-(
That being said, hmmm, i have no idea where my Russian passport is... hopefully my parents have it.
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Do you ever go back to Russia? I'd like to go but it kind of scares me tbh.
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I haven't gone back for about 4 years, I think--too expensive for me. But I'm planning on going next winter given that I can scrape up enough money since my grandparents and other relatives want to meet my husband. Hopefully the fact that I'll be traveling with a man coupled with the fact that I don't look like an oblivious tourist and the fact that I speak Russian will keep us safe!
If you ever make plans to go to Russia, I'd say steer clear of Moscow and go to St.Petersburg instead. It's a lot safer, less dirty, more civilized and, imo, more awesome than Moscow. Moscow really scares the shit out of me (I've grown up in a much smaller city). Oh, and say you're from Canada :-) Last I remember, hating America was fashionable. It might have changed, but who knows.
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I look very Caucasian so that's not a worry but idk it would definitely be awhile before I'd go. Hopefully by the time I get the balls to it will be a little chiller.
Haha I think what scares me about Russia is if you're like "I'm scared to go to (country)" the people of that country will be like "IT IS NOT LIKE THE MEDIA. THIS COUNTRY IS WONDERFUL YOU SHOULD VISIT!" but from you guys and reading on the interwebs Russians are like "yah you should be."
Have you seen Anthony Bordain in Russia with his bff Zamir? I'd go with them.
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Haha yeah. This girl in one of my old classes is teaching English in Moldova in January. Teachers of all languages are needed all the time and everything but dang.
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But I'd say that if you're generally of the type who's very cautious around people and generally suspicious of strangers (like I am), you might be okay if you hold on to your purse! :-) You just need to be very careful. Especially since a lot of people don't speak English and should you get lost that's a problem!
And Americans should always remember that the police probably WON'T want to mess with you since you're protected by America (the passsssporrrrt!) and they will be in really deep shit. Not so much the case for Russians, especially in Moscow.
The media coverage of Russia in the US is severely biased, though. The only time it ever appears in the news is when someone important kills someone important, someone sells weapons to some country, etc. etc.
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omg I want to see the picture of Shakira
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Also, in Russia if you look REAL Caucasian (as in, from the Caucasus mountain region, as in, a dark complexion), stay the fuck out! Sadly... That's the way it goes.
And, unfortunately, Russia is a very homogeneous society--white upon white, and your average person isn't what I'd call open-minded, so you're right. Not QUITE such a big deal in very big cities, but still. I am embarrassed for my Motherland... :-(
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