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It is a big advantage to know some Russian. Outside of Moscow we met nobody who spoke English. I found Moscow very stressful and expensive. It was the least pleasant city we visited. Our next stop was Kazan, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. I highly recommend Kazan. It's an old, beautiful and exotic city with a mix of Tatars and Russes living there. The atmosphere was far more relaxed than in Moscow.

Kazan offers great mosques, and is the Muslim centre of Russia. It's a great place to relax and stroll about. This city has some stunning sights, including the UNESCO listed Kreml.

Our next stop was Ekaterinburg. We were told that it was situated in the Ural mountains, but we never saw a glimpse of them. Nevertheless; Ekaterinburg is a very pleasant and chilled city. It has a very western feeling to it. It's easy to find western food, as there's plenty of Irish pubs there. I recommend going to the Altay building. There you can take a lift and see the city from the rooftop. It's quite stunning. There's plenty of theatres all around the city, and even though you don't understand Russian, don't miss the opportunity to catch local theatre-troops.

A great place (although hard to find) to stay is the guesthouse called Academy of Geology. It's peaceful and has beautiful rooms.

From Ekaterinburg we went south to Ufa. Ufa is the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan. Ufa was quite hard to get around, but it is still worth a visit. You can visit one of Lenin's homes and spot some unique architecture. The atmosphere in Ufa is, like in Kazan, very different from the Russian cities. I highly recommend the Azimut hotel (Bus stop Gore Moskva). It's a business hotel with great standards and a friendly staff.

On to Volgograd. Volgograd is probably one of the most beautiful cities I've been to. Situated on the banks of the Volga river with an almost tropical climate, it almost feels like you're in Greece. This is a city of history. The name Stalingrad might ring a bell. The most stunning thing to see in Volgograd is the huge Mother Russia statue. It's the highest statue in the world (72 m). It's an unbelievable sight when you compare it to a church that stands beside it. It looks more like a doll's church.

I also recommend the Stalingrad Battle museum, and the Volga river cruises. There are plenty of offers. Volgograd was really easy to get around in. The city centre is quite small, and it's easy to navigate because of the river. The Volgograd Hotel is cheap and amazing.

We had a wonderful time in Russia. My girlfriend knows some Russian and that came in extremely handy. We got quite used to people looking at us, but we never felt threatened or harassed. The most common comment we got from other women was that we were brave to travel by ourselves.

One thing that is difficult however, is buying train tickets. You will need to write down the information for the train you are going on, how many tickets you need, and what kind of cupee you want. And prepare for long lines. It might take hours to get your tickets. We always went in a 4-people compartment. It was a great way to travel. We shared compartments with so many different people, and it was a great way to get to know Russians. It's important to bring some food or beverage to share.

Girls; go to Russia. It is a fascinating place....]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/13826 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2521 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2521 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3956
You can explore the station and then head up the street to Yolki Polki, one of a chain of restaurants serving decent Russian food at cheap prices (not an easy thing to find in Moscow). Their generous portion of borsht is delicious.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3956 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3920
Oh yes and be careful - check out the driver before getting into the car. Single women should never get in to cars on their own. All lifts are taken at your own risk. If you don't like the driver, just give a ridiculous price like 20R (40p) and he'll shout “Ohuel!” and drive away.

Another tip: if you don't like the driver smoking, just tell him you have an allergy, it always works and it’s a good conversation starter as well.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3920 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3909 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3909 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3902 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3902 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3896
A taxi from both airports will cost around 1300 roubles, but can take from 90 minutes to three hours, depending upon traffic.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3896 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3887
Until you get back to the UK.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3887 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1410 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1410 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/759 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/759 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29