DOs AND DON'Ts WHEN TRAVELLING TO RUSSIA

DO	DON’T
Visit Moscow with a map and a basic understanding of Cyrillic alphabet. Regrettably, Moscow is not very prepared for international tourism and you will hardly find any signs in English. Buy the city map, and do not go into the metro without the metro map. Metro is easy once you know how to use it and can understand the names of the station in writing and when announced in the train. Otherwise, it is easy to get lost, and you could be stuck down there for hours!	Don’t assume people speak English in Moscow. Russians do study foreign languages, but few can actually speak well enough to understand you. If you are stuck, try to ask younger people (under 30) to help you, or just look for other foreigners who might be able to help.
Take the Trans-Siberian to see different Russian towns and villages. There are many, many stops on the Trans-Siberian, so you should get off and visit different towns on the way to get the real flavor of what “the middle of Russia” is like. Some places that you might want to visit are: Nizhniy Novgorod, Ekaterinburg, Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Severobaikalsk and many more.	Don’t take the Trans-Siberian for the sake of it. You will be bored out of your mind! Relaxing, looking out of the window, and hanging out with the train neighbors will get old on day 3, and it takes about 8 to get from Moscow to Vladivostok.
Do the sauna like the Russians do it, with the “venik” and the whole nine yards. It might look scary, but it doesn’t hurt. It is actually a form of massage after which you feel reborn.	Don’t drink vodka with every meal just because you are in Russia. Sorry to burst the myth, but Russians don’t actually drink vodka like water (unless you are a drunk, and there are many). However, if you offer someone to drink with you they probably won’t say “no”. However, be ready to drink that whole bottle with your new Russian friend, as traditionally in Russia, you don’t leave bottles half empty.
Drink tea every time you are offered. Offering tea with sweets is a polite way to welcome guests.	Think that Russians drink vodka all day long.
Insist when you offer to share something with a Russian. They’d always decline and say “no” first, accepting only when offered several times, as per their etiquette.	Don’t assume to replace your special gear for reasonable prices. Russia is still not very outdoorsy or tourism oriented, so any specialty items, like motor bike bags, are scarce and expensive.
Branch out from the Trans-Siberian. To see some pristine nature with snowcapped mountains and crystal clear lakes to Northern Baikal on the BAM line.	Don’t travel only on theTrans-Siberian line. Try to move north and south if you want the landscapes to be different.
Find a way to get invited to one of the Russian “dachas” (summer house) to see some real country living.	Don’t stick around the big cities.