How safe is Moscow for Americans?

[Mr Carmack]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Slavic & East European Languages and Literature list
> [mailto:SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU]On Behalf Of Renee Stillings
> Sent: Saturday, May 27, 2000 12:47 PM
> To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU
> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] How safe is Moscow for Americans?


> [SNIP} when the fact of the
> matter is that most Russians are quite aware that there are a lot more
> wealthy Russians walking around than wealthy foreigners and that many such
> Russians really are walking around with a wallet full of $100s (or keep
> 1000s stashed in a mattress) whereas smart foreigners carry very little on
> their person. Yes, the foreigners appear to be easy targets, but the same
> common sense and respect for your environment you'd use in any
> city all but eliminates that disadvantage.

Okay, so I have two questions.

(1) Since I will be a tourist (actually, a student), and will want to take
photos of the usual tourist attractions, how am I to avoid being singled out
as a foreigner (American) when I am walking around in awe, gawking at sites
and taking photos? Should I buy a spy camera and take pictures from my coat
sleeve?  :-)

(2) I get the picture that credit cards aren't that useful in most places in
Moscow, and also that it is illegal to use dollars, and that most places do
not take traveller's checks. So, if I am not sure it is safe to store excess
cash in my room or dorm, what do I do with it? Should I take cash or
traveller's checks? Open a bank account?

I assume the best thing to do is take AMEX traveller's checks and cash what
I need at their office--but then wouldn't that be an obvious place for local
ne'er-do-wells to prey on foreigners? And wouldn't visiting the AE Office
everyday get a bit tedious, not to mention making yourself a mark for anyone
watching the place regularly??

(In Lithuania I stayed always with relatives. I still kept my cash always
with me, lots of pristine $US 10's, 5's, and 1's, zipped up in the neck of
my rain jacket that has an extractable hood. The total was no more than
$200, which was more than we needed in our two weeks in Lietuva anyway. We
exchanged dollars at banks, official kiosks, the back office of a store that
imported fruits and fruit juices, and also in a hotel lobby, whose clerks
salivated at the chance of getting rid of some of their roubles for US$20.
This was in 92 before the Lita was reintroduced.)

Yours from Texas, where we all ride horses and wear cowboy hats, ;-)

Alan C

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