Street Food: Turkish Doner Kabob Burrito

The two best ways to really get to know another country are by eating their food and by experiencing their culture. Common sense, right? Then why do so many people traveling abroad seek out expat spots or American chain restaurants? Obviously that accomplishes neither of these goals. This explains why I went straight for this trendy and very popular restaurant on my block today when I was starving for lunch, it’s called McDonald’s. Wait, wait. No, no I didn’t do that. Yes, it is a trendy and popular joint and it is on my block, and it is a place where I could much more easily get by with ordering in English(ish). And yes, the thought did in fact cross my mind. Instead, I made the jaunt across the ten lane street to my new favorite place – a place which shall remain nameless because I have no idea what its name is. It’s a Turkish Doner permanent food cart attached to a 24 hour flower shop (flower shops are EVERYWHERE here). Meats rotating on a spit are just waiting to be shaved off into your welcoming flour tortilla, then topped with a spicy aioli, pickles, tomatoes and even a few french fries (just like gyros in Athens, where the fries go in the pita). After hitting this stand up last night for dinner with Dani, I just had to go back again for lunch today. $3.66 (equivalent, 120 RUB) gets you a very delicious chicken doner kabob Turkish Russian burrito thing. And I love every last bit of it, especially the price.

Don’t think that just because I’m overseas in a country that doesn’t sound like “England” or “Switzerland” that everything is super cheap. Moscow is frequently ranked one of the most expensive cities on earth. But like every city, there are always hidden gems and street food is usually the gemmiest of them all (gemmiest? Yes).

So in closing, if you want to experience a new country, head for the street food. (Be careful in Hanoi, that was the sketchiest street food I have ever experienced, and I’m a global street food pro.) Food and culture wrapped into one small but delicious multi-national burrito. Yum.

 

 

 

 

A Walk Through Red Square and Beyond

We got to play tourists in Moscow for the first time today! The weather and sky were perfect for great shots too. Of all of the places I’ve traveled to and all of the buildings I’ve photographed with beautiful blue skies behind them, I actually think St Basil’s Cathedral is the most amazing building I’ve ever seen.

Lurking Behind That Ugly Apartment Building…

Today was my first of many, many photo walks through Moscow. A long walk around a neighborhood is a lot more fun and interesting when you have a great camera and a few lenses on hand. Sometimes I shoot to try and capture an amazing, artistic shot, and sometimes I shoot to capture something that tells a quick story or is symbolic.

Never assume you know what is hiding behind that old, ugly Soviet apartment building! Moscow is full of architectural surprises. Check out what used to be the Hotel Ukraine right on the river, just a few blocks behind our building. A little bit further down the other way are 5 enormous, brand new all-glass skyscrapers too. Would it be overly cliché if I called this a city of contrasts? Pretty sure every person ever has already said that.

A few quick ones from today follow.

 

The thinnest pizza ever, And other first eats

We picked up a pizza from across the street and it happened to be the thinnest pizza ever made (unverified). It was just ok on flavor with very little sauce or cheese, but you would need to eat 10 slices to make it a real meal.

Also a few pics from our first attempt at Russian grocery shopping and lunch at an Uzbek restaurant in Arbat.

Quick Comparisons Part 1

The Metro (subway) Map of Moscow

The Metro (subway) is Fantastic in Moscow

Moscow is a big, modern city. The subway system is enormous and far more convenient and efficient than Washington’s, and probably even New York. An example? We walked to the metro on a Sunday morning and got on a train in about 30 seconds. There was another just a few minuets behind that. In DC, this Sunday trip would most likely have taken 15-20 minutes. The subway stations are also grand and over the top palace-like structures deep, deep underground. The Soviets took great pride in the metro system and used it as a showcase of how their system could work and provide great things for its people (of course, the subway worked, not much else did).

A Moscow Metro Station

The Malls and Stores Are Shiny

Aside from the fact that communication for me is nearly impossible, going to the mall by the Kievskaya metro station is exactly like going to a mall in DC…or rather, LA. Perhaps even nicer. It is very modern, very clean and very expensive. The mall is so huge and extensive that instead of a static map display to help you find you way, there is a large interactive touchscreen device that lets you search for stores by name, type, etc and then guides you there via a series of zooming maps and pictures.

No Change for You!

Like a lot of countries around the world, Russians hate making change. I’m not talking about a cashier giving you the eye for trying to pay for a $5 item with a Benjamin, I’m talking like enduring a 5 minute argument/discussion when trying to pay with a 100 RUB note for something that is 42 RUB. Keep in mind, this is the equivalent of trying to pay with $3 for something that is $1.30 or so. Also, credit cards are still not universally accepted. USA takes the cake when it comes to making change…we seem to love it.

Moscow is Clean!

This is a very early comparison to make, but the limited areas of Moscow we have walked through so far have been very clean. Just as clean as any nice American city, and far cleaner than NYC or similar metropolises. It sounds strange to say a city is “clean”, but not after you’ve been to capital cities like Cairo. Many major cities across the world are disturbingly filthy. Moscow, so far, is not. What were you picturing?

We’ve Met Russia for the First Time

We’ve arrived! All three of us (me, my wife and our little Jack Russell Max) arrived safely in Moscow after a very hectic nearly 20 hours of traveling. But we made it and that’s what matters. Now it’s time get to down to the hard stuff – defining what this blog is really for and what I’m going to post to it. My instant instinct when blogging while overseas is to treat it purely like a travel blog, a somewhat comical look at the adventures and craziness encountered when traveling to new cities and countries. But something always happens to me when I write posts of that sort. Something that feels oh-so-right at first but always ends up for the worse in the end. I write and I write and I write. And then I write some more. And then after about a week or so, I get tired of writing so much and I start to resent the amount of time it takes up while trying to explore. So I stop writing half way through the trip and I give up. That sucks and I don’t want that to happen to this blog, so I’m changing formats. That and the fact that only a handful of people in this world (pretty much just my Mom, maybe my wife, and probably my travel buddy Claire) would ever take the time to actually read such hastily written novellas.

The format is simple; quick bursts of thought, comparisons of culture, snapshots of the country and maybe a few short stories thrown in. But the keyword is short. And frequent, I want continuous content to hopefully hold the ongoing interest of the average tiny attention span of the modern American. But then this post is so long, I’ve probably already lost those people.

I hope to introduce present day Russia to Americans, and present day America to Russians…one short post at a time.

On with the posts! 

Holy Crap. We’re Only Days Away.

73 Days Until Cultural Launch