Россия
Enigmatic. Intimidating. Fascinating. Boasting some of the most spectacular cities, churches, and fortresses on earth, wrapped in a culture that’s as monolithic and xenophobic as its onetime rival (read: us), Russia is an exciting frontier for adventurous Western travelers. Though no longer the great military and political power that it was during the Cold War, Russia remains a country of huge natural resources—energy, minerals, forests, rivers, and arable land.
Russia was poor and remote for centuries, with a good part of the population bound in serfdom until the 1860s. In the late 19th century, Russia began to industrialize, built closer ties to Europe, and fostered writers such as Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, and Chekhov.
One of the new ideas that came to Russia from the West was communism. Led by Lenin and Stalin, the communist experiment lasted almost 75 years before it collapsed in 1991. Since then, despite widespread corruption, Russia has managed to build up something akin to a free-market economy. In urban shopping districts, you’ll watch Russians perusing at least as many choices as American shoppers have.
Recently, Russia has taken baby steps toward making it easier for tourists to come on short visits to St. Petersburg, especially by ship. But a wildly fluctuating currency, still-improving service standards, limited knowledge of English, and a general lack of user-friendliness continue to challenge. And complicated, expensive visa requirements make Russia an uninviting destination for independent American travelers. However, the travel experience in Russia is slowly improving, year by year—particularly as the country has geared up for the world spotlight as the host country of the Winter Olympics in 2014 and the World Cup in 2016.
Traveling in Russia—or even just tuning into the news from there—leaves a strong impression of a place that, while massive and powerful, is still finding itself in the post-communist world. Yeltsin-era reforms and optimism have faded. Recent changes in the law have alarmed lovers of free speech, gay-rights advocates, and anyone who supports democratic ideals. And, more than a decade and a half into his quasi-authoritarian rule, Vladimir Putin casts a long shadow over the world’s largest country.
Today’s Russia is wrestling with an ostensibly free-market economy that’s dominated by the monopolistic instincts of the communist past, troubling concerns about ethnic diversity, and an increasingly stratified society (with a tiny and extremely wealthy upper class, a huge and desperate lower class, and little room in the middle). Bribery is an integral part of the economy—estimated at 20 percent of GDP. A corporate survey found it’s harder to do business in Russia than in Bangladesh, Yemen, or Pakistan.
You’ll see many “Asian” (most are actually Siberian) Russians, a reminder that this vast nation stretches from Norway to China. The friction between ethnic Russians and their eastern countrymen—which erupts violently in the form of periodic hate crimes—demonstrates that that gap between rich and poor has left a growing number of Russians desperate for scapegoats.
The Russian elite is wealthy and fashion-conscious. Upscale young women here dress very deliberately—taking seriously the task of looking like fashion photographs. They strut down city sidewalks, passing without a second glance the withered, sad-faced babushki selling a few paltry turnips from a tattered blanket.
Yes, Russia is challenging, both for Russians and for tourists. But it’s also a richly rewarding destination for those willing to grapple with it. This following chapter focuses on St. Petersburg—Russia’s “window on the West”—the country’s northwestern outpost, peering across the Baltic Sea to Europe. In addition to advice on sightseeing, hotels, and restaurants, the you’ll also find tips on the Russian language (see here) and cuisine (here).
Russia comes with a more substantial language barrier than most of Europe. In general, young Russians know at least a little halting schoolroom English; hoteliers and museum clerks may speak only a few words; and older people speak none at all.
For help with decoding the Cyrillic alphabet, see the sidebar on here.
| English | Russian / Transliteration | Pronunciation |
| Hello. (formal) | Здравствуйте. / Zdravstvuyte. | zdrah-stvee-tyeh |
| Hi. (informal) | Привет. / Privyet. | pree-vyeht |
| Goodbye. | До свидания. / Do svidaniya. | dah svee-dahn-yah |
| Do you speak English? | Вы говорите по-английски? / Vy govoritye po angliyski? | vih gah-vah-ree-tyeh pah ahn-glee-skee |
| I (don’t) understand. | Я (не) понимаю. / Ya (nye) ponimayu. | yah (nyeh) poh-nee-mah-yoo |
| Yes. | Да. / Da. | dah |
| No. | Нет. / Nyet. | nyeht |
| Please. | Пожалуйста. / Pozhaluysta. | pah-zhahl-stah |
| Thank you. | Спасибо. / Spasibo. | spah-see-bah |
| Excuse me. | Извините. / Izvinitye. | eez-vee-nee-tyeh |
| (Very) good. | (Очень) хорошо. / (Ochen) khorosho | (oh-cheen) kha-roh-show |
| How much? | Сколько стоит? / Skolko stoit? | skohl-kah stoh-yeet |
| one, two | один, два / odin, dva | ah-deen, dvah |
| three, four | три, четыре / tri, chetyre | tree, cheh-teer-yeh |
| five, six | пять, шесть / pyat, shest | pyaht, shyest |
| seven, eight | семь, восемь / sem, vosem | syehm, vwoh-sehm |
| nine, ten | девять, десять / devyat, desyat | dyeh-veht, dyeh-seht |
| Where is…? | Где…? / Gdye…? | guh-dyeh |
| …the toilet | …туале́т / tualet | too-ahl-yeht |
| men | мужчины / muzhchiny | moo-shee-neh |
| women | женщины / zhenshchiny | zhen-shee-neh |
| (to the) right | (на) право / (na) pravo | (nah) prah-vah |
| (to the) left | (на) лево / (na) levo | (nah) leh-vah |
| beer | пиво / pivo | pee-vah |
| vodka | водка / vodka | vohd-kah |
| water | вода / voda | vah-dah |
| coffee | кофе / kofe | koh-fyeh |
| Cheers! (To your health) | На здоровья! / Na zdorovya! | nah zdah-roh-veh |