Before I left for Russia, one of my students in San Jose wanted to let
me know that I was going to a different place. The student, an emigre
from the former Soviet Union, warned me that cars drive on the
sidewalks in Moscow. I envisioned BMWs doing hairpin turns at high
speeds, barrelling down on frightened walkers. It didn't turn out that
way. But cars do indeed drive on the sidewalk, and I see them several
times a day.
To understand this, you have to know that the sidewalks are not the
same as in the US. Here, sidewalks are extensions of the road, often
made out of the same pavement, and wider. They are still separated by
curbs, but the Russian DMV apparently didn't send out the message that
you don't park on sidewalks. In front of my apartment as I write this,
two cars are parked on the sidewalk, and it's a similar scene
throughout the city.
When it's time to move their cars, most sidewalk drivers head back into
the street. But a few times a day there's a driver who decides the
easiest way to get back to the road is to keep driving on the sidewalk,
at a very slow speed. So I cast a wary eye on every car I see, and
Sasha and Alison do the same. If I were to score this as an Olympic event, the most points would go to sidewalk drivers in SUVs, with cellphone in hand and cigarette in
mouth. Most likely a taxi driver. And there are a lot of taxi drivers.
Maybe because of the sidewalk driving, or due to the very fast drivers
here, Moscow does have one pedestrian benefit--underground pedestrian
underpasses that help us cross busy intersections. One that we pass
through daily to Sasha's school is under a road known as the Garden Ring.
This underpass often attracts
musicians playing for their supper. We have been treated to accordion
players, guitarists, and our favorite, a musician who plays the teeth
of a saw with a bow. Tonight a guitarist was playing the theme to "Love
Story."
Many of these underpasses have shops in them. This one at the Garden
Ring does not, so the acoustic quality is high and it adds to the
journey.
Even if it's "Love Story."
Capitalism is alive and well here in the former USSR. We're most aware
of it in the small businesses that are everywhere. Entrepreneurs set up
impromptu stands in the subway (we're guessing that it is illegal)
selling books and socks. Near transit stops, there are often 10 to 12
elderly women on snowy sidewalks selling different types of clothes.
One favorite vendor near our house sells a contraption straight out
of a Ronco late night infomercial, for cutting vegetables--it slices, it
dices, and can be yours for $19.95 if you call now. Whenever that
merchant is out there, there is a pile of shaved carrots and potatos
for shoppers to inspect.
More stores line the underpasses near the subway stations, selling
toiletries, pastries, candy, water and cellphones. Above ground near
the same metros stops, there are usually a number of food stands in
enclosed buildings--roasted chicken, baked potatos with toppings,
blinis. A favorite of Sasha and mine is one selling uzbecki bread hot
out of the oven for 12 rubles, which is about 40 cents. It's a close to
the hot bagel experience as you get here. Although I did manage to
order a bagel at a cafe a few weeks ago--sadly, it looked and tasted
like a hamburger bun with a hole cut through the top section.
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