How I went to Moscow and the positive-negative experience with Ural Airlines
Flight delay by 9 hours and accommodation in a luxury hotel. Hike knee-deep in water. Half Marathon in Sochi. Impressions of a tourist from Moscow. That's how I went to Russia.
Well, well, I continue to write on the blog after a short break. Although in fact there was no break, informational posts about Thailand continue to be published constantly, I just do not let them in the general feed and email newsletter, since they only carry informational value immediately before the trip. For example, over the last month, all the beaches of Phangan were described, you would hardly want to receive notifications about every such publication. Or am I wrong?
Moscow and Sochi
First, I'll quickly tell you how I went to Moscow and Sochi in June-July. More precisely, the very visit to Russia was quite common. Moscow, as it stood, is still there. The Krasnodar Territory has not gone anywhere either. Regular readers know that I have long wanted to leave Moscow for a smaller and quieter city, and now, in fact, I live in such a city (talking about Haifa in Israel). And if earlier I wrote my impressions about Moscow in a rather negative format, or a tortured positive one, now, it’s really solid positive. So much so that I again do not mind coming to Moscow for a couple of weeks.
It turned out very clearly to feel the moment that it is very nice to be in Moscow as a tourist. That is, when you have complete freedom of action and in fact you are not obliged to be in Moscow, no one is forced to be in it. I came of my own free will and left as soon as I got bored (in fact, how I finished things, but in my case it’s the same). Therefore, I was very glad to be in Moscow, to meet with friends, to go to cafes and to the gym together..
By the way, the center of Moscow is a separate conversation, after all, it looks good in the summer, it is pleasant to walk, and there are a lot of interesting establishments. Still, there is a big difference, to live in Butovo outside the Moscow Ring Road and not go anywhere, because you work at home, or to be in the center of the capital every day (and not for work). You can consider this a life hack, to look at your city through the eyes of a tourist. And, probably, in another life I would have moved from Butovo to the center.
Delicious foods are great for sports.
Another purpose of my trip (more pleasant than business) is a 4-day hike to the Plesetskaya Shchel, the Tkhab river valley near Gelendzhik. The hike took place, but due to heavy rains it took only a day. I had to urgently fold up and get out of the mountains back to civilization, completely getting wet, and walking for several hours knee-deep in water along the river bed. These hardships are probably the brightest impression of this summer. Still, I love small trekking trips and they are exactly what I miss in my travels..
In addition to the hike, I stayed at the campsites again. Pine paradise and Raccoon. It is already becoming a good tradition to visit there for several days once a year. Since I was with my musician friends, we brought a combo with us in the car and gave a small concert at the camping..
Start of the hike
This is how most of the trip went.
Completely wet, but very satisfied
I love camping life very much
Where else mentally drink tea and burn a fire
Wildlife Concert
I come to the campsite for the pine trees and the sea view
In Sochi, I also dropped in for 3 days, or rather in Adler, where, apparently inspired by the atmosphere of sports, one evening I ran my first half marathon in my life (well, almost 20.4 km). No, not within the framework of a general and organized race, but just like that. I wanted to check if I could. Who does not know, for the last six months I have been running periodically to keep myself in shape.
And Sochi himself did not insert something this time, from the word at all. This was a surprise to me. Plus, for some reason, I thought that I still don't quite understand the category of those people who come here on beach vacations. As I am out of nature and mountains, camping, for nostalgic reasons, yes. But go there purely for a classic vacation? There are no sandy beaches, hotels in Adler from 3000-5000 rubles / day are normal. It is doubtful all the same.
Although this may be due in my case to the fact that I visit the Black Sea coast every year and just tired of it, I want something new. And while there is a certain reverse trend among many travel bloggers - everyone rushed to travel around Russia, I finally wanted to travel around the world. And then all Thailand and Sochi, as long as possible :)
View from a rented apartment in Adler and my half marathon
I discovered a new beach on the border of Abkhazia and Russia
Krasnaya Polyana is still beautiful
Positive-negative review for Ural Airlines
For the first time in my life I flew with Ural Airlines on the Tel Aviv - Moscow route. Like a budget company and its tickets are usually cheaper than Aeroflot or El Al. Type saved. In principle, it is so, I took tickets for 7 thousand rubles one way instead of 10-11 thousand. Well, and specifically from Tel Aviv, she flies on Thursdays and Sundays, and since I bought a ticket a couple of days before departure, then on Thursday I had no other options.
