5 main mistakes of foreign tourists in Moscow

The saying goes that it is better not to meddle with someone else's monastery with your charter. For Moscow, a kind of state within a state, this unspoken rule is also relevant, especially if we are talking about guests of the city from other countries. How to behave in the capital of Russia so that people on the streets don't stare at you like a monster that came from another planet?

Foreign tourists who have visited Moscow talk about what mistakes they have made here and how to avoid them.

Follow the crowd

Walking routes prepared for the visit of tourists by representatives of local business are available in almost every major city in the world. They are all somewhat similar to each other, and all equally suck time, attention and money out of poor fellows with cameras. There are such traps in Moscow.

"Most tourists learn about Arbat Street from guidebooks or from books by Russian writers, so their curiosity is to some extent understandable. But in fact, this is just a tourist trap promoted among foreigners visiting Moscow — it is difficult to find something really interesting here in the midst of rather mediocre and expensive cafes. At the same time, in Moscow, in addition to the Arbat, there are quite interesting places from a tourist point of view. If you make friends with someone from the locals, they will definitely show you a Moscow that 99% of tourists have never seen," Jacob Gordon from the USA shared his experience.

To think that Moscow has a hellish winter all year round

It is too accurate to follow the routes set by the pointers

Some tourists are very easily disoriented in big cities, and let's face it: Moscow is a huge city. But the center of Moscow is quite compact.

"Foreigners who often visit Moscow do not even imagine how much time they lose on transfers from one metro line to another, when it would be almost faster to walk to their destination," said Alastar Gill from the UK.

Stop being guided by common sense

"In my opinion, the biggest mistake that foreigners make in Moscow is to believe that it would be too rude to say no or just walk away, turning around if something does not suit you or is annoying," says Michael Deasy from Canada."I always advise tourists from my groups not to stare at the police in Moscow: if they catch a glance, they will probably decide to check the documents and can easily issue some kind of fine. This happened several times right before my eyes. Plus, I constantly say that you should not put your wallet in the back pocket of your trousers, especially when walking along a busy street or moving to the subway. They'll pull him out right away," advises Pyotr Ishkin, a tour guide who conducts excursions for foreigners in Moscow.

To believe that stupid stereotypes from the distant past are the objective reality of the present day

It is difficult to deny the fact that Moscow has changed seriously recently. But on In Russia, all these labels from ancient times are hung by popular rumor almost more intensively than in any other country in the world. Don't let them fool you.

"I think that a serious mistake that a lot of people who go to Moscow make is to believe everything they tell you about this city. Most of this information lost its relevance 10-15 years ago. Yes, at that time everything was different here. Moscow, which I met personally, is not at all like the city that everyone told me about before I got here for the first time. Don't let prejudice clutter your head," says Canadian Joe McInnes.