When I was in elementary school, I read the most amazing fiction novel about a young princess in Russia. I read all about her adventures in the various summer palaces, and the opulence, and then finally, about the war and how her family tried desperately to escape. I completely fell in love with everything related to the country. Then in the summer of 2011, I read ‘Winter Garden’ by Kristen Hannah, and I decided that I had to head to the country at some point.
Even with visa restrictions, the un-Western civil/human rights standards, and the occasional murder covered up, I decided to go for in on my trip in 2013.
In order to facilitate my entry, and my travels in the country, I joined a Trafalgar tour. All I would need to do was get myself to St Petersburg, and then just sit back and enjoy the country I’d waited so long to see.
I spent a week in Helsinki before journeying to St Petersburg. Russian train tickets are only available outside of the country 45 days ahead, and when I tried to purchase a ticket in Europe, they were all sold out. My options were overnight bus, or flight. Because of my decision to challenge myself by travelling overland, I opted for the overnight bus.
Upon my arrival in Helsinki, I went to the bus terminal, and was able to purchase, only a week in advance, a seat on a bus. It only cost me 40 euros, as opposed to the several hundred the train would have cost! Bonus for bus travel!
The bus would depart at 23:00 and arrive in St. Petersburg around 7 the next morning. I arrived at the bus station in plenty of time, found the departure lane, and then waited.
If you’ve ever waited patiently for something that makes you a little nervous, you know that the longer the wait, the more anxious you become. For the two hours I waited for my bus, I’d almost decided that I was completely crazy. Why was I venturing to Russia? I should’ve gone to Greece, or spent more time in Italy. I was bound to accidentally do something illegal and have to call my parents to bail me out of Russian prison. No one I knew had gone to Russia. Why blaze the trail?!
Then I realized. I really wanted to blaze a trail. I wanted to see things I’d read about. Hear first hand stories and see palaces and residences and something totally new that no one I knew had ever experienced. I convinced myself that I could do it. Just get on the bus, and then when you get to St Petersburg, just find the hotel. Easy, right?
The bus arrived and I boarded successfully (showing my passport, visa, and return train ticket out of the country). I was the only non-Russian on the bus. There was one other person who spoke just a little bit of English. The driver droned on in Russian, not exactly calming my nerves, as I realized I was the only one who wasn’t following. There were only six other people on the bus.
Even though it was after midnight, the sky was still a deep purplish colour, and never really got dark. The bus bounced along a narrow, almost-one-way highway full of potholes. (Definitely a welcome to the non-Western standard roads). My plan to sleep the whole way was definitely out of the question. I tried to follow along with my map app, but because no one had been able to tell me exactly where the bus stops in St Petersburg were, I had no idea how far my hotel was from the stop. This was definitely the worst arrival plan of my whole trip. As someone who plans probably just a little too much, this was definitely a nerve-wracking bus ride.
Around 3 in the morning we finally pulled up to a small Russian border town. Everyone else started getting off the bus. The other student-type man on the bus told me that we had to get off the bus, with our hand-luggage, and go through border formalities. We stepped up to a small office with a window and heavily armed guards on either side. I presented my passport. The border officer looked at it carefully and gave it back to me. No questions, no discussion, nothing. He waved me through to the other side. It was by far the easiest border crossing I had ever done. (Unlike the time I almost missed my train getting into London…).
Fast-Foreward a few hours. We’d actually arrived in St. Petersburg. Still had no map option. Still no idea where we were arriving in relation to my hotel. Still had absolutely no idea about anything. The other English speaker was from Moscow and couldn’t help me. All I had was the name of the hotel. Not even an address, and I’d heard that the cab drivers frequently mistook hotels for other hotels, and were therefore, little help without an address.
Finally, we were nearing the final stopped. I tried asking the driver, telling him the name of my hotel. He stopped on the street, asking a few locals and one seemed to know where it was. The driver pointed to the nearest metro, held up three fingers and pointed in the direction (yes. The directions were very clear…)
I started walking towards to metro because he was watching to make sure I arrived alright. When he finally pulled away, I began walking up and down the street, determined that surely, wifi could be found somewhere and I could figure out where I was.
Thankfully, thought not very common, I connected to a wifi signal, found my hotel, walked just over a mile to it, and collapsed onto a beautiful, positively luxurious bed.
Read more about my time in Russia here! *spoiler* it was amazing, and I’ve since been back three times!
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