US 2 Travel Moments - #2 The Russian adventure
In our first story I kind of introduced our plan. We got of the airport in Moscow and wanted to try out the Uber app for the fist time. So we booked a trip and waited for the taxi to come and pick us up at the terminal. After half an hour still nobody, so we went outside to take a look where he could be.
The first few steps outside the airport we got stormed by taxi drivers trying to get us in. After walking thru the parking lot still no Uber taxi. Then a car pulled up, we walked up to him to ask if he was our Uber driver. And then all hell broke loose! One of the official taxi drivers heard the word “Uber” and went mental on our driver so he panicked and took off. Bye bye Uber taxi what we already paid for in advance!
After that the taxi driver got a bit angry at us for taking a Uber taxi but we just told them a story that the hostel booked us a taxi. So he cooled down and offered us a ride for a reasonable price!
In Holland we booked a cheap Airbnb apartment and had a short chat with the girl renting the room, she would be home to help us out and show us around for Moscow for a day.
So we gave the address we got from her to the taxi driver, he drove around for a while trying to find the right apartment but he was not sure if he was at the right place. What turned out, we only got the number of the apartment complex and there was no apartment number in the e-mail just the complex number and a phone number.
We got out of the taxi and tried to call the phone number that was given thru Airbnb. A guy picked up and said he would come and help us out. The phone call ended up costing me €17, - for a few minutes and now prepay left on my phone. We waited for 30 minutes; it was getting late, almost 11pm so we got a bit worried.
Then a lady came walking up to the apartment complex and we asked her in our best Russian to call the guy again. It turned out he was waiting on the other side of the complex and would come our way ASAP.
The nice lady waited with us until he turned up and then the most epic thing happened.
A Russian guy with long hair and leather jacked came around the corner on a small step with a big smile on his face greeting us.
He was really friendly and helped us out with the electronic lock on the outside door, gave us the keys to the apartment and told us where the local shops and metro stations where.
The next morning we woke up early, packed our bags for the day and walked to the metro station.
That day we did a city walk and visited the revolution square.
Monument to St. Vladimir on Borovitskaya Square.
Borovitskaya Square.
The Alexander Gardens was one of the first urban public parks in Moscow. The park comprises three separate gardens, which stretch along all the length of the western Kremlin wall
Soldiers walking by The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a war memorial, dedicated to the Soviet soldiers killed during World War II. It is located at the Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden.
The State Historical Museum of Russia is a museum of Russian history wedged between Red Square and Manege Square.
Kazan Cathedral Russian formally known as the "Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan", is a Russian Orthodox church located on the northeast corner of Red Square.
The Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed, commonly known as Saint Basil's Cathedral, is a church in the Red Square.
View over The Moskva River! It's a river of western Russia. It rises about 140 km west of Moscow, and flows roughly east through the Smolensk and Moscow Oblasts, passing through central Moscow.
Daria at the Horses Fountain in Alexander Gardens.
Resurrection Gate is the only existing gate of the Kitai-gorod. It connects the north-western end of Red Square with Manege Square and gives its name to nearby Voskresenskaya Square.
The Spasskaya Tower is the main tower with a through-passage on the eastern wall of the Moscow Kremlin, which overlooks the Red Square.
The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is a cathedral in Moscow, Russia, on the northern bank of the Moskva River, a few blocks southwest of the Kremlin. With an overall height of 103 metres, it is the tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world.
Nice post!