"Your Welcome" in response to "Thank You" is not universal - even in English speaking countries - for example Australians will say "No Worries" if they say anything at all.

Just relax and accept the country for what it is - I would suggest complaining about the plumbing of $20 hotel is part of the issue.

As Walter said to me once - it is probably the only place in the world you can knock on someones door at 9pm, not speak the language and get help.

When our bike broke down - we got all the help in the world to rescue the bike and get to accommodation. When we arrived at 1 in the morning there was food and hot tea. After that amongst the best two weeks I have ever had in my life and friends that I will have life.

Hello
Yeah, every IGA has this "special" person who will never see its picture on the wall of the employees of the month.
But you're wright, now I've stoped using any form of communication, as the locals do and it works,feels like I'm in the movie "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warm_Bodies_(film)".
I felt so sorry for the woman I forced to smile and say bashalsta, must have been a horrible experience for them. Will never do it again.
But the fact that so far in every third place they tried to cheat by raising the price for a bed once I've seen and liked it, still bothers me.
The hospitality sounds great unless you don't want it,for whatever reason.
Yesterday I almost had a fight with a guy who pulled constantly on my jacket while I tried to explain him that I'm not interested in coming to his party nor his sauna.
Well just 4000km of this shithole till the border of the EU.
sushi

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Whew, it probably was a horrible experience for her to be forced to repeat your jibberish. I guess you realize that "bashalsta" doesn't mean anything in Russian? I think you're doing it wrong.

OK, although this has never happened to me--ever--in my many hotel stays in Russia. I think you're doing it wrong, maybe next time bring a tent?

Nice one. Again, I think you're doing it wrong.

Feel free to dip down into Central Asia so that you can escape Russia, they won't miss you. It's a big world, I guess all of us are lucky you can go to other places and don't have to come back here ever.

hmm I think for 100% certainty it was meant Пожалуйста ("pa-zhal-sta") - Please and You're Welcome (for anyone now knowing language) and i am certain most of russian speakers also understands it even you say
ba-shals-ta

Raising hotel price as hotel administration realises person asking room is not russian and actually is tourist is not really unheard case. That is fact/common practice coming as long time from Soviet Union times and was even teached us during russian language education at school end of 80's and 90's. So i think this is something very possible to happen even modern times sometimes.

But i agree. Russia is vast country full of different people. I think someone mentioned, which was excellently said (i think it was probably Colebach) that if you stay on main roads you have to remember that people come there to earn money on roadside. You meet totally different kind of hospitality and people if you venture to smaller roads and villages.

I have had lot of good experiences in Russia. Perhaps it helps i speak some of language so it helps communicate with people or that finnish people generally are well liked in Russia. Now I have done pretty much all my motorcycle travels from year 2010 there, now 5 or 6 shorter and longer trips and i have never felt bad about it.

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Sure it's possible, but I've never encountered it. What I encounter in many hotels, however, is that there are different "classes" of room, with varying prices. When you pull up you're quoted the price for the cheapest class of room, and when it turns out that that room is not so nice and you want another, nicer, one, the price goes up. I don't see what's wrong with that.

Hi

I am still in Ulanbataar at my wifes family.

Russia was such a friendly country, it was awsome.

Yes, they have bad plumbing sometimes, but who cares?????

I dont judge people or countries on theyr plumbing.

When we stoped somewere beside the street, people came here to ask if they can help us, or if they can take a picture for theyr kids.....

I Volgograd a guy came up an showed us his city, and was really nice.....
He drove in front of us to bring us to the important places.

In some other places we met bikers, and they always showed us good places for the night or the right way......

In Odessa I met an old man on the beach, he told me that he was in germany and startet to sing some old Nazi song.
But i did not blame him for that, this guy was no Nazi, he just know this in german, so should i blame him for that?? Dont think so.

In Mongolia it is even better.
At the beginning i had some bad experience with a few people who tried to betray tourists ( like in europe too ) but once we had problems with my clutch, i could see how friendly people are. And when i came around with my family, i met the nicest people on earth.

In a week i will go back over russia and I am sure i will enjoy it.

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Nothing wrong with that. Totally normal, everywhere in the world hotels work like this.
But that was not what they pulled on me. That was called cheating by international standards.
I know it's very hard to accept that fact if one is a Russia lover.
Try to travel without speaking fluent russian, only 5 words, and there will be a totally different Russia.
Still a lot of nice and great people, but it might open eyes to see the high density of * in Russia, the highest in the world.

Please don't fry me for speaking up again.
You digged it up.
P.S.
* means whatever you like.

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We could always deal with the gostunizas about the price.

I found out, it is always possible and you still get rooms which are ok.

ANd all i want is a cheap bed to sleep when I ttravel.

And when you try to talk to the russions in the Hotels, the get friendly and helpful.

