Moscow Trip II

Alina and Natalia are recent graduates of Ulyanovsk State University. They are in the process of getting jobs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow. They have been to the United States twice for practicums and speak English fluently. Alina also speaks French, while Natalia speaks German. Natalia bears a striking resemblance to my sister-in-law, Sara.

They were also my neighbors on the train from Ulyanovsk to Moscow. They were traveling there for the day, to drop off some documents at their future employer, and would be boarding their return train later that afternoon. They graciously offered to show me around Moscow if, immediately upon arrival, I would be willing to wander around the Arbat (one of the souvenir streets in Moscow) while they took care of their business at the ministry.

It was interesting to get a tour from some locals who were born during Perestroika. Their knowledge of Russian/Soviet history was not as vast as that of the generations older than them. They didn’t know who many of the statues were commemorating or the names of all the towers in the Kremlin, but they did know their way around the metro, where the best shopping centers were, where to get the best Russian pancakes, and that the ice cream in the Univermag GUM (a mall-type place) on Red Square, along with being the only affordable thing in the place, was the best ice cream in Moscow, bar none.

I was thankful for their hospitality as well as their willingness to help me pick out some amber earrings for Laura (a small consolation for not being able to make the trip)—no one gives tours/advice quite like locals.

Dave