My time here is up, I set my alarm too freakin’ early, but didn’t want to have to pay for subway tickets. My pass expired ~7:30, so I checkout of my room, caught the metro to the bus stop.

Oh, good, I get directed to the side for extra screening at the metro station. Could be because of my baggage or maybe just random.

There is an express bus to the airport. I did not think there would be that many people, but it was packed.

We’re dropped off right at departures and I go check in at the desk. There is a quick x-ray of baggage as you enter. The desk lady pointed out that I needed gate 2. I’ve done this a few times, I look for the big number next to the word “gate.” But I guess not everyone has flown before.

Then I went through a boarding pass checkpoint, then regular security. Man, this was a breeze. No shoe removal, no electronics removal, no sanity removal. The only downside was that I had throw out a yogurt drink that I was going to drink while waiting for the bus, but they’re too quick.

I went down the hall and found gate 2. Crap, this place is small and packed. There are only 50 seats for an entire 737’s worth of passengers. Yes, I did count them, I am a weirdo like that.

I listen to some of the intercom messages, they’re in Russian and then English. I notice, a lot of flights getting shifted to other gates. I presumed it was because of delays in some other airline, but I’m going Aeroflot, the kingpin.

After the first plane loaded, I managed to grab a seat by the wall, so I could put my stuff in front of me. Still got about 4 hours to wait, so I nod off.

At some point, I decide to check my flight trackers. Just to see if where the plane was at the time, was the flight already having small delays, etc. Wait, WTF this says my flight is at gate 18, no that can’t be right. I check another, and another. Crap.

I get up, knowing I’m losing my prime seat, and go to find a display board. Yep, it says now at gate 18. Maybe they did have an announcement, but I was asleep, therefore it doesn’t count.

Also, there are 18 gates at LED, that means I am literally at the opposite end of the terminal. No big deal, still an hour at least.

I happen to see the boarding pass of a lady sitting next to me. She is clearly Russian, but her name on the pass is only Romanised. My name is also, but that’s my name, I would have thought that a Russian airline at a Russian airport would have the original names printed, at least for domestic.

Boarding pass states loading is at 11:20, doors close at 11:40. OK, why are we still sitting here at 11:29?

Finally, someone comes and unlocks the gangway doors and we all start going in. A couple of personnel run metal wands over us, despite already having gone through security, plus I didn’t even remove by backpack, so how good a job were they doing?

We pass on down and into the plane, no one checked boarding passes. I could be going almost any where in Russia.

I do have to say, with 4 “checks” this was still the easiest boarding yet, even easier than PreCheck.

It is only an hour flight, so we got a couple chocolate cookies and choice of coffee, tea, or water. Really surprised we got that much.

I go to get off the plane and… whoa… there are stairs. Good thing I was looking. We exit the plane and have to get onto a bus, we are way out from the terminal. I was near the front so I was able to get on the bus, many had to wait for another.

When mom and I flew from Inverness, Scotland to Manchester, our plane also did not pull to a gate, but there they had a series of cones marking out a path we were required to follow, but that was maybe 50 feet. This was several minutes on the shuttle.

It is domestic, so no more checks, just head for the exit or your next flight.

The main area of the airport was huge. Seriously, you could have a couple full football fields in there, lots of shops and things to do. I wanted to look around, but I need to find the AeroExpress train ticket office.

I followed the signs, taking about a thousand turns, before getting there. 950 rubles for a standard 2-way ticket. Hope I don’t loose it.

Then I have to follow a few hundred more signs to the platform. There’s only a few people ahead of me, so I probably just missed one.

The display says the next is at 14:14, only 20ish minutes to wait. Only, the Russians don’t believe in sitting, there are no benches. Other than parks, I have seen very few places to sit and wait.

Finally, the big red train pulls in and we board.

“Express” is in the name, but this train was anything but fast. First we made about 4 stops. Second, I checked my speedometer app, we didn’t get above 20mph. So slow that I again began to nod off.

We reached the final stop, train station right next to the Metro. Or so I thought, it is right next, but you basically have to circle halfway around one, then halfway around the other.

I wait at the ticket window, of course there’s only one, and use the translator I need a 7-day pass. Guess what wikipedia lied to me about? The don’t have 7-day, only single and three day. So I get a 3, I’ll just have get another later.