I was not a russion lover before, and i was never in the country before, but i had my experience that it is really nice there

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When I left St Petersburg I knew the Russian words for
Petrol
Thank You
Please
Hotel/Guesthouse
ATM

That was it, I learnt about 50 in total while I was there. I loved it and really want to return.

Yes, certainly different to some extent, but I think the bigger problem is the Trans-Siberian Highway.

Honestly it is difficult to see how anyone could have a very favorable impression of Russia if that is all they saw--it is a long boring ride lined with hard-bitten police, truck-drivers, and proprietors of various cafes, motels, etc. Then to end the day by staying in some crappy roadside truck stop and then getting up to do it all the again the next day--no thanks!

I encourage people to stay in the bigger cites along the way to the extent possible. Tyumen, Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Irkutsk, Ulan Ude, Chita, Kemerovo, etc. are all rather nice cities full of nice hotels, cafes, and (at least on weekends) nightlife.

So you complain about the lack of hospitality until you are offered it and then you don't want it.

You really are doing it wrong. And to knock back the Banya cleanest I have ever felt.

Sent from my GT-I9305T using Tapatalk 2

Hello
Please forgive me. It's all my fault.
I tried to behave in russia like I did in every country in the last two years.
I'm sorry if I can't wright correct russian in latin letters.
I'm sorry that I wright here experiences that are different from ALL others.
Russia is the greatest place on earth and if they don't smile it's clearly my problem.
Nobody tried to cheat,they just have a way of negotiating that I don't understand,clearly my fault.
The fact that I expected a mechanic to repair thing like everywhere else in the world is again my mistake.
Expecting running water for 700 rubel in a motel is also, once again, me, how could I dare.
When you stop for 5 minutes,suited up in the rain gear and still 200km to go that day, then a Russian man,a complete stranger, aproaches you and invites you,it's very impolite to not change your plans and drop everything instantly, to spend hours of great Russian hospitality with him.
If you try to politely say no thanks,he has the right to pull you inside and get mad, because I came to Russia just to visit him therefore it's ALL AGAIN my mistake.
I'm sorry for not falling in love with Russia like everybody is supposed to do and does.
I'm very sorry if someone in Russia is offended by the fact that I don't love Russia and dared to say so.
The thred starter asked about opinions about Russia and I thought I was allowed to do so, my mistake.
I never said all the horror stories are true, don't go.
All I posted were MY experiences in so far 3 weeks of Russia.
So, please accept my apology for saying out loud what I feel, I will not do it again.
Russia is great and one MUST love it here,it's the law.
sushi

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Despite thinkinig you are doing Russia wrong that is funny.


Anyway back on topic (sort of).

I went to a Russian Resturant yesterday the people who ran it were from Belarus and their daughter inlaw from Vladisvostok all recent immigrants to the US. Naturally got talking to them about Russia. The daughter inlaw asked if I had in trouble in Siberia (because it is dangerous) the son wanted to know how mnay problem I had with the police (none in Russia).

My point when you are in Russia treat the danger messages appropriately with the amount of experience the person has with the area.

****NEWS FLASH*****
--Russia is not like other countries
--the Russian populace is not known for its tendency to smile and engage in typical civilities
--the level of Russian infrastructure/facilities--including plumbing facilities--in many cased falls below that of other countries.
--many Russian craftsmen, such as mechanics, have low quality standards and poor tools.
****END NEWS FLASH*****

As you point out, the OP asked for opinions about Russia to soothe his nerves. So while you are certainly entitled to express your views, I am also entitled to express my view that I believe your opinions are ill-founded and indeed rather juvenile.

I would alert the media to the facts set out above, but in fact they are already widely--indeed probably universally--known. But it looks like you came to Russia without realizing these basic things, or realizing them but unable to accept them. Furthermore, while many of us travel precisely to experience other cultures, you seem to want to force Russia to change to meet your personal standards, to the extent of forcing hapless shop attendants to smile and say "bashalsta" (?) and almost getting in a fight with someone that invited you to a party. And you even call these petty issues "horror stories", give me a break. In short, yes, I think it is your fault that you don't like Russia.

I have lived here for more than ten years and traveled here extensively. And believe me, I can very well understand how some people would not like it here. What I can't understand is how you seem to have noticed (and gotten rather excited about) a bunch of petty negative issues (poor plumbing, oh noes) and none of the many positive characteristics of the country (of which you don't seem to have noticed any).

So Cysne, you may have gotten more than you bargained for in this thread, but you have certainly gotten some divergent and strongly-held opinions about the place. I hope that you'll come back here during or after your journey to provide your own impressions.

The same for me, I am excited to ride this country and I will wait to see how it is.

I can't change it anyway, so I let it come as it comes, and then also reply to this tread.....