Well before choosing Russia as the destination for April 2013 trip, I received enough warnings from everyone, including Iranian and Russian friends, that April is not the right time; that it would still be freezing cold and the streets would be very slippery. I was told people get severely injured and even die over falling down on the icy sidewalks. So basically I was expecting an ice covered city, with frowning people, gray sky, extreme cold and racists who would at best look daggers at me and murmur swearing words in Russian. But I was ready for the adventure.
On the airplane my friends and I started equipping ourselves with leather boots, thick jackets and coats, layers of hats and scarves and of course gloves. But something told me it's not going to be that freezing, it was the Russian flight attendants' strange look and the laughter that followed it. The two young flight attendants knew we were acting extreme, they were obviously talking about us. So we just smiled back and asked why are you laughing at us? They replied: Because you are beautiful! Well, now we had already got the spirit to land in Moscow.
Getting out of the airport, we took the hat off and put the sunglasses on, as sunny Moscow surprised us. Everyone agreed "it's not so cold at all!"
It took us about 2 hours to get to our Russian host's place. It was my first time couch surfing and I was hoping the cold Russian spirit would not make me regret it. Daria, was just as surprising as the Moscow sun. Her big flat, her daughter and her three pets welcomed us.
Russian boys are quite spoiled. There are way more women than boys in this country since many guys die soon over alcohol abuse. That's one reason why Russian women are known for being obsessed with finding a man (preferably from Europe or the US) and that they easily change partners; consequently there are children who do not have the right parents to raise them.
The men usually do not work hard and do not take the responsibility of taking care of their family, since they know there are enough women out there for them. This certainly does not mean that all Russian are like that, but this is what we learned from locals. Most service workers and cleaners were women; honestly I don't remember even one man doing that kind of job in Russia. Apparently the culture came out when many Russian men died during the war and men were very rare to find.
I had learned the Russian alphabets as I heard few people speak English and the signs are all in Russian- which was true. It happened a few times that we needed to ask the address, but people could not speak English. However they tried really hard to help us, speaking in Russian and of course the body language; and if they could not help you could see in their face that they felt embarrassed and sorry. On our way to the railway station in Moscow, two boys and a girl in their early 20s helped us with that little English they knew and they accompanied us all the way, making it 5 stations farther for them to get home just to make sure we would arrive safe and sound at the right station.
This happened to us at three different cases, two in Moscow and one in Saint Petersburg (where people were colder). People would walk up to us to offer help when they found we were trying hard to find our way reading the Russian signs. I felt: "Oh my God, these people are amazing, what's all that stereotypes for?"
Yes, we were asked to pass through the gate in St.Petersburg subway because we are not white and we wear hijab, we were looked down at and treated rudely a few times, but there were a lot more sweet things to remember from Russia and its people.
My friend Elena whom I had met in Isfahan first, spent two whole days with us in St. Petersburg to show us around. She was very nice and helpful, too. She invited us to coffee and muffin at a café where a Metallica guy walked up to us to ask if we were Israeli! (Hell no!) He then tried to express hatred to the US in his broken English.
If you still have the idea that Russian are cold and racist, then c'mon! Maybe you do not hold that strong charming spirit to attract them! Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder after all.
Olga, a convert Muslim, met us in our hostel in Saint Peterburg. It’s funny how people you meet in the Internet can turn out to become close friends in the real world. She also helped us get to the railway station, she did not even let me pay for the subway tickets.
Anastasia, my other encounter in Moscow, showed us around and took us the beautiful museum of Russian icons.
Saint Petersburg and Moscow had still time till Spring would decorate them, and blow the refreshing breeze into the blossoms and leaves, but the melting ice of the Neva river, the naked trees of the Peter and Paul fortress, the melting snow in the parks of Moscow, had all their own unique beauty. The Church of the Savior on Blood wows anyone with its marvelous mosaic works, no matter spring or winter, it’s always warm and welcoming.
On the airplane my friends and I started equipping ourselves with leather boots, thick jackets and coats, layers of hats and scarves and of course gloves. But something told me it's not going to be that freezing, it was the Russian flight attendants' strange look and the laughter that followed it. The two young flight attendants knew we were acting extreme, they were obviously talking about us. So we just smiled back and asked why are you laughing at us? They replied: Because you are beautiful! Well, now we had already got the spirit to land in Moscow.
Getting out of the airport, we took the hat off and put the sunglasses on, as sunny Moscow surprised us. Everyone agreed "it's not so cold at all!"
It took us about 2 hours to get to our Russian host's place. It was my first time couch surfing and I was hoping the cold Russian spirit would not make me regret it. Daria, was just as surprising as the Moscow sun. Her big flat, her daughter and her three pets welcomed us.
Russian boys are quite spoiled. There are way more women than boys in this country since many guys die soon over alcohol abuse. That's one reason why Russian women are known for being obsessed with finding a man (preferably from Europe or the US) and that they easily change partners; consequently there are children who do not have the right parents to raise them.
The men usually do not work hard and do not take the responsibility of taking care of their family, since they know there are enough women out there for them. This certainly does not mean that all Russian are like that, but this is what we learned from locals. Most service workers and cleaners were women; honestly I don't remember even one man doing that kind of job in Russia. Apparently the culture came out when many Russian men died during the war and men were very rare to find.
I had learned the Russian alphabets as I heard few people speak English and the signs are all in Russian- which was true. It happened a few times that we needed to ask the address, but people could not speak English. However they tried really hard to help us, speaking in Russian and of course the body language; and if they could not help you could see in their face that they felt embarrassed and sorry. On our way to the railway station in Moscow, two boys and a girl in their early 20s helped us with that little English they knew and they accompanied us all the way, making it 5 stations farther for them to get home just to make sure we would arrive safe and sound at the right station.
This happened to us at three different cases, two in Moscow and one in Saint Petersburg (where people were colder). People would walk up to us to offer help when they found we were trying hard to find our way reading the Russian signs. I felt: "Oh my God, these people are amazing, what's all that stereotypes for?"
Yes, we were asked to pass through the gate in St.Petersburg subway because we are not white and we wear hijab, we were looked down at and treated rudely a few times, but there were a lot more sweet things to remember from Russia and its people.
My friend Elena whom I had met in Isfahan first, spent two whole days with us in St. Petersburg to show us around. She was very nice and helpful, too. She invited us to coffee and muffin at a café where a Metallica guy walked up to us to ask if we were Israeli! (Hell no!) He then tried to express hatred to the US in his broken English.
If you still have the idea that Russian are cold and racist, then c'mon! Maybe you do not hold that strong charming spirit to attract them! Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder after all.
Olga, a convert Muslim, met us in our hostel in Saint Peterburg. It’s funny how people you meet in the Internet can turn out to become close friends in the real world. She also helped us get to the railway station, she did not even let me pay for the subway tickets.
Anastasia, my other encounter in Moscow, showed us around and took us the beautiful museum of Russian icons.
Saint Petersburg and Moscow had still time till Spring would decorate them, and blow the refreshing breeze into the blossoms and leaves, but the melting ice of the Neva river, the naked trees of the Peter and Paul fortress, the melting snow in the parks of Moscow, had all their own unique beauty. The Church of the Savior on Blood wows anyone with its marvelous mosaic works, no matter spring or winter, it’s always warm and welcoming.
lovely article, setareh. reminds me of my happy days in Moscow. Russians are my favourtie (along with Iranians)
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