Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Moscow Metro: love-hate-love-hate


Things I hate about the Moscow metro:
~The swing doors- they are pretty heavy and people are content to let the doors swing into the face of the person right behind them ~Its almost always crowded. Sometimes there are too many people in the train to get on
~The smell- sometimes, it smells really really bad. Think dead fish on wet dog
~Having to walk in baby-steps in the bottleneck near escalators during the 4 or so rush hours on weekdays
~Drunk people sleeping on the floors of wagons
~Trains suddenly stopping mid-way along the scheduled path



Things I love about the Moscow metro:
~The magnetic tickets can be used while still in your purse
~Doesn't matter where you go, same price- less than $1 per ride
~Much faster than by car, most of the day (Moscow traffic can be terrible)
~Its public transport! (hundreds of people running around by metro is much better than hundreds of people rushing around in a car each)
~Once you get the hang of it, getting anywhere is easy enough with a map. Labels are copious and clear
~There's always Pirojhok stores nearby, for a quick snack on the go
~40 seconds between trains during rush hour
~Beautiful stations. Some of them are truly breathtaking. Check out the exit at Mayakovskaya, for example
~Classical music in the tunnel between transfers

I guess, overall, I kinda sorta love it. Except for the times when I hate it, that is.

2 comments:

Nixie said...

Well, it is usually 1-2 minutes between trains, I think. And in the evenings (after 11 p.m.? for example - 5-8 minutes)

One of the most beautiful stations, in my mind, is Novoslobodskaya. And Ploschad' Revolutcii, with the dogs:)

First I didn't understand what you mean - Pirojhok stores in the metro.. but then remembered... that really there are some. but not many :)

Tista said...

Several times, I was in a train that had to stop mid-route and the next train did come by very quickly- the fastest of which was 40 seconds according to the timer on the platform.

And yes, those stations are also gorgeous. Actually, so many of the stations are so beautiful, and with such different styles, that it's truly something amazing.

And maybe there aren't too many pirozhok stores, but I always find one when I want one- either in the tunnel near the metro, or right outside the station. ;)