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[steven_gerrard]

So after humble beginnings all those years ago at BKC in Moscow, via LL in St Pete and beyond, it is now time to pack up my balalaika and my copy of Murphy and leave this country for pastures new. Ok, not new but certainly different. My contract at my current place of work is up soon, at the moment it looks like it won't be renewed so I have made the monumental decision to move on. After more than 6 years this won't be easy and I have got to thinking what I will miss about Russia and what I won't.

Miss
*The sheer beauty of the place has captured my imagination like nowhere else I have ever been. Even the so-called "ugly" parts have a certain beauty
*The fact I can live in the centre of a major city in a decent flat for less than �500 a month, no bills.
*The public transport system- being able to get where you want, when you want so cheaply is amazing to most of us expats.
*The people- though I didn't care much for Muscovites when I was there, Petrians are a different matter.

Won't miss
*Crazy landlords who enter your flat whenever they feel like it with no warning and who think that English speaking =$$$$ for them.
*Rude service in shops
*Being micro-waitressed in restaurants
*Russian food- I feel a heart bypass coming on after all these years of grease.
*Expensive flights out of Russia- Easyjet here I come!
*Hot water being turned off for 3 weeks in the Summer- ridiculous
*The whole visa process. Tedious in the extreme.

So what will you miss when you finally make the break?

[expatella_girl]

We expire too, in one year and 4 months. By then we'll have been in Moscow 4 years. I shudder to think of leaving, I can't imagine anymore, not living in Russia. I feel like I belong here. If only they didn't make it so hard to stay....I'd never leave I think. It feels like the countdown to doom.

What will I miss? How can I detail what I will miss--everything. I love the randomness of Russia and the chaos and the Russian acceptance of aberration. I love the huge northern beautifulness of the country and the power that goes with it. I like, what we used to call, their zero-give-a-sh*t-level. They just don't give a dam, go do what you want. I love their Russianness, bred from a 1,000 years of culture in their own isolation. I love them in the winter in the snow in their fur coats and hats. I will miss the music--the classical and the cheesy Roosky pop. Their unique convention of church bell ringers.

What I will not miss--their frustrating lack of self propulsion. Their indifferent rudeness. Their ingrained habit of not doing anything unless specifically instructed, doing a half slovenly job of it, and then taking a break for the rest of the day. Their lack of pride in their work. Their willingness to accept their fate as it is handed out to them, without a fight.

and: rude salesclerks
rude cashiers
rude men who spit and blow their noses everywhere
brazenly rude police
incredibly rude and dangerous drivers
rude bureaucrats
rude waiters and waitresses
rude busness people
Moscow is a breeding ground of incredibly rude people, even the homeless drunks on the Metro are rude. If I've left out a catagory of rude people, feel free to submit your candidate(s).

But I can live with the rudeness. I don't know how I'm going to live without the rest of the good parts.

[Slim Jim]

You forgot to mention the sense of danger... The edgy quality of living in Russia which instils a new sense of caution in the foreign visitor: thinking twice about opening your mouth in certain situations; watching your step on the ice so you don't full assovertit on the way to the metro; being careful of kissing strange women; or joining a vodka-fuelled bender in a platzcart carriage en route to Petrozavodsk or Saint Petersburg with the myriad of repurcussions arising from awaking at the station in a drunken heap; and a thousand over little things you take for granted when you're there. With the right mind-set, Russia is anything but dull. Strange how that planned short stint stretches into years...

[canucktechie]

[coledavis]

Tell me about what happens after you kiss the strange women.

[steven_gerrard]

[bobs12]

Trips to the UK - sad but strangely true.

Will miss:
прекрасная няня
не родись красивой
and a whole load of other stuff I wouldn't have cared about three years ago

[Travel Zen]

[P-T]

I won't miss:-
*Living in the school & considered available 24/7 (What do you mean you're sleeping?)
*White Nights (greater sleep deprivation; no curtains you see)
*The bruises from �thin air� staggers (I DID NOT lace my breakfast yogurt with vodka)
*Long johns
*A runny nose

I will miss:-
*The locals..they've been fantastic to me..acquaintances & strangers alike
*The bar & cafe staff who've gone out of their way to help me, have learned little bits of English to excite me, & have swooned with pleasure when I've shown off my new Russian language skills
*My fruit & veg sellers..for the same reasons as the bar folk
*Catching huge snowflakes in my hands
*When the flakes are so small it looks like diamonds are raining from the sky
*The curious hand shake
*Russian gentlemen
*All the quirky things about the place, too numerous to mention

I thought I was going to the toughest country first; now I can't imagine being looked after so well anywhere else.