The route is simple enough, down 2 stations, switch and then one more. That’s the easy part, then I have to walk up the street, cross another busy street and find the place.

In  Saint Petersburg, the hostel’s name was actually different than what the booking site had, a translation error, so I could not find it on street view. Here the problem was, street view didn’t cover areas that couldn’t be driven, like alleys with barricades.

Through the translator, I ask a lady nearby, surprising she has good English, but doesn’t know the hostel. She asks a man walking by and he points around back. I give thanks to both and head around back. No signs. Fortunately, an Indian on the phone pauses his conversation to direct me to a specific door. Very helpful people here.

I get buzzed in and climb 8 flights to the hostel, still no sign, I only found it because the door started to buzz as I approached.

I entered, cautiously. It looked like someone home. I’m going to get arrested.

The hostess come in and starts to take my info and check me in. She does not know English, so we converse through the translator. I swear this must be the most used app in this country after TicTok.

At some point, she makes a call, then informs me that I can’t stay the whole week, foreigners can only stay 3 days. I can assure you it did not say any of that on the booking site.

She says she will try to find me another to move to in 3 days. OK, that’s probably the best I’m going to get.

She wants to know if I have slippers, no I don’t. Great, its one of those places. Again, not mentioned on the site. She has a box of miscellaneous ones, I grab a pair and swap for my shoes.

She takes me to the desk and I pay for three days, then she leads me to the room.

Very small room with bunk bed. That’s ok, I’ve booked the whole room, so no roommate or top bunk.

I spread out the sheets on the bed and put on the pillow case and start to organize my stuff, when she knocks on the door.

Apparently, my “registration” is expiring today and I wouldn’t be able to stay there. I got the registration from the first hostel and never looked at it. I just thought it was a receipt or something, luckily I put it in my folder with the other confirmations.

The first hostel had no way of knowing I would be staying in Moscow, or anywhere else. They didn’t ask and I didn’t know to tell.

I never did find out why she couldn’t just give me a new registration, after all, that’s what the first one did.

She is on the phone with someone and I’m looking for another place nearby, maybe they can make me a new registration. Then she states that she found me a place that can take me and gives me an address, on the other side of town.

I picked this place because it was the closest place to a metro station that I could find. The new one was nearly a mile. That’s 2 miles every time I leave and come back. In the rain, if so.

I go back down the stairs and head out towards the station, but then I have a thought, I have no idea what this new place is going to cost. This could be a bait and switch, or a murder the tourist scenario. If I don’t like the service, I have no recourse with the booking company, I didn’t book this place through them.

I had been looking at a site, right as she told me about the new location. So I stepped to the side of the walkway and took a better look at the site. They had no 2-bed rooms available, but had a 3, so I booked it. It was a bit of meandering to get to it from where I was, but it was actually mostly a straight shot from the station.

I figured if this place and any other I tried wouldn’t work, then the other place was still available.

Third floor, I’m getting a work out. Plus they have signs, both outside and in the stairway, so you actually know you’re going the right way.

I check in, the lady took my registration, had me sign in and that was it. (So far.)

They have an odd set up, the toilets and baths are segregated men/women, which is normal, but the toilet rooms have 2 toilets, divided by a wall, but open otherwise. The showers are also 2 per room, but at least then there is a curtain across the front.

There are 2 other beds in my room, but only one is occupied, so far. Oddly, there are no keys. You get buzzed in at the front door, but that’s it.

I was quite sweaty after my climb up the stairs, check in, check out, down the stairs, walk down the road, up more stairs aggravation. I took a shower right away.

Other than cookies on the plane and some of my yogurt drink, I hadn’t eaten yet, so I headed out to find something.

One street over, a major pedestrian thoroughfare, were lots of shops, artists, and restaurants. Down side, they were all “fast” food. Screw it, I got me a stuffed pita at the doner place.

I found some steps and I sat to eat, dropping a good amount on my clean shirt. Then headed to the supermarket and got some juice and milk, for my muesli.

I am so tired, but I have to stay up until a proper bedtime, otherwise I’ll be awake at the wrong time and disturb my roommate. Also, I didn’t come here to sleep.