Moscow

Moscow is full of historical and architectural gems. Unfortunately, when I visited in the winter of 1986, it was still not very user friendly and there seemed to be a dearth of decent facilities, regardless of how much you were prepared to pay.

Communism was definitely crumbling at the edges and everywhere there were hawkers trying to offload Soviet military paraphernalia. Just like Scandinavia it was cold and hostile; unlike Scandinavia though, nothing seemed to work. The hotel was badly heated, the curtains did not cover the single-glazed window (so no hope of keeping the cold out), it was about minus 20C outside and I had a steaming cold. Altogether not the kind of conditions likely to make me think well of this cold city.

Of all the nine restaurants in the hotel, including Chinese, Italian, French, none had any food, so the bar, which accepted hard currency only (though no change of course!) was the only source of sustenance...copious cheapish vodka and the same slice of salami on slice of baguette that had followed us from the airport, similarly endowed with numerous non-restaurants.

In the bar of the Intourist hotel, the entertainment was provided by dodgy characters in oversized sheepskin coats who wandered around slipping videos, Rolex watches and other contraband into each others pockets, seemingly oblivious to the fact that their antics were obvious to everyone else in the room. It was like being in a John le Carré novel, slightly sinister, rather amusing, and definitely a different kind of holiday experience.

Hopefully now, twenty years later, there are restaurants and the heating works. They claim to have just completed the road to Vladivostok, so I may just have to go back and see!