When I was half an hour before departure at my gate, I learned that the plane was delayed. Hour 2 there was no real information when they said that the departure would be already in 9 hours. 9, Karl! I have already encountered a flight delay, I know about food, an overnight stay, etc., but usually the delay was only a few hours. Immediately the plane was supposed to take off the next morning.
Traditional coffee at the airport
I learned from the conversations of other passengers that Ural Airlines regularly makes delays. I just don’t understand, if everyone doesn’t like it and all this continues with enviable regularity, then why do they continue to fly? The mice cried and pricked, but continued to eat the cactus? If you want to save money, then be ready for such a scenario, a voluntary choice, what really. I took note of this to myself, and if I am not ready for the delay, then I will not fly with them next time..
The most interesting thing, it turned out that our plane had not even taken off from Moscow from Zhukovsky airport. For a minute, the flight lasts 4 hours, which means that this delay has been known for quite some time. But the airline, or whoever does it all, lasted almost until the time of our departure, instead of reporting the delay at check-in (and it could have been even earlier). Since Israel is a small country, many would simply return home, and someone would simply leave the house later, looking at the information about the delay online.
Such a long delay was due to the fact that Zhukovsky airport does not work at night. That is, if a plane leaves Zhukovsky in the evening and there is a delay, then everyone will have to wait until morning. Here is such a tin.
The representative of Ural Airlines was not at the Tel Aviv airport, a man came from Aeroflot. I don’t know, on purpose, or for the purpose that nothing can be presented to him, since he is doing almost a favor in general, that he is settling questions not for his airline. In any case, the representative and employees of the airport refused to give any paper that the flight was delayed, or new boarding with a new time. Not in any. They say that the stamp in the passport will mean a delay, because we are arriving the next day. Maybe someone managed to knock out, but in front of me those who demanded were sent.
But the rest of the legal requirements were met. We were taken to a posh hotel (here I told about him), where they fed and settled in the rooms. And you know what a shame, the hotel is super, the rooms are already two-room apartments, why was the delay only 9 hours? I was ready to live there fully for a couple of days :)
Hotel food
Luxurious suite
But jokes are jokes, it really turned out stupid. Since we were procrastinating for quite a long time at the airport, and then the transfer was not organized immediately, then there was a maximum of a couple of hours left for sleep in the hotel, so it was no longer possible to stay up. And, frankly, when you have to go through passport control several times, go back and forth by bus, wait in different places, then you will no longer be happy with such a hotel. So, it would seem as much as 9 hours, but there is no way to sleep and rest. It might even be easier to stay at the airport and just wait for the flight, as several people did. But, as luck would have it, I turned in the phone and laptop charger in my luggage, so I couldn't work or watch a movie.
There are no complaints about the hotel at all. I don’t know who should be given a prize for the clear performance of duties, Israel airport services or Ural Airlines. Who knows? What would happen with the same delay in another country or in the same Moscow? Would give a good hotel or settle in the barracks?
Well, the flight itself was normal. Budget food at a minimum, so to speak, and an airplane with seats resting on your knees. Nothing special. Still, I like Aeroflot, despite its pricing policy. And, by the way, Zhukovsky airport is rather strange, small-scale, like somewhere in the Russian provinces. Only from the outside it looks modern due to the glass facade, but inside it looks like warehouse hangars, without windows and with plastic clapboard on the walls.
Flight Ural Airlines, Tel Aviv - Moscow
Feeding is purely basic
There is only 1 luggage conveyor in the hall, apparently there are not many flights
Zhukovsky airport outside, nothing like that
And yet, someday I will write separately about Ben Gurion Airport. Probably the only one that does not make me feel good, although I love airports. Because he consciously and subconsciously connects not with travel, but with how you will once again be snooped and interrogated. No, I understand everything, terrorist attacks and a constant state of war, but IMHO too much. How else the tourists weren't scared away, I don't know.
P.S. Write a post about life in Israel? I haven't written anything on this topic for a long time.