Current Prices

[Nathan Longan]

You can go to
lenta.com
they don't have lots of food prices on their site, but they'll email you
their catalogue twice a month if you go to the "rassylki" section and sign
up.

Lenta is a very reasonably priced store.  The selection isn't great, but for
basics it is a good place to shop (and they're open 24 hrs so you can avoid
the traffic if you're willing to get up early in the morning).  However,
they, like lots of big stores, expect that most of their customers have
cars.

Some neighborhood "discount" food store chains are:
"Diksi" no site
"Pyatyorochka" http://www.e5.ru/  NO PRICES listed
"Kopeyka" http://www.kopeyka.ru/customers/ A few prices listed
"Polushka" no site

All these places have pretty reasonable prices.

I beg to differ with Mr. Wilson.  The markets (rynki) are not the place to
get good prices.  They are usually very colorful, and the selection is
usually pretty good.  However, except if you're buying potatoes and onions
from the real local producers, almost nothing is locally produced.  That's
hardly surprising given Russia's northern location, but the fruit and
vegetables at the 'rynki' come from the same place that come from at the
grocery stores.  We go to the 'rynki' for our Thanksgiving turkey and
Christmas bird because we know the seller and like the birds she sells (they
are local).  We also buy other things when we're there, but it is very much
a "buyer beware" situation.  Many scales are about 20% underweighted.

It won't win you any friends at the markets, and might get you in trouble,
but if you take a 100 g weight and put it on scales at the market you'll be
shocked how many will show that the weight is 120 g.  I've done it, and am
now very cautious about buying at the rynki.

Nathan

-- 
Nathan Longan, PhD
Resident Director
CIEE Study Center
St. Petersburg, Russia


On 1/23/07, Josh Wilson <jwilson at alinga.com> wrote:
>
> This is quite true - the prices at any of these websites will be higher
> than
> normal. If you are looking at a delivery service, they are likely to be
> much
> higher than the average.
>
> I encourage the students on our study abroad programs to shop at the
> rynoki
> - not only do they get more language practice that way, but they get
> better
> products for half the price... most of the folks who claim Moscow is so
> fabulously expensive shop in these western-style stores. The folks who
> survive in Moscow on $300 a month shop in the rynoki.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Slavic & East European Languages and Literature list
> [mailto:SEELANGS at listserv.cuny.edu] On Behalf Of Vanchu, Anthony J.
> (JSC-AH)[TTI]
> Sent: Monday, January 22, 2007 10:16 PM
> To: SEELANGS at listserv.cuny.edu
> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Current Prices
>
> You might also check out Ramstore:  http://www.ramstore.ru/  They also
> have a flier that supposedly can be downloaded in .pdf file form.  I
> wasn't able to on my first try and haven't had time to get back to it.
>
> One thing comes to mind about the other two places mentioned, namely,
> students should be made aware who among the Russian populace would be
> most likely to shop in those stores.  Although it's been a while since
> I've been to a Sed'moi kontinent store, during my previous visits I saw
> only foreigners and rather well heeleed Russians; perhaps just a
> coincidence, but worth noting.  The wares were certainly higher end.  On
> the other hand, both websites are well organized and could be easily
> used for web-based exercises.
>
> My two cents.
>
> Tony
>
> Dr. Anthony J. Vanchu
> Director, JSC Language Education Center
> TechTrans International, Inc.
> NASA Johnson Space Center
> Houston, TX
> Phone:  (281) 483-0644
> Fax:  (281) 483-4050
>
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